NumbersChapter 32

Tap any verse to comment or suggest a better wording.

¹The tribes of Reuben and Gad had very large herds and flocks. They looked over the lands of Jazer and Gilead. They saw that the area was a good place for livestock. ²So the men of Gad and Reuben came to Moses, to Eleazar the priest, and to the leaders of the community. They said, ³"Look at Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon. ⁴The LORD defeated these places for the people of Israel. This land is good for livestock, and we, your servants, have livestock." ⁵They said, "If you are pleased with us, please give this land to your servants as our own. Don't make us cross the Jordan River." ⁶But Moses asked the men of Gad and Reuben, "Should your brothers go to war while you sit here? ⁷Why are you making the Israelites lose heart? Why stop them from crossing into the land the LORD has given them? ⁸Your fathers did the same thing. I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to look over the land. ⁹They went up to the Valley of Eshcol and saw the land. Then they made the Israelites lose heart. They kept them from going into the land the LORD had given them. ¹⁰So the LORD's anger flared up that day. He made a promise with an oath. He said, ¹¹'Because they did not follow me with all their hearts, not one of the men who came out of Egypt who is 20 years old or older will see the land. It is the land I promised with an oath to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. ¹²Not one of them will see it except Caleb and Joshua. Caleb is the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, and Joshua is the son of Nun. They will see it because they did follow the LORD with all their hearts.' ¹³The LORD's anger burned against Israel. He made them wander in the wilderness for 40 years. They wandered until the whole generation who had done evil in his sight was gone. ¹⁴And now look at you! You are a family of sinners, and you have taken your fathers' place. You are making the LORD even more angry with Israel. ¹⁵If you turn away from following him, he will leave these people in the wilderness again. Then you will be the reason they are destroyed." ¹⁶Then the men of Gad and Reuben came up to Moses. They said, "We want to build pens for our sheep here. We also want to build cities for our little children. ¹⁷But we will get our weapons and be ready for battle. We will go ahead of the Israelites until we have brought them to their place. While we are gone, our little children will stay in the walled cities. There they will be safe from the people who live in the land. ¹⁸We will not go back to our homes until every Israelite has taken his own share of the land. ¹⁹But we will not take any land with them on the other side of the Jordan and beyond, because our share has come to us here on the east side of the Jordan." ²⁰Moses answered, "Suppose you do this. Suppose you arm yourselves for battle before the LORD. ²¹Suppose every one of your armed men crosses the Jordan before the LORD. And suppose you stay until he has driven his enemies out ahead of him. ²²Then, when the land is under control before the LORD, you may come back. You will be free of your duty to the LORD and to Israel. And this land will be yours to keep before the LORD. ²³But if you don't do this, you will surely sin against the LORD. And you can be sure that your sin will find you out. ²⁴Build cities for your little children and pens for your flocks. But do what you have promised." ²⁵The men of Gad and Reuben said to Moses, "We are your servants. We will do just what our master commands. ²⁶Our children, our wives, our livestock, and all our animals will stay here in the cities of Gilead. ²⁷But we, your servants, are armed for war. Every man will cross over to fight before the LORD, just as our master says." ²⁸So Moses gave orders about them to Eleazar the priest and to Joshua son of Nun. He also gave orders to the family leaders of the tribes of Israel. ²⁹Moses told them, "The men of Gad and Reuben may cross the Jordan with you, every man armed for battle before the LORD. If they do, and the land comes under your control, then give them the land of Gilead as their own. ³⁰But if they don't arm themselves and cross over with you, they must take their land among you in the land of Canaan." ³¹The men of Gad and Reuben answered, "The LORD has spoken to us, your servants. We will do what he said. ³²We will cross over into the land of Canaan armed for battle before the LORD. Then our share of land will be on this side of the Jordan." ³³So Moses gave land to the tribes of Gad and Reuben, and to half the tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph. He gave them the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan. He gave them the whole land, with its cities and the land around them. ³⁴The tribe of Gad rebuilt Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer, ³⁵Atroth-shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah, ³⁶Beth-nimrah, and Beth-haran as walled cities. They also built pens for their flocks. ³⁷The tribe of Reuben rebuilt Heshbon, Elealeh, Kiriathaim, ³⁸Nebo, Baal-meon, and Sibmah. The names of Nebo and Baal-meon were changed. They gave new names to the cities they rebuilt. ³⁹The descendants of Machir son of Manasseh went to Gilead. They captured it and drove out the Amorites who lived there. ⁴⁰So Moses gave Gilead to the clan of Machir son of Manasseh, and they settled there. ⁴¹Jair, a descendant of Manasseh, went and captured their villages. He named them Havvoth-jair.a ⁴²And Nobah went and captured Kenath and the villages around it. He named it Nobah, after himself.