The Fifth Book of Moses: Deuteronomy

⭑ King James Version :: World English Bible Catholic ⭑

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- Chapter 1 -

(Exodus 33:1–6)

These be the words which Moses spake unto all Israel on this side Jordan in the wilderness, in the plain over against the Red sea, between Paran, and Tophel, and Laban, and Hazeroth, and Dizahab.(a)

(There are eleven days’ journey from Horeb by the way of mount Seir unto Kadesh–barnea.)

And it came to pass in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that Moses spake unto the children of Israel, according unto all that the Lord had given him in commandment unto them;

After he had slain Sihon the king of the Amorites, which dwelt in Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, which dwelt at Astaroth in Edrei:

On this side Jordan, in the land of Moab, began Moses to declare this law, saying,

The Lord our God spake unto us in Horeb, saying, Ye have dwelt long enough in this mount:

Turn you, and take your journey, and go to the mount of the Amorites, and unto all the places nigh thereunto, in the plain, in the hills, and in the vale, and in the south, and by the sea side, to the land of the Canaanites, and unto Lebanon, unto the great river, the river Euphrates.(b)

Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and possess the land which the Lord sware unto your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them.(c)

Moses Appoints Leaders

(Exodus 18:13–27)

And I spake unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone:

The Lord your God hath multiplied you, and, behold, ye are this day as the stars of heaven for multitude.

(The Lord God of your fathers make you a thousand times so many more as ye are, and bless you, as he hath promised you!)

How can I myself alone bear your cumbrance, and your burden, and your strife?

Take you wise men, and understanding, and known among your tribes, and I will make them rulers over you.(d)

And ye answered me, and said, The thing which thou hast spoken is good for us to do.

So I took the chief of your tribes, wise men, and known, and made them heads over you, captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, and captains over fifties, and captains over tens, and officers among your tribes.(e)

And I charged your judges at that time, saying, Hear the causes between your brethren, and judge righteously between every man and his brother, and the stranger that is with him.

Ye shall not respect persons in judgment; but ye shall hear the small as well as the great; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment is God’s: and the cause that is too hard for you, bring it unto me, and I will hear it.(f)

And I commanded you at that time all the things which ye should do.

Twelve Spies Sent Out

(Numbers 13:1–33)

And when we departed from Horeb, we went through all that great and terrible wilderness, which ye saw by the way of the mountain of the Amorites, as the Lord our God commanded us; and we came to Kadesh–barnea.

And I said unto you, Ye are come unto the mountain of the Amorites, which the Lord our God doth give unto us.

Behold, the Lord thy God hath set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged.

And ye came near unto me every one of you, and said, We will send men before us, and they shall search us out the land, and bring us word again by what way we must go up, and into what cities we shall come.

And the saying pleased me well: and I took twelve men of you, one of a tribe:

And they turned and went up into the mountain, and came unto the valley of Eshcol, and searched it out.

And they took of the fruit of the land in their hands, and brought it down unto us, and brought us word again, and said, It is a good land which the Lord our God doth give us.

Israel’s Rebellion

(Numbers 14:1–12)

Notwithstanding ye would not go up, but rebelled against the commandment of the Lord your God:

And ye murmured in your tents, and said, Because the Lord hated us, he hath brought us forth out of the land of Egypt, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us.

Whither shall we go up? our brethren have discouraged our heart, saying, The people is greater and taller than we; the cities are great and walled up to heaven; and moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakims there.(g)

Then I said unto you, Dread not, neither be afraid of them.

The Lord your God which goeth before you, he shall fight for you, according to all that he did for you in Egypt before your eyes;

And in the wilderness, where thou hast seen how that the Lord thy God bare thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, until ye came into this place.

Yet in this thing ye did not believe the Lord your God,

Who went in the way before you, to search you out a place to pitch your tents in, in fire by night, to shew you by what way ye should go, and in a cloud by day.

Israel’s Penalty

(Numbers 14:20–35)

And the Lord heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, and sware, saying,

Surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see that good land, which I sware to give unto your fathers,

Save Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him will I give the land that he hath trodden upon, and to his children, because he hath wholly followed the Lord .(h)

Also the Lord was angry with me for your sakes, saying, Thou also shalt not go in thither.

But Joshua the son of Nun, which standeth before thee, he shall go in thither: encourage him: for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.

Moreover your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, and your children, which in that day had no knowledge between good and evil, they shall go in thither, and unto them will I give it, and they shall possess it.

But as for you, turn you, and take your journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea.

The Defeat at Hormah

(Numbers 14:40–45)

Then ye answered and said unto me, We have sinned against the Lord , we will go up and fight, according to all that the Lord our God commanded us. And when ye had girded on every man his weapons of war, ye were ready to go up into the hill.

And the Lord said unto me, Say unto them, Go not up, neither fight; for I am not among you; lest ye be smitten before your enemies.

So I spake unto you; and ye would not hear, but rebelled against the commandment of the Lord , and went presumptuously up into the hill.(i)

And the Amorites, which dwelt in that mountain, came out against you, and chased you, as bees do, and destroyed you in Seir, even unto Hormah.

And ye returned and wept before the Lord ; but the Lord would not hearken to your voice, nor give ear unto you.

So ye abode in Kadesh many days, according unto the days that ye abode there.

Footnotes

(a)1:1 the Red…: or, Zuph

(b)1:7 all…: Heb. all his neighbours

(d)1:13 Take: Heb. Give

(e)1:15 made: Heb. gave

(f)1:17 respect…: Heb. acknowledge faces

(g)1:28 discouraged: Heb. melted

(h)1:36 wholly…: Heb. fulfilled to go after

(i)1:43 went…: Heb. ye were presumptuous, and went up

(Exodus 33:1–6)

These are the words which Moses spoke to all Israel beyond the Jordan in the wilderness, in the Arabah opposite Suf, between Paran, Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Dizahab.

It is eleven days’ journey from Horeb by the way of Mount Seir to Kadesh Barnea.

In the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, Moses spoke to the children of Israel according to all that the LORD

(a)

had given him in commandment to them,

after he had struck Sihon the king of the Amorites who lived in Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan who lived in Ashtaroth, at Edrei.

Beyond the Jordan, in the land of Moab, Moses began to declare this law, saying,

“The LORD our God

(b)

spoke to us in Horeb, saying, ‘You have lived long enough at this mountain.

Turn, and take your journey, and go to the hill country of the Amorites and to all the places near there: in the Arabah, in the hill country, in the lowland, in the South, by the seashore, in the land of the Canaanites, and in Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates.

Behold,(c) I have set the land before you. Go in and possess the land which the LORD swore to your fathers—to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob—to give to them and to their offspring

(d)

after them.’”

Moses Appoints Leaders

(Exodus 18:13–27)

I spoke to you at that time, saying, “I am not able to bear you myself alone.

The LORD your God has multiplied you, and behold, you are today as the stars of the sky for multitude.

May the LORD, the God of your fathers, make you a thousand times as many as you are and bless you, as he has promised you!

How can I myself alone bear your problems, your burdens, and your strife?

Take wise men of understanding who are respected among your tribes, and I will make them heads over you.”

You answered me, and said, “The thing which you have spoken is good to do.”

So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and respected men, and made them heads over you, captains of thousands, captains of hundreds, captains of fifties, captains of tens, and officers, according to your tribes.

I commanded your judges at that time, saying, “Hear cases between your brothers and judge righteously between a man and his brother, and the foreigner who is living with him.

You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not be afraid of the face of man, for the judgment is God’s. The case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.”

I commanded you at that time all the things which you should do.

Twelve Spies Sent Out

(Numbers 13:1–33)

We traveled from Horeb and went through all that great and terrible wilderness which you saw, by the way to the hill country of the Amorites, as the LORD our God commanded us; and we came to Kadesh Barnea.

I said to you, “You have come to the hill country of the Amorites, which the LORD our God gives to us.

Behold, the LORD your God has set the land before you. Go up, take possession, as the LORD the God of your fathers has spoken to you. Don’t be afraid, neither be dismayed.”

You came near to me, everyone of you, and said, “Let’s send men before us, that they may search the land for us, and bring back to us word of the way by which we must go up, and the cities to which we shall come.”

The thing pleased me well. I took twelve of your men, one man for every tribe.

They turned and went up into the hill country, and came to the valley of Eshcol, and spied it out.

They took some of the fruit of the land in their hands and brought it down to us, and brought us word again, and said, “It is a good land which the LORD our God gives to us.”

Israel’s Rebellion

(Numbers 14:1–12)

Yet you wouldn’t go up, but rebelled against the commandment of the LORD your God.

You murmured in your tents, and said, “Because the LORD hated us, he has brought us out of the land of Egypt, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites to destroy us.

Where are we going up? Our brothers have made our heart melt, saying, ‘The people are greater and taller than we. The cities are great and fortified up to the sky. Moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakim there!’”

Then I said to you, “Don’t be terrified. Don’t be afraid of them.

The LORD your God, who goes before you, he will fight for you, according to all that he did for you in Egypt before your eyes,

and in the wilderness where you have seen how that the LORD your God carried you, as a man carries his son, in all the way that you went, until you came to this place.”

Yet in this thing you didn’t believe the LORD your God,

who went before you on the way, to seek out a place for you to pitch your tents in: in fire by night, to show you by what way you should go, and in the cloud by day.

Israel’s Penalty

(Numbers 14:20–35)

The LORD heard the voice of your words and was angry, and swore, saying,

“Surely not one of these men of this evil generation shall see the good land which I swore to give to your fathers,

except Caleb the son of Jephunneh. He shall see it. I will give the land that he has trodden on to him and to his children, because he has wholly followed the LORD.”

Also the LORD was angry with me for your sakes, saying, “You also shall not go in there.

Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, shall go in there. Encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.

Moreover your little ones, whom you said would be captured or killed, your children, who today have no knowledge of good or evil, shall go in there. I will give it to them, and they shall possess it.

But as for you, turn, and take your journey into the wilderness by the way to the Red Sea.”

The Defeat at Hormah

(Numbers 14:40–45)

Then you answered and said to me, “We have sinned against the LORD. We will go up and fight, according to all that the LORD our God commanded us.” Every man of you put on his weapons of war, and presumed to go up into the hill country.

The LORD said to me, “Tell them, ‘Don’t go up and don’t fight; for I am not among you, lest you be struck before your enemies.’”

So I spoke to you, and you didn’t listen; but you rebelled against the commandment of the LORD, and were presumptuous, and went up into the hill country.

The Amorites, who lived in that hill country, came out against you and chased you as bees do, and beat you down in Seir, even to Hormah.

You returned and wept before the LORD, but the LORD didn’t listen to your voice, nor turn his ear to you.

So you stayed in Kadesh many days, according to the days that you remained.

Footnotes

(a)1:3 When rendered in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS, “LORD” or “GOD” is the translation of God’s Proper Name.

(b)1:6 The Hebrew word rendered “God” is “אֱלֹהִ֑ים” (Elohim).

(c)1:8 “Behold”, from “הִנֵּה”, means look at, take notice, observe, see, or gaze at. It is often used as an interjection.

(d)1:8 or, seed