1 These are the words which Mosheh spoke to all Yisra’ĕl beyond the Yardĕn in the wilderness, in the desert plain opposite Suph, between Paran and Tophel, and Laḇan, and Ḥatsĕroth, and Di Zahaḇ,
2 eleven days’ journey from Ḥorĕḇ by way of Mount Sĕ‛ir to Qaḏĕsh Barnĕa.
3 And it came to be in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that Mosheh spoke to the children of Yisra’ĕl according to all that יהוה had commanded him concerning them,
4 after he had smitten Siḥon sovereign of the Amorites, who dwelt in Ḥeshbon, and Og̅ sovereign of Bashan, who dwelt at Ashtaroth in Eḏre‛i.
5 Beyond the Yardĕn, in the land of Mo’aḇ, Mosheh undertook to declair this Torah, saying,
6 “יהוה our Elohim spoke to us in Ḥorĕḇ, saying, ‘You have dwelt long enough at this mountain.
7 ‘Turn and set out on your way, and go into the mountains of the Amorites, and to all the neighbouring places in the desert plain, in the mountains and in the low country, and in the Negeḇ and on the seacoast, to the land of the Kena‛anites and to Leḇanon, as far as the great river, the River Euphrates.
8 ‘See, I have set the land before you. Go in and possess the land which יהוה swore to your fathers, to Aḇraham, to Yitsḥaq, and to Ya‛aqoḇ, to give to them and their seed after them.’
9 “And I spoke to you at that time, saying, ‘I am unable to bear you by myself.
10 ‘יהוה your Elohim has increased you, and see, you are today as numerous as the stars of the heavens.
11 ‘יהוה Elohim of your fathers is going to add to you a thousand times more than you are, and bless you as He has spoken to you!
12 ‘How do I bear your pressure and your burden and your strife, by myself?
13 ‘Choose men, wise and understanding, and known to your tribes, and let me appoint them as your heads.’
14 “And you answered me and said, ‘The word which you have spoken to us to do is good.’
15 “And I took the heads of your tribes, wise men and known, and made them heads over you, leaders of thousands, and leaders of hundreds, and leaders of fifties, and leaders of tens, and officers for your tribes.
16 “And I commanded your judges at that time, saying, ‘When hearing between your brothers, judge righteously between a man and his brother or the stranger who is with him.
17 ‘Do not show partiality in right-ruling, hear the small as well as the great. Do not be afraid of anyone’s face, for the right-ruling belongs to Elohim. And the case which is too hard for you, bring it to me, and I shall hear it.’
18 “And I commanded you at that time all the words which you should do.
19 “Then we set out from Ḥorĕḇ, and went through all that great and awesome wilderness which you saw on the way to the mountains of the Amorites, as יהוה our Elohim had commanded us. And we came to Qaḏĕsh Barnĕa.
20 “And I said to you, ‘You have come to the mountains of the Amorites, which יהוה our Elohim is giving us.
21 ‘See, יהוה your Elohim has set the land before you. Go up and possess it, as יהוה Elohim of your fathers has spoken to you. Do not fear, nor be discouraged.’
22 “And all of you came near to me and said, ‘Let us send men before us, and let them search out the land for us, and bring back word to us of the way by which we should go up, and of the cities into which we would come.’
23 “And the matter was good in my eyes, so I took twelve of your men, one man from each tribe.
24 “And they turned and went up into the mountains, and came to the wadi Eshkol, and spied it out.
25 “And they took some of the fruit of the land in their hands and brought it down to us. And they brought back word to us, saying, ‘The land which יהוה our Elohim is giving us is good.’
26 “But you would not go up and rebelled against the mouth of יהוה your Elohim,
27 and grumbled in your tents, and said, ‘Because יהוה was hating us, He has brought us out of the land of Mitsrayim to give us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us.
28 ‘Where are we going to? Our brothers have made our hearts melt, saying, “The people are greater and taller than we, the cities are great and walled up to the heavens, and we saw the sons of the Anaqim there too.” ’
29 “Then I said to you, ‘Have no dread or fear of them.
30 ‘יהוה your Elohim, who is going before you, He does fight for you, according to all He did for you in Mitsrayim before your eyes,
31 and in the wilderness, where you saw how יהוה your Elohim has borne you, as a man bears his son, in all the way that you went until you came to this place.’
32 “Yet in this matter you are putting no trust in יהוה your Elohim,
33 who is going before you in the way to seek out a place for you to pitch your tents, to show you the way you should go, in fire by night and in a cloud by day.
34 “And יהוה heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, and took an oath, saying,
35 ‘Not one of these men of this evil generation shall see that good land of which I swore to give to your fathers,
36 except Kalĕḇ son of Yephunneh. He shall see it, and to him and his children I give the land on which he walked, because he followed יהוה completely.’
37 “And יהוה was enraged with me for your sakes, saying, ‘You do not go in there, either.
38 ‘Yehoshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall go in there. Strengthen him, for he shall cause Yisra’ĕl to inherit.
39 ‘And your little ones and your children, who you say are for a prey, who today have no knowledge of good and evil, they are going in there. And to them I give it, and they are to possess it.
40 ‘But you, turn and take your journey into the wilderness by the Way of the Sea of Reeds.’
41 “Then you answered and said to me, ‘We have sinned against יהוה. We ourselves are going up, and we shall fight, as יהוה our Elohim commanded us.’ And when each one of you had girded on his battle gear, you were ready to go up into the mountain.
42 “And יהוה said to me, ‘Say to them, “Do not go up nor fight, for I am not in your midst, lest you be smitten before your enemies.” ’
43 “So I spoke to you, but you would not listen and rebelled against the mouth of יהוה, and acted proudly, and went up into the mountain.
44 “Then the Amorites who dwelt in that mountain came out against you and chased you as bees do, and drove you back from Sĕ‛ir to Ḥormah.
45 “And you returned and wept before יהוה, but יהוה would not listen to your voice nor give ear to you.
46 “So you dwelt in Qaḏĕsh many days, according to the days that you dwelt.