Deuteronomy 1

1 These are the words, which Moses spoke to all Israel beyond the Jordan, in the plain wilderness, over against the Red Sea, between Pharan and Thophel and Laban and Haseroth, where there is very much gold:

These are the words which Moses said to all Israel on the far side of Jordan, in the waste land in the Arabah opposite Suph, between Paran on the one side, and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Dizahab on the other.

2 Eleven days’ journey from Horeb by the way of Mount Seir to Cadesbarne.

It is eleven days' journey from Horeb by the way of Mount Seir to Kadesh-barnea.

3 In the fortieth year, the eleventh month, the first day of the month, Moses spoke to the children of Israel all that the Lord had commanded him to say to them:

Now in the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses gave to the children of Israel all the orders which the Lord had given him for them;

4 After that he had slain Sehon king of the Amorrhites, who dwelt in Hesebon: and Og king of Basan who abode in Astaroth, and in Edrai,

After he had overcome Sihon, king of the Amorites, ruling in Heshbon, and Og, king of Bashan, ruling in Ashtaroth, at Edrei:

5 Beyond the Jordan in the land of Moab. And Moses began to expound the law, and to say:

On the far side of Jordan in the land of Moab, Moses gave the people this law, saying,

6 The Lord our God spoke to us in Horeb, saying: You have stayed long enough in this mountain:

The Lord our God said to us in Horeb, You have been long enough in this mountain:

7 Turn you, and come to the mountain of the Amorrhites, and to the other places that are next to it, the plains and the hills and the vales towards the south, and by the sea shore, the land of the Chanaanites, and of Libanus, as far as the great river Euphrates.

Make a move now, and go on your way into the hill-country of the Amorites and the places near it, in the Arabah and the hill-country and in the lowlands and in the South and by the seaside, all the land of the Canaanites, and Lebanon, as far as the great river, the river Euphrates.

8 Behold, said he, I have delivered it to you: go in and possess it, concerning which the Lord swore to your fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, that he would give it to them, and to their seed after them.

See, all the land is before you: go in and take for yourselves the land which the Lord gave by an oath to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and to their seed after them.

9 And I said to you at that time:

At that time I said to you, I am not able to undertake the care of you by myself;

10 I alone am not able to bear you: for the Lord your God hath multiplied you, and you are this day as the stars of heaven, for multitude.

The Lord your God has given you increase, and now you are like the stars of heaven in number.

11 (The Lord God of your fathers add to this number many thousands, and bless you as he hath spoken.)

May the Lord, the God of your fathers, make you a thousand times greater in number than you are, and give you his blessing as he has said!

12 I alone am not able to bear your business, and the charge of you and your differences.

How is it possible for me by myself to be responsible for you, and undertake the weight of all your troubles and your arguments?

13 Let me have from among you wise and understanding men, and such whose conversation is approved among your tribes, that I may appoint them your rulers.

Take for yourselves men who are wise, far-seeing, and respected among you, from your tribes, and I will make them rulers over you.

14 Then you answered me: The thing is good which thou meanest to do.

And you made answer and said to me, It is good for us to do as you say.

15 And I took out of your tribes men wise and honourable, and appointed them rulers, tribunes, and centurions, and officers over fifties, and over tens, who might teach you all things.

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

16 And I commanded them, saying: Hear them, and judge that which is just: whether he be one of your country, or a stranger.

And at that time I gave orders to your judges, saying, Let all questions between your brothers come before you for hearing, and give decisions uprightly between a man and his brother or one from another nation who is with him.

17 There shall be no difference of persons, you shall hear the little as well as the great: neither shall you respect any man’s person, because it is the judgment of God. And if any thing seem hard to you, refer it to me, and I will hear it.

In judging, do not let a man's position have any weight with you; give hearing equally to small and great; have no fear of any man, for it is God who is judge: and any cause in which you are not able to give a decision, you are to put before me and I will give it a hearing.

18 And I commanded you all things that you were to do.

And at that time I gave you all the orders which you were to do.

19 And departing from Horeb, we passed through the terrible and vast wilderness, which you saw, by the way of the mountain of the Amorrhite, as the Lord our God had commanded us. And when we were come into Cadesbarne,

Then we went on from Horeb, through all that great and cruel waste which you saw, on our way to the hill-country of the Amorites, as the Lord gave us orders; and we came to Kadesh-barnea.

20 I said to you: You are come to the mountain of the Amorrhite, which the Lord our God will give to us.

And I said to you, You have come to the hill-country of the Amorites, which the Lord our God is giving us.

21 See the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee: go up and possess it, as the Lord our God hath spoken to thy fathers: fear not, nor be any way discouraged.

See now, the Lord your God has put the land into your hands: go up and take it, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has said to you; have no fear and do not be troubled.

22 And you came all to me, and said: Let us send men who may view the land, and bring us word what way we shall go up, and to what cities we shall go.

And you came near to me, every one of you, and said, Let us send men before us to go through the land with care and give us an account of the way we are to go and the towns to which we will come.

23 And because the saying pleased me, I sent of you twelve men, one of every tribe:

And what you said seemed good to me, and I took twelve men from among you, one from every tribe;

24 Who, when they had set forward and had gone up to the mountains, came as far as the valley of the cluster: and having viewed the land,

And they went up into the hill-country and came to the valley of Eshcol, and saw what was there.

25 Taking of the fruits thereof, to shew its fertility, they brought them to us, and said: The land is good, which the Lord our God will give us.

And taking in their hands some of the fruit of the land, they came down again to us, and gave us their account, saying, It is a good land which the Lord our God is giving us.

26 And you would not go up, but being incredulous to the word of the Lord our God,

But going against the order of the Lord your God, you would not go up:

27 You murmured in your tents, and said: The Lord hateth us, and therefore he hath brought us out of the land of Egypt, that he might deliver us into the hand of the Amorrhite, and destroy us.

And you made an angry outcry in your tents, and said, In his hate for us the Lord has taken us out of the land of Egypt, to give us up into the hands of the Amorites for our destruction.

28 Whither shall we go up? the messengers have terrified our hearts, saying: The multitude is very great, and taller than we: the cities are great, and walled up to the sky, we have seen the sons of the Enacims there.

Where are we going up? Our brothers have made our hearts feeble with fear by saying, The people are greater and taller than we are, and the towns are great and walled up to heaven; and more than this, we have seen the sons of the Anakim there.

29 And I said to you: Fear not, neither be ye afraid of them:

Then I said to you, Have no fear of them.

30 The Lord God, who is your leader, himself will fight for you, as he did in Egypt in the sight of all.

The Lord your God who goes before you will be fighting for you, and will do such wonders as he did for you in Egypt before your eyes;

31 And in the wilderness (as thou hast seen) the Lord thy God hath carried thee, as a man is wont to carry his little son, all the way that you have come, until you came to this place.

And in the waste land, where you have seen how the Lord was supporting you, as a man does his son, in all your journeying till you came to this place.

32 And yet for all this you did not believe the Lord your God,

But for all this, you had no faith in the Lord your God,

33 Who went before you in the way, and marked out the place, wherein you should pitch your tents, in the night shewing you the way by fire, and in the day by the pillar of a cloud.

Who goes before you on your way, looking for a place where you may put up your tents, in fire by night, lighting up the way you are to go, and in a cloud by day.

34 And when the Lord had heard the voice of your words, he was angry and swore, and said:

And the Lord, hearing your words, was angry, and said with an oath,

35 Not one of the men of this wicked generation shall see the good land, which I promised with an oath to your fathers:

Truly, not one of this evil generation will see that good land which I said I would give to your fathers,

36 Except Caleb the son of Jephone: for he shall see it, and to him I will give the land that he hath trodden upon, and to his children, because he hath followed the Lord.

But only Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, he will see it; and to him and to his children I will give the land over which his feet have gone, because he has been true to the Lord with all his heart.

37 Neither is his indignation against the people to be wondered at, since the Lord was angry with me also on your account, and said: Neither shalt thou go in thither.

And, in addition, the Lord was angry with me because of you, saying, You yourself will not go into it:

38 But Josue the son of Nun, thy minister, he shall go in for thee: exhort and encourage him, and he shall divide the land by lot to Israel.

Joshua, the son of Nun, your servant, he will go into the land: say to him that he is to be strong, for he will be Israel's guide into their heritage.

39 Your children, of whom you said that they should be led away captives, and your sons who know not this day the difference of good and evil, they shall go in: and to them I will give the land, and they shall possess it.

And your little ones, who, you said, would come into strange hands, your children, who now have no knowledge of good or evil, they will go into that land, and to them I will give it and it will be theirs.

40 But return you and go into the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea.

But as for you, go back, journeying into the waste land by the way of the Red Sea.

41 And you answered me: We have sinned against the Lord: we will go up and fight, as the Lord our God hath commanded. And when you went ready armed unto the mountain,

Then you said to me, We have done evil against the Lord, we will go up to the attack, as the Lord our God has given us orders. And arming yourselves every one, you made ready to go up without care into the hill-country.

42 The Lord said to me: Say to them: Go not up, and fight not, for I am not with you: lest you fall before your enemies.

And the Lord said to me, Say to them, Do not go up to the attack; for I am not among you, and you will be overcome by those who are against you.

43 I spoke, and you hearkened not: but resisting the commandment of the Lord, and swelling with pride, you went up into the mountain.

This I said to you, but you gave no attention and went against the orders of the Lord, and in your pride went up into the hill-country.

44 And the Amorrhite that dwelt in the mountains coming out, and meeting you, chased you, as bees do: and made slaughter of you from Seir as far as Horma.

And the Amorites who were in the hill-country came out against you and put you to flight, rushing after you like bees, and overcame you in Seir, driving you even as far as Hormah.

45 And when you returned and wept before the Lord, he heard you not, neither would he yield to; your voice.

And you came back, weeping before the Lord; but the Lord gave no attention to your cries and did not give ear to you.

46 So you abode in Cadesbarne a long time.

So you were kept waiting in Kadesh for a long time.