Numbers 10

1 And Jehovah speaketh unto Moses, saying,

Yahweh also told Moses/me,

2 'Make to thee two trumpets of silver; beaten work thou dost make them, and they have been to thee for the convocation of the company, and for the journeying of the camps;

“[Tell someone to] make two trumpets by hammering each one from [one lump of] silver. Blow the trumpets to summon the people to come together and also to signal that they must move their tents [to a new location].

3 and they have blown with them, and all the company have met together unto thee, unto the opening of the tent of meeting.

If both trumpets are blown, it means that everyone must gather together at the entrance of the Sacred Tent.

4 And if with one they blow, then have the princes, heads of the thousands of Israel, met together unto thee;

If only one trumpet is blown, it means that only the [twelve] leaders of the tribes must gather together.

5 'And ye have blown — a shout, and the camps which are encamping eastward have journeyed.

If the trumpets are blown loudly, the tribes that are to the east [of the Sacred Tent] should start to travel.

6 'And ye have blown — a second shout, and the camps which are encamping southward have journeyed; a shout they blow for their journeys.

When the trumpets are blown loudly the second time, the tribes that are to the south should start to travel. The loud blasts on the trumpet will signal that they should start to travel.

7 'And in the assembling of the assembly ye blow, and do not shout;

When you want only to gather the people together, blow the trumpets, but do not blow them as loudly.

8 and sons of Aaron, the priests, blow with the trumpets; and they have been to you for a statute age-during to your generations.

“The priests who are descended from Aaron are the ones who should blow the trumpets. That is a regulation that will never be changed.

9 'And when ye go into battle in your land against the adversary who is distressing you, then ye have shouted with the trumpets, and ye have been remembered before Jehovah your God, and ye have been saved from your enemies.

When you fight against enemies who attack you in your own land, tell the priests to blow the trumpets loudly. I, Yahweh, your God, will hear that, and I will rescue you from your enemies.

10 'And in the day of your gladness, and in your appointed seasons, and in the beginnings of your months, ye have blown also with the trumpets over your burnt-offerings, and over the sacrifices of your peace-offerings, and they have been to you for a memorial before your God; I, Jehovah, [am] your God.'

Also tell the priests to blow the trumpets when the people are happy, and at the festivals [each year], and at the times when they celebrate the new moon each month. Tell them to blow the trumpets when the people bring offerings that will be completely burned, and when they bring offerings to maintain fellowship with me. If they do that, it will help you to remember that I, Yahweh your God, [will help you].”

11 And it cometh to pass — in the second year, in the second month, in the twentieth of the month — the cloud hath gone up from off the tabernacle of the testimony,

On the twentieth day of May in the second year [after the/we Israelis left Egypt], the cloud rose up from above the Sacred Tent.

12 and the sons of Israel journey in their journeyings from the wilderness of Sinai, and the cloud doth tabernacle in the wilderness of Paran;

So we/the Israelis traveled from the Sinai Desert, and we/they continued traveling [north] until the cloud stopped in the Paran Desert.

13 and they journey at first, by the command of Jehovah, in the hand of Moses.

That was the first time we/they moved, obeying the instructions that Yahweh had given to Moses/me to tell them.

14 And the standard of the camp of the sons of Judah journeyeth in the first [place], by their hosts, and over its host [is] Nahshon son of Amminadab.

The group that went first, carrying their flag/banner, was the group from the tribe of Judah. Nahshon, the son of Amminadab, was their leader.

15 And over the host of the tribe of the sons of Issachar [is] Nathaneel son of Zuar.

The group from the tribe of Issachar [followed them]. Nethanel, the son of Zuar, was their leader.

16 And over the host of the tribe of the sons of Zebulun [is] Eliab son of Helon;

The group from the tribe of Zebulun went next. Eliab, the son of Helon, was their leader.

17 And the tabernacle hath been taken down, and the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari have journeyed, bearing the tabernacle.

Then they dismantled the Sacred Tent, and the descendants of Gershon and Merari carried it, and they went next.

18 And the standard of the camp of Reuben hath journeyed, by their hosts, and over its host [is] Elizur son of Shedeur.

The group from the tribe of Reuben went next, carrying their flag. Elizur, the son of Shedeur, was their leader.

19 And over the host of the tribe of the sons of Simeon [is] Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai.

The group from the tribe of Simeon was next. Shelumiel, the son of Zurishaddai, was their leader.

20 And over the host of the tribe of the sons of Gad [is] Eliasaph son of Deuel;

The group from the tribe of Gad was next. Eliasaph, the son of Deuel, was their leader.

21 And the Kohathites have journeyed, bearing the tabernacle, and the [others] have raised up the tabernacle until their coming in.

The group descended from Kohath was next. They carried the sacred items from the Sacred Tent. The Sacred Tent itself was set up at the new location before they arrived there.

22 And the standard of the camp of the sons of Ephraim hath journeyed, by their hosts, and over its host [is] Elishama son of Ammihud.

The group from the tribe of Ephraim was next, carrying their flag. Elishama, the son of Ammihud, was their leader.

23 And over the host of the tribe of the sons of Manasseh [is] Gamalial son of Pedahzur.

The group from the tribe of Manasseh went next. Gamaliel, the son of Pedahzur, was their leader.

24 And over the host of the tribe of the sons of Benjamin [is] Abidan son of Gideoni.

The group from the tribe of Benjamin, went next. Abidan, the son of Gideoni, was their leader.

25 And the standard of the camp of the sons of Dan hath journeyed (rearward to all the camps), by their hosts, and over its host [is] Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai.

The ones who went last were the group from the tribe of Dan, carrying their flag. Ahiezer, the son of Ammishaddai, was their leader.

26 And over the host of the tribe of the sons of Asher [is] Pagiel son of Ocran.

The group from the tribe of Asher went next. Pagiel, the son of Ocran, was their leader.

27 And over the host of the tribe of the sons of Naphtali [is] Ahira son of Enan.

The group from the tribe of Naphtali went last. Ahira, the son of Enan, was their leader.

28 These [are] journeyings of the sons of Israel by their hosts — and they journey.

That was the order in which the groups of Israeli tribes traveled.

29 And Moses saith to Hobab son of Raguel the Midianite, father-in-law of Moses, 'We are journeying unto the place of which Jehovah hath said, I give it to you; go with us, and we have done good to thee; for Jehovah hath spoken good concerning Israel.'

One day Moses/I said to his/my brother-in-law Hobab, the son of Reuel from the Midian people-group, “We are on the way to the place that Yahweh promised to give to us. Come with us, and we will take good care of you, because Yahweh has promised [to do] good things for us Israeli people.”

30 And he saith unto him, 'I do not go; but unto my land and unto my kindred do I go.'

But Hobab replied, “No, I will not go with you. I want to return to my own land and to my own family.”

31 And he saith, 'I pray thee, forsake us not, because thou hast known our encamping in the wilderness, and thou hast been to us for eyes;

But Moses/I said, “Please do not leave us. You know the places where we can set up our tents in this desert, and you can guide us.

32 and it hath come to pass when thou goest with us, yea, it hath come to pass — that good which Jehovah doth kindly with us — it we have done kindly to thee.'

Come with us. We will share with you all the good things that Yahweh gives to us.”

33 And they journey from the mount of Jehovah a journey of three days; and the ark of the covenant of Jehovah is journeying before them the journey of three days, to spy out for them a resting-place;

[So Hobab agreed to go with them]. The Israelis left Sinai Mountain, [which they called] Yahweh’s Mountain, and they walked for three days. The [men carrying the] sacred chest went in front of the other people for those three days, and they kept looking for a place to set up their tents.

34 and the cloud of Jehovah [is] on them by day, in their journeying from the camp.

The cloud sent by Yahweh was over them every day.

35 And it cometh to pass in the journeying of the ark, that Moses saith, 'Rise, O Jehovah, and Thine enemies are scattered, and those hating Thee flee from Thy presence.'

Each morning when the men who were carrying the sacred chest started to walk, Moses/I said, “Yahweh, arise! Scatter your enemies! Cause those who hate you to run away from you!”

36 And in its resting he saith, 'Return, O Jehovah, [to] the myriads, the thousands of Israel.'

And each time the men [stopped to] set down the sacred chest, Moses/I said, “Yahweh, stay close to the thousands of us Israelis!”