Numbers 32

¹ Now, the Reubenites and Gadites owned very large herds of cattle. Having seen that the territories ofJazer and Gilead formed an ideal region for raising stock,

² the Gadites and Reubenites went to Moses, the priest Eleazar and the leaders of the community, andsaid to them,

³ 'The territory of Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo and Beon,

⁴ which Yahweh has conquered before the advancing community of Israel, is ideal land for raisingstock, and your servants are cattle breeders.

⁵ So', they said, 'if you approve, give your servants this land for us to own; do not make us cross theJordan.'

⁶ Moses said to the Gadites and Reubenites, 'Do you intend your brothers to go into battle while youstay here?

⁷ Why are you discouraging the Israelites from crossing to the country which Yahweh has given them?

⁸ Your fathers behaved in the same way when I sent them from Kadesh-Barnea to see the country,

⁹ for, having gone as far as the Val ey of Eshcol and seen the country, they discouraged the Israelitesfrom entering the country which Yahweh had given them.

¹⁰ Hence Yahweh's anger was aroused that day and he swore this oath,

¹¹ "No man of twenty years and over, who left Egypt, shal set eyes on the country which I promised onoath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob . . . , for they have not fol owed me absolutely,

¹² except for Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, and Joshua son of Nun: these indeed havefol owed Yahweh absolutely."

¹³ Yahweh's anger being aroused by Israel, he made them wander in the desert for forty years, untilthe generation that offended Yahweh had all disappeared.

¹⁴ And now you rise up in your father's place, offshoot of sinful stock, to increase Yahweh's burninganger with Israel even more!

¹⁵ If you turn away from him, he wil prolong the time spent in the desert, and you wil bring about thisentire people's ruin.'

¹⁶ They came to Moses and said, 'We should like to build sheepfolds here for our flocks and towns forour little ones.

¹⁷ We ourselves wil take up arms and lead the Israelites until we have brought them to the placeappointed for them, while our little ones stay in the fortified towns to be safe from the local inhabitants.

¹⁸ We wil not return to our homes until every one of the Israelites has taken possession of his heritage.

¹⁹ For we shall have no heritage with them on the other bank of the Jordan or beyond, since ourheritage has fal en to us here, east of the Jordan.'

²⁰ Moses said to them, 'If you do as you have said, if you are prepared to fight before Yahweh,

²¹ and if al those of you who bear arms cross the Jordan before Yahweh, until he has driven all hisenemies out before him,

²² then, once the country has become subject to Yahweh, you may go back, and will have dischargedyour obligation to Yahweh and Israel, and Yahweh wil consider this territory yours.

²³ But if you do not, you wil sin against Yahweh, and be sure your sin wil find you out.

²⁴ Build towns, then, for your little ones and folds for your flocks; but do what you have promised.'

²⁵ The Gadites and Reubenites said to Moses, 'Your servants will do as my lord directs.

²⁶ Our little ones, our wives, our flocks and al our livestock wil stay in the towns of Gilead,

²⁷ but your servants, each armed for war, will cross in Yahweh's name and fight, as my lord says.'

²⁸ So Moses gave orders about them to the priest Eleazar, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads offamilies in the Israelite tribes.

²⁹ Moses said to them, 'If the Gadites and Reubenites, al those under arms, cross the Jordan with youto fight in Yahweh's name, then, once the country has become subject to you, you wil give them the territory ofGilead as theirs.

³⁰ But if they will not cross with you under arms, they wil receive their domains in Canaan with the restof you.'

³¹ To this, the Gadites and Reubenites replied, 'What Yahweh has said to your servants, we shal do.

³² Under arms, we shall cross in Yahweh's name into Canaan, so that ownership of our heritage onthis side of the Jordan will be ours.'

³³ Moses then gave them -- the Gadites, the Reubenites and the half-tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph-- the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, the country and the townswithin its territory, and the country's frontier-towns.

³⁴ The Gadites rebuilt Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer,

³⁵ Atroth-Shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah,

³⁶ Beth-Nimrah and Beth-Haran as fortified towns with folds for the flocks.

³⁷ The Reubenites rebuilt Heshbon, Elealeh, Kiriathaim,

³⁸ Nebo and Baal-Meon (the names of which were altered), and Sibmah, giving new names to thetowns which they rebuilt.

³⁹ The descendants of Machir son of Manasseh went to Gilead. They conquered it and drove out theAmorites who were there.

⁴⁰ Moses gave Gilead to Machir son of Manasseh, and he settled there.

⁴¹ Jair son of Manasseh went and seized their encampments, renaming them the Encampments ofJair.

⁴² Nobah went and seized Kenat with its dependent townships, and cal ed it Nobah after himself.