1 Now the children of Reuben and the children of Gad had a very great multitude of cattle: and when they saw the land of Jazer, and the land of Gilead, that, behold, the place was a place for cattle;
2 The
children of Gad and the children of Reuben came and spake unto Moses, and to
Eleazar the priest, and unto the princes of the congregation, saying,
3 Ataroth,
and Dibon, and Jazer, and Nimrah, and Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Shebam, and
Nebo, and Beon,
4 Even the
country which the LORD smote [delivered
up] before the congregation of Israel, is a land for cattle [pasture land], and thy servants have
cattle:
5 Wherefore,
said they, if we have found grace in thy sight, let this land be given unto thy
servants for a possession, and bring us not over Jordan.
6 And Moses
said unto the children of Gad and to the children of Reuben, Shall your
brethren go to war, and shall ye sit here?
7 And
wherefore discourage ye the heart [pervert
the minds] of the children of Israel from going over into the land which
the LORD hath given them?
8 Thus did
your fathers, when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to see the land.
9 For when
they went up unto the valley of Eshcol [of
the cluster], and saw the land, they discouraged the heart of the children
of Israel, that they should not go into the land which the LORD had given them.
10 And the
LORD’s anger was kindled the same time, and he sware, saying,
11 Surely
none of the men that came up out of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, who know good and evil, shall see the land which I sware unto Abraham,
unto Isaac, and unto Jacob; because they have not wholly followed me:
12 Save
Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite, who
was set apart, and Joshua the son of Nun: for they have wholly followed the
LORD.
13 And the
LORD’s anger was kindled against Israel, and he made them wander in the
wilderness forty years, until all the generation, that had done evil in the
sight of the LORD, was consumed.
14 And,
behold, ye are risen up in your fathers’ stead, an increase of sinful men, to
augment yet the fierce anger of the LORD toward Israel.
15 For if ye
turn away from after him [to desert him
yet once more in the wilderness], he will yet again leave them in the
wilderness; and ye shall destroy all this people [ye will sin against this whole congregation].
16 And they
came near unto him, and said, We will build sheepfolds here for our cattle, and
cities for our little ones [for our
possessions]:
17 But we
ourselves will go ready armed as an
advanced guard before the children of Israel, until we have brought them
unto their place: and our little ones [our
possessions] shall dwell in the fenced cities because of the inhabitants of
the land.
18 We will
not return unto our houses, until the children of Israel have inherited every
man his inheritance.
19 For we
will not inherit with them on yonder side Jordan, or forward; because our
inheritance is fallen to us on this side Jordan eastward.
20 And Moses
said unto them, If ye will do this thing, if ye will go armed before the LORD
to war,
21 And will
go all of you armed over Jordan before the LORD, until he hath driven out his
enemies from before him,
22 And the
land be subdued before the LORD: then afterward ye shall return, and be
guiltless before the LORD, and before Israel; and this land shall be your
possession before the LORD.
23 But if ye
will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin
will find you out [ye shall know your
sin, when afflictions shall come upon you].
24 Build you
cities for your little ones [for your
store], and folds for your sheep; and do that which hath proceeded out of
your mouth.
25 And the
children of Gad and the children of Reuben spake unto Moses, saying, Thy
servants will do as my lord commandeth.
26 Our little
ones [Our store], our wives, our
flocks, and all our cattle, shall be there in the cities of Gilead:
27 But thy
servants will pass over, every man armed for war, before the LORD to battle, as
my lord saith.
28 So
concerning them Moses commanded Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun,
and the chief fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel:
29 And Moses
said unto them, If the children of Gad and the children of Reuben [the sons of Ruben and the sons of Gad] will
pass with you over Jordan, every man armed to battle, before the LORD, and the
land shall be subdued before you; then ye shall give them the land of Gilead
for a possession:
30 But if
they will not pass over with you armed to
war before the Lord, then shall ye
cause to pass over their possessions and their wives and their cattle before
you into the land of Chanaan, they shall have possessions among you in the
land of Canaan.
31 And the
children of Gad and the children of Reuben [the
sons of Ruben and the sons of Gad] answered, saying, As the LORD hath said
unto thy servants, so will we do.
32 We will
pass over armed before the LORD into the land of Canaan, that the possession of
our inheritance on this side Jordan may be ours [ye shall give us our inheritance beyond Jordan].
33 And Moses
gave unto them, even to the children of Gad, and to the children of Reuben, and
unto half the tribe of Manasseh the son of Joseph, the kingdom of Sihon king of
the Amorites, and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, the land, with the cities
thereof in the coasts, even the cities of the country round about.
34 And the
children of Gad built Dibon, and Ataroth, and Aroer,
35 And
Atroth, Shophan, and Jaazer, and Jogbehah,
and they set them up.
36 And
Beth-nimrah, and Beth-haran, fenced [strong]
cities: and folds for sheep.
37 And the
children of Reuben built Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Kirjathaim,
38 And Nebo,
and Baal-meon, (their names being changed,) and Shibmah: and gave other names
unto the cities which they builded [and
they called the names of the cities which they built, after their own names].
39 And the
children of Machir the son of Manasseh went to Gilead, and took it, and
dispossessed the Amorite which was in it.
40 And Moses
gave Gilead unto Machir the son of Manasseh; and he dwelt therein.
41 And Jair
the son of Manasseh went and took the small towns thereof [their villages], and called them Havoth-jair [villages of Jair].
42 And Nobah
went and took Kenath, and the villages thereof, and called it Nobah, after his
own name.
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