Numbers 32
1 NOW THE sons of Reuben and of Gad had a very great multitude of cattle, and they saw the land of Jazer and the land of Gilead [on the east side of the Jordan], and behold, the place was suitable for cattle.2 So the sons of Gad and of Reuben came and said to Moses, Eleazar the priest, and the leaders of the congregation,3 [The country around] Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon,4 The land the Lord smote before the congregation of Israel, is a land for cattle, and your servants have cattle.5 And they said, If we have found favor in your sight, let this land be given to your servants for a possession. Do not take us over the Jordan.6 And Moses said to the sons of Gad and of Reuben, Shall your brethren go to war while you sit here?7 Why do you discourage the hearts of the Israelites from going over into the land which the Lord has given them?8 Thus your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to see the land!9 For when they went up to the Valley of Eshcol and saw the land, they discouraged the hearts of the Israelites from going into the land the Lord had given them.10 And the Lord’s anger was kindled on that day and He swore, saying,11 Surely none of the men who came up out of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, because they have not wholly followed Me--12 Except Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua 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 for forty years, until all the generation that had done evil in the sight of the Lord was consumed.14 And behold, you are risen up in your fathers’ stead, a brood of sinful men, to increase still more the fierce anger of the Lord against Israel.15 For if you turn from following Him, He will again abandon them in the wilderness, and you will destroy all this people.16 But they came near to him and said, We will build sheepfolds here for our flocks and walled settlements for our little ones.17 But we will be armed and ready to go before the Israelites until we have brought them to their place. Our little ones shall dwell in the fortified settlements because of the people of the land.18 We will not return to our homes until the Israelites have inherited every man his inheritance.19 For we will not inherit with them on the [west] side of the Jordan and beyond, because our inheritance is fallen to us on this side of the Jordan eastward.20 Moses replied, If you will do as you say, going armed before the Lord to war,21 And every armed man of you will pass over the Jordan before the Lord until He has driven out His enemies before Him22 And the land is subdued before the Lord, then afterward you shall return and be guiltless [in this matter] before the Lord and before Israel, and this land shall be your possession before the Lord.23 But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the Lord; and be sure your sin will find you out.24 Build settlements for your little ones, and folds for your sheep, and do that of which you have spoken.25 And the sons of Gad and of Reuben said to Moses, Your servants will do as my lord commands.26 Our little ones, our wives, our flocks, and all our cattle shall be there in the cities of Gilead.27 But your servants will pass over, every man armed for war, before the Lord to battle, as my lord says.28 So Moses gave command concerning them to Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun and the heads of the fathers’ houses of the tribes of Israel.29 And Moses said to them, If the sons of Gad and Reuben will pass with you over the Jordan, every man armed to battle before the Lord, and the land shall be subdued before you, then you shall give them the land of Gilead for a possession.30 But if they will not pass over with you armed, they shall have possessions among you in the land of Canaan.31 The sons of Gad and Reuben answered, As the Lord has said to your 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 of the Jordan may be ours.33 Moses gave to them, to the sons of Gad and of Reuben and to half the tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph, the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan--the land with its cities and their territories, even the cities round about the country.34 And the sons of Gad built Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer,35 Atroth-shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah,36 Beth-nimrah, and Beth-haran, fortified cities, and folds for sheep.37 And the sons of Reuben built Heshbon, Elealeh, Kiriathaim,38 Nebo, and Baal-meon--their names were to be changed--and Shibmah; and they gave other names to the cities they built.39 And the sons of Machir son of Manasseh went to Gilead and took it and dispossessed the Amorites who were in it.40 And Moses gave Gilead to Machir son of Manasseh, and he settled in it.41 Jair son of Manasseh took their villages and called them Havvoth-jair.42 And Nobah took Kenath and its villages and called it Nobah after his own name.
Numbers 32
Tribes East of the Jordan
1-4 The families of Reuben and Gad had huge herds of livestock. They saw that the country of Jazer and Gilead was just the place for grazing livestock. And so they came, the families of Gad and of Reuben, and spoke to Moses and Eleazar the priest and the leaders of the congregation, saying, "Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon—the country that God laid low before the community of Israel—is a country just right for livestock, and we have livestock."
5 They continued, "If you think we've done a good job so far, give us this country for our inheritance. Don't make us go across the Jordan."
6-12 Moses answered the families of Gad and Reuben: "Do you mean that you are going to leave the fighting that's ahead to your brothers while you settle down here? Why would you even think of letting the People of Israel down, demoralizing them just as they're about to move into the land God gave them? That's exactly what your ancestors did when I sent them from Kadesh Barnea to survey the country. They went as far as the Valley of Eshcol, took one look and quit. They completely demoralized the People of Israel from entering the land God had given them. And God got angry—oh, did he get angry! He swore: 'They'll never get to see it; none of those who came up out of Egypt who are twenty years and older will ever get to see the land that I promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They weren't interested in following me—their hearts weren't in it. None, except for Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, and Joshua son of Nun; they followed me—their hearts were in it.'
13 "God's anger smoked against Israel. He made them wander in the wilderness for forty years, until that entire generation that acted out evil in his sight had died out.
14-15 "And now here you are, just one more mob of sinners stepping up to replace your ancestors, throwing fuel on the already blazing anger of God against Israel. If you won't follow him, he'll do it again. He'll dump them in the desert and the disaster will be all your fault."
16-19 They came close to him and said, "All we want to do is build corrals for our livestock and towns for our families. Then we'll take up arms and take the front lines, leading the People of Israel to their place. We'll be able to leave our families behind, secure in fortified towns, safe from those who live in the land. But we won't go back home until every Israelite is in full possession of his inheritance. We won't expect any inheritance west of the Jordan; we are claiming all our inheritance east of the Jordan."
20-22 Moses said, "If you do what you say, take up arms before God for battle and together go across the Jordan ready, before God, to fight until God has cleaned his enemies out of the land, then when the land is secure you will have fulfilled your duty to God and Israel. Then this land will be yours to keep before God.
23-24 "But if you don't do what you say, you will be sinning against God; you can be sure that your sin will track you down. So, go ahead. Build towns for your families and corrals for your livestock. Do what you said you'd do."
25-27 The families of Gad and Reuben told Moses: "We will do as our master commands. Our children and wives, our flocks and herds will stay behind here in the towns of Gilead. But we, every one of us fully armed, will cross the river to fight for God, just as our master has said."
28-30 So Moses issued orders for them to Eleazar the priest, Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the ancestral tribes of the People of Israel. Moses said, "If the families of Gad and Reuben cross the Jordan River with you and before God, all armed and ready to fight, then after the land is secure, you may give them the land of Gilead as their inheritance. But if they don't cross over with you, they'll have to settle up with you in Canaan."
31-32 The families of Gad and Reuben responded: "We will do what God has said. We will cross the Jordan before God, ready and willing to fight. But the land we inherit will be here, to the east of the Jordan."
33 Moses gave the families of Gad, Reuben, 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 land, its towns, and all the territories connected with them—the works.
34-36 The Gadites rebuilt Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer, Atroth Shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah, Beth Nimrah, and Beth Haran as fortified cities; they also built corrals for their animals.
37-38 The Reubenites rebuilt Heshbon, Elealeh, and Kiriathaim, also Nebo and Baal Meon and Sibmah. They renamed the cities that they rebuilt.
39-40 The family of Makir son of Manasseh went to Gilead, captured it, and drove out the Amorites who lived there. Moses then gave Gilead to the Makirites, the descendants of Manasseh. They moved in and settled there.
41 Jair, another son of Manasseh, captured some villages and named them Havvoth Jair (Jair's Tent-Camps).
42 Nobah captured Kenath and its surrounding camps. He renamed it after himself, Nobah.