It is [a journey of] {eleven days} from Herob {by the way of Mount Seir} up to Kadesh Barnea.

"Yahweh our God spoke to us at Horeb, {saying}, 'You have stayed {long enough} at this mountain.

Turn [now] and {move on}, and go [into] the hill of the Amorites and to all [of] the neighboring regions in the Jordan {Valley} in the hill country and in the Negev and in the coastal area along the sea, [into] the land of the Canaanites and [into] the Lebanon, as far as the great river Euphrates.

Yahweh your God has multiplied you, and look; you [are] today as the stars of the heaven {in number}.

Yahweh, the God of your ancestors, may he add to you as you are [now] a thousand times, and may he bless you just as he {promised you}.

Choose for yourselves {wise and discerning and knowledgeable men} for [each of] your tribes, and I will appoint them as your leaders.'

"And you answered me, and you said, 'The thing you have said to do is good.'

And so I took the leaders of your tribes, wise and knowledgeable men, and [then] I appointed them as leaders over you [as] commanders of [groups of] thousands and commanders of [groups of] hundreds and commanders of [groups of] fifties and commanders of [groups of] tens [as] officials for your tribes.

And at that time I instructed your judges, saying, '{hear out your fellow men}, and [then] judge fairly between a man and between his brother and between {his opponent who is a resident alien}.

You must not {be partial} {in your judgment}; hear [out] the small [person] as [also] the great [person]; {do not be intimidated by any person}, because the judgment [is] God's; and the case that is too difficult for you, bring [it] to me, and I will hear it [out].'

"Then we set out from Horeb, and we went [through] the whole [of] that great and terrible desert that you saw [on] the way [to] the hill country of the Amorites as Yahweh our God had commanded us, and [so] we came up to Kadesh Barnea.

I said to you, '{You have reached} the hill country of the Amorites that Yahweh our God [is] giving to us.

See, Yahweh your God has set before you the land; go up and possess [it] as Yahweh the God of your ancestors said to you; do not fear and do not be dismayed.'

"Then all of you approached me, and [you] said, 'Let us send men {before us}, and let them explore the land for us, and let them bring back {a report} to us [concerning] the way that {we should take} [and concerning] the cities that we shall come to.'

They took in their hands {some of the fruit} of the land, and they brought [it] down to us, and they brought to us back {a report}, and they said, 'The land that Yahweh our God [is] giving to us [is] good.'

And you grumbled in your tents, and you said, 'Because of the hatred of Yahweh [toward] us he has brought us out from the land of Egypt to give us into the hand of the Amorites to destroy us.

Yahweh your God, who is going {before you}, will himself fight for you, {just as} he did for you in Egypt before your eyes,

and [just as he did] in the wilderness when you saw that Yahweh your God carried you, just as someone carries his son, all [along] the way [that] you traveled until {you reached} this place.'

"You replied and said to me, 'We have sinned against Yahweh, [and now] we will go up and fight according to all that Yahweh our God commanded us'; and [so] each man fastened on {his battle gear}, and you regarded [it] as easy to go up [into] the hill country.

The Amorites living in the hill country went out {to oppose you} and chased you as [a swarm of] wild honey bees do; and [so] they {beat} you down in Seir as far as Hormah.

"[Then] we turned and set out [toward] the wilderness in the direction of the {Red Sea}, as Yahweh told me, and we went around Mount Seir [for] many days.

and instruct the people, {saying}, "You [are] about to cross [through] the territory of your brothers, the descendants of Esau, who are living in Seir; they will be afraid of you, and [so] be very careful.

Do not get involved in battle with them, for I will not give you any of their land, not even {a foot's breadth} [of it]; since I have given Mount Seir [as] a possession for Esau.

The fact of the matter is, Yahweh your God has blessed you in {all the work you have done}; he knows {your travels} [with respect to] this great wilderness; forty years Yahweh your God [has been] with you; you have not lacked a thing." '

And so we passed by our brothers, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir, past the road of the Arabah, from Elath and Ezion Geber, and we turned and traveled along the route of the desert of Moab.

And Yahweh said to me, 'You shall not attack Moab, and you shall not engage in war with them, for I will not give you any of his land [as] a possession; I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot [as] a possession.'

They were reckoned also [as] Rephaim as the Anakites [were]; but the Moabites called them Emim.

The Horites previously lived in Seir, but the descendants of Esau dispossessed them and destroyed them {from among themselves}, as Israel did with respect to the land of their possession that Yahweh gave to them.)

Now the {length of time} that we had traveled from Kadesh Barnea until [the time when] we crossed the wadi of Zered [was] thirty-eight years, until the perishing of all of that generation; [that is], the men of war from the midst of the camp as Yahweh had sworn to them.

When you approach {the border of} the {Ammonites}, you shall not harass them, and you shall not get involved in battle with them, for I have not given the land of {the Ammonites} to you as a possession; because I have given it to the descendants of Lot [as] a possession.

(It is also considered the land of Rephaim; Rephaim lived in it {previously}, and the Ammonites called them Zamzummim,

a people great and numerous and as tall as the Anakites; Yahweh destroyed them from before them, and they dispossessed them and settled in place of them,

just as he did for the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir, when he destroyed the Horites from {before them} and dispossessed them, and [then] they settled in their place up to this day.

And [also] the Avvites, who lived in villages as far as Gaza, [and the] Caphtorim, who came out from Caphtor, destroyed them and [then] settled in their place.

[Just as] the descendants of Esau did for me, who live in Seir, and the Moabites, who live in Ar, until I cross the Jordan into the land that Yahweh our God is giving to us.'

But Sihon king of Heshbon was not willing to let us cross through his [territory] because Yahweh your God hardened his spirit and {made him obstinate} {in order to give him} into your hand, {just as he has now done}.

Then Sihon and all his people came out to meet us for battle at Jahaz.

And so Yahweh our God gave him over {to us}, and we struck him down, and his sons and all of his people.

We took only the livestock as spoil for ourselves, and [also] the booty of the cities that we had captured.

From Aroer, which [is] on the edge of the wadi of Arnon and the city that [was] in the wadi on up to Gilead, [there] was not a city that was inaccessible to us; Yahweh our God gave {everything} {to us}.

"Then we turned, and we went up the road to Bashan, and Og the king of Bashan came out to meet us, he and all [of] his army for the battle [at] Edrei.

And Yahweh said to me, 'You should not fear him, for I have given him and all [of] his army and his land into your hand. And [so] you will do to him as you did to Sihon the king of the Amorites, who [was] reigning in Heshbon.'

And [so] we destroyed them just as we had done to Sihon the king of Heshbon; [we destroyed] utterly each town of males, the women, and the little children.

But all [of] the livestock and the booty of the towns we kept as spoil for ourselves.

(For only Og, king of Bashan, was left from the remnant of the Rephaim. Indeed, his bedstead--it [was] a bedstead of iron. It is in Rabbah of the {Ammonites}. Nine cubits [is] its length, and four cubits [is] its width according to the cubit of a man.)

And [so] we took possession of this land at that time, from Aroer, which [is] on the [edge of the] wadi of Arnon, and [also] half of the hill country of Gilead and its towns I gave to the Reubenites and to the Gadites.

Jair the descendant of Manasseh acquired the whole region of Argob, up to the boundary of the Geshurites and the Maacathites, and he called it, [that is] Bashan, after his [own] name, Havvoth Jair, {as it still is today}.

And to the Reubenites and to the Gadites I gave, from Gilead up to the wadi of Arnon, the middle of the wadi [as a] boundary and up to the Jabbok {River}, the boundary of the {Ammonites}.

And the {Jordan Valley} [with] the Jordan [River as its] boundary, from Kinnereth up to the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, [with] the slopes of Pisgah toward the east.

until Yahweh shall give rest to your brothers as [he did] to you, and also they take possession [of] the land that Yahweh your God [is] giving to them beyond the Jordan; then they may return, each [one] to his possession that I have given to them.

You shall not fear them, for Yahweh your God is the [one] fighting for you.

'Lord Yahweh, you have begun to show your servant your greatness and your strong hand, for what god [is there] in the heaven or on the earth who can do according to your works and according to your mighty deeds?

Let me cross over, please, and let me see the good land {that is beyond the Jordan}, this good hill country and Lebanon.'

"Now, Israel, listen to the rules and to the regulations that I [am] teaching you to do, in order that you may live and you may go [in] and you may take possession of the land that Yahweh, the God of your ancestors, [is] giving to you.

See, I now teach you rules and regulations [just] as Yahweh my God has commanded me, to observe [them] [just] so in the midst of the land where you [are] going, to take possession of it.

And {you must observe them diligently}, for that [is] your wisdom and your insight before the eyes of the people, who will hear all [of] these rules, and they will say, 'Surely this great nation [is] a wise and discerning people.'

For what great nation [has] for it a god near to it as Yahweh our God, whenever we call [upon] him?

a replica of any animal that [is] upon the earth, a replica of any winged bird that flies in the air,

a replica of any creeping thing on the ground, a replica of any fish that [is] in the water {below} the earth.

But Yahweh has taken you and brought you out from the furnace of iron, from Egypt, to be a people of inheritance to him, {as it is this day}.

"And Yahweh was angry with me {because of you}, and he swore {that I would not cross the Jordan} and {that I would not go to the good land} that Yahweh your God is giving you as an inheritance.

for Yahweh your God [is] a devouring fire, a jealous God.

For Yahweh your God is a compassionate God; he {will not abandon you}, and he will not destroy you, and he will not forget the covenant of your ancestors that he swore to them.

Has a people [ever] heard the voice of God speaking from the midst of the fire, [just] as you heard [it], and lived?

You [yourselves] were shown [this wonder] in order [for you] to acknowledge that Yahweh [is] the God; there is no other [God] {besides him}.

to drive out nations greater and more numerous than you {from before you}, to bring you [and] to give to you their land [as] an inheritance, as [it is] this day.

So you shall acknowledge {today}, and {you must call to mind} that Yahweh [is] God in heaven above and on the earth beneath. There is no other [God].

And you shall keep his rules and his commandments that I am commanding you {today}, [so] that {it may go well} for you and for your children after you, and so that {you may remain a long time} on the land that Yahweh your God [is] giving to you [during] all [of] those days."

Now this [is] the law that Moses set {before} the {Israelites};

from Aroer, which [is] on the bank of the wadi of Arnon and as far as Mount Sirion; that [is], Hermon,

and all [of] the Arabah beyond the Jordan, eastward, and as far as the Sea of the Arabah under the slopes of Pisgah.

Yahweh our God made a covenant with us at Horeb.

[It was] not with our ancestors [that] Yahweh made this covenant, [but with] these [of] us [who are] here alive today.

'You shall not make for yourself a divine image of any [type] of form that [is] in the heaven above or that [is] on the earth beneath or that [is] in the water under the earth.

'Observe the {Sabbath day} to make it holy, [just] as Yahweh your God has commanded you.

but the seventh day [is] Sabbath unto Yahweh your God; you shall not do any work, or your son, or your daughter, or your slave, or your slave woman, or your ox, or your donkey, or any of your domestic animals, or your [resident] alien who [is] in your {towns}, so that your slave and your slave woman may rest as you [rest].

'Honor your father and your mother, as Yahweh your God commanded you, so that it will be good for you {in the land} that Yahweh your God [is] giving to you.

{And then} {when you heard} the voice from the midst of the darkness, and [as] the mountain [was] burning with fire, and [and] all the heads of your tribes and your elders approached me,

you said, 'Look, Yahweh our God has shown us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice from the midst of the fire; this day we have seen that God can speak with a human being, {yet he remains alive}.

And so then why shall we die, for this great fire will consume us if {we continue} to hear the voice of Yahweh our God [any] longer, and [so] we shall die?

For who [is there of] all flesh who has heard the voice of the living God speaking from the midst of the fire as we [have heard it] {and remained alive}?

[You] go near and hear {everything} that Yahweh our God will say; and [then] you tell us all that Yahweh our God tells you, and we will listen, and we will do [it].'

{If only} {they had such a mind}'; [that is], to fear me and to keep all my commandments {at all times}, so that {it will go well} for them and for their children {forever}.

"[So] you must be careful to do [just] as Yahweh your God commanded you; you shall not turn [to the] right or [to the] left.

"Now this [is] the commandment, the rules and the regulations, that Yahweh your God charged to teach [to] you [for you] {to observe} in the land that you [are] about to cross [over] into to take possession of it,

And you shall hear, Israel, and be careful to observe [these instructions], so that {it may go well for you} and that you may multiply greatly, [just] as Yahweh, the God of your ancestors, {promised} you, [in] a land with milk and honey.

"Hear, Israel, Yahweh our God, Yahweh is unique.

And you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as an emblem between your eyes.

for Yahweh your God [is] a jealous god in your midst, {so that the anger of Yahweh your God would be kindled}, and he would destroy you from the face of the earth.

You shall not put Yahweh your God to [the] test, as you tested [him] at Massah.

And you shall do [what is] right and good in the eyes of Yahweh, so that {it shall go well} for you and [so that] you may go and you may take possession of the good land that Yahweh swore for your ancestors,

by driving out all [of] your enemies {before you}, [just] as Yahweh {has promised}.

"When your child asks you in the future, {saying}, 'What [is the meaning of] the legal provisions and the rules and the regulations that Yahweh our God commanded for you?'

Then you shall say to your child, 'We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, and Yahweh brought us out from Egypt with a strong hand.

But [he] brought us out from there in order to bring us [here] to give us the land that he swore to our ancestors.

And [so] Yahweh commanded us to observe all [of] these rules [and] to revere Yahweh our God {for our benefit} {all the days that we live}, {as it is today}.

And it shall be righteousness for us if we diligently observe [and] do all [of] this commandment {before} Yahweh our God, as he has commanded us.'

But this is what you must do to them: you shall break down their altars, and their stone pillars you shall smash, and their Asherah poles you shall hew down, and you shall burn their idols with fire.

[So] know that Yahweh your God, he [is] God, the trustworthy God, maintaining his covenant and his loyal love with those who love him and with those who keep his commandments to a thousand generations,

but repaying those who hate him {in their own person} to destroy them; he is not slow with those who hate him {in their own person}; he repays them.