Thematic Bible: The tribe of Reuben


Thematic Bible



In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria came and took Ijon, and Abel-Beth-Maachah, and Janoah, and Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and carried them captive to Assyria.

Beerah his son, whom Tilgath-Pilneser king of Assyria carried away captive: he was prince of the Reubenites.

And the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria, and the spirit of Tilgath-Pilneser king of Assyria, and he carried them away, the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh, and brought them to Halah, and Habor, and Hara, and to the river Gozan, unto this day.


And in the days of Saul they made war with the Hagarites, who fell by their hand; and they dwelt in their tents throughout the east side of Gilead.

The children of Reuben and the Gadites and half the tribe of Manasseh, of valiant men, men who carried shield and sword, drawing the bow and skilful in war, were forty-four thousand seven hundred and sixty, able to go forth to war. And they made war with the Hagarites, with Jetur, and Naphish, and Nodab; and they were helped against them, and the Hagarites were delivered into their hand, and all that were with them; for they cried to God in the battle, and he was intreated of them, because they put their trust in him. read more.
And they took away their cattle: their camels fifty thousand, and two hundred and fifty thousand sheep, and two thousand asses, and a hundred thousand human souls. For there fell down many slain, for the war was of God. And they dwelt in their stead until the captivity.


And over the tribes of Israel were: for the Reubenites Eliezer the son of Zichri was the prince; for the Simeonites, Shephatiah the son of Maachah;

and his brethren, men of valour, two thousand seven hundred chief fathers, whom king David made rulers over the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half tribe of the Manassites, for every matter pertaining to God, and the affairs of the king.


And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad had much cattle, a very great multitude; and they saw the land of Jaazer, and the land of Gilead, and behold, the place was a place for cattle. And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben came and spoke to Moses, and to Eleazar the priest, and to the princes of the assembly, saying, Ataroth, and Dibon, and Jaazer, and Nimrah, and Heshbon, and Elaleh, and Sebam, and Nebo, and Beon, read more.
the country that Jehovah smote before the assembly of Israel, is a land for cattle, and thy servants have cattle; and they said, If we have found favour in thine eyes, let this land be given to thy servants for a possession: bring us not over the Jordan. And Moses said to the children of Gad, and to the children of Reuben, Shall your brethren go to war, and shall ye abide here? And why do ye discourage the children of Israel from going over into the land that Jehovah has given them? Thus did your fathers, when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to see the land: they went up to the valley of Eshcol, and saw the land, and discouraged the children of Israel, that they should not go into the land that Jehovah had given them. And Jehovah's anger was kindled the same time, and he swore, saying, If the men that came up out of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land that I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob! for they have not wholly followed me; save Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, and Joshua the son of Nun; for they have wholly followed Jehovah. And Jehovah's anger was kindled against Israel, and he made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until the whole generation was consumed that had done evil in the eyes of Jehovah. And behold, ye are risen up in your fathers' stead, a progeny of sinful men, to augment yet the fierce anger of Jehovah toward Israel. If ye turn away from after him, he will yet again leave them in the wilderness; and ye shall destroy all this people. And they drew near to him, and said, We will build sheepfolds here for our cattle, and cities for our little ones; but we ourselves will go with diligence armed before the children of Israel, until we have brought them to their place; and our little ones shall dwell in the strong cities because of the inhabitants of the land. We will not return to our houses, until the children of Israel have inherited each one his inheritance. For we will not inherit with them on yonder side the Jordan, and further, because our inheritance is fallen to us on this side the Jordan eastward. And Moses said to them, If ye do this thing, if ye arm yourselves before Jehovah for war, and all of you that are armed go over the Jordan before Jehovah, until he have dispossessed his enemies from before him, and the land is subdued before Jehovah, and afterwards ye return, ye shall be guiltless toward Jehovah and toward Israel, and this land shall be your possession before Jehovah. But if ye do not do so, behold, ye have sinned against Jehovah, and be sure your sin will find you out. Build yourselves cities for your little ones, and folds for your flocks, and do that which has gone out of your mouth. And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben spoke to Moses, saying, Thy servants will do as my lord commands. Our little ones, our wives, our cattle, and all our beasts shall be there in the cities of Gilead; but thy servants will pass over, every one armed for war, before Jehovah to battle, as my lord says. 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. And Moses said unto them, If the children of Gad and the children of Reuben pass with you over the Jordan, every one armed for battle, before Jehovah, and the land be subdued before you, then ye shall give them the land of Gilead for a possession; but if they do not pass over with you armed, they shall have possessions among you in the land of Canaan. And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben answered, saying, As Jehovah has said to thy servants, so will we do. We will pass over armed before Jehovah into the land of Canaan, and the possession of our inheritance on this side the Jordan shall be ours. And Moses gave to them, to the children of Gad, and to the children of Reuben, and to half the tribe of Manasseh the son of Joseph, the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, and the kingdom of Og the king of Bashan, the land, according to its cities and territories, the cities of the land round about.

And I commanded you at that time, saying, Jehovah your God hath given you this land to take possession of it: ye shall pass over armed before your brethren the children of Israel, all who are combatants. Only your wives, and your little ones, and your cattle, I know that ye have much cattle, shall abide in your cities which I have given you, until Jehovah give rest to your brethren, as well as to you, and they also take possession of the land that Jehovah your God giveth them beyond the Jordan; then shall ye return, each man to his possession, which I have given you.


Impetuous as the waters, thou shalt have no pre-eminence; Because thou wentest up to thy father's couch: Then defiledst thou it: he went up to my bed.

Let Reuben live, and not die; And let his men be few.


And the sons of Pallu: Eliab; and the sons of Eliab were Nemuel, and Dathan, and Abiram. This is that Dathan and Abiram, summoned of the assembly, who contended against Moses and against Aaron in the band of Korah, when they contended against Jehovah.

Reuben, the firstborn of Israel: the children of Reuben: of Enoch, the family of the Enochites; of Pallu, the family of the Palluites; of Hezron, the family of the Hezronites; of Carmi, the family of the Carmites.


And Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, made bold, and with him Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, the sons of Reuben;

and the sons of Eliab were Nemuel, and Dathan, and Abiram. This is that Dathan and Abiram, summoned of the assembly, who contended against Moses and against Aaron in the band of Korah, when they contended against Jehovah. And the earth opened its mouth, and swallowed them up together with Korah, when that band died, when the fire devoured the two hundred and fifty men; and they became a sign.


And from the other side of the Jordan, of the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and of the half tribe of Manasseh, with all manner of weapons of war for battle, a hundred and twenty thousand. All of them men of war, keeping rank in battle array, came with a perfect heart to Hebron, to make David king over all Israel; and all the rest also of Israel were of one heart to make David king.


And to the Reubenites and to the Gadites I gave from Gilead even to the river Arnon, the middle of the ravine and its border, as far as the river Jabbok, the border of the children of Ammon; the plain also, and the Jordan, and its border from Chinnereth as far as the sea of the plain, the salt sea, under the slopes of Pisgah eastward.


Adina the son of Shiza the Reubenite, a captain of the Reubenites, and thirty with him;


And these shall stand upon mount Ebal to curse: Reuben, Gad, and Asher, and Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali.


In those days Jehovah began to cut Israel short; and Hazael smote them in all the borders of Israel; from the Jordan eastward, all the land of Gilead, the Gadites, and the Reubenites, and the Manassites, from Aroer, which is by the river Arnon, both Gilead and Bashan.


And the children of Reuben built Heshbon, and Elaleh, and Kirjathaim, and Nebo, and Baal-meon (of which the names were changed), and Sibmah; and they gave other names to the cities that they built.


And they came to the districts of the Jordan that are in the land of Canaan; and the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh built there an altar by the Jordan, an altar of grand appearance. And the children of Israel heard say, Behold, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh have built an altar over against the land of Canaan, in the districts of the Jordan, separately from the children of Israel. And when the children of Israel heard of it, the whole assembly of the children of Israel gathered together at Shiloh, to go up against them to war. read more.
And the children of Israel sent to the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh, into the land of Gilead, Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, and with him ten princes, of each father's house a prince, out of all the tribes of Israel; and each of them was head of a father's house, of the thousands of Israel. And they came to the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh, to the land of Gilead, and spoke with them, saying, Thus saith the whole assembly of Jehovah: What wickedness is this which ye have committed against the God of Israel, to turn away this day from following Jehovah, in that ye have built yourselves an altar, rebelling this day against Jehovah? Is the iniquity of Peor too little for us? from which we are not cleansed until this day, although there was a plague in the assembly of Jehovah. And ye turn away this day from following Jehovah; and it will be, that since ye rebel this day against Jehovah, to-morrow he will be wroth with the whole assembly of Israel. Notwithstanding, if the land of your possession is unclean, come over into the land of the possession of Jehovah, where Jehovah's tabernacle dwelleth, and take possession amongst us; but rebel not against Jehovah, and rebel not against us, in building for yourselves an altar besides the altar of Jehovah our God. Did not Achan the son of Zerah commit a trespass in the accursed thing? and wrath fell on all the assembly of Israel, and he perished not alone in his iniquity. And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh answered and said to the heads of the thousands of Israel, The God of gods, Jehovah, the God of gods, Jehovah, he knoweth, and Israel he shall know it; if it is in rebellion, or if in trespass against Jehovah, save us not this day! that we have built for ourselves an altar to turn from following Jehovah, and if it is to offer up burnt-offering and oblation on it, and if to offer peace-offerings thereon, let Jehovah himself require it from us; and if we have not done it from fear of this thing, saying, In future your children will speak to our children, saying, What have ye to do with Jehovah the God of Israel? Jehovah hath made the Jordan a border between us and you, ye children of Reuben and children of Gad, ye have no portion in Jehovah! And so shall your children make our children cease from fearing Jehovah. And we said, Let us now set to work to build an altar, not for burnt-offering, nor for sacrifice, but to be a witness between us and you, and between our generations after us, that we might do service to Jehovah before him with our burnt-offerings, and with our sacrifices, and with our peace-offerings; that your children may not say to our children in future, Ye have no portion in Jehovah. And we said, If it shall be that in future they so say to us and to our generations, we will say, Behold the pattern of the altar of Jehovah which our fathers made, not for burnt-offering, nor for sacrifice, but as a witness between us and you. Far be it from us that we should rebel against Jehovah, and turn this day from following Jehovah, in building an altar for burnt-offering, for oblation, and for sacrifice, besides the altar of Jehovah our God that is before his tabernacle.


On the fourth day, the prince of the children of Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur. His offering was one silver dish of the weight of a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mingled with oil for an oblation; one cup of ten shekels of gold, full of incense; read more.
one young bullock, one ram, one yearling lamb, for a burnt-offering; one buck of the goats for a sin-offering; and for a sacrifice of peace-offering, two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, five yearling lambs. This was the offering of Elizur, the son of Shedeur.


And the sons of Reuben, Israel's eldest son, their generations, after their families, according to their fathers' houses, by the number of the names, according to their polls, every male from twenty years old and upward, all that went forth to military service: those that were numbered of them, of the tribe of Reuben, were forty-six thousand five hundred.


the princes of Is'sachar came with Deb'orah, and Is'sachar faithful to Barak; into the valley they rushed forth at his heels. Among the clans of Reuben there were great searchings of heart. Why did you tarry among the sheepfolds, to hear the piping for the flocks? Among the clans of Reuben there were great searchings of heart.


And the standard of the camp of Reuben set forward according to their hosts, and over his host was Elizur the son of Shedeur;


Then Joshua called the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh, and said unto them, Ye have kept all that Moses the servant of Jehovah commanded you, and have hearkened to my voice in all that I commanded you. Ye have not left your brethren these many days unto this day, and ye have kept the charge of the commandment of Jehovah your God. read more.
And now Jehovah your God hath given rest to your brethren, as he said unto them; and now return, and get you unto your tents, unto the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of Jehovah gave you beyond the Jordan. Only, take great heed to do the commandment and the law, which Moses the servant of Jehovah commanded you, to love Jehovah your God, and to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and to cleave unto him, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul. And Joshua blessed them, and sent them away; and they went to their tents. And to half the tribe of Manasseh Moses had given inheritance in Bashan, and to the other half thereof had Joshua given among their brethren on this side the Jordan westward. And when Joshua sent them away to their tents, he blessed them also, and spoke to them, saying, Return unto your tents with much wealth and with very much cattle, with silver, and with gold, and with copper, and with iron, and with clothing, in very great quantity; divide the spoil of your enemies with your brethren. And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh returned, and departed from the children of Israel out of Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to go to the country of Gilead, into the land of their possession, of which they had become possessed, according to the word of Jehovah through Moses.


And Leah conceived, and bore a son, and called his name Reuben; for she said, Because Jehovah has looked upon my affliction; for now my husband will love me.


And these are their names: for the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur;


These are the families of the Reubenites; and they that were numbered of them were forty-three thousand seven hundred and thirty.


The standard of the camp of Reuben shall be southward according to their hosts; and the prince of the sons of Reuben shall be Elizur the son of Shedeur;


And these are the names of the men that shall stand with you: for Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur;