| Chapter
32 |
| 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 before the congregation of Israel, is
a land for cattle, 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 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 Kadeshbarnea to see the land. |
| 9 | For when they went up unto the valley of Eshcol, 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, 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, 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, he
will yet again leave them in the wilderness; and ye shall destroy all this
people. |
| 16 | And they came
near unto him, and said, We will build sheepfolds here for our cattle, and
cities for our little ones: |
| 17
| But we ourselves will go ready armed before the children of Israel,
until we have brought them unto their place: and our little ones 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. |
| 24 | Build you cities for your little ones,
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 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
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, they shall have possessions
among you in the land of Canaan. |
|
31 | And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben 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. |
| 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, |
| 36 | And
Bethnimrah, and Bethharan, fenced cities: and folds for sheep. |
| 37 | And the children of Reuben built
Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Kirjathaim, |
| 38 | And Nebo, and Baalmeon, (their names being changed,)
and Shibmah: and gave other names unto the cities which they builded. |
| 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, and called them Havothjair. |
| 42 | And Nobah went and took Kenath, and
the villages thereof, and called it Nobah, after his own name. |
