1
Then we turned, and set out into the desert by the road to the Sea of Reeds, as Yehowah had told me; and we travelled round Mount Seir for many days.
2
And Yehowah spoke to me, and said,
3
You have travelled round this mountain long enough; turn northwards.
4
And command the people, and say, You are to pass through the territory of your brothers the sons of Esau, who live in Seir; and they will be afraid of you; therefore take care what you do;
5
do not quarrel with them, for I will not give you any of their land, not even as much as the sole of your foot could tread on; because I have given Mount Seir to Edom for a possession.
6
You shall purchase food from them for silver, so that you may eat, and also you shall buy water from them for silver, so that you may drink.
7
For Yehowah your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands; he knows your journey through this great desert. These forty years Yehowah your God has been with you; you have lacked nothing.
8
And we passed on, away from our brothers the sons of Esau, who live in Seir, and away from the road through the Arabah, away from Elath and Ezion-geber. And we turned and passed on by the road to the desert of Moab.
9
And Yehowah said to me, Do not distress Moab or quarrel with them in battle, for I will not give you any of their land for a possession, because I have given Ar to the sons of Lot for a possession.
10
(The Emim lived there formerly, a people great and many and tall like the Anakim;
11
they were also known as Rephaim, as were the Anakim, but the Moabites called them Emim.
12
The Horites also lived in Seir formerly, but the sons of Esau dispossessed them and destroyed them from before them, and lived in their place, as Israel did to the land which they possessed, which Yehowah gave to them.)
13
Now rise up, and cross the brook Zered. So we crossed the brook Zered.
14
And the time from when we left Kadesh-barnea until we crossed the brook Zered was thirty-eight years, until all that generation of the men of war had perished out of the camp, as Yehowah had sworn to them.
15
For indeed Yehowah's hand was against them, to destroy them from the midst of the camp, until they had perished.
16
So when all the men of war had perished and were dead from among the people,
17
Yehowah spoke to me, and said,
18
Today you shall pass over the border of Moab at Ar;
19
when you come near the frontier of the sons of Ammon, do not distress them or quarrel with them; for I will not give you any of the land of the sons of Ammon for a possession, because I have given it to the sons of Lot for a possession.
20
(This also is known as a land of Rephaim; Rephaim lived there formerly, but the Ammonites called them Zamzummim;
21
they were a people great and many and tall like the Anakim; but Yehowah destroyed them from before them-and they dispossessed them, and lived in their place-
22
as he did for the sons of Esau who live in Seir, when he destroyed the Horites from before them, and they dispossessed them and have lived in their place until today.
23
As for the Avvim who lived in villages as far as Gaza, the Kaphtorim who came from Kaphtor destroyed them and lived in their place.)
24
Rise up, set out, and cross the river Arnon; see, I have given into your hands Sihon the Amorite, the king of Heshbon, and his land; begin to take possession, and fight with him in battle.
25
Today I will begin to put the dread and fear of you on the peoples who are under the whole of heaven, who shall hear the report of you, and shall tremble and be in anguish because of you.
26
Then I sent messengers out of the desert of Kedemoth to Sihon the king of Heshbon with words of peace, to say,
27
Let me pass through your land; I will only go by the road, and turn neither to the right nor to the left.
28
You shall sell me food for silver, so that I may eat, and you shall give me water, so that I may drink; only let me pass through on foot,
29
as the sons of Esau who live in Seir and the Moabites who live in Ar allowed me, until I cross the Jordan into the land which Yehowah our God is giving us.
30
But Sihon the king of Heshbon would not let us pass through; for Yehowah your God hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, so that he might deliver him into your hands, as at this day.
31
And Yehowah said to me, See, I have begun to deliver up to you Sihon and his land; begin to take possession so that you may occupy his land.
32
Then Sihon and all his people came out against us to the battle at Jahaz.
33
And Yehowah our God delivered him up to us, and we defeated him and his sons and all his people.
34
And we took all his cities at that time, and utterly destroyed every city: men, women, and children; we left none remaining;
35
we took only the cattle for booty for ourselves, with the spoil of the cities which we took.
36
From Aroer which is on the bank of the river Arnon, and the city which is in the river-valley, as far as Gilead, no city was too high for us; Yehowah our God delivered up all before us.
37
Only you did not come near the land of the sons of Ammon, that is, all along the river Jabbok, and the cities of the hill-country, and wherever Yehowah our God forbade us.
