Numbers 21:6-20

Complete Jewish Bible

(LY: vi) ⁶ In response, Adonai sent poisonous snakes among the people; they bit the people, and many of Isra’el’s people died. ⁷ The people came to Moshe and said, “We sinned by speaking against Adonai and against you. Pray to Adonai that he rid us of these snakes.” Moshe prayed for the people, ⁸ and Adonai answered Moshe: “Make a poisonous snake and put it on a pole. When anyone who has been bitten sees it, he will live.” ⁹ Moshe made a bronze snake and put it on the pole; if a snake had bitten someone, then, when he looked toward the bronze snake, he stayed alive.

¹⁰ The people of Isra’el traveled on and camped at Ovot. ¹¹ From Ovot they traveled and camped at ‘Iyei-Ha‘avarim, in the desert fronting Mo’av on the east. ¹² From there they traveled and camped in Vadi Zered. ¹³ From there they traveled and camped on the other side of the Arnon, in the desert; this river comes out of the territory of the Emori; for the Arnon is the boundary between Mo’av and the Emori. ¹⁴ This is why it says, in the Book of the Wars of Adonai, “. . . Vahev at Sufah, the vadis of Arnon, ¹⁵ and the slope of the vadis extending as far as the site of ‘Ar, which lie next to the territory of Mo’av.”

¹⁶ From there they went on to Be’er [well]; that is the well about which Adonai said to Moshe, “Assemble the people, and I will give them water.” ¹⁷ Then Isra’el sang this song:

From the desert they went to Mattanah, ¹⁹ from Mattanah to Nachali’el, from Nachali’el to Bamot, ²⁰ and from Bamot to the valley by the plain of Mo’av at the start of the Pisgah range, where it overlooks the desert.