Numbers 10
EasyEnglish Bible
The silver trumpets
10 The Lord said to Moses, 2 ‘Make two trumpets from one piece of silver. Use a hammer to make them in the right shape. Make a noise with them to tell the people that they must come together. Also, use the trumpets to tell the people that they must move the camp. 3 When the people hear the sound from both trumpets, all the people must meet you. They must meet you at the door of the Tent of Meeting. 4 But you may want only the leaders of Israel's tribes to meet you. If you want that, a priest should make the sound from only one trumpet. 5 But when the sound is one short sound, the tribes on the east side of the camp must start to travel. 6 When they hear the next short sound, the tribes on the south side of the camp must start to travel. Short sounds from the trumpet will tell the people that they must start to travel. 7 But when you want everyone to meet together, make a different sound with the trumpet.
8 The priests, the sons of Aaron, must use the trumpets to make a noise. This is a rule for you and for all your descendants. 9 Use the trumpets to tell everyone when an enemy is attacking you in your own land. Make a sound with the trumpets to tell the people that they must fight the enemy. Then the Lord your God will hear and he will save you from your enemies. 10 You must make sounds with the trumpets on your happy days, too. And you must make sounds with the trumpets at your regular festivals and on the first days of your months. And you must make sounds with the trumpets over your burnt offerings, and over your friendship offerings. God will hear and he will remember you. I am the Lord your God.’
The Israelites leave the Sinai desert
11 In the second year, in the second month, on the 20th day of the month, the cloud went up. It went away from God's Tent of Meeting. 12 So the Israelites started to travel on their journey away from the Sinai desert.[a] Then the cloud stopped in the desert called Paran. 13 They started to travel for the first time, in the way that the Lord had told them to do, through Moses.
14 The flag of the camp of Judah's tribe, started to travel first, with all their armies. And Nahshon the son of Amminadab was over all their armies. 15 Nethanel, the son of Zuar, was over the army of the tribe of Issachar. 16 Eliab, the son of Helon, was over the army of the tribe of Zebulun. 17 Then the Levites packed God's Tent. Then Gershon's clan and Merari's clan, who were carrying God's Tent, started to travel.
18 Next the flag of the camp of Reuben started to travel, with all their armies. Elizur, the son of Shedeur, was over all their armies. 19 Shelumiel, the son of Zurishaddai, was over the army of the tribe of Simeon. 20 Eliasaph, the son of Deuel, was over the army of the tribe of Gad. 21 Then Kohath's clan started to travel. They were carrying the holy things. Before they arrived at the new camp, the other Levites would put up God's Tent.
22 Next the flag of the camp of the tribe of Ephraim started to travel, with all their armies. Elishama the son of Ammihud was over all their armies. 23 And Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur was over the army of the tribe of Manasseh. 24 And Abidan the son of Gideoni was over the army of the tribe of Benjamin.
25 Then the flag of the camp of the tribe of Dan started to travel last, with all their armies. They could keep the Israelites safe if an enemy attacked them from behind them. Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai was over all their armies. 26 And Pagiel the son of Ocran was over the army of the tribe of Asher. 27 And Ahira the son of Enan was over the army of the tribe of Naphtali. 28 The Israelites marched out like that every time that they started to travel.
29 Moses spoke to Reuel's son, Hobab. He was the brother of Moses' wife. He was a Midianite. Moses said to Hobab, ‘We are leaving here now to go to another place. The Lord has said to us, “I will give that place to you.” The Lord has promised to help Israel's people with good things. So come with us and we will take care of you.’
30 But Hobab said to him, ‘I will not come. Instead, I will return to my own country and to my family there.’
31 Moses said, ‘Please do not leave us. You know good places for us to put up our tents in the desert. So you can be our guide. 32 And if you come with us, we will share with you the good things that the Lord gives to us.’
33 So the Israelites left the Lord's mountain. They travelled for three days. During that time, the Levites carried the Lord's Covenant Box in front of them. That was so that the Lord could show them where to make their camp. 34 And the Lord's cloud was over them during the day, whenever they started to travel from the camp.
35 Each time that the Covenant Box started to travel Moses said, ‘Be ready, Lord! Cause your enemies to run away in every direction!’ 36 When they stopped travelling, Moses said, ‘Return, Lord, to be near to the thousands of Israel's people.’
Footnotes
- 10:12 The Israelites had been in the Sinai desert for nearly one year.
Numbers 10
Lexham English Bible
The Silver Trumpets
10 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Make yourself two silver trumpets; make them of hammered-work. You will use them[a] for calling the community and for breaking the camp. 3 You will blow them, and all the community will assemble to the doorway of the tent of assembly. 4 But if they blow only one, the leaders, the heads of the thousands of Israel, will assemble to you. 5 When you will blow a blast, the camps that are camping on the east will set out; 6 when you blow a second blast, the camps that are camping on the south will set out; they will blow a blast for their journeys. 7 But when summoning the assembly, you will blow, but you will not signal with a loud noise. 8 The sons of Aaron, the priests, will blow on the trumpets; this will be an eternal decree for your generations. 9 If you go to war in your land against the enemy who attacks you, you will signal with a loud noise on the trumpets. You will be remembered before[b] Yahweh your God, and you will be rescued from your enemies.
10 “And on the day of your joy and in your appointed times, at the beginning of your months, you will blow on the trumpets in addition to your burnt offerings and in addition to the sacrifices of your fellowship offerings. And they will be as a memorial for you before[c] your God; I am Yahweh your God.”
The Israelites Depart from Sinai
11 And it happened, in the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth of the month the cloud was lifted from upon the tabernacle of the testimony.[d] 12 And the Israelites[e] set out for their journey[f] from the desert of Sinai, and the cloud dwelled in the desert of Paran. 13 They set out for the first time[g] on the command of Yahweh in the hand of Moses.[h] 14 The standard of the camp of the descendants[i] of Judah set out for the first time according to their divisions, with Nahshon son of Amminadab over its division. 15 And Nathanel son of Zuar was over the division of the descendants[j] of Issachar; 16 Eliab son of Helon was over the division of the tribe of the descendants[k] of Zebulun.
17 The tabernacle was taken down, and the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari, the bearers of the tabernacle, set out. 18 And the standard of the camp of Reuben according to their divisions; Elizur son of Shedeur was over their division. 19 Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai was over the division of the sons of the tribe of Simeon. 20 Eliasaph son of Deuel was over the division of the tribe of the descendants[l] of Gad.
21 The Kohathites, the bearers of the sanctuary, set out, and they set up the tabernacle before they arrived. 22 And the stand of the camp of the descendants[m] of Ephraim set out according to their divisions; Elishama son of Ammihud was over its division. 23 Gamaliel son of Pedahzur was over the division of the tribe of the descendants[n] of Manasseh. 24 Abidan son of Gideoni was over the division of the tribe of the descendants[o] of Benjamin.
25 Then the standard of the camp of the descendants[p] of Dan, who formed a rear guard for all the camps, set out according to their divisions; Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai was over its division. 26 Pagiel son of Ocran was over the division of the tribe of the descendants[q] of Asher. 27 Ahira son of Enan was over the division of the tribe of the descendants[r] of Naphtali. 28 These were the departures of the Israelites[s] according to their divisions; and so they set out.
29 Moses said to Hobab son of Reuel the Midianite, the father-in-law of Moses, “We are setting out to the place that Yahweh said, ‘I will give it to you’; go with us, and we will treat you well[t] because Yahweh promised[u] good concerning Israel.” 30 But he said to him, “I will not go. I will only go to my land and to my family.” 31 He[v] said, “Please, do not abandon us because you know our encampment in the desert, and you should be our guide.[w] 32 Moreover, if you go with us, the good that Yahweh will do to us we will do to you.”
33 And so they set out from the mountain of Yahweh a journey of three days, with the ark of the covenant of Yahweh setting out ahead of them[x] three days’ journey to search out a resting place for them; 34 and the cloud of Yahweh was over them by day when they set out from the camp.
35 And whenever the ark was setting out Moses would say,
“Rise up, Yahweh!
May your enemies be scattered;
may the ones that hate you flee from your presence.”
36 And when it rested he would say,
“Return, Yahweh,
to the countless thousands of Israel.”
Footnotes
- Numbers 10:2 Literally “They will be for you”
- Numbers 10:9 Literally “in the presence of”
- Numbers 10:10 Literally “in the presence of”
- Numbers 10:11 Some modern translations (e.g., the NRSV) have “tabernacle of the covenant”
- Numbers 10:12 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
- Numbers 10:12 Hebrew “journeys”
- Numbers 10:13 Literally “in the beginning”
- Numbers 10:13 Or “through Moses”
- Numbers 10:14 Or “sons”
- Numbers 10:15 Or “sons”
- Numbers 10:16 Or “sons”
- Numbers 10:20 Or “sons”
- Numbers 10:22 Or “sons”
- Numbers 10:23 Or “sons”
- Numbers 10:24 Or “sons”
- Numbers 10:25 Or “sons”
- Numbers 10:26 Or “sons”
- Numbers 10:27 Or “sons”
- Numbers 10:28 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
- Numbers 10:29 Literally “do good to you”
- Numbers 10:29 Literally “Yahweh spoke”
- Numbers 10:31 That is, Moses
- Numbers 10:31 Literally “you should be our eyes”
- Numbers 10:33 Or “before them”
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