Deuteronomy 2
King James Version
2 Then we turned, and took our journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea, as the Lord spake unto me: and we compassed mount Seir many days.
2 And the Lord spake unto me, saying,
3 Ye have compassed this mountain long enough: turn you northward.
4 And command thou the people, saying, Ye are to pass through the coast of your brethren the children of Esau, which dwell in Seir; and they shall be afraid of you: take ye good heed unto yourselves therefore:
5 Meddle not with them; for I will not give you of their land, no, not so much as a foot breadth; because I have given mount Seir unto Esau for a possession.
6 Ye shall buy meat of them for money, that ye may eat; and ye shall also buy water of them for money, that ye may drink.
7 For the Lord thy God hath blessed thee in all the works of thy hand: he knoweth thy walking through this great wilderness: these forty years the Lord thy God hath been with thee; thou hast lacked nothing.
8 And when we passed by from our brethren the children of Esau, which dwelt in Seir, through the way of the plain from Elath, and from Eziongaber, we turned and passed by the way of the wilderness of Moab.
9 And the Lord said unto me, Distress not the Moabites, neither contend with them in battle: for I will not give thee of their land for a possession; because I have given Ar unto the children of Lot for a possession.
10 The Emims dwelt therein in times past, a people great, and many, and tall, as the Anakims;
11 Which also were accounted giants, as the Anakims; but the Moabites called them Emims.
12 The Horims also dwelt in Seir beforetime; but the children of Esau succeeded them, when they had destroyed them from before them, and dwelt in their stead; as Israel did unto the land of his possession, which the Lord gave unto them.
13 Now rise up, said I, and get you over the brook Zered. And we went over the brook Zered.
14 And the space in which we came from Kadeshbarnea, until we were come over the brook Zered, was thirty and eight years; until all the generation of the men of war were wasted out from among the host, as the Lord sware unto them.
15 For indeed the hand of the Lord was against them, to destroy them from among the host, until they were consumed.
16 So it came to pass, when all the men of war were consumed and dead from among the people,
17 That the Lord spake unto me, saying,
18 Thou art to pass over through Ar, the coast of Moab, this day:
19 And when thou comest nigh over against the children of Ammon, distress them not, nor meddle with them: for I will not give thee of the land of the children of Ammon any possession; because I have given it unto the children of Lot for a possession.
20 (That also was accounted a land of giants: giants dwelt therein in old time; and the Ammonites call them Zamzummims;
21 A people great, and many, and tall, as the Anakims; but the Lord destroyed them before them; and they succeeded them, and dwelt in their stead:
22 As he did to the children of Esau, which dwelt in Seir, when he destroyed the Horims from before them; and they succeeded them, and dwelt in their stead even unto this day:
23 And the Avims which dwelt in Hazerim, even unto Azzah, the Caphtorims, which came forth out of Caphtor, destroyed them, and dwelt in their stead.)
24 Rise ye up, take your journey, and pass over the river Arnon: behold, I have given into thine hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land: begin to possess it, and contend with him in battle.
25 This day will I begin to put the dread of thee and the fear of thee upon the nations that are under the whole heaven, who shall hear report of thee, and shall tremble, and be in anguish because of thee.
26 And I sent messengers out of the wilderness of Kedemoth unto Sihon king of Heshbon with words of peace, saying,
27 Let me pass through thy land: I will go along by the high way, I will neither turn unto the right hand nor to the left.
28 Thou shalt sell me meat for money, that I may eat; and give me water for money, that I may drink: only I will pass through on my feet;
29 (As the children of Esau which dwell in Seir, and the Moabites which dwell in Ar, did unto me;) until I shall pass over Jordan into the land which the Lord our God giveth us.
30 But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass by him: for the Lord thy God hardened his spirit, and made his heart obstinate, that he might deliver him into thy hand, as appeareth this day.
31 And the Lord said unto me, Behold, I have begun to give Sihon and his land before thee: begin to possess, that thou mayest inherit his land.
32 Then Sihon came out against us, he and all his people, to fight at Jahaz.
33 And the Lord our God delivered him before us; and we smote him, and his sons, and all his people.
34 And we took all his cities at that time, and utterly destroyed the men, and the women, and the little ones, of every city, we left none to remain:
35 Only the cattle we took for a prey unto ourselves, and the spoil of the cities which we took.
36 From Aroer, which is by the brink of the river of Arnon, and from the city that is by the river, even unto Gilead, there was not one city too strong for us: the Lord our God delivered all unto us:
37 Only unto the land of the children of Ammon thou camest not, nor unto any place of the river Jabbok, nor unto the cities in the mountains, nor unto whatsoever the Lord our God forbad us.
Deuteronomy 2
English Standard Version
The Wilderness Years
2 “Then we turned and journeyed into the wilderness in the direction of the Red Sea, (A)as the Lord told me. And for many days we traveled around Mount Seir. 2 Then the Lord said to me, 3 ‘You have been traveling around this mountain country (B)long enough. Turn northward 4 and command the people, “You are about to pass through the territory of (C)your brothers, the people of Esau, (D)who live in Seir; and (E)they will be afraid of you. So be very careful. 5 Do not contend with them, for I will not give you any of their land, no, not so much as for the sole of the foot to tread on, because (F)I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession. 6 (G)You shall purchase food from them with money, that you may eat, and you shall also buy water from them with money, that you may drink. 7 For the Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. (H)He knows your going through this great wilderness. (I)These forty years the Lord your God has been with you. You have lacked nothing.”’ 8 So (J)we went on, away from our brothers, the people of Esau, who live in Seir, away from (K)the Arabah road from (L)Elath and (M)Ezion-geber.
“And we turned and went in the direction of the wilderness of Moab. 9 And the Lord said to me, (N)‘Do not harass Moab or contend with them in battle, for I will not give you any of their land for a possession, because I have given (O)Ar to (P)the people of Lot for a possession.’ 10 ((Q)The Emim formerly lived there, (R)a people great and many, and tall (S)as the Anakim. 11 Like the Anakim they are also counted as (T)Rephaim, but the Moabites call them Emim. 12 (U)The Horites also lived in Seir formerly, but the people of Esau dispossessed them and destroyed them from before them and settled in their place, (V)as Israel did to the land of their possession, which the Lord gave to them.) 13 ‘Now rise up and go over (W)the brook Zered.’ So we went over (X)the brook Zered. 14 And the time from our leaving (Y)Kadesh-barnea until we crossed (Z)the brook Zered was thirty-eight years, (AA)until the entire generation, that is, the men of war, had perished from the camp, as the Lord had sworn to them. 15 For indeed the hand of the Lord was against them, to destroy them from the camp, until they had perished.
16 “So as soon as all the men of war had perished and were dead from among the people, 17 the Lord said to me, 18 ‘Today you are to cross the border of Moab at Ar. 19 And when you approach the territory of the people of Ammon, (AB)do not harass them or contend with them, for I will not give you any of the land of the people of Ammon as a possession, because I have given it to (AC)the sons of Lot for a possession.’ 20 (It is also counted as a land of (AD)Rephaim. Rephaim formerly lived there—but the Ammonites call them Zamzummim— 21 (AE)a people great and many, and tall as the Anakim; but the Lord destroyed them before the Ammonites,[a] and they dispossessed them and settled in their place, 22 as he did for the people of Esau, who live in Seir, when he destroyed (AF)the Horites before them and they dispossessed them and settled in their place even to this day. 23 As for (AG)the Avvim, who lived in villages as far as (AH)Gaza, (AI)the Caphtorim, who came from Caphtor, destroyed them and settled in their place.) 24 ‘Rise up, set out on your journey and (AJ)go over the Valley of the Arnon. Behold, I have given into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of (AK)Heshbon, and his land. Begin to take possession, and (AL)contend with him in battle. 25 This day I will begin to put (AM)the dread and fear of you on the peoples who are under the whole heaven, who shall hear the report of you and shall tremble and be in anguish because of you.’
The Defeat of King Sihon
26 “So I sent messengers from the wilderness of (AN)Kedemoth to Sihon the king of (AO)Heshbon, (AP)with words of peace, saying, 27 (AQ)‘Let me pass through your land. I will go only by the road; I will turn aside neither to the right nor to the left. 28 (AR)You shall sell me food for money, that I may eat, and give me water for money, that I may drink. Only let me pass through on foot, 29 (AS)as the sons of Esau who live in Seir and the Moabites who live in Ar did for me, until I go over the Jordan into the land that the Lord our God is giving to us.’ 30 But (AT)Sihon the king of (AU)Heshbon would not let us pass by him, for the Lord your God (AV)hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, that he might give him into your hand, as he is this day. 31 And the Lord said to me, ‘Behold, I have begun to give Sihon and his land over to you. Begin to take possession, that you may occupy his land.’ 32 Then (AW)Sihon came out against us, he and all his people, to battle at Jahaz. 33 And (AX)the Lord our God gave him over to us, and (AY)we defeated him and his sons and all his people. 34 And we captured all his cities at that time and devoted to destruction[b] every (AZ)city, men, women, and children. We left no survivors. 35 Only the livestock we took as spoil for ourselves, with the plunder of the cities that we captured. 36 (BA)From Aroer, which is on the edge of the Valley of the Arnon, and from (BB)the city that is in the valley, as far as Gilead, there was not a city too high for us. (BC)The Lord our God gave all into our hands. 37 Only to the land of the sons of Ammon you did not draw near, that is, to all the banks of the river (BD)Jabbok and the cities of the hill country, whatever the Lord our God had forbidden us.
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 2:21 Hebrew them
- Deuteronomy 2:34 That is, set apart (devoted) as an offering to the Lord (for destruction)
Deuteronomy 2
Wycliffe Bible
2 And we went forth from thence, and came into the wilderness that leadeth to the Red Sea, as the Lord said to me; and we compassed the hill of Seir in long time. (And we went forth from there, and came to the wilderness that leadeth to the Red Sea, as the Lord said to me; and we marched around the hill country of Seir for a long time.)
2 And (then) the Lord said to me,
3 It sufficeth to you to compass this hill; go ye against the north. (It sufficeth for you to have gone around these hills long enough; now go ye to the north.)
4 And command thou to the people, and say, Ye shall pass by the terms of your brethren, the sons of Esau, that dwell in Seir, and they shall dread you. Therefore see ye diligently, (And command thou to the people, and say, Ye shall pass by the borders, or the territory, of your brothers, the sons of Esau, who live in Seir, and they shall fear you. And so see ye diligently,)
5 that ye be not moved against them; for I shall not give to you of their land as much as the step of one foot may tread, for I have given the hill of Seir into the possession of Esau. (that ye go not against them; for I shall not give you any of their land, not as much as the step of one foot can tread, for I have given the hill country of Seir to the sons of Esau for a possession.)
6 Ye shall buy of them meats for money, and ye shall eat; and ye shall draw, and drink water bought. (Ye shall buy food from them with your money, and then ye shall eat; and ye shall buy some water, and drink it.)
7 Thy Lord God hath blessed thee in all the works of thine hands; he hath known thy way, how thou hast passed this most wilderness, by forty years; and thy Lord God dwelled with thee, and nothing failed to thee. (The Lord thy God hath blessed thee in all the works of thy hands; he hath known thy way, how thou hast passed through this great wilderness for forty years; and the Lord thy God hath been with thee, and thou hast lacked nothing.)
8 And when we had passed by our brethren, the sons of Esau, that dwelled in Seir, by the way of the field of Elath, and of Eziongaber, we came to the way that leadeth into the desert, (or the wilderness,) of Moab.
9 And the Lord said to me, Fight thou not against Moabites, neither begin thou battle against them; for I shall not give to thee anything of their land, for I have given Ar into possession to the sons of Lot (for I have given Ar to the sons of Lot for a possession).
10 Emim were the first dwellers thereof, a great people, and strong, and so high, (The Emims were the first inhabitants there, a great and strong people, and so tall,)
11 that they were believed to be as giants, of the generation of Anakim, and they were like the sons of Anakim; forsooth Moabites call them Emim (but the Moabites call them the Emims).
12 Soothly Horims dwelled before in Seir, and when they were put out, and were done away, the sons of Esau dwelled there, as Israel did in the land of his possession, which the Lord gave to him. (And the Horims lived there before in Seir, and when they were put out, and were done away, then the sons of Esau lived there, like the Israelites did in the land of their possession, which the Lord gave to them.)
13 Therefore we rose up, that we should pass the strand of Zered, and we came to it. (And so we rose up, and went out, and crossed over the Zered River.)
14 Soothly the time in which we went from Kadeshbarnea till to the passing of the strand of Zered, was of eight and thirty years (And the time it took us to go from Kadeshbarnea until we crossed over the Zered River, was thirty-eight years), till all the generation of fighting men was wasted from their tents, as the Lord had sworn;
15 whose hand was against them, (so) that they should perish from the midst of their tents.
16 Soothly after that all the fighters had fallen down, (And when all the fighting men had died,)
17 the Lord spake to me, and said,
18 Thou shalt pass today the coasts of Moab, (by) the city, Ar by name, (Today, thou shalt cross over the border of Moab, by the city of Ar,)
19 and thou shalt nigh into the coasts of the sons of Ammon; be thou ware that thou fight not against them, nor be moved to battle; for I shall not give to thee of the land of the sons of Ammon, for I have given it to the sons of Lot into possession. (and thou shalt come near to the land of the Ammonites; be thou careful that thou do not fight against them, nor go into battle with them; for I shall not give thee any of the land of the Ammonites, for I have given it to the sons of Lot for a possession.)
20 It is reckoned the land of giants, and giants inhabited therein sometime, which giants Ammonites call Zamzummims; (It is reckoned the land of giants, and giants lived there sometime ago, whom the Ammonites called the Zamzummims;)
21 a much people, and great, and of noble length, as Anakim, which the Lord did away from the face of them, and made them to dwell (there) for those giants, (a great and numerous people, and as tall as the Anakim, whom the Lord did away from there, and then allowed the Ammonites to live there instead of those giants,)
22 as he did to the sons of Esau, that dwelled in Seir, and did away Horims, and gave to them the land of Horims, which the sons of Esau wield till into present time. (as he did for the sons of Esau, who lived in Seir, for he did away the Horims, and gave the land of the Horims to the sons of Esau, which they possess unto this present time.)
23 Also men of Cappadocia putted out Avims, that dwelled in Hazerim, till to Gaza; which went out from Cappadocia, and did away Avims, and dwelled there for them. (And the men of Caphtor put out the Avims, who lived in Hazerim, unto Gaza; yea, they went out from Caphtor, and did away the Avims, and lived there in their place.)
24 Rise ye, and pass ye the strand of Arnon; lo! I have betaken in(to) thine hand Sihon, king of Heshbon, of Amorites; and his land begin thou to wield, and smite thou battle against him. (So rise ye up, and cross ye over the Arnon River; lo! I have delivered Sihon, the king of Heshbon, of the Amorites, and his land, into thy hands; now begin thou to possess it, and make thou battle against him.)
25 Today I shall begin to send thy dread, and thy fear into the peoples that dwell under all heaven (Today I shall begin to put the dread and the fear of thee into all the peoples who live under heaven), (so) that when thy name is heard, they dread, and tremble, by the manner of women travailing of child, and be holden with sorrow.
26 Therefore I sent messengers from the wilderness of Kedemoth to Sihon, king of Heshbon; and I said with peaceable words (and I said with these words of peace),
27 We shall pass through thy land, we shall go in the common way; we shall not bow neither to the right side, nor to the left side. (We desire to pass through thy land, and we shall go by the common way; we shall not turn to the right, nor to the left.)
28 Sell thou us meats for price, that we eat; give thou us water for money, and so we shall drink. Only it is that we ask of thee that thou grant passage to us, (Sell thou food to us for money, so that we can eat; and sell thou water to us for money, so that we can drink. All that we ask of thee is that thou grant passage to us,)
29 as the sons of Esau did, that dwell in Seir, and the Moabites, that dwell in Ar, till we come to (the) Jordan, and pass to the land which our Lord God shall give to us. (as the sons of Esau did, who live in Seir, and the Moabites, who live in Ar, until we come to the Jordan River, and then cross over to the land which the Lord our God shall give to us.)
30 And Sihon, king of Heshbon, would not give passage to us; for thy Lord God made hard his spirit, and made firm in evil the heart of him, that he should be betaken into thine hands, as thou seest now. (But Sihon, the king of Heshbon, would not grant us passage; for the Lord thy God made his spirit hard, and his heart firm in evil, so that he would be delivered into thy hands, as thou now seest that he is.)
31 And the Lord said to me, Lo, I have begun to betake to thee Sihon, and his land; begin thou to wield it. (And the Lord said to me, Lo! I have now begun to deliver unto thee Sihon, and his land; begin thou to possess it.)
32 And Sihon went out against us with all his people, to battle in Jahaz (to do battle at Jahaz).
33 And our Lord God betook him to us, and we have smitten him (and we struck him down), with his sons, and all his people.
34 And we took in that time all the cities, when the dwellers of those cities, men, and women, and children, were slain; we left not in them anything, (And we took all their cities at that time, and the inhabitants of those cities, the men, and women, and children, were all killed; we left nothing in them,)
35 except beasts that fell into the part of men taking prey (except for the beasts which we took as prey), and except (for the) spoils of the cities which we (also) took.
36 From Aroer, which is on the brink of the strand of Arnon, from the town which is set in the valley, unto Gilead, no town was, nor city, that escaped our hands. Our Lord God betook all to us; (From Aroer, which is on the bank of the Arnon River, and from the town which is set in the valley, unto Gilead, there was no town, or city, that escaped our hands. The Lord our God delivered all of them to us;)
37 except the land of the sons of Ammon, to which land we nighed not, and all things that lie to the strand of Jabbok, and except the cities of the mountains, and all the places from which our Lord God forbade us. (except for the land of the Ammonites, which land we did not even come near to, and all the places that be along the Jabbok River, and except for the cities in the mountains, and all the places to which the Lord our God forbade us to go.)
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
2001 by Terence P. Noble