⁴¹ “You responded to me and said, ‘We have sinned against the Lord. We will now go up and fight according to what the Lord our God commanded.’ So each man put on his weapon for battle and recklessly started out for the hill country.”

The Amorites Defeat Israel

⁴² “Then the Lord told me: ‘Tell them not to go up and fight because I will not be in their midst, or else you will be defeated before your enemies.’

⁴³ “I spoke to you but you didn’t listen. Instead you rebelled against the command^[a] of the Lord and went up to the hill country. ⁴⁴ The Amorites who lived in the hill country came out to engage you in battle. They pursued you like bees do and crushed you from Seir to Hormah. ⁴⁵ You returned and cried out in the Lord’s presence, but the Lord didn’t hear your voice or listen to you. ⁴⁶ You remained in Kadesh for many days. It was a long time, indeed.”