Joshua Chosen to Lead Israel

¹² One day the Lord said to Moses, “Climb one of the mountains east of the river,^[a] and look out over the land I have given the people of Israel.

The Death of Moses

34 Then Moses went up to Mount Nebo from the plains of Moab and climbed Pisgah Peak, which is across from Jericho. And the Lord showed him the whole land, from Gilead as far as Dan; ² all the land of Naphtali; the land of Ephraim and Manasseh; all the land of Judah, extending to the Mediterranean Sea^[a]; ³ the Negev; the Jordan Valley with Jericho—the city of palms—as far as Zoar. ⁴ Then the Lord said to Moses, “This is the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob when I said, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’ I have now allowed you to see it with your own eyes, but you will not enter the land.”

²³ “At that time I pleaded with the Lord and said, ²⁴ ‘O Sovereign Lord, you have only begun to show your greatness and the strength of your hand to me, your servant. Is there any god in heaven or on earth who can perform such great and mighty deeds as you do? ²⁵ Please let me cross the Jordan to see the wonderful land on the other side, the beautiful hill country and the Lebanon mountains.’

²⁶ “But the Lord was angry with me because of you, and he would not listen to me. ‘That’s enough!’ he declared. ‘Speak of it no more. ²⁷ But go up to Pisgah Peak, and look over the land in every direction. Take a good look, but you may not cross the Jordan River.

⁴⁷ They left Almon-diblathaim and camped in the mountains east of the river,^[a] near Mount Nebo.

⁴⁸ They left the mountains east of the river and camped on the plains of Moab beside the Jordan River, across from Jericho.

Moses’ Death Foretold

⁴⁸ That same day the Lord said to Moses, ⁴⁹ “Go to Moab, to the mountains east of the river,^[a] and climb Mount Nebo, which is across from Jericho. Look out across the land of Canaan, the land I am giving to the people of Israel as their own special possession. ⁵⁰ Then you will die there on the mountain. You will join your ancestors, just as Aaron, your brother, died on Mount Hor and joined his ancestors. ⁵¹ For both of you betrayed me with the Israelites at the waters of Meribah at Kadesh^[b] in the wilderness of Zin. You failed to demonstrate my holiness to the people of Israel there. ⁵² So you will see the land from a distance, but you may not enter the land I am giving to the people of Israel.”