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Numbers 10
Lexham English Bible
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”
Numbers 10
Easy-to-Read Version
Numbers 10
Easy-to-Read Version
The Silver Trumpets
10 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Make two trumpets. Use silver and hammer it to make the trumpets. These trumpets will be for calling the people together and for telling them when it is time to move the camp. 3 If you blow long blasts on both trumpets, all the people must meet together at the entrance of the Meeting Tent. 4 But if you blow long blasts on only one trumpet, only the leaders will come to meet with you. (These are the leaders of the twelve tribes of Israel.)
5 “Short blasts on the trumpets will be the way to tell the people to move the camp. The first time you blow a short blast on the trumpets, the tribes camping on the east side of the Meeting Tent must begin to move. 6 The second time you blow a short blast on the trumpets, the tribes camping on the south side of the Meeting Tent will begin to move. 7 But if you want to gather the people together for a special meeting, blow the trumpets in a different way—blow a long steady blast on the trumpets. 8 Only Aaron’s sons, the priests, should blow the trumpets. This is a law for you that will continue forever, for generations to come.
9 “If you are fighting an enemy in your own land, blow loudly on the trumpets before you go to fight them. The Lord your God will hear you, and he will save you from your enemies. 10 Also blow these trumpets for your special meetings, New Moon celebrations, and all your happy times together. Blow the trumpets when you give your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. This will be a special way for your God to remember you. I command you to do this; I am the Lord your God.”
The Israelites Move Their Camp
11 On the 20th day of the second month of the second year after the Israelites left Egypt, the cloud rose from above the Tent of the Agreement. 12 So the Israelites began their journey. They left the desert of Sinai and traveled until the cloud stopped in the desert of Paran. 13 This was the first time the people moved their camp. They moved it the way the Lord commanded Moses.
14 The three divisions from Judah’s camp went first. They traveled under their flag. The first group was the tribe of Judah. Nahshon son of Amminadab was the commander of that group. 15 Next came the tribe of Issachar. Nethanel son of Zuar was the commander of that group. 16 And then came the tribe of Zebulun. Eliab son of Helon was the commander of that group.
17 Then the Holy Tent was taken down. And the men from the Gershon and the Merari families carried the Holy Tent. So the people from these families were next in line.
18 Then came the three divisions from Reuben’s camp. They traveled under their flag. The first group was the tribe of Reuben. Elizur son of Shedeur was the commander of that group. 19 Next came the tribe of Simeon. Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai was the commander of that group. 20 And then came the tribe of Gad. Eliasaph son of Deuel[a] was the commander of that group. 21 Then came the Kohath family. They carried the holy things from inside the Holy Tent. These people came at this time so that the other people could set up the Holy Tent and make it ready at the new camp before these people arrived.
22 Next came the three groups from Ephraim’s camp. They traveled under their flag. The first group was the tribe of Ephraim. Elishama son of Ammihud was the commander of that group. 23 Next came the tribe of Manasseh. Gamaliel son of Pedahzur was the commander of that group. 24 Then came the tribe of Benjamin. Abidan son of Gideoni was the commander of that group.
25 The last three tribes in the line were the rear guard for all the other tribes. These were the groups from Dan’s camp. They traveled under their flag. The first group was the tribe of Dan. Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai was their commander. 26 Next came the tribe of Asher. Pagiel son of Ocran was the commander of that group. 27 Then came the tribe of Naphtali. Ahira son of Enan was the commander of that group. 28 That was the way the Israelites marched when they moved from place to place.
29 Hobab was the son of Reuel, the Midianite. (Reuel was Moses’ father-in-law.) Moses said to Hobab, “We are traveling to the land that the Lord promised to give to us. Come with us and we will be good to you. The Lord has promised good things to the Israelites.”
30 But Hobab answered, “No, I will not go with you. I will go back to my homeland and to my own people.”
31 Then Moses said, “Please don’t leave us. You know more about the desert than we do. You can be our guide. 32 If you come with us, we will share with you all the good things that the Lord gives us.”
33 So they began traveling from the mountain of the Lord. The priests took the Box of the Lord’s Agreement and walked in front of the people. They carried the Holy Box for three days, looking for a place to camp. 34 The Lord’s cloud was over them every day. And when they left their camp every morning, the cloud was there to lead them.
35 When the people lifted the Holy Box to move the camp, Moses always said,
“Get up, Lord!
May your enemies be scattered.
May your enemies run away from you.”
36 And when the Holy Box was put in its place, Moses always said,
“Come back, Lord,
to the millions of Israelites.”
Footnotes
- Numbers 10:20 Deuel Or “Reuel.”
Numbers 10
New International Version
Numbers 10
New International Version
The Silver Trumpets
10 The Lord said to Moses: 2 “Make two trumpets(A) of hammered silver, and use them for calling the community(B) together and for having the camps set out.(C) 3 When both are sounded, the whole community is to assemble before you at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 4 If only one is sounded, the leaders(D)—the heads of the clans of Israel—are to assemble before you. 5 When a trumpet blast is sounded, the tribes camping on the east are to set out.(E) 6 At the sounding of a second blast, the camps on the south are to set out.(F) The blast will be the signal for setting out. 7 To gather the assembly, blow the trumpets,(G) but not with the signal for setting out.(H)
8 “The sons of Aaron, the priests, are to blow the trumpets. This is to be a lasting ordinance for you and the generations to come.(I) 9 When you go into battle in your own land against an enemy who is oppressing you,(J) sound a blast on the trumpets.(K) Then you will be remembered(L) by the Lord your God and rescued from your enemies.(M) 10 Also at your times of rejoicing—your appointed festivals and New Moon feasts(N)—you are to sound the trumpets(O) over your burnt offerings(P) and fellowship offerings,(Q) and they will be a memorial for you before your God. I am the Lord your God.(R)”
The Israelites Leave Sinai
11 On the twentieth day of the second month of the second year,(S) the cloud lifted(T) from above the tabernacle of the covenant law.(U) 12 Then the Israelites set out from the Desert of Sinai and traveled from place to place until the cloud came to rest in the Desert of Paran.(V) 13 They set out, this first time, at the Lord’s command through Moses.(W)
14 The divisions of the camp of Judah went first, under their standard.(X) Nahshon son of Amminadab(Y) was in command. 15 Nethanel son of Zuar was over the division of the tribe(Z) of Issachar,(AA) 16 and Eliab son of Helon(AB) was over the division of the tribe of Zebulun.(AC) 17 Then the tabernacle was taken down, and the Gershonites and Merarites, who carried it, set out.(AD)
18 The divisions of the camp of Reuben(AE) went next, under their standard.(AF) Elizur son of Shedeur(AG) was in command. 19 Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai was over the division of the tribe of Simeon,(AH) 20 and Eliasaph son of Deuel was over the division of the tribe of Gad.(AI) 21 Then the Kohathites(AJ) set out, carrying the holy things.(AK) The tabernacle was to be set up before they arrived.(AL)
22 The divisions of the camp of Ephraim(AM) went next, under their standard. Elishama son of Ammihud(AN) was in command. 23 Gamaliel son of Pedahzur was over the division of the tribe of Manasseh,(AO) 24 and Abidan son of Gideoni was over the division of the tribe of Benjamin.(AP)
25 Finally, as the rear guard(AQ) for all the units, the divisions of the camp of Dan set out under their standard. Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai(AR) was in command. 26 Pagiel son of Okran was over the division of the tribe of Asher,(AS) 27 and Ahira son of Enan was over the division of the tribe of Naphtali.(AT) 28 This was the order of march for the Israelite divisions as they set out.
29 Now Moses said to Hobab(AU) son of Reuel(AV) the Midianite, Moses’ father-in-law,(AW) “We are setting out for the place about which the Lord said, ‘I will give it to you.’(AX) Come with us and we will treat you well, for the Lord has promised good things to Israel.”
30 He answered, “No, I will not go;(AY) I am going back to my own land and my own people.(AZ)”
31 But Moses said, “Please do not leave us. You know where we should camp in the wilderness, and you can be our eyes.(BA) 32 If you come with us, we will share with you(BB) whatever good things the Lord gives us.(BC)”
33 So they set out(BD) from the mountain of the Lord and traveled for three days. The ark of the covenant of the Lord(BE) went before them during those three days to find them a place to rest.(BF) 34 The cloud of the Lord was over them by day when they set out from the camp.(BG)
35 Whenever the ark set out, Moses said,
36 Whenever it came to rest, he said,
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