Review of the Journey from Egypt to Jordan

33 These are the journeys of the sons of Israel, by which they came out of the land of Egypt by their armies, [a]under (A)the leadership of Moses and Aaron. Moses recorded their starting places according to their journeys by the [b]command of the Lord, and these are their journeys according to their starting places. (B)Now they journeyed from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month; on the day after the Passover the sons of Israel (C)started out [c]boldly in the sight of all the Egyptians, while the Egyptians were burying all their firstborn whom the Lord had fatally struck among them. The Lord had also executed judgments (D)against their gods.

Then (E)the sons of Israel journeyed from Rameses and camped in Succoth. (F)They journeyed from Succoth and camped in Etham, which is on the edge of the wilderness. (G)Then they journeyed from Etham and turned back to Pi-hahiroth, which faces Baal-zephon; and they camped before Migdol. (H)They journeyed [d]from Pi-hahiroth and passed through the midst of the sea to the wilderness; and (I)they went three days’ journey in the wilderness of Etham and camped at Marah. (J)They journeyed from Marah and came to Elim; and in Elim there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they camped there. 10 They journeyed from Elim and camped by the [e]Red Sea. 11 And they journeyed from the [f]Red Sea and camped in (K)the wilderness of Sin. 12 They journeyed from the wilderness of Sin and camped at Dophkah. 13 They journeyed from Dophkah and camped at Alush. 14 And they journeyed from Alush and camped (L)at Rephidim; now it was there that the people had no water to drink. 15 And they journeyed from Rephidim and camped in (M)the wilderness of Sinai. 16 They journeyed from the wilderness of Sinai, and camped at (N)Kibroth-hattaavah.

17 They journeyed from Kibroth-hattaavah and camped at (O)Hazeroth. 18 They journeyed from Hazeroth and camped at Rithmah. 19 They journeyed from Rithmah and camped at Rimmon-perez. 20 They journeyed from Rimmon-perez and camped at (P)Libnah. 21 They journeyed from Libnah and camped at Rissah. 22 They journeyed from Rissah and camped in Kehelathah. 23 They journeyed from Kehelathah and camped at Mount Shepher. 24 They journeyed from Mount Shepher and camped at Haradah. 25 They journeyed from Haradah and camped at Makheloth. 26 They journeyed from Makheloth and camped at Tahath. 27 They journeyed from Tahath and camped at Terah. 28 They journeyed from Terah and camped at Mithkah. 29 They journeyed from Mithkah and camped at Hashmonah. 30 They journeyed from Hashmonah and camped at (Q)Moseroth. 31 They journeyed from Moseroth and camped at Bene-jaakan. 32 They journeyed from (R)Bene-jaakan and camped at Hor-haggidgad. 33 They journeyed from Hor-haggidgad and camped at (S)Jotbathah. 34 They journeyed from Jotbathah and camped at Abronah. 35 They journeyed from Abronah and camped at (T)Ezion-geber. 36 They journeyed from Ezion-geber and camped in the wilderness of (U)Zin, that is, Kadesh. 37 They journeyed from Kadesh and camped at (V)Mount Hor, (W)at the edge of the land of Edom.

38 (X)Then Aaron the priest went up to Mount Hor at the [g]command of the Lord, and died there in the fortieth year after the sons of Israel had come from the land of Egypt, on the first day in the fifth month. 39 Aaron was 123 years old when he died on Mount Hor.

40 Now the Canaanite, the king of (Y)Arad [h]who lived in the [i]Negev in the land of Canaan, heard about the coming of the sons of Israel.

41 Then they journeyed from Mount Hor and camped at Zalmonah. 42 They journeyed from Zalmonah and camped at Punon. 43 They journeyed from Punon and camped at (Z)Oboth. 44 They journeyed from Oboth and camped at Iye-abarim, at the border of Moab. 45 They journeyed from Iyim and camped at Dibon-gad. 46 They journeyed from Dibon-gad and camped at Almon-diblathaim. 47 They journeyed from Almon-diblathaim and camped in the mountains of (AA)Abarim, before Nebo. 48 They journeyed from the mountains of Abarim and (AB)camped in the plains of Moab, by the Jordan opposite Jericho. 49 They camped by the Jordan, from Beth-jeshimoth as far as (AC)Abel-shittim, in the plains of Moab.

Law for Possessing the Land

50 Then the Lord spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan opposite Jericho, saying, 51 “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘(AD)When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, 52 you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from you, and (AE)destroy all their idolatrous sculptures, destroy all their cast metal images, and eliminate all their high places; 53 (AF)and you shall take possession of the land and live in it, for I have given the land to you to possess it. 54 (AG)You shall maintain the land as an inheritance by lot according to your families; to the larger you shall give more inheritance, and to the smaller you shall give less inheritance. Wherever the lot falls to anyone, that shall be his. You shall pass on land as an inheritance according to the tribes of your fathers. 55 But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land from you, then it will come about that those whom you let remain of them will be (AH)like thorns in your eyes and like pricks in your sides, and they will trouble you in the land in which you live. 56 And just as I plan to do to them, I will do to you.’”

Instruction for Apportioning Canaan

34 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Command the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When you enter (AI)the land of Canaan, this is the land that shall fall to you as an inheritance, that is, the land of Canaan according to its borders. (AJ)Your southern region shall [j]extend from the wilderness of Zin along the side of Edom, and your southern border shall [k]extend from the end of the Salt Sea (AK)eastward. Then your border shall change direction from the south to the ascent of Akrabbim and [l]continue to Zin, and its [m]termination shall be to the south of (AL)Kadesh-barnea; and it shall [n]reach Hazaraddar and [o]continue to Azmon. Then the border shall change direction from Azmon to the brook of Egypt, and its termination shall be at (AM)the sea.

‘As for the western border, you shall have the Great Sea, that is, its [p]coastline; this shall be your western border.

(AN)And this shall be your northern border: you shall draw your boundary from the Great Sea to Mount Hor. You shall draw a boundary from Mount Hor to (AO)the [q]Lebo-hamath, and the termination of the border shall be at Zedad; and the border shall proceed to Ziphron, and its termination shall be at Hazar-enan. This shall be your northern border.

10 ‘For your eastern border you shall also draw a boundary from Hazar-enan to Shepham, 11 and the border shall go down from Shepham to (AP)Riblah on the east side of Ain; and the border shall go down and reach to the slope on the east side of the Sea of (AQ)Chinnereth. 12 And the border shall go down to the Jordan, and its termination shall be at the Salt Sea. This shall be your land according to its borders on all sides.’”

13 So Moses commanded the sons of Israel, saying, “(AR)This is the land that you are to possess by lot, which the Lord has commanded to give to the nine and a half tribes. 14 (AS)For the tribe of the sons of Reuben have received theirs according to their fathers’ households, and the tribe of the sons of Gad according to their fathers’ households, and the half-tribe of Manasseh have received their possession. 15 The two and a half tribes have received their possession across the Jordan opposite Jericho, eastward toward the sunrise.”

16 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 17 (AT)These are the names of the men who shall assign the land to you as an inheritance: Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun. 18 And you shall take one leader of each tribe to assign the land as an inheritance. 19 These are the names of the men: of the tribe of (AU)Judah, (AV)Caleb the son of Jephunneh. 20 Of the tribe of the sons of (AW)Simeon, Samuel the son of Ammihud. 21 Of the tribe of (AX)Benjamin, Elidad the son of Chislon. 22 And of the tribe of the sons of Dan, a leader, Bukki the son of Jogli. 23 Of the sons of Joseph: of the tribe of the sons of Manasseh, a leader, Hanniel the son of Ephod. 24 Of the tribe of the sons of Ephraim, a leader, Kemuel the son of Shiphtan. 25 Of the tribe of the sons of Zebulun, a leader, Elizaphan the son of Parnach. 26 Of the tribe of the sons of Issachar, a leader, Paltiel the son of Azzan. 27 Of the tribe of the sons of Asher, a leader, Ahihud the son of Shelomi. 28 Of the tribe of the sons of Naphtali, a leader, Pedahel the son of Ammihud.” 29 These are the ones whom the Lord commanded to apportion the inheritance to the sons of Israel in the land of Canaan.

Footnotes

  1. Numbers 33:1 Lit by the hand
  2. Numbers 33:2 Lit mouth
  3. Numbers 33:3 Lit with a high hand
  4. Numbers 33:8 Many mss and some ancient versions; MT from before Hahiroth
  5. Numbers 33:10 Lit Sea of Reeds
  6. Numbers 33:11 Lit Sea of Reeds
  7. Numbers 33:38 Lit mouth
  8. Numbers 33:40 Lit and he
  9. Numbers 33:40 I.e., South country
  10. Numbers 34:3 Lit be
  11. Numbers 34:3 Lit be
  12. Numbers 34:4 Lit pass along
  13. Numbers 34:4 Lit exits, and so throughout the ch
  14. Numbers 34:4 Lit go forth to
  15. Numbers 34:4 Lit pass along
  16. Numbers 34:6 Lit border
  17. Numbers 34:8 Or entrance of Hamath

Remembering Israel’s Journey

33 This is the route the Israelites followed as they marched out of Egypt under the leadership of Moses and Aaron. At the Lord’s direction, Moses kept a written record of their progress. These are the stages of their march, identified by the different places where they stopped along the way.

They set out from the city of Rameses in early spring—on the fifteenth day of the first month[a]—on the morning after the first Passover celebration. The people of Israel left defiantly, in full view of all the Egyptians. Meanwhile, the Egyptians were burying all their firstborn sons, whom the Lord had killed the night before. The Lord had defeated the gods of Egypt that night with great acts of judgment!

After leaving Rameses, the Israelites set up camp at Succoth.

Then they left Succoth and camped at Etham on the edge of the wilderness.

They left Etham and turned back toward Pi-hahiroth, opposite Baal-zephon, and camped near Migdol.

They left Pi-hahiroth[b] and crossed the Red Sea[c] into the wilderness beyond. Then they traveled for three days into the Etham wilderness and camped at Marah.

They left Marah and camped at Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees.

10 They left Elim and camped beside the Red Sea.[d]

11 They left the Red Sea and camped in the wilderness of Sin.[e]

12 They left the wilderness of Sin and camped at Dophkah.

13 They left Dophkah and camped at Alush.

14 They left Alush and camped at Rephidim, where there was no water for the people to drink.

15 They left Rephidim and camped in the wilderness of Sinai.

16 They left the wilderness of Sinai and camped at Kibroth-hattaavah.

17 They left Kibroth-hattaavah and camped at Hazeroth.

18 They left Hazeroth and camped at Rithmah.

19 They left Rithmah and camped at Rimmon-perez.

20 They left Rimmon-perez and camped at Libnah.

21 They left Libnah and camped at Rissah.

22 They left Rissah and camped at Kehelathah.

23 They left Kehelathah and camped at Mount Shepher.

24 They left Mount Shepher and camped at Haradah.

25 They left Haradah and camped at Makheloth.

26 They left Makheloth and camped at Tahath.

27 They left Tahath and camped at Terah.

28 They left Terah and camped at Mithcah.

29 They left Mithcah and camped at Hashmonah.

30 They left Hashmonah and camped at Moseroth.

31 They left Moseroth and camped at Bene-jaakan.

32 They left Bene-jaakan and camped at Hor-haggidgad.

33 They left Hor-haggidgad and camped at Jotbathah.

34 They left Jotbathah and camped at Abronah.

35 They left Abronah and camped at Ezion-geber.

36 They left Ezion-geber and camped at Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.

37 They left Kadesh and camped at Mount Hor, at the border of Edom. 38 While they were at the foot of Mount Hor, Aaron the priest was directed by the Lord to go up the mountain, and there he died. This happened in midsummer, on the first day of the fifth month[f] of the fortieth year after Israel’s departure from Egypt. 39 Aaron was 123 years old when he died there on Mount Hor.

40 At that time the Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev in the land of Canaan, heard that the people of Israel were approaching his land.

41 Meanwhile, the Israelites left Mount Hor and camped at Zalmonah.

42 Then they left Zalmonah and camped at Punon.

43 They left Punon and camped at Oboth.

44 They left Oboth and camped at Iye-abarim on the border of Moab.

45 They left Iye-abarim[g] and camped at Dibon-gad.

46 They left Dibon-gad and camped at Almon-diblathaim.

47 They left Almon-diblathaim and camped in the mountains east of the river,[h] 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. 49 Along the Jordan River they camped from Beth-jeshimoth as far as the meadows of Acacia[i] on the plains of Moab.

50 While they were camped near the Jordan River on the plains of Moab opposite Jericho, the Lord said to Moses, 51 “Give the following instructions to the people of Israel: When you cross the Jordan River into the land of Canaan, 52 you must drive out all the people living there. You must destroy all their carved and molten images and demolish all their pagan shrines. 53 Take possession of the land and settle in it, because I have given it to you to occupy. 54 You must distribute the land among the clans by sacred lot and in proportion to their size. A larger portion of land will be allotted to each of the larger clans, and a smaller portion will be allotted to each of the smaller clans. The decision of the sacred lot is final. In this way, the portions of land will be divided among your ancestral tribes. 55 But if you fail to drive out the people who live in the land, those who remain will be like splinters in your eyes and thorns in your sides. They will harass you in the land where you live. 56 And I will do to you what I had planned to do to them.”

Boundaries of the Land

34 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Give these instructions to the Israelites: When you come into the land of Canaan, which I am giving you as your special possession, these will be the boundaries. The southern portion of your country will extend from the wilderness of Zin, along the edge of Edom. The southern boundary will begin on the east at the Dead Sea.[j] It will then run south past Scorpion Pass[k] in the direction of Zin. Its southernmost point will be Kadesh-barnea, from which it will go to Hazar-addar, and on to Azmon. From Azmon the boundary will turn toward the Brook of Egypt and end at the Mediterranean Sea.[l]

“Your western boundary will be the coastline of the Mediterranean Sea.

“Your northern boundary will begin at the Mediterranean Sea and run east to Mount Hor, then to Lebo-hamath, and on through Zedad and Ziphron to Hazar-enan. This will be your northern boundary.

10 “The eastern boundary will start at Hazar-enan and run south to Shepham, 11 then down to Riblah on the east side of Ain. From there the boundary will run down along the eastern edge of the Sea of Galilee,[m] 12 and then along the Jordan River to the Dead Sea. These are the boundaries of your land.”

13 Then Moses told the Israelites, “This territory is the homeland you are to divide among yourselves by sacred lot. The Lord has commanded that the land be divided among the nine and a half remaining tribes. 14 The families of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh have already received their grants of land 15 on the east side of the Jordan River, across from Jericho toward the sunrise.”

Leaders to Divide the Land

16 And the Lord said to Moses, 17 “Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun are the men designated to divide the grants of land among the people. 18 Enlist one leader from each tribe to help them with the task. 19 These are the tribes and the names of the leaders:

TribeLeader
JudahCaleb son of Jephunneh
20 SimeonShemuel son of Ammihud
21 BenjaminElidad son of Kislon
22 DanBukki son of Jogli
23 Manasseh son of JosephHanniel son of Ephod
24 Ephraim son of JosephKemuel son of Shiphtan
25 ZebulunElizaphan son of Parnach
26 IssacharPaltiel son of Azzan
27 AsherAhihud son of Shelomi
28 NaphtaliPedahel son of Ammihud

29 These are the men the Lord has appointed to divide the grants of land in Canaan among the Israelites.”

Footnotes

  1. 33:3 This day in the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar occurred in late March, April, or early May.
  2. 33:8a As in many Hebrew manuscripts, Samaritan Pentateuch, and Latin Vulgate (see also 33:7); most Hebrew manuscripts read left from in front of Hahiroth.
  3. 33:8b Hebrew the sea.
  4. 33:10 Hebrew sea of reeds; also in 33:11.
  5. 33:11 The geographical name Sin is related to Sinai and should not be confused with the English word sin.
  6. 33:38 This day in the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar occurred in July or August.
  7. 33:45 As in 33:44; Hebrew reads Iyim, another name for Iye-abarim.
  8. 33:47 Or the mountains of Abarim; also in 33:48.
  9. 33:49 Hebrew as far as Abel-shittim.
  10. 34:3 Hebrew Salt Sea; also in 34:12.
  11. 34:4 Or the ascent of Akrabbim.
  12. 34:5 Hebrew the sea; also in 34:6, 7.
  13. 34:11 Hebrew Sea of Kinnereth.