Land East of the Jordan River Is Settled

(Deuteronomy 3.12-22)

32 The tribes of Reuben and Gad owned a lot of cattle and sheep, and they saw that the regions of Jazer and Gilead had good pastureland. ² So they went to Moses, Eleazar, and the other leaders of Israel and said, ^3-4 “The Lord has helped us capture the land around the towns of Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon. That's good pastureland, and since we own cattle and sheep, ⁵ would you let us stay here east of the Jordan River and have this land as our own?”

⁶ Moses answered:

You mean you'd stay here while the rest of the Israelites go into battle? ⁷ If you did that, it would discourage the others from crossing over into the land the Lord promised them. ^8 (A) This is exactly what happened when I sent your ancestors from Kadesh-Barnea to explore the land. ⁹ They went as far as Eshcol Valley, then returned and told the people that we should not enter it. ^10 (B) The Lord became very angry. ¹¹ And he said that no one who was 20 years or older when they left Egypt would enter the land he had promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Not one of those people believed in the Lord's power, ¹² except Caleb and Joshua.^[a] They remained faithful to the Lord, ¹³ but he was so angry with the others that he forced them to wander around in the desert for 40 years. By that time everyone who had sinned against him had died.

¹⁴ Now you people of Reuben and Gad are doing the same thing and making the Lord even angrier. ¹⁵ If you reject the Lord, he will once again abandon his people and leave them here in the desert. And you will be to blame!

¹⁶ The men from Reuben and Gad replied:

Let us build places to keep our sheep and goats, and towns for our wives and children, ¹⁷ where they can stay and be safe. Then we'll prepare to fight and lead the other tribes into battle. ¹⁸ We will stay with them until they have settled in their own tribal lands. ¹⁹ The land on this side of the Jordan River will be ours, so we won't expect to receive any on the other side.

²⁰ Moses said:

You promised that you would be ready to fight for the Lord. ²¹ You also agreed to cross the Jordan and stay with the rest of the Israelites, until the Lord forces our enemies out of the land. If you do these things, ²² then after the Lord helps Israel capture the land, you can return to your own land. You will no longer have to stay with the others. ²³ But if you don't keep your promise, you will sin against the Lord and be punished.

²⁴ Go ahead and build towns for your wives and children, and places for your sheep and goats. Just be sure to do what you have promised.

²⁵ The men from Reuben and Gad answered:

Sir, we will do just what you have said. ²⁶ Our wives and children and sheep and cattle will stay here in the towns in Gilead. ²⁷ But those of us who are prepared for battle will cross the Jordan and fight for the Lord.

^28 (C) Then Moses said to Eleazar, Joshua, and the family leaders, ²⁹ “Make sure that the tribes of Gad and Reuben prepare for battle and cross the Jordan River with you. If they do, then after the land is in your control, give them the region of Gilead as their tribal land. ³⁰ But if they break their promise, they will receive land on the other side of the Jordan, like the rest of the tribes.”

³¹ The tribes of Gad and Reuben replied, “We are your servants and will do whatever the Lord has commanded. ³² We will cross the Jordan River, ready to fight for the Lord in Canaan. But the land we will inherit as our own will be on this side of the river.”

³³ So Moses gave the tribes of Gad, Reuben, and half of Manasseh^[b] the territory and towns that King Sihon the Amorite had ruled, as well as the territory and towns that King Og of Bashan had ruled.^[c]

³⁴ The tribe of Gad rebuilt the towns of Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer, ³⁵ Atroth-Shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah, ³⁶ Beth-Nimrah, and Beth-Haran. They built walls around them and also built places to keep their sheep and goats.

³⁷ The tribe of Reuben rebuilt Heshbon, Elealeh, Kiriathaim, ³⁸ Sibmah, as well as the towns that used to be known as Nebo and Baal-Meon. They renamed all those places.

³⁹ The clan of Machir from the tribe of East Manasseh went to the region of Gilead, captured its towns, and forced out the Amorites. ⁴⁰ So Moses gave the Machirites the region of Gilead, and they settled there.

⁴¹ Jair from the Manasseh tribe captured villages and renamed them “Villages of Jair.”^[d]

⁴² Nobah captured the town of Kenath with its villages and renamed it Nobah.

Israel's Journey from Egypt to Moab

33 As Israel traveled from Egypt under the command of Moses and Aaron, ² Moses kept a list of the places they camped, just as the Lord had instructed. Here is the record of their journey:

^3-4 Israel left the Egyptian city of Rameses on the fifteenth day of the first month.^[e] This was the day after the Lord had punished Egypt's gods by killing the first-born sons in every Egyptian family. So while the Egyptians were burying the bodies, they watched the Israelites proudly^[f] leave their country.

⁵ After the Israelites left Rameses, they camped at Succoth, ⁶ and from there, they moved their camp to Etham on the edge of the desert. ⁷ Then they turned back toward Pi-Hahiroth, east of Baal-Zephon, and camped near Migdol. ⁸ They left Pi-Hahiroth,^[g] crossed the Red Sea,^[h] then walked three days into the Etham Desert and camped at Marah. ⁹ Next, they camped at Elim, where there were 12 springs of water and 70 palm trees. ¹⁰ They left Elim and camped near the Red Sea,^{[i] 11} then turned east and camped along the western edge of the Sinai Desert.^{[j] 12-14} From there they went to Dophkah, Alush, and Rephidim, where they had no water.^{[k] 15} They left Rephidim and finally reached the Sinai Desert.

^16-36 As Israel traveled from the Sinai Desert to Kadesh in the Zin Desert, they camped at Kibroth-Hattaavah, Hazeroth, Rithmah, Rimmon-Perez, Libnah, Rissah, Kehelathah, Mount Shepher, Haradah, Makheloth, Tahath, Terah, Mithkah, Hashmonah, Moseroth, Bene-Jaakan, Hor-Haggidgad, Jotbathah, Abronah, Ezion-Geber, and finally Kadesh. ³⁷ When they left Kadesh, they came to Mount Hor, on the border of Edom.

^38 (D) That's where the Lord commanded Aaron the priest to go to the top of the mountain. Aaron died there on the first day of the fifth month,^[l] 40 years after the Israelites left Egypt. ³⁹ He was 123 years old at the time.

^40 (E) It was then that the Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Southern Desert of Canaan, heard that Israel was headed that way.

^41-47 The Israelites left Mount Hor and headed toward Moab. Along the way, they camped at Zalmonah, Punon, Oboth, Iye-Abarim in the territory of Moab, Dibon-Gad, Almon-Diblathaim, at a place near Mount Nebo in the Abarim Mountains, ⁴⁸ and finally in the lowlands of Moab across the Jordan River from Jericho. ⁴⁹ Their camp stretched from Beth-Jeshimoth to Acacia.

The Lord's Command To Conquer Canaan

⁵⁰ While Israel was camped in the lowlands of Moab across the Jordan River from Jericho, the Lord told Moses ⁵¹ to give the people of Israel this message:

When you cross the Jordan River and enter Canaan, ⁵² you must force out the people living there. Destroy their idols and tear down their altars. ⁵³ Then settle in the land—I have given it to you as your own.

^54 (F) I will show you^[m] how to divide the land among the tribes, according to the number of clans in each one, so that the larger tribes will have more land than the smaller ones.

⁵⁵ If you don't force out all the people there, they will be like splinters in your eyes and thorns in your back. They will always be trouble for you, ⁵⁶ and I will treat you as severely as I planned on treating them.

Israel's Borders

34 The Lord told Moses ² to tell the people of Israel that their land in Canaan would have the following borders:

³ The southern border will be the Zin Desert and the northwest part of Edom. This border will begin at the south end of the Dead Sea. ⁴ It will go west from there, but will turn southward to include Scorpion Pass, the village of Zin, and the town of Kadesh-Barnea. From there, the border will continue to Hazar-Addar and on to Azmon. ⁵ It will run along the Egyptian Gorge and end at the Mediterranean Sea.

⁶ The western border will be the Mediterranean Sea.

⁷ The northern border will begin at the Mediterranean, then continue eastward to Mount Hor.^{[n] 8} After that, it will run to Lebo-Hamath and across to Zedad, which is the northern edge of your land. ⁹ From Zedad, the border will continue east to Ziphron and end at Hazar-Enan.

¹⁰ The eastern border will begin at Hazar-Enan in the north, then run south to Shepham, ¹¹ and on down to Riblah on the east side of Ain. From there, it will go south to the eastern hills of Lake Galilee,^{[o] 12} then follow the Jordan River down to the north end of the Dead Sea.

The land within those four borders will belong to you.

^13 (G)(H) Then Moses told the people, “You will receive the land inside these borders. It will be yours, but the Lord has commanded you to divide it among the nine and a half tribes. ¹⁴ The tribes of Reuben, Gad, and East Manasseh have already been given their land ¹⁵ across from Jericho, east of the Jordan River.”

The Leaders Who Will Divide the Land

¹⁶ The Lord said to Moses, ¹⁷ “Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun will divide the land for the Israelites. ¹⁸ One leader from each tribe will help them, ^19-28 and here is the list of their names:

²⁹ These are the men the Lord commanded to help Eleazar and Joshua divide the land for the Israelites.

Jesus Again Speaks about His Death

(Matthew 17.22,23; Luke 9.43b-45)

³⁰ Jesus left with his disciples and started through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know about it, ³¹ because he was teaching the disciples that the Son of Man would be handed over to people who would kill him. But three days later he would rise to life. ³² The disciples did not understand what Jesus meant, and they were afraid to ask.

Who Is the Greatest?

(Matthew 18.1-5; Luke 9.46-48)

³³ Jesus and his disciples went to his home in Capernaum. After they were inside the house, Jesus asked them, “What were you arguing about along the way?” ^34 (A) They had been arguing about which one of them was the greatest, and so they did not answer.

^35 (B) After Jesus sat down and told the twelve disciples to gather around him, he said, “If you want the place of honor, you must become a slave and serve others!”

³⁶ Then Jesus asked a child to stand near him. He put his arm around the child and said, ^37 (C) “When you welcome even a child because of me, you welcome me. And when you welcome me, you welcome the one who sent me.”

For or against Jesus

(Luke 9.49,50)

³⁸ John said, “Teacher, we saw a man using your name to force demons out of people. But he wasn't one of us, and we told him to stop.”

³⁹ Jesus said to his disciples:

Don't stop him! No one who works miracles in my name will soon turn and say something bad about me. ^40 (D) Anyone who isn't against us is for us. ^41 (E) And anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name, just because you belong to me, will surely be rewarded.

Temptations To Sin

(Matthew 18.6-9; Luke 17.1,2)

⁴² It will be terrible for people who cause even one of my little followers to sin. Those people would be better off thrown into the ocean with a heavy stone tied around their necks. ^43-44 (F) So if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off! You would be better off to go into life paralyzed than to have two hands and be thrown into the fires of hell that never go out.^{[a] 45-46} If your foot causes you to sin, chop it off. You would be better off to go into life lame than to have two feet and be thrown into hell.^{[b] 47 (G)} If your eye causes you to sin, get rid of it. You would be better off to go into God's kingdom with only one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell. ^48 (H) The worms there never die, and the fire never stops burning.

⁴⁹ Everyone must be salted with fire.^[c]

^50 (I) Salt is good. But if it no longer tastes like salt, how can it be made salty again? Have salt among you and live at peace with each other.^[d]