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19 “Then we set out from Horeb, and we went through the whole of that great and terrible desert that you saw on the way to the hill country of the Amorites[a] as Yahweh our God had commanded us, and so we came up to Kadesh Barnea. 20 I said to you, ‘You have reached[b] the hill country of the Amorites[c] that Yahweh our God is giving to us. 21 See, Yahweh your God has set before you the land; go up and possess it as Yahweh the God of your ancestors[d] said to you; do not fear and do not be dismayed.’

22 “Then all of you approached me, and you said, ‘Let us send men before us,[e] and let them explore the land for us, and let them bring back a report[f] to us concerning the way that we should take[g] and concerning the cities that we shall come to.’ 23 The plan was good in my opinion,[h] and so I took from among you twelve men, one from each tribe.[i] 24 And they set out[j] and went up into the hill country,[k] and they went up to the wadi[l] of Eschol, and they spied out the land. 25 They took in their hands[m] some of the fruit[n] of the land, and they brought it down to us, and they brought to us back a report,[o] and they said, ‘The land that Yahweh our God is giving to us is good.’ 26 But you were not willing to go up, and you rebelled against the command[p] of Yahweh your God. 27 And you grumbled in your tents, and you said, ‘Because of the hatred of Yahweh toward us he has brought us out from the land of Egypt to give us into the hand of the Amorites[q] to destroy us. 28 Where can we go up? Our brothers have made our hearts melt,[r] saying,[s] “The people are greater[t] and taller than we are,[u] and there are great fortified cities reaching up to heaven, and we saw the sons of the Anakites living there.”’

29 “And so I said to you, ‘Do not be terrified, and do not fear them. 30 Yahweh your God, who is going before you,[v] will himself[w] fight for you, just as[x] he did for you in Egypt before your eyes, 31 and just as he did in the wilderness[y] when[z] you saw that[aa] Yahweh your God carried you, just as someone[ab] carries his son, all along the way that you traveled until you reached[ac] this place.’ 32 But through all of this you did not trust in Yahweh your God, 33 who goes[ad] before you[ae] on your[af] way, seeking a place for your encampment, in fire at night and in a cloud by day, to show you the way that you should go.[ag]

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 1:19 Hebrew “Amorite”
  2. Deuteronomy 1:20 Literally “You have come up to”
  3. Deuteronomy 1:20 Hebrew “Amorite”
  4. Deuteronomy 1:21 Or “fathers”
  5. Deuteronomy 1:22 Literally “before our faces” or “ahead of us”
  6. Deuteronomy 1:22 Literally “a word”
  7. Deuteronomy 1:22 Literally “we should go up by it”
  8. Deuteronomy 1:23 Literally “in my eyes”
  9. Deuteronomy 1:23 Literally “man one from the tribe”
  10. Deuteronomy 1:24 Literally “turned”
  11. Deuteronomy 1:24 Literally “went up toward the hill country mountain”
  12. Deuteronomy 1:24 A valley that is dry most of the year, but contains a stream during the rainy season
  13. Deuteronomy 1:25 Hebrew “hand”
  14. Deuteronomy 1:25 Literally “from the fruit”
  15. Deuteronomy 1:25 Literally “a word”
  16. Deuteronomy 1:26 Literally “mouth”
  17. Deuteronomy 1:27 Hebrew “Amorite”
  18. Deuteronomy 1:28 Literally “caused to melt our hearts”
  19. Deuteronomy 1:28 Literally “to say”
  20. Deuteronomy 1:28 Or “bigger”
  21. Deuteronomy 1:28 Hebrew “than us”
  22. Deuteronomy 1:30 Literally “to your faces”
  23. Deuteronomy 1:30 The Hebrew pronoun indicates emphasis
  24. Deuteronomy 1:30 Literally “like all that”
  25. Deuteronomy 1:31 Or “desert”
  26. Deuteronomy 1:31 Or “where”
  27. Deuteronomy 1:31 Or “how”
  28. Deuteronomy 1:31 Or “a man”
  29. Deuteronomy 1:31 Literally “you came”
  30. Deuteronomy 1:33 Literally “is the one going”
  31. Deuteronomy 1:33 Literally “before your faces”
  32. Deuteronomy 1:33 Hebrew “the”
  33. Deuteronomy 1:33 Literally “you should go in it”

Israel's Refusal to Enter the Land

19 “Then we set out from Horeb and (A)went through all that great and terrifying wilderness that you saw, on the way to the hill country of the Amorites, as the Lord our God commanded us. And (B)we came to Kadesh-barnea. 20 And I said to you, ‘You have come to the hill country of the Amorites, which the Lord our God is giving us. 21 See, the Lord your God has set the land before you. Go up, take possession, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has told you. (C)Do not fear or be dismayed.’ 22 Then all of you came near me and said, ‘Let us send men before us, that they may explore the land for us and bring us word again of the way by which we must go up and the cities into which we shall come.’ 23 The thing seemed good to me, and (D)I took twelve men from you, one man from each tribe. 24 And (E)they turned and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and spied it out. 25 And they took in their hands some of the fruit of the land and brought it down to us, and brought us word again and said, ‘It is a good land that the Lord our God is giving us.’

26 “Yet you would not go up, but rebelled against the command of the Lord your God. 27 And (F)you murmured in your tents and said, ‘Because the Lord (G)hated us he has brought us out of the land of Egypt, (H)to give us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us. 28 Where are we going up? (I)Our brothers have made our hearts melt, saying, (J)“The people are greater and taller than we. The cities are great and fortified up to heaven. And besides, we have seen (K)the sons of the Anakim there.”’ 29 Then I said to you, ‘Do not be in dread or afraid of them. 30 The Lord your God who goes before you (L)will himself fight for you, just as he did for you in Egypt before your eyes, 31 and in the wilderness, where you have seen how the Lord your God (M)carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place.’ 32 Yet in spite of this word (N)you did not believe the Lord your God, 33 (O)who went before you in the way (P)to seek you out a place to pitch your tents, in fire by night and in the cloud by day, to show you by what way you should go.

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