Numbers 32

¹ The sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad owned great herds of fine cattle. Now they observed that the land of Jazer and the land of Gilead was an ideal region for raising stock.

² The sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben therefore went to Moses, Eleazar the priest and the leaders of the community, and said to them,

³ ‘The land of Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo and Beon,

⁴ which Yahweh has conquered in the sight of the community of Israel, is ideal land for raising stock, and your servants are cattle breeders.

⁵ If we have deserved your friendship,’ they said ‘give this land to your servants for our own; do not make us cross the Jordan.’

⁶ Moses said to the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben, ‘Your brothers are off to the war – are you content to stay here?

⁷ Why do you keep the sons of Israel from entering the land that Yahweh has given them?

⁸ This is what your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to inspect the land.

⁹ They went up as far as the Valley of Eschol and inspected the land; but they kept the sons of Israel from entering the land that Yahweh had given them.

¹⁰ Hence the wrath of Yahweh blazed out that day and he swore this oath,

¹¹ “If ever these men of twenty years and over, who came out from Egypt, set eyes on the land that I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob… [*a] For they have not followed me faithfully,

¹² except Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, and Joshua son of Nun: these indeed have followed Yahweh faithfully.”

¹³ The wrath of Yahweh blazed out against Israel and he made them wander in the wilderness for forty years, until the generation that offended Yahweh had all disappeared.

¹⁴ And now you, you rise up in your father’s place, offshoot of sinful stock, to add still more to the burning wrath of Yahweh against Israel!

¹⁵ If you turn away from him, he will prolong the time spent in the wilderness, and you will bring about the ruin of all this people.’

¹⁶ They came to Moses and said, ‘We would like to build sheepfolds here for our flocks and towns for our young children.

¹⁷ We ourselves will take up arms to lead the sons of Israel until we have brought them to the place appointed for them: only our young children will stay in the fortified towns, safe from the inhabitants of the country.

¹⁸ We will not return to our homes until every one of the sons of Israel has taken possession of his inheritance.

¹⁹ For we shall have no inheritance with them on the other bank of the Jordan or beyond, since our inheritance has fallen to us here, east of the Jordan.’

²⁰ Moses said to them, ‘If you do as you have said, if you are prepared to fight before Yahweh,

²¹ and if all those of you who bear arms cross the Jordan before Yahweh, until he has driven all his enemies before him,

²² then, once the land has become subject to Yahweh, you may go back; you shall be free of your obligation towards Yahweh and Israel, and this land shall be your inheritance before Yahweh.

²³ But if you do not, you will sin against Yahweh, and be sure your sin will find you out.

²⁴ Build towns, then, for your young children and folds for your flocks; but do what you have promised.’

²⁵ The sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben said to Moses, ‘Your servants will do as you order, sir.

²⁶ Our children, our wives, our flocks and all our livestock will stay in the towns of Gilead,

²⁷ but your servants, every man armed for war, will cross over to fight before Yahweh as you have ordered.’

²⁸ Then Moses gave directions about them to Eleazar the priest, to Joshua son of Nun, and to the leaders of the patriarchal Houses of the tribes of Israel.

²⁹ Moses said to them, ‘If the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben, all who bear arms, cross the Jordan with you to fight before Yahweh, then once the land is in your power, you will give them the land of Gilead for their possession.

³⁰ But if they do not cross over in arms with you, then they must have their possessions with you in the land of Canaan.’

³¹ The sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben replied, ‘What Yahweh has said to your servants, we will do.

³² We will cross in arms before Yahweh into the land of Canaan; but you must give us possession of our inheritance beyond the Jordan.’

³³ Moses gave them-the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben and the half-tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph-the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, the land and the towns contained within its boundaries, the frontier towns of the land.

³⁴ The sons of Gad built Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer,

³⁵ Atroth-shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah,

³⁶ Beth-nimrah, Beth-haran, fortified towns, and folds for the flocks.

³⁷ The sons of Reuben built Heshbon, Elealeh, Kiriathaim,

³⁸ Nebo, Baal-meon (their names were changed), Sibmah. They gave names to the towns they had built.

³⁹ The sons of Machir son of Manasseh went to Gilead. They conquered it and drove out the Amorites who were there.

⁴⁰ Moses gave Gilead to Machir son of Manasseh, and he settled there.

⁴¹ Jair son of Manasseh went and seized their encampments and called them Encampments of Jair.

⁴² Nobah went and seized Kenath with its outlying villages, and called it Nobah after himself.