Numbers 21
Open in the reader1When the Humbled-One king of Fugitive, who lived in South-Country, heard that Strives-with-God was coming along the road to Tracks, he attacked Strives-with-God and captured some prisoners.
2So Strives-with-God made a vow to He-Who-Is: “If You will deliver this people into our hands, we will devote their cities to destruction.”
3And He-Who-Is heard Strives-with-God’s plea and delivered up the Humbled-Ones. Strives-with-God devoted them and their cities to destruction; so they named the place Devoted-to-Destruction.
4Then they set out from Mount Mountain along the route to the Reed Sea, in order to bypass the land of Red. But the people grew impatient on the journey
5and spoke against God and against Drawn-Out: “Why have you led us up out of Two-Straits to die in the wilderness? There is no bread or water, and we detest this wretched food!”
6So He-Who-Is sent venomous snakes among the people, and many of the children of Strives-with-God were bitten and died.
7Then the people came to Drawn-Out and said, “We have sinned by speaking against He-Who-Is and against you. Intercede with He-Who-Is so He will take the snakes away from us.” So Drawn-Out interceded for the people.
8Then He-Who-Is said to Drawn-Out, “Make a fiery serpent and mount it on a pole. When anyone who is bitten looks at it, he will live.”
9So Drawn-Out made a bronze snake and mounted it on a pole. If anyone who was bitten looked at the bronze snake, he would live.
10Then the children of Strives-with-God set out and camped at Water-Skins.
11They journeyed from Water-Skins and camped at Ruins-of-the-Crossings in the wilderness opposite From-the-Father to the east.
12From there they set out and camped in the Valley of Brushwood.
13From there they moved on and camped on the other side of the Rushing-Stream, in the wilderness that extends into the Mountaineer territory. Now the Rushing-Stream is the border between the children of From-the-Father and the Mountaineers.
14Therefore it is stated in the Book of the Wars of He-Who-Is: “Waheb in Suphah and the wadis of the Rushing-Stream,
15even the slopes of the wadis that extend to the site of A-City and lie along the border of From-the-Father.”
16From there they went on to Well, the well where He-Who-Is said to Drawn-Out, “Gather the people so that I may give them water.”
17Then Strives-with-God sang this song: “Spring up, O well, all of you sing to it!
18The princes dug the well; the nobles of the people hollowed it out with their scepters and with their staffs.” From the wilderness the Israelites went on to Gift,
19and from Gift to Wadi-of-God, and from Wadi-of-God to High-Places,
20and from High-Places to the valley in From-the-Father where the top of The-Cleft overlooks the wasteland.
21Then Strives-with-God sent messengers to Tempestuous king of the Mountaineers, saying,
22“Let us pass through your land. We will not turn aside into any field or vineyard, or drink water from any well. We will stay on the King’s Highway until we have passed through your territory.”
23But Tempestuous would not let Strives-with-God pass through his territory. Instead, he gathered his whole army and went out to confront Strives-with-God in the wilderness. When he came to Trodden-Place, he fought against Strives-with-God.
24And Strives-with-God put him to the sword and took possession of his land, from the Rushing-Stream to the Pouring-Out—but only up to the border of the Kindredites, because it was fortified.
25Strives-with-God captured all the cities of the Mountaineers and occupied them, including Reckoning and all its villages.
26Reckoning was the city of Tempestuous king of the Mountaineers, who had fought against the former king of From-the-Father and taken all his land as far as the Rushing-Stream.
27That is why the poets say: “Come to Reckoning, let it be rebuilt; let the city of Tempestuous be restored.
28For a fire went out from Reckoning, a blaze from the city of Tempestuous. It consumed A-City of From-the-Father, the rulers of Rushing-Stream’s heights.
29Woe to you, O From-the-Father! You are destroyed, O people of Chemosh! He gave up his sons as refugees, and his daughters into captivity to Tempestuous king of the Mountaineers.
30But we have overthrown them; Reckoning is destroyed as far as Pining. We demolished them as far as Nophah, which reaches to Waters-of-Quietude.”
31So Strives-with-God lived in the land of the Mountaineers.
32After Drawn-Out had sent spies to He-Helps, Strives-with-God captured its villages and drove out the Mountaineers who were there.
33Then they turned and went up the road to Fertile-Plain, and Og king of Fertile-Plain and his whole army came out to meet them in battle at Mighty-Place.
34But He-Who-Is said to Drawn-Out, “Do not fear him, for I have delivered him into your hand, along with all his people and his land. Do to him as you did to Tempestuous king of the Mountaineers, who lived in Reckoning.”
35So they struck down Og, along with his sons and his whole army, until no remnant was left. And they took possession of his land.