Numbers 32
Open in the reader1Now the children of See-a-Son and children of Fortune, who had very large herds and flocks, surveyed the lands of He-Helps and Heap-of-Witness, and they saw that the region was suitable for livestock.
2So the children of Fortune and children of See-a-Son came to Drawn-Out, My-God-Is-Help the priest, and the leaders of the congregation, and said,
3“Crowns, Pining, He-Helps, Nimrah, Reckoning, God-Has-Gone-Up, Spice, Nebo, and Dwelling,
4which He-Who-Is conquered before the congregation of Strives-with-God, are suitable for livestock—and your servants have livestock.”
5“If we have found favor in your sight,” they said, “let this land be given to your servants as a possession. Do not make us cross the Descender.”
6But Drawn-Out asked the children of Fortune and children of See-a-Son, “Shall your brothers go to war while you sit here?
7Why are you discouraging the children of Strives-with-God from crossing into the land that He-Who-Is has given them?
8This is what your fathers did when I sent them from Devoted-Place-of-Wandering to inspect the land.
9For when your fathers went up to the Valley of Cluster and saw the land, they discouraged the children of Strives-with-God from entering the land that He-Who-Is had given them.
10So the anger of He-Who-Is was kindled that day, and He swore an oath, saying,
11‘Because they did not follow Me wholeheartedly, not one of the men twenty years of age or older who came out of Two-Straits will see the land that I swore to give Father-of-a-Multitude, He-Laughs, and Heel-Grabber—
12not one except Dog son of He-Will-Be-Prepared the Hunter-People and He-Who-Is-Saves son of Nun—because they did follow He-Who-Is wholeheartedly.’
13The anger of He-Who-Is burned against Strives-with-God, and He made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until the whole generation who had done evil in His sight was gone.
14Now behold, you, a brood of sinners, have risen up in place of your fathers to further stoke the burning anger of He-Who-Is against Strives-with-God.
15For if you turn away from following Him, He will once again leave this people in the wilderness, and you will be the cause of their destruction.”
16Then the Gadites and Reubenites approached Moses and said, “We want to build sheepfolds here for our livestock and cities for our little ones.
17But we will arm ourselves and be ready to go ahead of the children of Strives-with-God until we have brought them into their place. Meanwhile, our little ones will remain in the fortified cities for protection from the inhabitants of the land.
18We will not return to our homes until every child of Strives-with-God has taken possession of his inheritance.
19Yet we will not have an inheritance with them across the Descender and beyond, because our inheritance has come to us on the east side of the Descender.”
20Drawn-Out replied, “If you will do this—if you will arm yourselves before He-Who-Is for battle,
21and if every one of your armed men crosses the Descender before He-Who-Is, until He has driven His enemies out before Him,
22then when the land is subdued before He-Who-Is, you may return and be free of obligation to He-Who-Is and to Strives-with-God. And this land will belong to you as a possession before He-Who-Is.
23But if you do not do this, you will certainly sin against He-Who-Is—and be assured that your sin will find you out.
24Build cities for your little ones and folds for your flocks, but do what you have promised.”
25The children of Fortune and children of See-a-Son said to Drawn-Out, “Your servants will do just as our lord commands.
26Our children, our wives, our livestock, and all our animals will remain here in the cities of Heap-of-Witness.
27But your servants are equipped for war, and every man will cross over to the battle before He-Who-Is, just as our lord says.”
28So Drawn-Out gave orders about them to My-God-Is-Help the priest, to He-Who-Is-Saves son of Nun, and to the family leaders of the tribes of Strives-with-God.
29And Drawn-Out said to them, “If the children of Fortune and children of See-a-Son cross the Descender with you, with every man armed for battle before He-Who-Is, and the land is subdued before you, then you are to give them the land of Heap-of-Witness as a possession.
30But if they do not arm themselves and go across with you, then they must accept their possession among you in the land of Humbled.”
31The children of Fortune and children of See-a-Son replied, “As He-Who-Is has spoken to your servants, so we will do.
32We will cross over into the land of Humbled armed before He-Who-Is, that we may have our inheritance on this side of the Descender.”
33So Drawn-Out gave to the children of Fortune, to the children of See-a-Son, and to the half-tribe of Causing-to-Forget son of May-He-Add the kingdom of Tempestuous king of the Mountaineers and the kingdom of Og king of Fertile-Plain—the land including its cities and the territory surrounding them.
34And the children of Fortune built up Pining, Crowns, Bare-Place,
35Crowns-of-Shophan, He-Helps, Lofty,
36House-of-the-Leopardess, and House-of-the-Height as fortified cities, and they built folds for their flocks.
37The children of See-a-Son built up Reckoning, God-Has-Gone-Up, Two-Cities,
38as well as Nebo and Baal-of-Habitation (whose names were changed), and Spice. And they renamed the cities they rebuilt.
39The descendants of Salesman son of Causing-to-Forget went to Heap-of-Witness, captured it, and drove out the Mountaineers who were there.
40So Drawn-Out gave Heap-of-Witness to the clan of Salesman son of Causing-to-Forget, and they settled there.
41He-Enlightens, a descendant of Causing-to-Forget, went and captured their villages and called them Havvoth-He-Enlightens.
42And Barking went and captured Possession and its villages and called it Barking, after his own name.