Moses’ First Address[a]
Chapter 1
Introduction.[b] 1 These are the words that Moses spoke to the whole of Israel on the desert side of the Jordan, in the Arabah,[c] opposite Suph, between Paran, Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Dizahab. 2 This was an eleven days’ journey from Horeb[d] to Kadesh-barnea by way of the highlands of Seir.
3 On the first day of the eleventh month of the fortieth year, Moses told the Israelites all that the Lord had commanded him to say to them.[e] 4 This was after he had killed Sihon, the king of the Amorites who lived in Heshbon, and Og, the king of Bashan, who lived in Ashtaroth and Edrei.[f]
Command to Leave Horeb. 5 On the eastern side of the Jordan, in the land of Moab, Moses began to explain this law, saying, 6 The Lord, our God, spoke to us at Horeb, saying, “You have stayed at this mountain long enough. 7 Go and proceed into the hill country of the Amorites, into all the territory neighboring the Arabah, into the hill country and the lowlands, into the Negeb and the seacoast, the land of the Canaanites and Lebanon, as far as the great river, the River Euphrates. 8 Behold, I have given you the land. Go in and take possession of the land that the Lord promised he would give to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and their descendants after them.”
Appointment of Leaders. 9 At that time I said to you, “I am not able to carry the burden of leading you all by myself. 10 The Lord, your God, has multiplied you and now you are as numerous as the stars in the heavens. 11 May the Lord, the God of your fathers, multiply you a thousand times over and bless you, as he has promised you. 12 How can I handle your problems and your burdens and your disputes all by myself? 13 Choose some wise, prudent, and respected men from your tribesmen, and I will appoint them as your leaders.”
14 They answered, saying, “It would be good to do what you suggested.” 15 So I took the leading men of your tribes, wise and respected men, and made them your leaders, captains of the thousands, and captains of the hundreds, and captains of the fifties and the tens, as your tribal officials. 16 At that time I instructed your judges, “Listen to the disputes among your brethren and judge them justly, whether between a man and his fellow countryman or even the foreigner who is with him.[g] 17 Do not show partiality in judging; listen to both the lowly and the great. Do not be afraid of anyone, for judgment belongs to God. Bring me any case that is too difficult for you and I will hear it.” 18 At that time I instructed you concerning everything that you were to do.
19 Twelve Explorers. Then, as the Lord, our God, had commanded us, we set out from Horeb. We passed through the great and terrible wilderness that you have seen up into the hill country of the Amorites, coming to Kadesh-barnea. 20 I said to you, “Come up into the hill country of the Amorites that the Lord, our God, is giving to us. 21 Look! The Lord, your God, has given the land to you. Go up and take possession of it, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has instructed you. Do not be afraid or discouraged.”
22 All of you came to me and said, “Let us send men ahead of ourselves to explore the land. They can bring a report back to us as to which way we should travel and as to what cities we will encounter.”
23 This seemed to be a very good idea to me. I chose twelve of your men, one from each tribe. 24 They left and went up into the hill country and reached the Valley of Eshcol which they explored. 25 They gathered some of the fruit of the land and brought it down to us, reporting, “The land that the Lord, our God, has given us is good.”
26 The People Rebel. But you were unwilling to go up. You defied the command of the Lord, your God. 27 You complained in your tents and said, “It is because the Lord hates us that he brought us out of the land of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites so they might destroy us. 28 Why should we go up? Our brothers have frightened us by saying, ‘The people are larger and taller than we are. The cities have great walls that reach up into the heavens. Moreover, there are the sons of the Anakim,[h] we have seen them there.’ ”
29 But I said to them, “Do not be afraid of them! 30 The Lord, your God, marches before you. He will fight for you, just as he did on your behalf in Egypt, as you yourselves have seen. 31 You saw how the Lord, your God, carried you all throughout your journey in the wilderness, just as a man carries his son, until you arrived in this place.” 32 Yet, in spite of this, you did not trust the Lord, your God. 33 He went ahead of you on your journey, as fire by night to search out a place for you to pitch your tents and as cloud by day to show you the path by which you should travel.
34 When the Lord heard your words, he became angry and swore, 35 “Not one of these men from this evil generation will see the good land that I promised to give to your fathers 36 except for Caleb, the son of Jephunneh. He will see it, and I will give him and his children the land upon which he has set foot, for he has wholeheartedly followed the Lord.”
37 The Lord grew angry with me because of you and said, “You are not going to enter it either. 38 Joshua, the son of Nun, who assists you, will enter it. Encourage him, for he will bring Israel in to inherit it. 39 Furthermore, your children whom you said would be taken captive, those who do not yet know the difference between good and evil, they will enter it. I will give it to them, and they will take possession of it. 40 But as for you, turn back and set out toward the wilderness along the route to the Red Sea.”
41 Then you replied and said to me, “We have sinned against the Lord. We will go up and fight as the Lord, our God, has commanded us.” So every one of you put on your weapons, thinking it would be easy to go up into the hill country.
42 The Lord said to me, “Say to them, ‘Do not go up, nor fight. Otherwise you will be slain by your enemies.’ ” 43 So I spoke to you, but you would not listen to me. You defied the command of the Lord and arrogantly went up into the hill country. 44 The Amorites who dwell in that hill country came out against you and chased you like bees, beating you down from Seir all the way to Hormah. 45 You came back and wept before the Lord, but the Lord would not pay attention to your voice nor give ear to you. 46 So you stayed in Kadesh for a long time, all the days that you spent there.
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 1:1 As it reflects on its past, Israel understands how everything has come to it from God.
- Deuteronomy 1:1 The reflections are put on the lips of Moses and presented as his spiritual testament. In them reference is made to many incidents already recounted, especially in Numbers.
- Deuteronomy 1:1 Arabah: the depression between the Red Sea and the southern stretches of the Jordan. Suph: the Suphah of Num 21:14. Dizahab: the modern el-Dhaibet. The Desert of Paran: the modern Gebel-et-Tih (see Num 10:12). Laban and Hazeroth: see Num 33:17-20. Tophel: perhaps the modern et-Tafileh.
- Deuteronomy 1:2 Horeb or Sinai; Seir: in the Negeb or desert in southern Palestine. Kadesh-barnea: in southern Palestine, the modern Am Qedeis.
- Deuteronomy 1:3 The date given is that of the death of Moses and his farewell address.
- Deuteronomy 1:4 See chapters 2–3; Num 21:21-35.
- Deuteronomy 1:16 A foreigner can have a permanent residence among the Israelites; he is free but cannot possess property; his situation is precarious, but there are many laws that protect him. The Israelite view of foreigners is already a positive step in the direction of universalism.
- Deuteronomy 1:28 Anakim: ancient inhabitants of Palestine whom legend transformed into terrifying giants (see Deut 2:10-11).