Immerse: Beginnings Full Volume - Flipbook - Page 285
DEUTERONOMY
These are the words that Moses spoke to all the people of Israel while they
were in the wilderness east of the Jordan River. They were camped in the
Jordan Valley near Suph, between Paran on one side and Tophel, Laban,
Hazeroth, and D
i-zahab on the other.
Normally it takes only eleven days to travel from Mount Sinai to K
adesh-
barnea, going by way of Mount Seir. But forty years after the Israelites left
Egypt, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses addressed the people
of Israel, telling them everything the Lord had commanded him to say.
This took place after he had defeated King Sihon of the Amorites, who
ruled in Heshbon, and at Edrei had defeated King Og of Bashan, who ruled
in Ashtaroth.
While the Israelites were in the land of Moab east of the Jordan River,
Moses carefully explained the Lord’s instructions as follows.
“When we were at Mount Sinai, the Lord our God said to us, ‘You
have stayed at this mountain long enough. It is time to break camp and
move on. Go to the hill country of the Amorites and to all the neighboring regions—the Jordan Valley, the hill country, the western foothills, the
Negev, and the coastal plain. Go to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, and all the way to the great Euphrates River. Look, I am giving all this
land to you! Go in and occupy it, for it is the land the Lord swore to give
to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and to all their descendants.’”
Moses continued, “At that time I told you, ‘You are too great a burden for
me to carry all by myself. The Lord your God has increased your population, making you as numerous as the stars! And may the Lord, the God
of your ancestors, multiply you a thousand times more and bless you as
he promised! But you are such a heavy load to carry! How can I deal with
all your problems and bickering? Choose some w
ell-respected men from
each tribe who are known for their wisdom and understanding, and I will
appoint them as your leaders.’
“Then you responded, ‘Your plan is a good one.’ So I took the wise and
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