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Numbers 32

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The Request for Land East of Jordan 1–5

1
Now the children of Reuben and the children of Gad had a very great multitude of cattle: and when they saw the land of Jazer, and the land of Gilead, that, behold, the place was a place for cattle; ​
2
The children of Gad and the children of Reuben came and spake unto Moses, and to Eleazar the priest, and unto the princes of the congregation, saying,
3
Ataroth, and Dibon, and Jazer, and Nimrah, and Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Shebam, and Nebo, and Beon,
4
Even the country which the LORD smote before the congregation of Israel, is a land for cattle, and thy servants have cattle:
5
Wherefore, said they, if we have found grace in thy sight, let this land be given unto thy servants for a possession, and bring us not over Jordan. ​

Moses Rebukes the Tribes 6–15

6
And Moses said unto the children of Gad and to the children of Reuben, Shall your brethren go to war, and shall ye sit here? ​
7
And wherefore discourage ye the heart of the children of Israel from going over into the land which the LORD hath given them?
8
Thus did your fathers, when I sent them from Kadeshbarnea to see the land. ​
9
For when they went up unto the valley of Eshcol, and saw the land, they discouraged the heart of the children of Israel, that they should not go into the land which the LORD had given them.
10
And the LORD'S anger was kindled the same time, and he sware, saying,
11
Surely none of the men that came up out of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob; because they have not wholly followed me:
12
Save Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite, and Joshua the son of Nun: for they have wholly followed the LORD.
13
And the LORD'S anger was kindled against Israel, and he made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until all the generation, that had done evil in the sight of the LORD, was consumed.
14
And, behold, ye are risen up in your fathers' stead, an increase of sinful men, to augment yet the fierce anger of the LORD toward Israel. ​
15
For if ye turn away from after him, he will yet again leave them in the wilderness; and ye shall destroy all this people.

The Tribes Offer a Compromise 16–19

16
And they came near unto him, and said, We will build sheepfolds here for our cattle, and cities for our little ones:
17
But we ourselves will go ready armed before the children of Israel, until we have brought them unto their place: and our little ones shall dwell in the fenced cities because of the inhabitants of the land. ​
18
We will not return unto our houses, until the children of Israel have inherited every man his inheritance.
19
For we will not inherit with them on yonder side Jordan, or forward; because our inheritance is fallen to us on this side Jordan eastward.

Moses States the Conditions 20–27

20
And Moses said unto them, If ye will do this thing, if ye will go armed before the LORD to war,
21
And will go all of you armed over Jordan before the LORD, until he hath driven out his enemies from before him,
22
And the land be subdued before the LORD: then afterward ye shall return, and be guiltless before the LORD, and before Israel; and this land shall be your possession before the LORD. ​
23
But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out. ​
24
Build you cities for your little ones, and folds for your sheep; and do that which hath proceeded out of your mouth.
25
And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben spake unto Moses, saying, Thy servants will do as my lord commandeth.
26
Our little ones, our wives, our flocks, and all our cattle, shall be there in the cities of Gilead:
27
But thy servants will pass over, every man armed for war, before the LORD to battle, as my lord saith.

The Territory is Assigned 28–33

28
So concerning them Moses commanded Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the chief fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel:
29
And Moses said unto them, If the children of Gad and the children of Reuben will pass with you over Jordan, every man armed to battle, before the LORD, and the land shall be subdued before you; then ye shall give them the land of Gilead for a possession:
30
But if they will not pass over with you armed, they shall have possessions among you in the land of Canaan.
31
And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben answered, saying, As the LORD hath said unto thy servants, so will we do.
32
We will pass over armed before the LORD into the land of Canaan, that the possession of our inheritance on this side Jordan may be ours.
33
And Moses gave unto them, even to the children of Gad, and to the children of Reuben, and unto half the tribe of Manasseh the son of Joseph, the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, the land, with the cities thereof in the coasts, even the cities of the country round about. ​

Settlement and City Building 34–42

34
And the children of Gad built Dibon, and Ataroth, and Aroer,
35
And Atroth, Shophan, and Jaazer, and Jogbehah,
36
And Bethnimrah, and Bethharan, fenced cities: and folds for sheep.
37
And the children of Reuben built Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Kirjathaim,
38
And Nebo, and Baalmeon, (their names being changed,) and Shibmah: and gave other names unto the cities which they builded. ​
39
And the children of Machir the son of Manasseh went to Gilead, and took it, and dispossessed the Amorite which was in it.
40
And Moses gave Gilead unto Machir the son of Manasseh; and he dwelt therein. ​
41
And Jair the son of Manasseh went and took the small towns thereof, and called them Havothjair.
42
And Nobah went and took Kenath, and the villages thereof, and called it Nobah, after his own name.

Bible text: King James Version (1769 Blayney text) · Public domain

Study Notes for Numbers 32

Verse 1

a place for cattle — The Hebrew is maqom miqneh, 'a place of cattle', and the herds of Reuben and Gad were 'a very great multitude'. Jazer had been taken from the Amorites, who were driven out of it (Num 21:32), and the cities named in v.3 lay in the same country, which the LORD 'smote before the congregation' (v.4).

Verse 5

if we have found grace in thy sight — This is the petitioner's courtesy, chen, favour, as when Lot says 'thy servant hath found grace in thy sight' (Gen 19:19) and David speaks to Jonathan (1 Sam 20:3). The land is asked as an achuzzah, a holding. The last request, 'bring us not over Jordan', is what Moses answers in v.6.

Verse 6

Shall your brethren go to war, and shall ye sit here? — 'Brethren' (achim) names the other tribes as their kin. The verb 'sit' (yashav) is the one for dwelling in v.17, 'shall dwell in the fenced cities'. The duty Moses puts here is repeated by Joshua: 'ye shall pass before your brethren armed' (Josh 1:14).

Verse 8

Thus did your fathers — The sending is told in Num 13:2 and the report brought to Kadesh in Num 13:26. Caleb recalls it in Josh 14:7: 'Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadeshbarnea to espy out the land'. Moses sets the earlier refusal beside the present request, and the next verses give its outcome.

Verse 14

an increase of sinful men — Tarbut, an increase or brood, occurs only here. 'Augment' renders saphah, a verb that elsewhere means to sweep away, as in 'wilt thou also destroy the righteous' (Gen 18:23) and 'lest thou be consumed' (Gen 19:15). The fathers' sin of vv.8–13 is set on the sons.

Verse 17

we ourselves will go ready armed — 'Ready armed' joins chush, to hasten, with chalats, to equip for war, so they offer to go in haste and armed. The tribes offer more than Moses asked, and they kept the promise: 'about forty thousand prepared for war passed over before the LORD unto battle' (Josh 4:12–13).

Verse 22

be guiltless before the LORD, and before Israel — Naqi means clear or free of blame, here before both God and men. 'Subdued' is kavash, the verb of 'subdue it' in Gen 1:28. The terms were met when Joshua said, 'now return ye, and get you unto your tents' (Josh 22:4), and the tribes 'returned' to Gilead (Josh 22:9).

Verse 23

your sin will find you out — The Hebrew reads 'know that your sin will find you', with matsa, to find, the verb of Judah's confession: 'God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants' (Gen 44:16). The sin in view is the unkept promise of vv.20–22, to go 'armed before the LORD' until the land is subdued.

Verse 33

half the tribe of Manasseh — Manasseh was not among the petitioners of vv.1–2. Here half the tribe is added, and Moses gives the kingdom of Sihon and the kingdom of Og. Deut 3:12–13 divides them: Gilead's half to Reuben and Gad, and the rest of Gilead and Bashan, Og's kingdom, to half Manasseh.

Verse 38

their names being changed — Nebo and Baalmeon carry names that Scripture elsewhere gives to idols or their places: 'Nebo stoopeth' among the gods of Isa 46:1, and Baal at Num 22:41. The builders 'gave other names unto the cities which they builded', in keeping with the law, 'make no mention of the name of other gods' (Ex 23:13).

Verse 40

Moses gave Gilead unto Machir — Machir was 'the firstborn of Manasseh, the father of Gilead', and Josh 17:1 gives the reason: 'because he was a man of war, therefore he had Gilead and Bashan'. The gift is told again in Deut 3:15, 'I gave Gilead unto Machir', and v.39 tells how Machir took it.