The Wilderness Years

The people of Isra'el replied, "We will keep to the highway; if we do drink the water, either we or our livestock, we will pay for it. Just let us pass through on foot - it's nothing."

But he said, "You are not to pass through"; and Edom came out against them with many people and much force.

Thus Edom refused to allow Isra'el passage through its territory, so Isra'el turned away.

They traveled on from Kadesh; and the people of Isra'el, the whole community, arrived at Mount Hor.

At Mount Hor, by the border of the land of Edom, ADONAI said to Moshe and Aharon,

"Aharon is about to be gathered to his people, because he is not to enter the land I have given to the people of Isra'el, inasmuch as you rebelled against what I said at the M'rivah Spring.

Take Aharon and El'azar his son, bring them up to Mount Hor,

remove the garments from Aharon and put them on El'azar his son. Aharon will be gathered to his people - he will die there."

Moshe did as ADONAI had ordered. They went up onto Mount Hor before the eyes of the whole community.

Moshe removed the garments from Aharon, and put them on El'azar his son, and Aharon died there on the top of the mountain. Then Moshe and El'azar came down the mountain.

When the entire community saw that Aharon was dead, they mourned Aharon thirty days, the whole house of Isra'el.

Then the king of 'Arad, a Kena'ani who lived in the Negev, heard that Isra'el was approaching by way of Atarim, so he attacked Isra'el and took some of them captive.

Isra'el made a vow to ADONAI, "If you will hand this people over to me, I will completely destroy their cities."

ADONAI listened to what Isra'el said and handed over the Kena'anim, so they completely destroyed them and their cities and named the place Hormah [complete destruction].

Then they traveled from Mount Hor on the road toward the Sea of Suf in order to go around the land of Edom; but the people's tempers grew short because of the detour.

The people spoke against God and against Moshe: "Why did you bring us up out of Egypt? To die in the desert? There's no real food, there's no water, and we're sick of this miserable stuff we're eating!"

In response, ADONAI sent poisonous snakes among the people; they bit the people, and many of Isra'el's people died.

The people came to Moshe and said, "We sinned by speaking against ADONAI and against you. Pray to ADONAI that he rid us of these snakes." Moshe prayed for the people,

and ADONAI answered Moshe: "Make a poisonous snake and put it on a pole. When anyone who has been bitten sees it, he will live."

Moshe made a bronze snake and put it on the pole; if a snake had bitten someone, then, when he looked toward the bronze snake, he stayed alive.

The people of Isra'el traveled on and camped at Ovot.

From Ovot they traveled and camped at 'Iyei-Ha'avarim, in the desert fronting Mo'av on the east.

From there they traveled and camped in Vadi Zered.

From there they traveled and camped on the other side of the Arnon, in the desert; this river comes out of the territory of the Emori; for the Arnon is the boundary between Mo'av and the Emori.

This is why it says, in the Book of the Wars of ADONAI, ". . . Vahev at Sufah, the vadis of Arnon,