Numbers 21

Modern

Literal

The Defeat of Arad

¹When the Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev, heard that Israel was coming along the road to Atharim, he attacked Israel and captured some prisoners.

¹And the Canaanite, the king of Arad who dwelt in the Negev, heard that Israel was coming on the road of the Atharim; and he fought against Israel and took some of them captive.

²So Israel made a vow to the LORD: “If You will deliver this people into our hands, we will devote their cities to destruction.”^a

²And Israel made a vow to YHWH, and said, “If You will fully deliver this people into my hand, then I will devote to destruction their cities.”

³And the LORD heard Israel’s plea and delivered up the Canaanites. Israel devoted them and their cities to destruction; so they named the place Hormah.^a

³And YHWH listened to the voice of Israel, and delivered up the Canaanite. And they devoted to destruction them and their cities. And the name of the place was called Hormah.

The Bronze Serpent

⁴Then they set out from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea,^a in order to bypass the land of Edom. But the people grew impatient on the journey

⁴And they journeyed from Mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the soul of the people was short on the way.

⁵and spoke against God and against Moses: “Why have you led us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread or water, and we detest this wretched food!”

⁵And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and our soul loathes this worthless bread.”

⁶So the LORD sent venomous snakes among the people, and many of the Israelites were bitten and died.

⁶And YHWH sent among the people fiery serpents, and they bit the people; and many people of Israel died.

⁷Then the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned by speaking against the LORD and against you. Intercede with the LORD so He will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses interceded for the people.

⁷And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against YHWH and against you. Pray to YHWH, that He take away from us the serpents.” And Moses prayed for the people.

⁸Then the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and mount it on a pole. When anyone who is bitten looks at it, he will live.”

⁸And YHWH said to Moses, “Make for yourself a fiery serpent and set it on a pole; and it shall come to pass that anyone who is bitten, and he looks at it, he shall live.”

⁹So Moses made a bronze snake and mounted it on a pole. If anyone who was bitten looked at the bronze snake, he would live.

⁹And Moses made a bronze serpent and put it on a pole. And it came to pass that, if a serpent had bitten anyone, and he looked unto the bronze serpent, he lived.

The Journey to Moab

¹⁰Then the Israelites set out and camped at Oboth.

¹⁰And the sons of Israel set out and camped in Oboth.

¹¹They journeyed from Oboth and camped at Iye-abarim in the wilderness opposite Moab to the east.

¹¹And they set out from Oboth and camped at Iye-abarim, in the wilderness that is east of Moab toward the sunrise.

¹²From there they set out and camped in the Valley of Zered.

¹³From there they moved on and camped on the other side of the Arnon, in the wilderness that extends into the Amorite territory.

Now the Arnon is the border between the Moabites and the Amorites.

¹³From there they set out and camped on the other side of the Arnon, which is in the wilderness that extends from the border of the Amorite. For the Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and between the Amorite.

¹⁴Therefore it is stated in the Book of the Wars of the LORD:

“Waheb in Suphah

and the wadis of the Arnon,

¹⁴Upon thus it is said in the Book of the Wars of YHWH: “Waheb in Suphah, and the brooks of the Arnon,

¹⁵even the slopes of the wadis

that extend to the site of Ar

and lie along the border of Moab.”

¹⁵and the slope of the brooks that reaches to the dwelling of Ar and lies on the border of Moab.”

¹⁶From there they went on to Beer,^a the well where the LORD said to Moses, “Gather the people so that I may give them water.”

¹⁶And from there they went to Beer; it is the well where YHWH said to Moses, “Gather together the people and I will give them water.”

¹⁷Then Israel sang this song:

“Spring up, O well,

all of you sing to it!

¹⁷Then Israel sang this song: “Spring up, O well, all of you sing to it.

¹⁸The princes dug the well;

the nobles of the people hollowed it out

with their scepters

and with their staffs.”

From the wilderness the Israelites went on to Mattanah,

¹⁸The princes dug the well, the nobles of the nation hollowed it out by the lawgiver, by their staffs.” And from the wilderness they went to Mattanah,

¹⁹and from Mattanah to Nahaliel, and from Nahaliel to Bamoth,

²⁰and from Bamoth to the valley in Moab where the top of Pisgah overlooks the wasteland.^a

²⁰and from Bamoth in the valley that is in the country of Moab to the top of Pisgah, which looks toward the face of Jeshimon.

The Defeat of Sihon

²¹Then Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, saying,

²¹And Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorite, saying,

²²“Let us pass through your land. We will not turn aside into any field or vineyard, or drink water from any well. We will stay on the King’s Highway until we have passed through your territory.”

²²“Let me pass through your land. We will not turn aside into a field or into a vineyard; we will not drink the water of a well. By the Highway of the King we will go, until that we have passed through your territory.”

²³But Sihon would not let Israel pass through his territory. Instead, he gathered his whole army and went out to confront Israel in the wilderness. When he came to Jahaz,^a he fought against Israel.

²³And Sihon would not allow Israel to pass through his territory. And Sihon gathered together all his people and went out against Israel in the wilderness, and he came to Jahaz and fought against Israel.

²⁴And Israel put him to the sword and took possession of his land, from the Arnon to the Jabbok—but only up to the border of the Ammonites, because it was fortified.^a

²⁴And Israel defeated him by the mouth of the sword and took possession of his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, as far as the sons of Ammon; for the border of the sons of Ammon was strong.

²⁵Israel captured all the cities of the Amorites and occupied them, including Heshbon and all its villages.

²⁵And Israel took all these cities, and Israel dwelt in all the cities of the Amorite, in Heshbon, and in all its villages.

²⁶Heshbon was the city of Sihon king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab and taken all his land as far as the Arnon.

²⁶For Heshbon was the city of Sihon king of the Amorite, and he had fought against the former king of Moab, and had taken all his land from his hand as far as the Arnon.

²⁷That is why the poets say:

“Come to Heshbon, let it be rebuilt;

let the city of Sihon be restored.

²⁷Upon thus the speakers of proverbs say: “Come to Heshbon, let the city of Sihon be built and be repaired.

²⁸For a fire went out from Heshbon,

a blaze from the city of Sihon.

It consumed Ar of Moab,

the rulers of Arnon’s heights.

²⁸For fire went out from Heshbon, a flame from the city of Sihon. It consumed Ar of Moab, the lords of the heights of the Arnon.

²⁹Woe to you, O Moab!

You are destroyed, O people of Chemosh!

He gave up his sons as refugees,

and his daughters into captivity

to Sihon king of the Amorites.

²⁹Woe to you, O Moab! You have perished, O people of Chemosh! He has given his sons as fugitives, and his daughters into captivity, to a king of the Amorite, Sihon.

³⁰But we have overthrown them;

Heshbon is destroyed as far as Dibon.

We demolished them as far as Nophah,

which reaches to Medeba.”^a

³⁰And we have shot at them; has perished Heshbon as far as Dibon. And we laid waste as far as Nophah, which is as far as Medeba.”

The Defeat of Og

³¹So Israel lived in the land of the Amorites.

³¹And Israel dwelt in the land of the Amorite.

³²After Moses had sent spies to Jazer, Israel captured its villages and drove out the Amorites who were there.

³²And Moses sent to spy out Jazer, and they took its villages and drove out the Amorite who was there.

³³Then they turned and went up the road to Bashan, and Og king of Bashan and his whole army came out to meet them in battle at Edrei.

³³And they turned and went up by the way to Bashan; and Og king of Bashan went out against them—he and all his people—to battle at Edrei.

³⁴But the LORD said to Moses, “Do not fear him, for I have delivered him into your hand, along with all his people and his land. Do to him as you did to Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon.”

³⁴And YHWH said to Moses, “Fear him not, for into your hand I have delivered him and all his people and his land. And you shall do to him as you did to Sihon king of the Amorite, who dwelt at Heshbon.”

³⁵So they struck down Og, along with his sons and his whole army, until no remnant was left. And they took possession of his land.

³⁵And they defeated him and his sons and all his people, until there was left to him no survivor. And they took possession of his land.