Deuteronomy_Chapter 1

These are the words that Moses spoke to all Israel in the wilderness east of Jordan, in the Arabah across from Shuph, between Balaam, Toph, Laban, Hazroth, and Dizaha.

It is an eleven day journey from Mount Horeb to Kadesh Bania, passing through Mount Seir.

In the forty year of his departure from Egypt, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses spoke to the Israelites as the Lord had commanded them through him.

At that time, he had already killed King Sihon of the Amorites who lived in Heshbon, and King Og of Bashan who lived in Edrei and Ashtaroth.

Moses preached the law in the land of Moab east of the Jordan River, saying,

The Lord our God spoke to us in Mount Horeb, saying, Your days of living on this mountain are enough.

Set out and turn to the mountain range of the Amorites and all the places near it, including the Arabah, the mountain range, the plateau, the southern region, and the land of the Canaanites along the coast, as well as Mount Lebanon and the great river Euphrates.

Now I have placed this land before you. Go in and take possession of this land, which the Lord swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to give to them and their descendants as an inheritance.

At that time, I told you that I couldn’t bear the heavy responsibility of managing you alone.

The Lord your God has made you many. Look, you have as many stars in the sky today.

May the Lord, the God of your ancestors, make you a thousand times more numerous than you are now, and bless you according to his promise.

But how can I bear your troubles, the heavy responsibility of managing you, and your disputes alone?

Choose wise, knowledgeable, and known among all your tribes, and I will make them your leaders.

You answered me, ‘It’s better to do as you said.’.

I will appoint the leaders of your tribes, who are wise and known to all, as rulers, commanders of thousands, commanders of hundreds, commanders of fifty, and commanders of ten, according to your tribes, to govern you.

At that time, I instructed your judges, saying, “Listen to the lawsuit, whether it is a dispute between brothers or a dispute with an outsider who is living with you, judge it justly.”.

During the trial, one should not look at a person’s appearance. Do not distinguish between high and low in hearing lawsuits, do not be afraid of people, because judgment belongs to God. If there are difficult cases to resolve, they can be presented to me and I will make a judgment.

At that time, I commanded you all that you should do.

We set out from Mount Horeb, as the Lord our God commanded us, and passed through the great and terrifying wilderness that you saw, heading towards the mountain range of the Amorites, and arrived at Kadesh Barnea.

I say to you, You have arrived at the mountain range of the Amorites that the Lord our God has given us.

See, the Lord your God has set the land before you, and you will go up and possess it as the Lord your ancestors’ God has said. Don’t be afraid, don’t be panicked.

You all come near me and say, ‘We will send someone first to spy out the land for us, and report to us on the way we should go up and the city we will enter.’.

I thought this was beautiful, so I chose twelve people from among you, one from each tribe.

So they got up and went up the mountain to the valley of Eshcol, to spy out the land.

They came down to us with the fruits of the land in their hands and reported, saying, The Lord our God has given us a beautiful land.

But you refused to go up, and went against the command of the Lord your God,

He murmured in the tent, saying, Because the Lord hated us, he brought us out of the land of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites and destroy us.

Where are we going? Our brothers have digested our hearts, saying that the people of that land are larger and higher than us, and the cities are vast and strong, towering up to the heavens, and we have seen the people of Anak there.

I say to you, don’t be frightened, and don’t be afraid of them.

The Lord your God, who walked before you, will fight for you, just as he did before your eyes in Egypt and the wilderness.

On the way you walked in the wilderness, you also saw the Lord your God raising you, just like a man raising a son, until you came to this place.

But you do not believe in the Lord your God in this matter.

He is on the road, walking in front of you, looking for a place to camp for you. At night in the pillar of fire, and by day in the pillar of clouds, I will show you the way to go.

When the Lord heard these words from you, he was angry and swore, saying,

No one from this wicked generation shall see the beautiful land that I swore to give to your ancestors.

Only Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, will see, and I will give him and his descendants the land he has walked on, because he is wholeheartedly following me.

The Lord is also angry with me for your sake, saying, You shall not enter that land.

Serve you, Joshua the son of Nun, and he will enter that land. Encourage him, for he will make the Israelites inherit the land as an inheritance.

And your women and children, who you have said will be taken captive, and your children who do not know good or evil today, will enter that land. I will give them that land, and they will possess it.

As for you, turn back and head towards the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea.

At that time, you answered me, saying, We have sinned against the Lord, and we are willing to go up and fight according to all that the Lord our God has commanded us. So each of you, armed with weapons, rushed up to the mountains first.

The Lord commanded me, saying to them, Do not go up, and do not fight. Because I am not among you, I am afraid you will be defeated by your enemies.

I told you, but you did not listen and went against the command of the Lord, going up to the mountain without authorization.

The Amorites who lived in that mountain will come out to attack you, chasing after you like a swarm, killing and repelling you in Seir until they reach Hormah.

Then you will come back and cry before the Lord. But the Lord will not hear your voice, nor will he give ear to you.

So you stayed in Kadesh for many days.