Through My Bible Yr 01 – April 01
Numbers 33 – 35
Forty Stages of Israelās Journey
Numbers 33
1Ā These were the stages in the Israelitesā journey when they went out from the land of Egypt, lined up according to their military units, under the leadership of Moses and Aaron. 2Ā At the command of the Lord, Moses recorded their departure locations according to the stages in their journey. These were the stages in their journey listed by their departure locations:
3Ā They set out from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month, the day after the Passover. The Israelites went out defiantly [1] in the sight of all the Egyptians, 4Ā while the Egyptians were burying all their firstborn, whom the Lord had struck down among them. The Lord also brought judgment on their gods. 5Ā The Israelites set out from Rameses and camped at Sukkoth.
6Ā They set out from Sukkoth and camped at Etham, which is on the edge of the wilderness.
7Ā They set out from Etham and turned back to Pi Hahiroth, which faces Baal Zephon. They camped in front of Migdol.
8Ā They set out from Pi Hahiroth [2] and crossed through the middle of the sea into the wilderness. They traveled for three days in the Wilderness of Etham and camped at Marah.
9Ā They set out from Marah and came to Elim. At Elim there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees. They camped there.
10Ā They set out from Elim and camped by the Red Sea.
11Ā They set out from the Red Sea and camped in the Wilderness of Sin.
12Ā They set out from the Wilderness of Sin and camped at Dophkah.
13Ā They set out from Dophkah and camped at Alush.
14Ā They set out from Alush and camped at Rephidim, where there was no water for the people to drink.
15Ā They set out from Rephidim and camped in the Wilderness of Sinai.
16Ā They set out from the Wilderness of Sinai and camped at Kibroth Hattaāavah.
17Ā They set out from Kibroth Hattaāavah and camped at Hazeroth.
18Ā They set out from Hazeroth and camped at Rithmah.
19Ā They set out from Rithmah and camped at Rimmon Perez.
20Ā They set out from Rimmon Perez and camped at Libnah.
21Ā They set out from Libnah and camped at Rissah.
22Ā They set out from Rissah and camped at Kehelathah.
23Ā They set out from Kehelathah and camped at Mount Shepher.
24Ā They set out from Mount Shepher and camped at Haradah.
25Ā They set out from Haradah and camped at Makheloth.
26Ā They set out from Makheloth and camped at Tahath.
27Ā They set out from Tahath and camped at Terah.
28Ā They set out from Terah and camped at Mithkah.
29Ā They set out from Mithkah and camped at Hashmonah.
30Ā They set out from Hashmonah and camped at Moseroth.
31Ā They set out from Moseroth and camped at Bene Jaāakan.
32Ā They set out from Bene Jaāakan and camped at Hor Haggidgad.
33Ā They set out from Hor Haggidgad and camped at Jotbathah.
34Ā They set out from Jotbathah and camped at Abronah.
35Ā They set out from Abronah and camped at Ezion Geber.
36Ā They set out from Ezion Geber and camped in the Wilderness of Zin, that is, at Kadesh.
37Ā They set out from Kadesh and camped at Mount Hor, on the edge of the land of Edom.
38Ā Aaron the priest went up onto Mount Hor at the Lordās command and died there in the fortieth year after the Israelites had come out of the land of Egypt, in the fifth month, on the first day of the month. 39Ā Aaron was one hundred twenty-three years old when he died at Mount Hor.
40Ā The Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev in the land of Canaan, heard that the Israelites were coming.
41Ā They set out from Mount Hor and camped at Zalmonah.
42Ā They set out from Zalmonah and camped at Punon.
43Ā They set out from Punon and camped at Oboth.
44Ā They set out from Oboth and camped at Iye Abarim, on the border of Moab.
45Ā They set out from Iyim [3] and camped at Dibon Gad.
46Ā They set out from Dibon Gad and camped at Almon Diblathaim.
47Ā They set out from Almon Diblathaim and camped by the mountains of the Abarim range, near Nebo.
48Ā They set out from the mountains of Abarim and camped on the Plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho. 49Ā They camped by the Jordan, from Beth Jeshimoth to Abel Shittim, on the Plains of Moab.
Instructions for Conquering Canaan
50Ā On the Plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho, the Lord spoke to Moses: 51Ā āSpeak to the Israelites and tell them, āWhen you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, 52Ā you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land before you, destroy all their carved images and all their cast idols, and destroy all their high places. 53Ā You shall take possession of the land and settle in it, because I have given the land to you to possess it. 54Ā You shall distribute the land as a possession by lot according to your clans. For a larger clan you shall increase its inheritance. For a smaller clan you shall decrease its inheritance. Wherever the lot falls for that clan, that will be its portion. You will distribute the land as a possession according to the tribes of your fathers. 55Ā But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land before you, then those that you allow to remain will become barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides. They will cause trouble for you in the land where you will settle. 56Ā Then I will do to you what I planned to do to them.āā
The Boundaries of Canaan
Numbers 34
1Ā The Lord told Moses 2Ā to deliver these commands to the Israelites:
When you come into the land of Canaan (this is the land that will fall to you as an inheritance, the land of Canaan as defined by its boundaries), 3Ā your southern border will extend from the Wilderness of Zin along the border of Edom. Your southern border on the east will start from the south end of the Dead Sea. [4] 4Ā Your border will turn south of the Ascent of Akrabbim, pass through to Zin, and it will end south of Kadesh Barnea. Then it will go out to Hazar Adda and pass through to Azmon. 5Ā The border will turn from Azmon to the Stream of Egypt, [5] and it will end at the Mediterranean Sea. [6]
6Ā For the western border, you will have the Mediterranean Sea as your border. This will be your western border.
7Ā This will be your northern border: From the Mediterranean Sea you will draw a line for yourselves to Mount Hor. 8Ā From Mount Hor you will draw a line to Lebo Hamath. The end of the border will be at Zedad. 9Ā Then the border will go to Ziphron, and it will end at Hazar Enan. This will be your northern border.
10Ā You will draw a line to serve as your eastern border from Hazar Enan to Shepham. 11Ā The border will go down from Shepham to Riblah, on the east side of Ain. The border will go down and meet the eastern slope of the Sea of Galilee. [7] 12Ā The border will go down to the Jordan and end at the Dead Sea. This will be your land according to its boundaries on all sides.
Tribal Chiefs Assigned for Dividing the Land
13Ā Moses commanded the Israelites, āThis is the land which you will assign as a possession by lot, which the Lord has commanded you to give to the nine and a half tribes. 14Ā The tribe of Reubenās descendants according to their fathersā houses and the tribe of Gadās descendants according to their fathersā houses have already received their possession. Also half of the tribe of Manasseh has received its possession. 15Ā The two and a half tribes have received their possession east of the Jordan across from Jericho, toward the sunrise.ā
16Ā The Lord spoke to Moses:
17Ā These are the names of the men who will assign the land as a possession for you:
Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun.
18Ā You will take one tribal chief from every tribe to assign the land as a possession. 19Ā These are the names of the men:
Caleb son of Jephunneh from the tribe of Judah;
20Ā Shemuel son of Ammihud from the tribe of Simeonās descendants;
21Ā Elidad son of Kislon from the tribe of Benjamin;
22Ā Bukki son of Jogli, a tribal chief from the tribe of Danās descendants;
23Ā from the sons of Joseph: Hanniel son of Ephod, a tribal chief from the tribe of Manassehās descendants;
24Ā Kemuel son of Shiphtan, a tribal chief from the tribe of Ephraimās descendants;
25Ā Elizaphan son of Parnak, a tribal chief from the tribe of Zebulunās descendants;
26Ā Paltiel son of Azzan, a tribal chief from the tribe of Issacharās descendants;
27Ā Ahihud son of Shelomi, a tribal chief from the tribe of Asherās descendants;
28Ā Pedahel son of Ammihud, a tribal chief from the tribe of Naphtaliās descendants.
29Ā These were the men whom the Lord commanded to assign the areas of possession for the Israelites in the land of Canaan.
Towns for the Levites
Numbers 35
1Ā The Lord spoke to Moses on the Plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho:
2Ā Command the people of Israel to give the Levites cities [8] to live in from the territory assigned to them as their possession. They will also give the Levites the pasturelands around those cities. 3Ā The Levites will then have cities to live in. Their pasturelands will be for their cattle, their flocks and herds, and all their other animals.
4Ā The pasturelands of the cities, which you will give to the Levites, will extend out from the wall of the city 500 yards [9] in all directions. 5Ā As the eastern boundary you will measure 1000 yards [10] in addition to the size of the city, 1000 yards as the southern boundary, 1000 yards as the western boundary, and 1000 yards as the northern boundary. The city is in the middle. This area will serve as the pasturelands of their cities.
6Ā The cities which you will give to the Levites will include six cities of refuge, which you will provide so that a person who has killed someone may flee there. In addition to these six cities, you will give them forty-two other cities. 7Ā All the cities which you are to give to the Levites will total forty-eight cities along with their pasturelands. 8Ā For the cities which you will transfer to the Levites from the property of the Israelites, you will take more cities from a larger tribe and fewer from a smaller tribe. Every tribe will give some of its cities to the Levites in proportion to the amount of assigned territory it has received.
Cities of Refuge
9Ā The Lord told Moses 10Ā to speak to the Israelites and tell them this:
When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, 11Ā you are to designate some cities to be cities of refuge for yourselves, so that a person who has killed someone by taking someoneās life unintentionally may flee there. 12Ā The cities will serve as a refuge for you from the avenger, [11] so that a person who has killed someone will not die until he stands trial before the community. 13Ā The cities which you will set aside will serve as the six cities of refuge for you. 14Ā You are to set aside three cities east of the Jordan and three cities in the land of Canaan. They will serve as cities of refuge. 15Ā These six cities will serve as a refuge for Israelites, for resident aliens, and for temporary residents living among them so that everyone who has taken someoneās life unintentionally may flee there.
16Ā But if a person strikes someone with an iron object so that he dies, that person is a murderer. The murderer must certainly be put to death. 17Ā If a person strikes someone with a stone in his hand that could kill someone, and the victim dies, that person is a murderer. The murderer must certainly be put to death. 18Ā Or if a person strikes someone with a wooden object in his hand that could kill someone, and the victim dies, that person is a murderer. The murderer must certainly be put to death. 19Ā The avenger of blood himself will put the murderer to death. When he apprehends him, he is to put him to death. 20Ā If a person pushes someone out of hatred or throws something at him with malicious intent so that he dies, 21Ā or in hostility strikes him with his hand so that he dies, that person who struck him must certainly be put to death. He is a murderer. The avenger of blood is to put the murderer to death when he apprehends him.
22Ā But if a person pushes someone suddenly without hostility or throws any object at him without malicious intent, 23Ā or if without looking he drops a stone on someone big enough to kill him and that person dies, since that person was not his enemy, and he did not seek to harm him, 24Ā the community will judge between the killer and the avenger of blood according to these ordinances. 25Ā The community will deliver the person who has killed someone from the hand of the avenger of blood. Then the community will take him back to his city of refuge, to which he had fled. He must live there until the death of the high priest, who was anointed with the holy oil.
26Ā But if the person who has killed someone ever goes outside of the border of the city of refuge to which he has fled, 27Ā and the avenger of blood finds him outside of the border of his city of refuge, and the avenger of blood kills the person who has killed someone, the avenger will not be guilty of bloodshed, 28Ā because the person who has killed someone should have stayed in his city of refuge until the death of the high priest. But after the death of the high priest he may return to the land that is his possession.
29Ā These things will be a legal statute for you throughout your generations wherever you live.
30Ā Everyone who has taken someoneās life is to be put to death as a murderer on the testimony of witnesses, but no one is to die on the testimony of only one witness.
31Ā You are not to accept a ransom for the life of a murderer who is guilty of death, because he must certainly be put to death.
32Ā You are not to accept a ransom for the one who has fled to a city of refuge in order to allow him to return to live in his land before the death of the priest.
33Ā So you are not to pollute the land where you are, because bloodshed pollutes the land. No atonement can be made for the land where blood has been shed except by the blood of the one who shed it. 34Ā You are not to defile the land in which you are living, where I am dwelling in its midst, for I, the Lord, am dwelling in the midst of the people of Israel.
Footnotes
- Numbers 33:3 Literally with a high hand
- Numbers 33:8 This translation follows many Hebrew manuscripts, the Samaritan Pentateuch, and the Latin version. Most Hebrew manuscripts read left from before Hahiroth.
- Numbers 33:45 A shortened form of Iye Abarim
- Numbers 34:3 Hebrew Salt Sea
- Numbers 34:5 Not the Nile, but a seasonal stream further east, perhaps at Arish
- Numbers 34:5 Hebrew Great Sea
- Numbers 34:11 Hebrew Kinneret
- Numbers 35:2 Some of these settlements were smaller than what is usually denoted by the English word city.
- Numbers 35:4 Literally 1000 cubits. One cubit is about 18 inches.
- Numbers 35:5 Literally 2000 cubits
- Numbers 35:12 Hebrew goel, which in other contexts is translated kinsman redeemer. Sometimes the avenger is called the avenger of blood. See verse 19 and following. When the goel is punishing murder, he is called an avenger. When he is recovering property, he is called a redeemer.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage VersionĀ®, EHVĀ®, Ā© 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.