Deuteronomy 1 - Prayer Tents

Introduction to Moses’ First Address

1These are the words that Moses spoke to all the people of Israel while they were in the wilderness east of the Jordan River. They were camped in the Jordan Valley near Suph, between Paran on one side and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Di-zahab on the other.H1697H4872H1696H3478H5676H3383H4057H6160H4136H5489H6290H8603H3837H2698H1774 2Normally it takes only eleven days to travel from Mount Sinai to Kadesh-barnea, going by way of Mount Seir.H259H6240H3117H2722H1870H2022H8165H6947 3But forty years after the Israelites left Egypt, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses addressed the people of Israel, telling them everything the LORD had commanded him to say.H705H8141H6249H6240H2320H259H2320H4872H1696H1121H3478H3068H6680 4This took place after he had defeated King Sihon of the Amorites, who had ruled in Heshbon, and King Og of Bashan, who had ruled in Ashtaroth and Edrei.H310H5221H5511H4428H567H3427H2809H5747H4428H1316H3427H6252H154 5While the Israelites were in the land of Moab east of the Jordan River, Moses carefully explained the LORD's instructions as follows.H5676H3383H776H4124H2974H4872H874H8451H559

The Command to Leave Sinai

6"When we were at Mount Sinai, the LORD our God said to us, 'You have stayed at this mountain long enough.H3068H430H1696H2722H559H3427H7227H2022 7It is time to break camp and move on. Go to the hill country of the Amorites and to all the neighboring regions—the Jordan Valley, the hill country, the western foothills, the Negev, and the coastal plain. Go to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, and all the way to the great Euphrates River.H6437H5265H935H2022H567H7934H6160H2022H8219H5045H3220H2348H776H3669H3844H1419H5104H5104H6578 8Look, I am giving all this land to you! Go in and occupy it, for it is the land the LORD swore to give to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and to all their descendants.'"H7200H5414H776H6440H935H3423H776H3068H7650H1H85H3327H3290H5414H2233H310

Moses Appoints Leaders from Each Tribe

9Moses continued, "At that time I told you, 'You are too great a burden for me to carry all by myself.H559H6256H559H3201H5375H905 10The LORD your God has increased your population, making you as numerous as the stars!H3068H430H7235H3117H3556H8064H7230 11And may the LORD, the God of your ancestors, multiply you a thousand times more and bless you as he promised!H3068H430H1H505H6471H3254H1288H1696 12But you are such a heavy load to carry! How can I deal with all your problems and bickering?H349H5375H2960H4853H7379 13Choose some well-respected men from each tribe who are known for their wisdom and understanding, and I will appoint them as your leaders.'H3051H2450H582H995H3045H7626H7760H7218 14"Then you responded, 'Your plan is a good one.'H6030H559H1697H1696H2896H6213 15So I took the wise and respected men you had selected from your tribes and appointed them to serve as judges and officials over you. Some were responsible for a thousand people, some for a hundred, some for fifty, and some for ten.H3947H7218H7626H2450H582H3045H5414H7218H8269H505H8269H3967H8269H2572H8269H6235H7860H7626 16"At that time I instructed the judges, 'You must hear the cases of your fellow Israelites and the foreigners living among you. Be perfectly fair in your decisionsH6680H8199H6256H559H8085H251H8199H6664H376H251H1616 17and impartial in your judgments. Hear the cases of those who are poor as well as those who are rich. Don't be afraid of anyone's anger, for the decision you make is God's decision. Bring me any cases that are too difficult for you, and I will handle them.'H5234H6440H4941H8085H6996H1419H1481H6440H376H4941H430H1697H7185H7126H8085 18"At that time I gave you instructions about everything you were to do.H6680H6256H1697H6213

Scouts Explore the Land

19"Then, just as the LORD our God commanded us, we left Mount Sinai and traveled through the great and terrifying wilderness, as you yourselves remember, and headed toward the hill country of the Amorites. When we arrived at Kadesh-barnea,H5265H2722H3212H1419H3372H4057H7200H1870H2022H567H3068H430H6680H935H6947 20I said to you, 'You have now reached the hill country of the Amorites that the LORD our God is giving us.H559H935H2022H567H3068H430H5414 21Look! He has placed the land in front of you. Go and occupy it as the LORD, the God of your ancestors, has promised you. Don't be afraid! Don't be discouraged!'H7200H3068H430H5414H776H6440H5927H3423H3068H430H1H1696H3372H2865 22"But you all came to me and said, 'First, let's send out scouts to explore the land for us. They will advise us on the best route to take and which towns we should enter.'H7126H559H7971H582H6440H2658H776H7725H1697H7725H1870H5927H5892H935 23"This seemed like a good idea to me, so I chose twelve scouts, one from each of your tribes.H1697H3190H5869H3947H8147H6240H582H259H376H7626 24They headed for the hill country and came to the valley of Eshcol and explored it.H6437H5927H2022H935H5158H812H7270 25They picked some of its fruit and brought it back to us. And they reported, 'The land the LORD our God has given us is indeed a good land.'H3947H6529H776H3027H3381H7725H1697H7725H559H2896H776H3068H430H5414

Israel’s Rebellion against the Lord

26"But you rebelled against the command of the LORD your God and refused to go in.H14H5927H4784H6310H3068H430 27You complained in your tents and said, 'The LORD must hate us. That's why he has brought us here from Egypt—to hand us over to the Amorites to be slaughtered.H7279H168H559H3068H8135H3318H776H4714H5414H3027H567H8045 28Where can we go? Our brothers have demoralized us with their report. They tell us, "The people of the land are taller and more powerful than we are, and their towns are large, with walls rising high into the sky! We even saw giants there—the descendants of Anak!"'H5927H251H4549H3824H559H5971H1419H7311H5892H1419H1219H8064H7200H1121H6062 29"But I said to you, 'Don't be shocked or afraid of them!H559H6206H3372 30The LORD your God is going ahead of you. He will fight for you, just as you saw him do in Egypt.H3068H430H1980H6440H3898H6213H4714H5869 31And you saw how the LORD your God cared for you all along the way as you traveled through the wilderness, just as a father cares for his child. Now he has brought you to this place.'H4057H7200H3068H430H5375H376H5375H1121H1870H1980H935H4725 32"But even after all he did, you refused to trust the LORD your God,H1697H539H3068H430 33who goes before you looking for the best places to camp, guiding you with a pillar of fire by night and a pillar of cloud by day.H1980H1870H6440H8446H4725H2583H784H3915H7200H1870H3212H6051H3119 34"When the LORD heard your complaining, he became very angry. So he solemnly swore,H3068H8085H6963H1697H7107H7650H559 35'Not one of you from this wicked generation will live to see the good land I swore to give your ancestors,H376H582H7451H1755H7200H2896H776H7650H5414H1 36except Caleb son of Jephunneh. He will see this land because he has followed the LORD completely. I will give to him and his descendants some of the very land he explored during his scouting mission.'H2108H3612H1121H3312H7200H5414H776H834H1869H1121H4390H310H3068 37"And the LORD was also angry with me because of you. He said to me, 'Moses, not even you will enter the Promised Land!H3068H599H1558H559H935H8033 38Instead, your assistant, Joshua son of Nun, will lead the people into the land. Encourage him, for he will lead Israel as they take possession of it.H3091H1121H5126H5975H6440H935H2388H3478H5157 39I will give the land to your little ones—your innocent children. You were afraid they would be captured, but they will be the ones who occupy it.H2945H559H957H1121H3117H3045H2896H7451H935H5414H3423 40As for you, turn around now and go on back through the wilderness toward the Red Sea.'H6437H5265H4057H1870H5488H3220 41"Then you confessed, 'We have sinned against the LORD! We will go into the land and fight for it, as the LORD our God has commanded us.' So your men strapped on their weapons, thinking it would be easy to attack the hill country.H6030H559H2398H3068H5927H3898H3068H430H6680H2296H376H3627H4421H1951H5927H2022 42"But the LORD told me to tell you, 'Do not attack, for I am not with you. If you go ahead on your own, you will be crushed by your enemies.'H3068H559H559H5927H3898H7130H5062H6440H341 43"This is what I told you, but you would not listen. Instead, you again rebelled against the LORD's command and arrogantly went into the hill country to fight.H1696H8085H4784H6310H3068H5927H2102H5927H2022 44But the Amorites who lived there came out against you like a swarm of bees. They chased and battered you all the way from Seir to Hormah.H567H3427H2022H3318H7125H7291H1682H6213H3807H8165H2767 45Then you returned and wept before the LORD, but he refused to listen.H7725H1058H6440H3068H3068H8085H6963H238 46So you stayed there at Kadesh for a long time.H3427H6946H7227H3117H3117H3427