THE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY

 

Deuteronomy Chapter 2

1 ¶ Then we turned, and traveled into the desert along the way to the Red sea, as the LORD directed me: and for many days we circled around mount Seir.

2 And the LORD spoke to me, saying,

3 You have spent enough time going around these hills: turn northward.

4 And command the people, saying, You are to pass through the territory of your kinsmen the children of Esau, who live in Seir; and they will be afraid of you: so watch yourselves carefully:

5 Do not provoke them; for I will not give you any of their land, no, not even a foot’s length; because I have given mount Seir to Esau as a possession.

6 You shall buy meat from them for money, so that you may eat; and you shall buy water from them for money, so that you may drink.

7 For the LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands: he knows that you have been walking through this great desert: the LORD your God has been with you for these forty years; and you have lacked nothing.

8 ¶ So we went on, away from our brethren the children of Esau, who live in Seir, away from the road of the plain from Elath, and from Eziongaber, and we turned and went by way of the wilderness of Moab.

9 And the LORD said to me, Do not trouble the Moabites, or contend with them in battle: for I will not give you any of their land as a possession; because I have given Ar to the children of Lot as a possession.

10 The Emims lived there in times past, a strong, and numerous people, and tall as the Anakim;

11 Who, as the Anakim, were also regarded as giants; but the Moabites call them Emims.

12 The Horims also lived in Seir in time past; but the children of Esau dispossessed them, destroying them before them, and settling in their place; as Israel did to the land of their possession, which the LORD gave to them.

13 Now rise up, said I, and go over the brook Zered. And we went over the brook Zered.

14 And the time from our leaving Kadeshbarnea, until we were crossed over the brook Zered, was thirty and eight years; until the entire generation of the men of war had perished from the camp, as the LORD had sworn to them.

15 For indeed the hand of the LORD was against them, to destroy them from among the camp, until they were consumed.

16 So it came to pass, when all the men of war were dead and gone from among the people,

17 That the LORD spoke to me, saying,

18 Today you are to pass over the boundary of Moab, at the city of Ar:

19 But when you come near the territory of the children of Ammon, do not trouble them, or meddle with them: for I will not give you any of the land of the children of Ammon for a possession; because I have given it to the children of Lot as a possession.

20 (That also was known as a land of giants: giants lived there in time past; and the Ammonites call them Zamzummims;

21 A people strong, numerous, and tall, as the Anakims; but the LORD destroyed them before them; and they dispossessed them, and settled in their place:

22 As he did for the children of Esau, who lived in Seir, when he destroyed the Horims from before them; and they dispossessed them, and settled in their place even to this day:

23 As for the Avims who lived in Hazerim, as far as Azzah, the Caphtorims, who came from Caphtor, destroyed them, and settled in their place.)

24 ¶ Rise up, move on, and cross over the river Arnon: behold, I have given into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land: begin to possess it, and contend with him in battle.

25 This day will I begin to put the dread and fear of you upon all the nations under heaven, who shall hear a report of you, and shall tremble, and be in anguish because of you.

26 So I sent messengers out of the wilderness of Kedemoth to Sihon king of Heshbon with words of peace, saying,

27 Let me pass through your land: I will go along by the highway, I will neither turn to the right hand or to the left.

28 For money you shall sell me food to eat; and water to drink: only let me pass through on foot;

29 (As the children of Esau who live in Seir, and the Moabites who live in Ar, did for me;) until I cross over the Jordan into the land which the LORD our God gives to us.

30 But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass by him: for the LORD your God hardened his spirit, and made his heart obstinate, that he might deliver him into your hand, as he now has.

31 And the LORD said to me, Behold, I have begun to give Sihon and his land over to you: begin to take possession, that you may inherit his land.

32 Then Sihon came out against us, he and all his people, to fight at Jahaz.

33 And the LORD our God delivered him to us; and we destroyed him, and his sons, and all of his people.

34 At the same time we took all of his cities, and utterly destroyed the men, the women, and the children, of every city, we left none remaining:

35 However, we kept the cattle for ourselves, along with the spoil of the cities that we captured.

36 From Aroer, which is on the edge of the Arnon river valley, and from the city that is by the river, as far as Gilead, there was not one city too strong for us: the LORD our God delivered all to us:

37 Only you did not go to the land of the children of Ammon, that is to any place along the river Jabbok, or to the cities of the hill country, or to anyplace where the LORD our God had forbidden us.