²⁹Moses spoke to Hobab, the son of Reuel. Reuel was Moses’ father-in-law. Reuel was from Midian. Moses said to Hobab, “We’re starting out for the place the Lord promised to us. He said to us, ‘I will give it to you.’ So come with us. We’ll treat you well. The Lord has promised to give good things to Israel.”

³⁰Hobab answered, “No. I can’t go. I’m going back to my own land. I’m returning to my own people.”

³¹But Moses said, “Please don’t leave us. You know where we should camp in the desert. You can be our guide. ³²So come with us. The Lord will give us good things. We’ll share them with you.”

³³So they started out from the mountain of the Lord. They traveled for three days. The ark of the covenant of the Lord went in front of them during those three days. It went ahead of them to find a place for them to rest. ³⁴They started out from the camp by day. And the cloud of the Lord was above them.

³⁵When the ark started out, Moses said,

“Lord, rise up!

Let your enemies be scattered.

Let them run away from you.”

³⁶When the ark came to rest, Moses said,

“Lord, return.

Return to the many thousands of people in Israel.”

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