Chapter 21

Arad Conquered

1 When the Canaanite, the king of aArad, who lived in the 1Negev, heard that Israel was coming by the way of 2Atharim, then he fought against Israel and took some of them captive.

2 So aIsrael made a vow to the Lord and said, “If You will indeed deliver this people into my hand, then I will 1utterly destroy their cities.”

3 The Lord heard the voice of Israel and delivered up the Canaanites; then they 1utterly destroyed them and their cities. Thus the name of the place was called 2aHormah.

4 Then they set out from Mount Hor by the way of the 1Red Sea, to ago around the land of Edom; and the 2people became impatient because of the journey.

5 The people spoke against God and Moses, “aWhy have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no 1food and no water, and 2bwe loathe this miserable food.”

The Bronze Serpent

6 aThe Lord sent fiery serpents among the people and bthey bit the people, so that cmany people of Israel died.

7 aSo the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, because we have spoken against the Lord and you; bintercede with the Lord, that He may remove the serpents from us.” And Moses interceded for the people.

8 Then the Lord said to Moses, “1Make a afiery serpent, and set it on a standard; and it shall come about, that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, he will live.”

9 And Moses made a abronze serpent and set it on the standard; and it came about, that if a serpent bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived.

10 aNow the sons of Israel moved out and camped in Oboth.

11 They journeyed from Oboth and camped at Iyeabarim, in the wilderness which is opposite Moab, to the 1east.

12 aFrom there they set out and camped in 1Wadi Zered.

13 From there they journeyed and camped on the other side of the Arnon, which is in the wilderness that comes out of the border of the Amorites, afor the Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites.

14 Therefore it is said in the Book of the Wars of the Lord,

“Waheb in Suphah,

And the wadis of the Arnon,

15 And the slope of the wadis

That extends to the site of aAr,

And leans to the border of Moab.”

16 aFrom there they continued to 1Beer, that is the well where the Lord said to Moses, “Assemble the people, that I may give them water.”

17 aThen Israel sang this song:

“Spring up, O well! Sing to it!

18 “The well, which the leaders sank,

Which the nobles of the people dug,

With the scepter and with their staffs.”

And from the wilderness they continued to Mattanah,

19 and from Mattanah to Nahaliel, and from Nahaliel to Bamoth,

20 and from Bamoth to the valley that is in the land of Moab, at the top of Pisgah which overlooks the 1wasteland.

Two Victories

21 aThen Israel sent messengers to Sihon, king of the Amorites, saying,

22 “aLet me pass through your land. We will not turn off into field or vineyard; we will not drink water from wells. We will go by the king’s highway until we have passed through your border.”

23 aBut Sihon would not permit Israel to pass through his border. So Sihon gathered all his people and went out against Israel in the wilderness, and came to bJahaz and fought against Israel.

24 Then aIsrael 1struck him with the edge of the sword, and took possession of his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, as far as the sons of Ammon; for the bborder of the sons of Ammon was 2Jazer.

25 Israel took all these cities and aIsrael lived in all the cities of the Amorites, in Heshbon, and in all her 1villages.

26 For Heshbon was the city of Sihon, king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab and had taken all his land out of his hand, as far as the Arnon.

27 Therefore those who use proverbs say,

“Come to Heshbon! Let it be built!

So let the city of Sihon be established.

28 “aFor a fire went forth from Heshbon,

A flame from the town of Sihon;

It devoured bAr of Moab,

The 1cdominant 2heights of the Arnon.

29 “aWoe to you, O Moab!

You are ruined, O people of bChemosh!

cHe has given his sons as fugitives,

dAnd his daughters into captivity,

To an Amorite king, Sihon.

30 “But we have cast them down,

Heshbon is ruined as far as aDibon,

Then we have laid waste even to Nophah,

Which reaches to Medeba.”

31 Thus Israel lived in the land of the Amorites.

32 Moses sent to spy out aJazer, and they captured its villages and dispossessed the Amorites who were there.

33 aThen they turned and went up by the way of Bashan, and Og the king of Bashan went out 1with all his people, for battle at bEdrei.

34 But the Lord said to Moses, “aDo not fear him, for I have given him into your hand, and all his people and his land; and you shall do to him as you did to Sihon, king of the Amorites, who lived at Heshbon.”

35 So athey 1killed him and his sons and all his people, until there was no remnant left him; and they possessed his land.

Chapter 22

Balak Sends for Balaam

1 aThen the sons of Israel journeyed, and camped in the plains of Moab beyond the Jordan opposite Jericho.

2 Now aBalak the son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites.

3 aSo Moab was in great fear because of the people, for they were numerous; and Moab was in dread of the sons of Israel.

4 Moab said to the elders of aMidian, “Now this 1horde will lick up all that is around us, as the ox licks up the grass of the field.” And Balak the son of Zippor was king of Moab at that time.

5 So he sent messengers to aBalaam the son of Beor, at bPethor, which is near the 1River, in the land of the sons of his people, to call him, saying, “Behold, a people came out of Egypt; behold, they cover the surface of the land, and they are living opposite me.

6 “aNow, therefore, please come, bcurse this people for me since they are too 1mighty for me; perhaps I may be able to 2defeat them and drive them out of the land. For I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed.”

7 So the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the fees for adivination in their hand; and they came to Balaam and 1repeated Balak’s words to him.

8 He said to them, “Spend the night here, and I will bring word back to you as the Lord may speak to me.” And the leaders of Moab stayed with Balaam.

9 Then aGod came to Balaam and said, “Who are these men with you?”

10 Balaam said to God, “Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, has sent word to me,

11 ‘Behold, there is a people who came out of Egypt and they cover the surface of the land; now come, curse them for me; perhaps I may be able to fight against them and drive them out.’ ”

12 God said to Balaam, “Do not go with them; ayou shall not curse the people, for they bare blessed.”

13 So Balaam arose in the morning and said to Balak’s leaders, “Go back to your land, for the Lord has refused to let me go with you.”

14 The leaders of Moab arose and went to Balak and said, “Balaam refused to come with us.”

15 Then Balak again sent leaders, more numerous and more distinguished than 1the former.

16 They came to Balaam and said to him, “Thus says Balak the son of Zippor, ‘Let nothing, I beg you, hinder you from coming to me;

17 for I will indeed honor you richly, and I will do whatever you say to me. aPlease come then, curse this people for me.’ ”

18 Balaam replied to the servants of Balak, “aThough Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not do anything, either small or great, contrary to the 1command of the Lord my God.

19 “Now please, you also stay here tonight, and I will find out what else the Lord will speak to me.”

20 God came to Balaam at night and said to him, “If the men have come to call you, rise up and go with them; but aonly the word which I speak to you shall you do.”

21 aSo Balaam arose in the morning, and saddled his donkey and went with the leaders of Moab.

The Angel and Balaam

22 But God was angry because he was going, aand the angel of the Lord took his stand in the way as an adversary against him. Now he was riding on his donkey and his two servants were with him.

23 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way with his drawn sword in his hand, the donkey turned off from the way and went into the field; but Balaam struck the donkey to turn her back into the way.

24 Then the angel of the Lord stood in a narrow path of the vineyards, with a wall on this side and a wall on that side.

25 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, she pressed herself to the wall and pressed Balaam’s foot against the wall, so he struck her again.

26 The angel of the Lord went further, and stood in a narrow place where there was no way to turn to the right hand or the left.

27 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, she lay down under Balaam; so aBalaam was angry and struck the donkey with his stick.

28 And athe Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?”

29 Then Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have made a mockery of me! If there had been a sword in my hand, aI would have killed you by now.”

30 The donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey on which you have ridden all your life to this day? Have I ever been accustomed to do so to you?” And he said, “No.”

31 Then the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw athe angel of the Lord standing in the way with his drawn sword in his hand; and he bowed 1all the way to the ground.

32 The angel of the Lord said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out as an adversary, because your way was 1acontrary to me.

33 “But the donkey saw me and turned aside from me these three times. If she had not turned aside from me, I would surely have killed you just now, and let her live.”

34 Balaam said to the angel of the Lord, “aI have sinned, for I did not know that you were standing in the way against me. Now then, if it is displeasing to you, I will turn back.”

35 But the angel of the Lord said to Balaam, “Go with the men, but ayou shall speak only the word which I 1tell you.” So Balaam went along with the leaders of Balak.

36 When Balak heard that Balaam was coming, he went out to meet him at the city of Moab, which is on the Arnon border, 1at the extreme end of the border.

37 Then Balak said to Balaam, “Did I not urgently send to you to call you? Why did you not come to me? Am I really unable to honor you?”

38 So Balaam said to Balak, “Behold, I have come now to you! aAm I able to speak anything at all? The word that God puts in my mouth, that I shall speak.”

39 And Balaam went with Balak, and they came to Kiriath-huzoth.

40 Balak sacrificed oxen and sheep, and sent some to Balaam and the leaders who were with him.

41 Then it came about in the morning that Balak took Balaam and brought him up to 1athe high places of Baal, and he saw from there 2a bportion of the people.