The Desert Years

2 “Then we turned and ajourneyed into the wilderness of the Way of the Red Sea, bas the Lord spoke to me, and we 1skirted Mount Seir for many days.

2 “And the Lord spoke to me, saying: 3 ‘You have skirted this mountain clong enough; turn northward. 4 And command the people, saying, d“You are about to pass through the territory of eyour brethren, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir; and they will be afraid of you. Therefore watch yourselves carefully. 5 Do not meddle with them, for I will not give you any of their land, no, not so much as one footstep, fbecause I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession. 6 You shall buy food from them with money, that you may eat; and you shall also buy water from them with money, that you may drink.

7 “For the Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hand. He knows your 2trudging through this great wilderness. gThese forty years the Lord your God has been with you; you have lacked nothing.” ’

8 “And when we passed beyond our brethren, the descendants of Esau who dwell in Seir, away from the road of the plain, away from hElath and Ezion Geber, we iturned and passed by way of the Wilderness of Moab. 9 Then the Lord said to me, ‘Do not harass Moab, nor contend with them in battle, for I will not give you any of their land as a possession, because I have given jAr to kthe descendants of Lot as a possession.’ ”

10 l(The Emim had dwelt there in times past, a people as great and numerous and tall as mthe Anakim. 11 They were also regarded as 3giants, like the Anakim, but the Moabites call them Emim. 12 nThe Horites formerly dwelt in Seir, but the descendants of Esau dispossessed them and destroyed them from before them, and dwelt in their 4place, just as Israel did to the land of their possession which the Lord gave them.)

13 “ ‘Now rise and cross over othe 5Valley of the Zered.’ So we crossed over the Valley of the Zered. 14 And the time we took to come pfrom Kadesh Barnea until we crossed over the Valley of the Zered was thirty-eight years, quntil all the generation of the men of war 6was consumed from the midst of the camp, rjust as the Lord had sworn to them. 15 For indeed the hand of the Lord was against them, to destroy them from the midst of the camp until they 7were consumed.

16 “So it was, when all the men of war had finally perished from among the people, 17 that the Lord spoke to me, saying: 18 ‘This day you are to cross over at Ar, the boundary of Moab. 19 And when you come near the people of Ammon, do not harass them or meddle with them, for I will not give you any of the land of the people of Ammon as a possession, because I have given it to sthe descendants of Lot as a possession.’ ”

20 (That was also regarded as a land of 8giants; giants formerly dwelt there. But the Ammonites call them tZamzummim, 21 ua people as great and numerous and tall as the Anakim. But the Lord destroyed them before them, and they dispossessed them and dwelt in their place, 22 just as He had done for the descendants of Esau, vwho dwelt in Seir, when He destroyed wthe Horites from before them. They dispossessed them and dwelt in their place, even to this day. 23 And xthe Avim, who dwelt in villages as far as Gaza—ythe Caphtorim, who came from Caphtor, destroyed them and dwelt in their place.)

24 “ ‘Rise, take your journey, and zcross over the River Arnon. Look, I have given into your hand aSihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land. Begin 9to possess it, and engage him in battle. 25 bThis day I will begin to put the dread and fear of you upon the nations 1under the whole heaven, who shall hear the report of you, and shall ctremble and be in anguish because of you.’