1 These are the journeys of the children of Israel, which went forth out of the land of Egypt with their armies under the hand of Moses and Aaron.
2 And Moses wrote their goings out according to their journeys by the commandment of the LORD: and these are their journeys according to their goings out.
3 And they departed from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month; on the morrow after the passover the children of Israel went out with an high hand in the sight of all the Egyptians.
4 For the Egyptians buried all their firstborn, which the LORD had smitten among them: upon their gods also the LORD executed judgments.
5 And the children of Israel removed from Rameses, and pitched in Succoth.
6 And they departed from Succoth, and pitched in Etham, which is in the edge of the wilderness.
7 And they removed from Etham, and turned again unto Pihahiroth, which is before Baalzephon: and they pitched before Migdol.
8 And they departed from before Pihahiroth, and passed through the midst of the sea into the wilderness, and went three days' journey in the wilderness of Etham, and pitched in Marah.
9 And they removed from Marah, and came unto Elim: and in Elim were twelve fountains of water, and threescore and ten palm trees; and they pitched there.
10 And they removed from Elim, and encamped by the Red sea.
11 And they removed from the Red sea, and encamped in the wilderness of Sin.
12 And they took their journey out of the wilderness of Sin, and encamped in Dophkah.
13 And they departed from Dophkah, and encamped in Alush.
14 And they removed from Alush, and encamped at Rephidim, where was no water for the people to drink.
15 And they departed from Rephidim, and pitched in the wilderness of Sinai.
16 And they removed from the desert of Sinai, and pitched at Kibrothhattaavah.
17 And they departed from Kibrothhattaavah, and encamped at Hazeroth.
18 And they departed from Hazeroth, and pitched in Rithmah.
19 And they departed from Rithmah, and pitched at Rimmonparez.
20 And they departed from Rimmonparez, and pitched in Libnah.
21 And they removed from Libnah, and pitched at Rissah.
22 And they journeyed from Rissah, and pitched in Kehelathah.
23 And they went from Kehelathah, and pitched in mount Shapher.
24 And they removed from mount Shapher, and encamped in Haradah.
25 And they removed from Haradah, and pitched in Makheloth.
26 And they removed from Makheloth, and encamped at Tahath.
27 And they departed from Tahath, and pitched at Tarah.
28 And they removed from Tarah, and pitched in Mithcah.
29 And they went from Mithcah, and pitched in Hashmonah.
30 And they departed from Hashmonah, and encamped at Moseroth.
31 And they departed from Moseroth, and pitched in Benejaakan.
32 And they removed from Benejaakan, and encamped at Horhagidgad.
33 And they went from Horhagidgad, and pitched in Jotbathah.
34 And they removed from Jotbathah, and encamped at Ebronah.
35 And they departed from Ebronah, and encamped at Eziongaber.
36 And they removed from Eziongaber, and pitched in the wilderness of Zin, which is Kadesh.
37 And they removed from Kadesh, and pitched in mount Hor, in the edge of the land of Edom.
38 And Aaron the priest went up into mount Hor at the commandment of the LORD, and died there, in the fortieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the first day of the fifth month.
39 And Aaron was an hundred and twenty and three years old when he died in mount Hor.
40 And king Arad the Canaanite, which dwelt in the south in the land of Canaan, heard of the coming of the children of Israel.
41 And they departed from mount Hor, and pitched in Zalmonah.
42 And they departed from Zalmonah, and pitched in Punon.
43 And they departed from Punon, and pitched in Oboth.
44 And they departed from Oboth, and pitched in Ijeabarim, in the border of Moab.
45 And they departed from Iim, and pitched in Dibongad.
46 And they removed from Dibongad, and encamped in Almondiblathaim.
47 And they removed from Almondiblathaim, and pitched in the mountains of Abarim, before Nebo.
48 And they departed from the mountains of Abarim, and pitched in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho.
49 And they pitched by Jordan, from Bethjesimoth even unto Abelshittim in the plains of Moab.
50 And the LORD spake unto Moses in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho, saying,
51 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye are passed over Jordan into the land of Canaan;
52 Then ye shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their pictures, and destroy all their molten images, and quite pluck down all their high places:
53 And ye shall dispossess the inhabitants of the land, and dwell therein: for I have given you the land to possess it.
54 And ye shall divide the land by lot for an inheritance among your families: and to the more ye shall give the more inheritance, and to the fewer ye shall give the less inheritance: every man's inheritance shall be in the place where his lot falleth; according to the tribes of your fathers ye shall inherit.
55 But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell.
56 Moreover it shall come to pass, that I shall do unto you, as I thought to do unto them.
1 These are the journeys H4550 of the children H1121 of Israel, H3478 which went forth H3318 out of the land H776 of Egypt H4714 with their armies H6635 under the hand H3027 of Moses H4872 and Aaron. H175
2 And Moses H4872 wrote H3789 their goings out H4161 according to their journeys H4550 by the commandment H6310 of the LORD: H3068 and these are their journeys H4550 according to their goings out. H4161
3 And they departed H5265 from Rameses H7486 in the first H7223 month, H2320 on the fifteenth H6240 H2568 day H3117 of the first H7223 month; H2320 on the morrow H4283 after the passover H6453 the children H1121 of Israel H3478 went out H3318 with an high H7311 hand H3027 in the sight H5869 of all the Egyptians. H4714
4 For the Egyptians H4714 buried H6912 all their firstborn, H1060 which the LORD H3068 had smitten H5221 among them: upon their gods H430 also the LORD H3068 executed H6213 judgments. H8201
5 And the children H1121 of Israel H3478 removed H5265 from Rameses, H7486 and pitched H2583 in Succoth. H5523
6 And they departed H5265 from Succoth, H5523 and pitched H2583 in Etham, H864 which is in the edge H7097 of the wilderness. H4057
7 And they removed H5265 from Etham, H864 and turned again H7725 unto Pihahiroth, H6367 which is before Baalzephon: H1189 and they pitched H2583 before H6440 Migdol. H4024
8 And they departed H5265 from before H6440 Pihahiroth, H6367 and passed through H5674 the midst H8432 of the sea H3220 into the wilderness, H4057 and went H3212 three H7969 days' H3117 journey H1870 in the wilderness H4057 of Etham, H864 and pitched H2583 in Marah. H4785
9 And they removed H5265 from Marah, H4785 and came H935 unto Elim: H362 and in Elim H362 were twelve H8147 H6240 fountains H5869 of water, H4325 and threescore and ten H7657 palm trees; H8558 and they pitched H2583 there.
10 And they removed H5265 from Elim, H362 and encamped H2583 by the Red H5488 sea. H3220
11 And they removed H5265 from the Red H5488 sea, H3220 and encamped H2583 in the wilderness H4057 of Sin. H5512
12 And they took their journey H5265 out of the wilderness H4057 of Sin, H5512 and encamped H2583 in Dophkah. H1850
13 And they departed H5265 from Dophkah, H1850 and encamped H2583 in Alush. H442
14 And they removed H5265 from Alush, H442 and encamped H2583 at Rephidim, H7508 where was no water H4325 for the people H5971 to drink. H8354
15 And they departed H5265 from Rephidim, H7508 and pitched H2583 in the wilderness H4057 of Sinai. H5514
16 And they removed H5265 from the desert H4057 of Sinai, H5514 and pitched H2583 at Kibrothhattaavah. H6914
17 And they departed H5265 from Kibrothhattaavah, H6914 and encamped H2583 at Hazeroth. H2698
18 And they departed H5265 from Hazeroth, H2698 and pitched H2583 in Rithmah. H7575
19 And they departed H5265 from Rithmah, H7575 and pitched H2583 at Rimmonparez. H7428
20 And they departed H5265 from Rimmonparez, H7428 and pitched H2583 in Libnah. H3841
21 And they removed H5265 from Libnah, H3841 and pitched H2583 at Rissah. H7446
22 And they journeyed H5265 from Rissah, H7446 and pitched H2583 in Kehelathah. H6954
23 And they went H5265 from Kehelathah, H6954 and pitched H2583 in mount H2022 Shapher. H8234
24 And they removed H5265 from mount H2022 Shapher, H8234 and encamped H2583 in Haradah. H2732
25 And they removed H5265 from Haradah, H2732 and pitched H2583 in Makheloth. H4722
26 And they removed H5265 from Makheloth, H4722 and encamped H2583 at Tahath. H8480
27 And they departed H5265 from Tahath, H8480 and pitched H2583 at Tarah. H8646
28 And they removed H5265 from Tarah, H8646 and pitched H2583 in Mithcah. H4989
29 And they went H5265 from Mithcah, H4989 and pitched H2583 in Hashmonah. H2832
30 And they departed H5265 from Hashmonah, H2832 and encamped H2583 at Moseroth. H4149
31 And they departed H5265 from Moseroth, H4149 and pitched H2583 in Benejaakan. H1142
32 And they removed H5265 from Benejaakan, H1142 and encamped H2583 at Horhagidgad. H2735
33 And they went H5265 from Horhagidgad, H2735 and pitched H2583 in Jotbathah. H3193
34 And they removed H5265 from Jotbathah, H3193 and encamped H2583 at Ebronah. H5684
35 And they departed H5265 from Ebronah, H5684 and encamped H2583 at Eziongaber. H6100
36 And they removed H5265 from Eziongaber, H6100 and pitched H2583 in the wilderness H4057 of Zin, H6790 which is Kadesh. H6946
37 And they removed H5265 from Kadesh, H6946 and pitched H2583 in mount H2022 Hor, H2023 in the edge H7097 of the land H776 of Edom. H123
38 And Aaron H175 the priest H3548 went up H5927 into mount H2022 Hor H2023 at the commandment H6310 of the LORD, H3068 and died H4191 there, in the fortieth H705 year H8141 after the children H1121 of Israel H3478 were come out H3318 of the land H776 of Egypt, H4714 in the first H259 day of the fifth H2549 month. H2320
39 And Aaron H175 was an hundred H3967 and twenty H6242 and three H7969 years H8141 old H1121 when he died H4194 in mount H2022 Hor. H2023
40 And king H4428 Arad H6166 the Canaanite, H3669 which dwelt H3427 in the south H5045 in the land H776 of Canaan, H3667 heard H8085 of the coming H935 of the children H1121 of Israel. H3478
41 And they departed H5265 from mount H2022 Hor, H2023 and pitched H2583 in Zalmonah. H6758
42 And they departed H5265 from Zalmonah, H6758 and pitched H2583 in Punon. H6325
43 And they departed H5265 from Punon, H6325 and pitched H2583 in Oboth. H88
44 And they departed H5265 from Oboth, H88 and pitched H2583 in Ijeabarim, H5863 in the border H1366 of Moab. H4124
45 And they departed H5265 from Iim, H5864 and pitched H2583 in Dibongad. H1769
46 And they removed H5265 from Dibongad, H1769 and encamped H2583 in Almondiblathaim. H5963
47 And they removed H5265 from Almondiblathaim, H5963 and pitched H2583 in the mountains H2022 of Abarim, H5682 before H6440 Nebo. H5015
48 And they departed H5265 from the mountains H2022 of Abarim, H5682 and pitched H2583 in the plains H6160 of Moab H4124 by Jordan H3383 near Jericho. H3405
49 And they pitched H2583 by Jordan, H3383 from Bethjesimoth H1020 even unto Abelshittim H63 in the plains H6160 of Moab. H4124
50 And the LORD H3068 spake H1696 unto Moses H4872 in the plains H6160 of Moab H4124 by Jordan H3383 near Jericho, H3405 saying, H559
51 Speak H1696 unto the children H1121 of Israel, H3478 and say H559 unto them, When ye are passed over H5674 Jordan H3383 into the land H776 of Canaan; H3667
52 Then ye shall drive out H3423 all the inhabitants H3427 of the land H776 from before H6440 you, and destroy H6 all their pictures, H4906 and destroy H6 all their molten H4541 images, H6754 and quite pluck down H8045 all their high places: H1116
53 And ye shall dispossess H3423 the inhabitants of the land, H776 and dwell H3427 therein: for I have given H5414 you the land H776 to possess H3423 it.
54 And ye shall divide H5157 the land H776 by lot H1486 for an inheritance H5157 among your families: H4940 and to the more H7227 ye shall give the more H7235 inheritance, H5159 and to the fewer H4592 ye shall give the less H4591 inheritance: H5159 every man's inheritance shall be in the place where his lot H1486 falleth; H3318 according to the tribes H4294 of your fathers H1 ye shall inherit. H5157
55 But if ye will not drive out H3423 the inhabitants H3427 of the land H776 from before H6440 you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain H3498 of them shall be pricks H7899 in your eyes, H5869 and thorns H6796 in your sides, H6654 and shall vex H6887 you in the land H776 wherein ye dwell. H3427
56 Moreover it shall come to pass, that I shall do H6213 unto you, as I thought H1819 to do H6213 unto them.
1 These are the journeys of the children of Israel, when they went forth out of the land of Egypt by their hosts under the hand of Moses and Aaron.
2 And Moses wrote their goings out according to their journeys by the commandment of Jehovah: and these are their journeys according to their goings out.
3 And they journeyed from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month; on the morrow after the passover the children of Israel went out with a high hand in the sight of all the Egyptians,
4 while the Egyptians were burying all their first-born, whom Jehovah had smitten among them: upon their gods also Jehovah executed judgments.
5 And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses, and encamped in Succoth.
6 And they journeyed from Succoth, and encamped in Etham, which is in the edge of the wilderness.
7 And they journeyed from Etham, and turned back unto Pihahiroth, which is before Baal-zephon: and they encamped before Migdol.
8 And they journeyed from before Hahiroth, and passed through the midst of the sea into the wilderness: and they went three days' journey in the wilderness of Etham, and encamped in Marah.
9 And they journeyed from Marah, and came unto Elim: and in Elim were twelve springs of water, and threescore and ten palm-trees; and they encamped there.
10 And they journeyed from Elim, and encamped by the Red Sea.
11 And they journeyed from the Red Sea, and encamped in the wilderness of Sin.
12 And they journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, and encamped in Dophkah.
13 And they journeyed from Dophkah, and encamped in Alush.
14 And they journeyed from Alush, and encamped in Rephidim, where was no water for the people to drink.
15 And they journeyed from Rephidim, and encamped in the wilderness of Sinai.
16 And they journeyed from the wilderness of Sinai, and encamped in Kibroth-hattaavah.
17 And they journeyed from Kibroth-hattaavah, and encamped in Hazeroth.
18 And they journeyed from Hazeroth, and encamped in Rithmah.
19 And they journeyed from Rithmah, and encamped in Rimmon-perez.
20 And they journeyed from Rimmon-perez, and encamped in Libnah.
21 And they journeyed from Libnah, and encamped in Rissah.
22 And they journeyed from Rissah, and encamped in Kehelathah.
23 And they journeyed from Kehelathah, and encamped in mount Shepher.
24 And they journeyed from mount Shepher, and encamped in Haradah.
25 And they journeyed from Haradah, and encamped in Makheloth.
26 And they journeyed from Makheloth, and encamped in Tahath.
27 And they journeyed from Tahath, and encamped in Terah.
28 And they journeyed from Terah, and encamped in Mithkah.
29 And they journeyed from Mithkah, and encamped in Hashmonah.
30 And they journeyed from Hashmonah, and encamped in Moseroth.
31 And they journeyed from Moseroth, and encamped in Bene-jaakan.
32 And they journeyed from Bene-jaakan, and encamped in Hor-haggidgad.
33 And they journeyed from Hor-haggidgad, and encamped in Jotbathah.
34 And they journeyed from Jotbathah, and encamped in Abronah.
35 And they journeyed from Abronah, and encamped in Ezion-geber.
36 And they journeyed from Ezion-geber, and encamped in the wilderness of Zin (the same is Kadesh).
37 And they journeyed from Kadesh, and encamped in mount Hor, in the edge of the land of Edom.
38 And Aaron the priest went up into mount Hor at the commandment of Jehovah, and died there, in the fortieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fifth month, on the first day of the month.
39 And Aaron was a hundred and twenty and three years old when he died in mount Hor.
40 And the Canaanite, the king of Arad, who dwelt in the South in the land of Canaan, heard of the coming of the children of Israel.
41 And they journeyed from mount Hor, and encamped in Zalmonah.
42 And they journeyed from Zalmonah, and encamped in Punon.
43 And they journeyed from Punon, and encamped in Oboth.
44 And they journeyed from Oboth, and encamped in Iye-abarim, in the border of Moab.
45 And they journeyed from Iyim, and encamped in Dibon-gad.
46 And they journeyed from Dibon-gad, and encamped in Almon-diblathaim.
47 And they journeyed from Almon-diblathaim, and encamped in the mountains of Abarim, before Nebo.
48 And they journeyed from the mountains of Abarim, and encamped in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho.
49 And they encamped by the Jordan, from Beth-jeshimoth even unto Abel-shittim in the plains of Moab.
50 And Jehovah spake unto Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying,
51 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye pass over the Jordan into the land of Canaan,
52 then ye shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their figured `stones', and destroy all their molten images, and demolish all their high places:
53 and ye shall take possession of the land, and dwell therein; for unto you have I given the land to possess it.
54 And ye shall inherit the land by lot according to your families; to the more ye shall give the more inheritance, and to the fewer thou shalt give the less inheritance: wheresoever the lot falleth to any man, that shall be his; according to the tribes of your fathers shall ye inherit.
55 But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then shall those that ye let remain of them be as pricks in your eyes, and as thorns in your sides, and they shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell.
56 And it shall come to pass, that, as I thought to do unto them, so will I do unto you.
1 These `are' journeys of the sons of Israel who have come out of the land of Egypt, by their hosts, by the hand of Moses and Aaron;
2 and Moses writeth their outgoings, by their journeys, by the command of Jehovah; and these `are' their journeys, by their outgoings:
3 And they journey from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month, on the morrow of the passover have the sons of Israel gone out with a high hand, before the eyes of all the Egyptians --
4 and the Egyptians are burying those whom Jehovah hath smitten among them, every first-born, and on their gods hath Jehovah done judgments --
5 and the sons of Israel journey from Rameses, and encamp in Succoth.
6 And they journey from Succoth, and encamp in Etham, which `is' in the extremity of the wilderness;
7 and they journey from Etham, and turn back on Pi-Hahiroth, which `is' on the front of Baal-Zephon, and they encamp before Migdol.
8 And they journey from Pi-Hahiroth, and pass over through the midst of the sea, into the wilderness, and go a journey of three days in the wilderness of Etham, and encamp in Marah.
9 And they journey from Marah, and come in to Elim, and in Elim `are' twelve fountains of waters, and seventy palm trees, and they encamp there;
10 and they journey from Elim, and encamp by the Red Sea.
11 And they journey from the Red Sea, and encamp in the wilderness of Sin;
12 and they journey from the wilderness of Sin, and encamp in Dophkah.
13 And they journey from Dophkah, and encamp in Alush;
14 and they journey from Alush, and encamp in Rephidim; and there was there no water for the people to drink.
15 And they journey from Rephidim, and encamp in the wilderness of Sinai;
16 and they journey from the wilderness of Sinai, and encamp in Kibroth-Hattaavah.
17 And they journey from Kibroth-Hattaavah, and encamp in Hazeroth;
18 and they journey from Hazeroth, and encamp in Rithmah.
19 And they journey from Rithmah, and encamp in Rimmon-Parez;
20 and they journey from Rimmon-Parez, and encamp in Libnah.
21 And they journey from Libnah, and encamp in Rissah;
22 and they journey from Rissah, and encamp in Kehelathah.
23 And they journey from Kehelathah, and encamp in mount Shapher;
24 and they journey from mount Shapher, and encamp in Haradah.
25 And they journey from Haradah, and encamp in Makheloth;
26 and they journey from Makheloth, and encamp in Tahath.
27 And they journey from Tahath, and encamp in Tarah;
28 and they journey from Tarah, and encamp in Mithcah.
29 And they journey from Mithcah, and encamp in Hashmonah;
30 and they journey from Hashmonah, and encamp in Moseroth.
31 And they journey from Moseroth, and encamp in Bene-Jaakan;
32 and they journey from Bene-Jaakan, and encamp at Hor-Hagidgad.
33 And they journey from Hor-Hagidgad, and encamp in Jotbathah;
34 and they journey from Jotbathah, and encamp in Ebronah.
35 And they journey from Ebronah, and encamp in Ezion-Gaber;
36 and they journey from Ezion-Gaber, and encamp in the wilderness of Zin, which `is' Kadesh.
37 And they journey from Kadesh, and encamp in mount Hor, in the extremity of the land of Edom.
38 And Aaron the priest goeth up unto mount Hor, by the command of Jehovah, and dieth there, in the fortieth year of the going out of the sons of Israel from the land of Egypt, in the fifth month, on the first of the month;
39 and Aaron `is' a son of a hundred and twenty and three years in his dying in mount Hor.
40 And the Canaanite -- king Arad -- who is dwelling in the south, in the land of Canaan, heareth of the coming of the sons of Israel.
41 And they journey from mount Hor, and encamp in Zalmonah;
42 and they journey from Zalmonah, and encamp in Punon.
43 And they journey from Punon, and encamp in Oboth;
44 and they journey from Oboth, and encamp in Ije-Abarim, in the border of Moab.
45 And they journey from Iim, and encamp in Dibon-Gad;
46 and they journey from Dibon-Gad, and encamp in Almon-Diblathaim.
47 And they journey from Almon-Diblathaim, and encamp in the mountains of Abarim, before Nebo;
48 and they journey from the mountains of Abarim, and encamp in the plains of Moab, by Jordan, `near' Jericho.
49 And they encamp by the Jordan from Beth-Jeshimoth, unto Abel-Shittim, in the plains of Moab.
50 And Jehovah speaketh unto Moses, in the plains of Moab, by Jordan, `near' Jericho, saying,
51 `Speak unto the sons of Israel, and thou hast said unto them, When ye are passing over the Jordan unto the land of Canaan,
52 then ye have dispossessed all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and have destroyed all their imagery, yea, all their molten images ye destroy, and all their high places ye lay waste,
53 and ye have possessed the land, and dwelt in it, for to you I have given the land -- to possess it.
54 `And ye have inherited the land by lot, by your families; to the many ye increase their inheritance, and to the few ye diminish their inheritance; whither the lot goeth out to him, it is his; by the tribes of your fathers ye inherit.
55 `And if ye do not dispossess the inhabitants of the land from before you, then it hath been, those whom ye let remain of them, `are' for pricks in your eyes, and for thorns in your sides, and they have distressed you on the land in which ye are dwelling,
56 and it hath come to pass, as I thought to do to them -- I do to you.'
1 These are the journeys of the children of Israel, who went forth out of the land of Egypt according to their armies under the hand of Moses and Aaron.
2 And Moses wrote their goings out according to their journeys by the commandment of Jehovah; and these are their journeys according to their goings out.
3 They journeyed from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month. On the morrow after the passover the children of Israel went out with a high hand in the sight of all the Egyptians.
4 And the Egyptians buried those whom Jehovah had smitten among them, all the firstborn; and upon their gods Jehovah executed judgments.
5 And the children of Israel removed from Rameses, and encamped in Succoth.
6 And they removed from Succoth and encamped in Etham, which is at the end of the wilderness.
7 And they removed from Etham, and turned back to Pi-hahiroth, which is opposite Baal-Zephon, and encamped before Migdol.
8 And they removed from before Hahiroth, and passed through the midst of the sea into the wilderness, and went three days' journey in the wilderness of Etham, and encamped in Marah.
9 And they removed from Marah, and came to Elim; and in Elim were twelve springs of water, and seventy palm-trees, and they encamped there.
10 And they removed from Elim, and encamped by the Red sea.
11 And they removed from the Red sea, and encamped in the wilderness of Sin.
12 And they removed from the wilderness of Sin, and encamped in Dophkah.
13 And they removed from Dophkah, and encamped in Alush.
14 And they removed from Alush, and encamped at Rephidim, where there was no water for the people to drink.
15 And they removed from Rephidim, and encamped in the wilderness of Sinai.
16 And they removed from the wilderness of Sinai, and encamped at Kibroth-hattaavah.
17 And they removed from Kibroth-hattaavah, and encamped at Hazeroth.
18 And they removed from Hazeroth, and encamped in Rithmah.
19 And they removed from Rithmah, and encamped at Rimmon-perez.
20 And they removed from Rimmon-perez, and encamped in Libnah.
21 And they removed from Libnah, and encamped at Rissah.
22 And they removed from Rissah, and encamped in Kehelathah.
23 And they removed from Kehelathah, and encamped in mount Shapher.
24 And they removed from mount Shapher, and encamped in Haradah.
25 And they removed from Haradah, and encamped in Makheloth.
26 And they removed from Makheloth, and encamped at Tahath.
27 And they removed from Tahath, and encamped at Terah.
28 And they removed from Terah, and encamped in Mithcah.
29 And they removed from Mithcah, and encamped in Hashmonah.
30 And they removed from Hashmonah, and encamped in Moseroth.
31 And they removed from Moseroth, and encamped in Bene-Jaakan.
32 And they removed from Bene-Jaakan, and encamped at Hor-hagidgad.
33 And they removed from Hor-hagidgad, and encamped in Jotbathah.
34 And they removed from Jotbathah, and encamped at Abronah.
35 And they removed from Abronah, and encamped at Ezion-geber.
36 And they removed from Ezion-geber, and encamped in the wilderness of Zin, which is Kadesh.
37 And they removed from Kadesh, and encamped in mount Hor, in the border of the land of Edom.
38 And Aaron the priest went up mount Hor by the commandment of Jehovah, and died there, in the fortieth year after the children of Israel came out of the land of Egypt, in the fifth month, on the first of the month.
39 And Aaron was a hundred and twenty-three years old when he died on mount Hor.
40 And the Canaanite, the king of Arad who dwelt in the south in the land of Canaan, heard of the coming of the children of Israel.
41 And they removed from mount Hor, and encamped in Zalmonah.
42 And they removed from Zalmonah, and encamped in Punon.
43 And they removed from Punon, and encamped in Oboth.
44 And they removed from Oboth, and encamped in Ijim-Abarim, in the border of Moab.
45 And they removed from Ijim, and encamped in Dibon-Gad.
46 And they removed from Dibon-Gad, and encamped in Almon-Diblathaim.
47 And they removed from Almon-Diblathaim, and encamped in the mountains of Abarim, before Nebo.
48 And they removed from the mountains of Abarim, and encamped in the plains of Moab by the Jordan of Jericho.
49 And they encamped by the Jordan, from Beth-jeshimoth unto Abel-Shittim, in the plains of Moab.
50 And Jehovah spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan of Jericho, saying,
51 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye pass over Jordan into the land of Canaan,
52 then ye shall dispossess all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and ye shall destroy all their figured images, and all their molten images shall ye destroy, and all their high places shall ye lay waste;
53 and ye shall take possession of the land, and dwell therein, for to you have I given the land to possess it.
54 And ye shall take for yourselves the land as an inheritance by lot according to your families: to the many ye shall increase their inheritance, and to the few thou shalt diminish their inheritance: where the lot falleth to him, there shall be each man's [inheritance]; according to the tribes of your fathers shall ye take for yourselves the inheritance.
55 But if ye will not dispossess the inhabitants of the land from before you, those that ye let remain of them shall be thorns in your eyes, and pricks in your sides, and they shall harass you in the land wherein ye dwell.
56 And it shall come to pass that I will do unto you as I thought to do unto them.
1 These are the journeys of the children of Israel, when they went forth out of the land of Egypt by their hosts under the hand of Moses and Aaron.
2 Moses wrote their goings out according to their journeys by the commandment of Yahweh: and these are their journeys according to their goings out.
3 They traveled from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month; on the next day after the Passover the children of Israel went out with a high hand in the sight of all the Egyptians,
4 while the Egyptians were burying all their firstborn, whom Yahweh had struck among them: on their gods also Yahweh executed judgments.
5 The children of Israel traveled from Rameses, and encamped in Succoth.
6 They traveled from Succoth, and encamped in Etham, which is in the edge of the wilderness.
7 They traveled from Etham, and turned back to Pihahiroth, which is before Baal Zephon: and they encamped before Migdol.
8 They traveled from before Hahiroth, and passed through the midst of the sea into the wilderness: and they went three days' journey in the wilderness of Etham, and encamped in Marah.
9 They traveled from Marah, and came to Elim: and in Elim were twelve springs of water, and seventy palm trees; and they encamped there.
10 They traveled from Elim, and encamped by the Red Sea.
11 They traveled from the Red Sea, and encamped in the wilderness of Sin.
12 They traveled from the wilderness of Sin, and encamped in Dophkah.
13 They traveled from Dophkah, and encamped in Alush.
14 They traveled from Alush, and encamped in Rephidim, where was no water for the people to drink.
15 They traveled from Rephidim, and encamped in the wilderness of Sinai.
16 They traveled from the wilderness of Sinai, and encamped in Kibroth-hattaavah.
17 They traveled from Kibroth-hattaavah, and encamped in Hazeroth.
18 They traveled from Hazeroth, and encamped in Rithmah.
19 They traveled from Rithmah, and encamped in Rimmon Perez.
20 They traveled from Rimmon Perez, and encamped in Libnah.
21 They traveled from Libnah, and encamped in Rissah.
22 They traveled from Rissah, and encamped in Kehelathah.
23 They traveled from Kehelathah, and encamped in Mount Shepher.
24 They traveled from Mount Shepher, and encamped in Haradah.
25 They traveled from Haradah, and encamped in Makheloth.
26 They traveled from Makheloth, and encamped in Tahath.
27 They traveled from Tahath, and encamped in Terah.
28 They traveled from Terah, and encamped in Mithkah.
29 They traveled from Mithkah, and encamped in Hashmonah.
30 They traveled from Hashmonah, and encamped in Moseroth.
31 They traveled from Moseroth, and encamped in Bene Jaakan.
32 They traveled from Bene Jaakan, and encamped in Hor Haggidgad.
33 They traveled from Hor Haggidgad, and encamped in Jotbathah.
34 They traveled from Jotbathah, and encamped in Abronah.
35 They traveled from Abronah, and encamped in Ezion Geber.
36 They traveled from Ezion Geber, and encamped in the wilderness of Zin (the same is Kadesh).
37 They traveled from Kadesh, and encamped in Mount Hor, in the edge of the land of Edom.
38 Aaron the priest went up into Mount Hor at the commandment of Yahweh, and died there, in the fortieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fifth month, on the first day of the month.
39 Aaron was one hundred twenty-three years old when he died in Mount Hor.
40 The Canaanite, the king of Arad, who lived in the South in the land of Canaan, heard of the coming of the children of Israel.
41 They traveled from Mount Hor, and encamped in Zalmonah.
42 They traveled from Zalmonah, and encamped in Punon.
43 They traveled from Punon, and encamped in Oboth.
44 They traveled from Oboth, and encamped in Iye-abarim, in the border of Moab.
45 They traveled from Iyim, and encamped in Dibon-gad.
46 They traveled from Dibon-gad, and encamped in Almon Diblathaim.
47 They traveled from Almon Diblathaim, and encamped in the mountains of Abarim, before Nebo.
48 They traveled from the mountains of Abarim, and encamped in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho.
49 They encamped by the Jordan, from Beth-jeshimoth even to Abel Shittim in the plains of Moab.
50 Yahweh spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying,
51 Speak to the children of Israel, and tell them, When you pass over the Jordan into the land of Canaan,
52 then you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their figured [stones], and destroy all their molten images, and demolish all their high places:
53 and you shall take possession of the land, and dwell therein; for to you have I given the land to possess it.
54 You shall inherit the land by lot according to your families; to the more you shall give the more inheritance, and to the fewer you shall give the less inheritance: wherever the lot falls to any man, that shall be his; according to the tribes of your fathers shall you inherit.
55 But if you will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then shall those who you let remain of them be as pricks in your eyes, and as thorns in your sides, and they shall vex you in the land in which you dwell.
56 It shall happen that as I thought to do to them, so will I do to you.
1 These are the journeys of the children of Israel, when they went out of the land of Egypt in their armies, under the direction of Moses and Aaron.
2 And the stages of their journey on their way out were put down in writing by Moses at the order of the Lord: these are the stages of their journey and the way they went.
3 On the fifteenth day of the first month they went out from Rameses; on the day after the Passover the children of Israel went out by the power of the Lord before the eyes of all the Egyptians,
4 While the Egyptians were placing in the earth the bodies of their sons on whom the Lord had sent destruction: and their gods had been judged by him.
5 So the children of Israel went from Rameses and put up their tents in Succoth.
6 And they went on from Succoth and put up their tents in Etham on the edge of the waste land.
7 And from Etham, turning back to Pi-hahiroth which is before Baal-zephon, they put up their tents before Migdol.
8 And journeying on from before Hahiroth, they went through the sea into the waste land: they went three days' journey through the waste land of Etham and put up their tents in Marah.
9 And from Marah they went on to Elim: and in Elim there were twelve water-springs and seventy palm-trees; and they put up their tents there.
10 And they went on from Elim and put up their tents by the Red Sea.
11 Then from the Red Sea they went on and put up their tents in the waste land of Sin.
12 And they went on from the waste land of Sin, and put up their tents in Dophkah.
13 And they went on from Dophkah, and put up their tents in Alush.
14 And they went on from Alush, and put up their tents in Rephidim, where there was no drinking-water for the people.
15 And they went on from Rephidim, and put up their tents in the waste land of Sinai.
16 And they went on from the waste land of Sinai and put up their tents in Kibroth-hattaavah.
17 And they went on from Kibroth-hattaavah, and put up their tents in Hazeroth.
18 And they went on from Hazeroth, and put up their tents in Rithmah.
19 And they went on from Rithmah, and put up their tents in Rimmon-perez.
20 And they went on from Rimmon-perez, and put up their tents in Libnah.
21 And they went on from Libnah, and put up their tents in Rissah.
22 And they went on from Rissah, and put up their tents in Kehelathah.
23 And they went on from Kehelathah, and put up their tents in Mount Shepher.
24 And they went on from Mount Shepher, and put up their tents in Haradah.
25 And they went on from Haradah, and put up their tents in Makheloth.
26 And they went on from Makheloth, and put up their tents in Tahath.
27 And they went on from Tahath, and put up their tents in Terah.
28 And they went on from Terah, and put up their tents in Mithkah.
29 And they went on from Mithkah, and put up their tents in Hashmonah.
30 And they went on from Hashmonah, and put up their tents in Moseroth.
31 And they went on from Moseroth, and put up their tents in Bene-jaakan.
32 And they went on from Bene-jaakan, and put up their tents in Hor-haggidgad.
33 And they went on from Hor-haggidgad, and put up their tents in Jotbathah.
34 And they went on from Jotbathah, and put up their tents in Abronah.
35 And they went on from Abronah, and put up their tents in Ezion-geber.
36 And they went on from Ezion-geber, and put up their tents in the waste land of Zin (which is Kadesh).
37 And they went on from Kadesh, and put up their tents in Mount Hor, on the edge of the land of Edom.
38 And Aaron the priest went up into the mountain at the order of the Lord, and came to his death there, in the fortieth year after the children of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, in the fifth month, on the first day of the month.
39 Aaron was a hundred and twenty-three years old at the time of his death in Mount Hor.
40 And news of the coming of the children of Israel came to the king of Arad, the Canaanite, who was living in the South in the land of Canaan.
41 And from Mount Hor they went on, and put up their tents in Zalmonah.
42 And they went on from Zalmonah, and put up their tents in Punon.
43 And they went on from Punon, and put up their tents in Oboth.
44 And they went on from Oboth, and put up their tents in Iye-abarim at the edge of Moab.
45 And they went on from Iyim, and put up their tents in Dibon-gad.
46 And from Dibon-gad they went on, and put up their tents in Almon-diblathaim.
47 And from Almon-diblathaim they went on, and put up their tents in the mountains of Abarim, before Nebo.
48 And they went on from the mountains of Abarim, and put up their tents in the lowlands of Moab by Jordan at Jericho;
49 Planting their tents by the side of Jordan from Beth-jeshimoth as far as Abel-shittim in the lowlands of Moab.
50 And in the lowlands of Moab by Jordan at Jericho, the Lord said to Moses,
51 Say to the children of Israel, When you go over Jordan into the land of Canaan,
52 See that all the people of the land are forced out from before you, and put to destruction all their pictured stones, and all their metal images, and all their high places:
53 And take the land for yourselves, for your resting-place: for to you I have given the land as your heritage.
54 And you will take up your heritage in the land by the decision of the Lord, to every family its part; the greater the family the greater its heritage, and the smaller the family the smaller will be its heritage; wherever the decision of the Lord gives to any man his part, that will be his; distribution will be made to you by your fathers' tribes.
55 But if you are slow in driving out the people of the land, then those of them who are still there will be like pin-points in your eyes and like thorns in your sides, troubling you in the land where you are living.
56 And it will come about that as it was my purpose to do to them, so I will do to you.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Keil & Delitzsch Commentary » Commentary on Numbers 33
Commentary on Numbers 33 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
As the Israelites had ended their wanderings through the desert, when they arrived in the steppes of Moab by the Jordan opposite to Jericho ( Numbers 22:1), and as they began to take possession when the conquered land beyond Jordan was portioned out (ch. 32), the history of the desert wandering closes with a list of the stations which they had left behind them. This list was written out by Moses “at the command of Jehovah” (Numbers 33:2), as a permanent memorial for after ages, as every station which Israel left behind on the journey from Egypt to Canaan “through the great and terrible desert,” was a memorial of the grace and faithfulness with which the Lord led His people safely “in the desert land and in the waste howling wilderness, and kept him as the apple of His eye, as an eagle fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings” (Exodus 19:4; Deuteronomy 32:10.).
Numbers 33:1-15
The first and second verses form the heading: “ These are the marches of the children of Israel, which they marched out, ” i.e., the marches which they made from one place to another, on going out of Egypt. מסּע does not mean a station, but the breaking up of a camp, and then a train, or march (see at Exodus 12:37, and Genesis 13:3). לצבאתם (see Exodus 7:4). בּיד , under the guidance, as in Numbers 4:28, and Exodus 38:21. למסעיהם מוצאיהם , “ their goings out (properly, their places of departure) according to their marches ,” is really equivalent to the clause which follows: “ their marches according to their places of departure .” The march of the people is not described by the stations, or places of encampment, but by the particular spots from which they set out. Hence the constant repetition of the word ויּסעוּ , “ and they broke up .” In Numbers 33:3-5, the departure is described according to Exodus 12:17, Exodus 12:37-41. On the judgments of Jehovah upon the gods of Egypt, see at Exodus 12:12. “With an high hand:” as in Exodus 14:8. - The places of encampment from Succoth to the desert of Sinai (Numbers 33:5-15) agree with those in the historical account, except that the stations at the Red Sea (Numbers 33:10) and those at Dophkah and Alush (Numbers 33:13 and Numbers 33:14) are passed over there. For Raemses , see at Exodus 12:37. Succoth and Etham (Exodus 13:20). Pihahiroth (Exodus 14:2). “ The wilderness ” (Numbers 33:8) is the desert of Shur , according to Exodus 15:22. Marah , see Exodus 15:23. Elim (Exodus 15:27). For the Red Sea and the wilderness of Sin , see Exodus 16:1. For Dophkah , Alush , and Rephidim , see Exodus 17:1; and for the wilderness of Sinai , Exodus 19:2.
Numbers 33:16-35
In vv. 16-36 there follow twenty-one names of places where the Israelites encamped from the time that they left the wilderness of Sinai till they encamped in the wilderness of Zin , i.e., Kadesh . The description of the latter as “the wilderness of Zin, which is Kadesh,” which agrees almost word for word with Numbers 20:1, and still more the agreement of the places mentioned in Numbers 33:37-49, as the encampments of Israel after leaving Kadesh till their arrival in the steppes of Moab, with the march of the people in the fortieth year as described in Num 20:22-22:1, put it beyond all doubt that the encampment in the wilderness of Zin, i.e., Kadesh (Numbers 33:36), is to be understood as referring to the second arrival in Kadesh after the expiration of the thirty-eight years of wandering in the desert to which the congregation had been condemned. Consequently the twenty-one names in vv. 16-36 contain not only the places of encampment at which the Israelites encamped in the second year of their march from Sinai to the desert of Paran at Kadesh, whence the spies were despatched into Canaan, but also those in which they encamped for a longer period during the thirty-eight years of punishment in the wilderness. This view is still further confirmed by the fact that the two first of the stations named after the departure from the wilderness of Sinai, viz., Kibroth-hattaavah and Hazeroth , agree with those named in the historical account in Numbers 11:34 and Numbers 11:35. Now if, according to Numbers 12:16, when the people left Hazeroth , they encamped in the desert of Paran , and despatched the spies thence out of the desert of Zin (Numbers 13:21), who returned to the congregation after forty days “into the desert of Paran to Kadesh ” (Numbers 13:26), it is as natural as it well can be to seek for this place of encampment in the desert of Paran or Zin at Kadesh under the name of Rithmah , which follows Hazeroth in the present list (Numbers 33:18). This natural supposition reaches the highest degree of probability, from the fact that, in the historical account, the place of encampment, from which the sending out of the spies took place, is described in so indefinite a manner as the “desert of Paran ,” since this name does not belong to a small desert, just capable of holding the camp of the Israelites, but embraces the whole of the large desert plateau which stretches from the central mountains of Horeb in the south to the mountains of the Amorites, which really form part of Canaan, and contains no less than 400 (? 10,000 English) square miles. In this desert the Israelites could only pitch their camp in one particular spot, which is called Rithmah in the list before us; whereas in the historical account the passage is described, according to what the Israelites performed and experienced in this encampment, as near to the southern border of Canaan, and is thus pointed out with sufficient clearness for the purpose of the historical account. To this we may add the coincidence of the name Rithmah with the Wady Abu Retemat , which is not very far to the south of Kadesh, “a wide plain with shrubs and retem ,” i.e., broom (Robinson, i. p. 279), in the neighbourhood of which, and behind the chalk formation which bounds it towards the east, there is a copious spring of sweet water called Ain el Kudeirât . This spot was well adapted for a place of encampment for Israel, which was so numerous that it might easily stretch into the desert of Zin, and as far as Kadesh.
The seventeen places of encampment, therefore, that are mentioned in vv. 19-36 between Rithmah and Kadesh , are the places at which Israel set up in the desert, from their return from Kadesh into the “desert of the way to the Red Sea” (Numbers 14:25), till the reassembling of the whole congregation in the desert of Zin at Kadesh (Numbers 20:1).
(Note: The different hypotheses for reducing the journey of the Israelites to a few years, have been refuted by Kurtz (iii. §41) in the most conclusive manner possible, and in some respects more elaborately than was actually necessary. Nevertheless Knobel has made a fresh attempt, in the interest of his fragmentary hypothesis, to explain the twenty-one places of encampment given in vv. 16-37 as twenty-one marches made by Israel from Sinai till their first arrival at Kadesh. As the whole distance from Sinai to Kadesh by the straight road through the desert consists of only an eleven days' journey, Knobel endeavours to bring his twenty-one marches into harmony with this statement, by reckoning only five hours to each march, and postulating a few detours in addition, in which the people occupied about a hundred hours or more. The objection which might be raised to this, namely, that the Israelites made much longer marches than these on their way from Egypt to Sinai, he tries to set aside by supposing that the Israelites left their flocks behind them in Egypt, and procured fresh ones from the Bedouins at Sinai. But this assertion is so arbitrary and baseless an idea, that it is not worth while to waste a single word upon the subject (see Exodus 12:38). The reduction of the places of encampment to simple marches is proved to be at variance with the text by the express statement in Numbers 10:33, that when the Israelites left the wilderness of Sinai they went a three days' journey, until the cloud showed them a resting-place. For it is perfectly evydent from this, that the march from one place to another cannot be understood without further ground as being simply a day's march of five hours.)
Of all the seventeen places not a single one is known, or can be pointed out with certainty, except Eziongeber . Only the four mentioned in Numbers 33:30-33, Moseroth , Bene-Jaakan , Hor-hagidgad , and Jotbathah , are referred to again, viz., in Deuteronomy 10:6-7, where Moses refers to the divine protection enjoyed by the Israelites in their wandering in the desert, in these words: “And the children of Israel took their journey from Beeroth-bene-Jaakan to Mosera ; there Aaron died, and there he was buried.... From thence they journeyed unto Gudgodah , and from Gudgodah to Jotbathah , a land of water-brooks.” Of the identity of the places mentioned in the two passages there can be no doubt whatever. Bene Jaakan is simply an abbreviation of Beeroth-bene-Jaakan , wells of the children of Jaakan. Now if the children of Jaakan were the same as the Horite family of Kanan mentioned in Genesis 36:27, - and the reading יעקן for ועקן in 1 Chronicles 1:42 seems to favour this-the wells of Jaakan would have to be sought for on the mountains that bound the Arabah on either the east or west.
Gudgodah is only a slightly altered and abbreviated form of Hor-hagidgad , the cave of Gidgad or Gudgodah ; and lastly, Moseroth is simply the plural form of Mosera . But notwithstanding the identity of these four places, the two passages relate to different journeys. Deuteronomy 10:6 and Deuteronomy 10:7 refers to the march in the fortieth year, when the Israelites went from Kadesh through the Wady Murreh into the Arabah to Mount Hor , and encamped in the Arabah first of all at the wells of the children, and then at Mosera , where Aaron died upon Mount Hor , which was in the neighbourhood, and whence they travelled still farther southwards to Gudgodah and Jotbathah . In the historical account in Num 20 and 21 the three places of encampment, Bene-Jaakan , Gudgodah , and Jotbathah , are not mentioned, because nothing worthy of note occurred there. Gudgodah was perhaps the place of encampment mentioned in Numbers 21:4, the name of which is not given, where the people were punished with fiery serpents; and Jotbathah is probably to be placed before Zalmonah (Numbers 33:41). The clause, “a land of water-brooks” (Deuteronomy 10:7), points to a spot in or near the southern part of the Arabah, where some wady, or valley with a stream flowing through it, opened into the Arabah from either the eastern or western mountains, and formed a green oasis through its copious supply of water in the midst of the arid steppe. But the Israelites had encamped at the very same places once before, namely, during their thirty-seven years of wandering, in which the people, after returning from Kadesh to the Red Sea through the centre of the great desert of et Tih , after wandering about for some time in the broad desert plateau, went through the Wady el Jerafeh into the Arabah as far as the eastern border of it on the slopes of Mount Hor, and there encamped at Mosera ( Moseroth ) somewhere near Ain et Taiyibeh (on Robinson 's map), and then crossed over to Bene-Jaakan , which was probably on the western border of the Arabah, somewhere near Ain el Ghamr (Robinson), and then turning southwards passed along the Wady el Jeib by Hor-gidgad ( Gudgodah ), Jotbathah , and Abronah to Eziongeber on the Red Sea; for there can be no doubt whatever that the Eziongeber in Numbers 33:35, Numbers 33:36, and that in Deuteronomy 2:8, are one and the same town, viz., the well-known port at the northern extremity of the Elanitic Gulf, where the Israelites in the time of Solomon and Jehoshaphat built a fleet to sail to Ophir (1 Kings 9:26; 1 Kings 22:49). It was not far from Elath (i.e., Akaba ), and is supposed to have been “the large and beautiful town of Asziun ,” which formerly stood, according to Makrizi , near to Aila , where there were many dates, fields, and fruit-trees, though it has now long since entirely disappeared.
Consequently the Israelites passed twice through a portion of the Arabah in a southerly direction towards the Red Sea, the second time from Wady Murreh by Mount Hor, to go round the land of Edom, not quite to the head of the gulf, but only to the Wady el Ithm , through which they crossed to the eastern side of Edomitis; the first time during the thirty-seven years of wandering from Wady el Jerafeh to Moseroth and Bene Jaakan, and thence to Eziongeber.
Numbers 33:36
“ And they removed from Eziongeber, and encamped in the desert of Zin, that is Kadesh: ” the return to Kadesh towards the end of the thirty-ninth year is referred to here. The fact that no places of encampment are given between Eziongeber and Kadesh, is not to be attributed to the “plan of the author, to avoid mentioning the same places of encampment a second time,” for any such plan is a mere conjecture; but it may be simply and perfectly explained from the fact, that on this return route-which the whole of the people, with their wives, children, and flocks, could accomplish without any very great exertion in ten or fourteen days, as the distance from Aila to Kadesh through the desert of Paran is only about a forty hours' journey upon camels, and Robinson travelled from Akabah to the Wady Retemath, near Kadesh, in four days and a half-no formal camp was pitched at all, probably because the time of penal wandering came to an end at Eziongeber, and the time had arrived when the congregation was to assemble again at Kadesh, and set out thence upon its journey to Canaan. - Hence the eleven names given in Numbers 33:19-30, between Rithmah and Moseroth , can only refer to those stations at which the congregation pitched their camp for a longer or shorter period during the thirty-seven years of punishment, on their slow return from Kadesh to the Red Sea, and previous to their entering the Arabah and encamping at Moseroth.
This number of stations, which is very small for thirty-seven years (only seventeen from Rithmah or Kadesh to Eziongeber), is a sufficient proof that the congregation of Israel was not constantly wandering about during the whole of that time, but may have remained in many of the places of encampment, probably those which furnished an abundant supply of water and pasturage, not only for weeks and months, but even for years, the people scattering themselves in all directions round about the place where the tabernacle was set up, and making use of such means of support as the desert afforded, and assembling together again when this was all gone, for the purpose of travelling farther and seeking somewhere else a suitable spot for a fresh encampment. Moreover, the words of Deuteronomy 1:46, “ ye abode in Kadesh many days,” when compared with Numbers 2:1, “then we turned, and took our journey into the wilderness of the way to the Red Sea,” show most distinctly, that after the sentence passed upon the people in Kadesh (Num 14), they did not begin to travel back at once, but remained for a considerable time in Kadesh before going southwards into the desert.
With regard to the direction which they took, all that can be said, so long as none of the places of encampment mentioned in Numbers 33:19-29 are discovered, is that they made their way by a very circuitous route, and with many a wide detour, to Eziongeber, on the Red Sea.
(Note: We agree so far, therefore, with the vie adopted by Fries , and followed by Kurtz (History of Old Covenant, iii. 306-7) and Schultz (Deut. pp. 153-4), that we regard the stations given in vv. 19-35, between Rithmah and Eziongeber , as referring to the journeys of Israel, after its condemnation in Kadesh, during the thirty-seven years of its wandering about in the desert. But we do not regard the view which these writers have formed of the marches themselves as being well founded, or in accordance with the text, - namely, that the people of Israel did not really come a second time in full procession from the south to Kadesh, but that they had never left Kadesh entirely, inasmuch as then the nation was rejected in Kadesh, the people divided themselves into larger and smaller groups, and that portion which was estranged from Moses, or rather from the Lord, remained in Kadesh even after the rest were scattered about; so that, in a certain sense, Kadesh formed the standing encampment and meeting-place of the congregation even during the thirty-seven years. According to this view, the removals and encampments mentioned in vv. 9-36 do not describe the marches of the whole nation, but are to be understood as the circuit made by the headquarters during the thirty-seven years, with Moses at the head and the sanctuary in the midst ( Kurtz ), or else as showing “that Moses and Aaron, with the sanctuary and the tribe of Levi, altered their resting-place, say from year to year, thus securing to every part of the nation in turn the nearness of the sanctuary, in accordance with the signals appointed by God (Numbers 10:11-12), and thus passed over the space between Kadesh and Eziongeber within the first eighteen years, and then, by a similar change of place, gradually drew near to Kadesh during the remaining eighteen or nineteen years, and at length in the last year summoned the whole nation (all the congregation) to assemble together at this meeting-place.” Now we cannot admit that in this view “we find all the different and scattered statements of the Pentateuch explained and rendered intelligible.” In the first place, it does not do justice even to the list of stations; for if the constantly repeated expression, “and they (the children of Israel, Numbers 33:1) removed...and encamped,” denotes the removal and encamping of the whole congregation in vv. 3-18 and Numbers 33:37-49, it is certainly at variance with the text to explain the same words in vv. 19-36 as signifying the removal and encamping of the headquarters only, or of Moses, with Aaron and the Levites, and the tabernacle. Again, in all the laws that were given and the events that are described as occurring between the first halt of the congregation in Kadesh (Num 13 and 14) and their return thither at the commencement of the fortieth year (Num 20), the presence of the whole congregation is taken for granted. The sacrificial laws in Num 15, which Moses was to address to the children of Israel (Numbers 15:1), were given to “the whole congregation” (cf. Numbers 33:24, Numbers 33:25, Numbers 33:26). The man who gathered wood on the Sabbath was taken out of the camp and stoned by “all the congregation” (Numbers 15:36). “All the congregation” took part in the rebellion of the company of Korah (Numbers 16:19; Numbers 17:6, Numbers 18:8.). It is true this occurrence is supposed by Kurtz to have taken place “during the halt in Kadesh,” but the reasons given are by no means conclusive (p. 105). Besides, if we assign everything that is related in Num 15-19 to the time when the whole congregation abode in Kadesh, this deprives the hypothesis of its chief support in Deuteronomy 1:46, “and ye abode in Kadesh a long time, according to the days that he abode.” For in that case the long abode in Kadesh would include the period of the laws and incidents recorded in Num 15-19, and yet, after all, “the whole congregation” went away. In no case, in fact, can the words be understood as signifying that a portion of the nation remained there during the thirty-seven years. Nor can this be inferred in any way from the fact that their departure is not expressly mentioned; for, at all events, the statement in Numbers 20:1, “and the children of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the desert of Zin,” presupposes that they had gone away. And the “inconceivable idea, that in the last year of their wanderings, when it was their express intention to cross the Jordan and enter Canaan from the east, they should have gone up from Eziongeber to the southern boundary of Canaan, which they had left thirty-seven years before, merely to come back again to the neighbourhood of Eziongeber, after failing in their negotiations with the king of Edom, which they might have carried on from some place much farther south, and to take the road from that point to the country on the east of the Jordan after all” ( Fries ), loses all the surprising character which it apparently has, if we only give up the assumption upon which it is founded, but which has no support whatever in the biblical history, viz., that during the thirty-seven years of their wandering in the desert, Moses was acquainted with the fact that the Israelites were to enter Canaan from the east, or at any rate that he had formed this plan for some time. If, on the contrary, when the Lord rejected the murmuring nation (Numbers 14:26), He decided nothing with reference to the way by which the generation that would grow up in the desert was to enter Canaan, - and it was not till after the return to Kadesh that Moses was informed by God that they were to advance into Canaan from the east and not from the south, - it was perfectly natural that when the time of punishment had expired, the Israelites should assemble in Kadesh again, and start from that point upon their journey onward.)
Numbers 33:37-49
The places of encampment on the journey of the fortieth year from Kadesh to Mount Hor, and round Edom and Moab into the steppes of Moab, have been discussed at Num 20 and 21. On Mount Hor, and Aaron's death there, see at Numbers 20:22. For the remark in Numbers 33:40 concerning the Canaanites of Arad, see at Numbers 21:1. On Zalmonah , Phunon , and Oboth , see at Numbers 21:10; on Ijje Abarim , at Numbers 21:11; on Dibon Gad , Almon Diblathaim , and the mountains of Abarim , before Nebo , Numbers 21:16-20. On Arboth Moab, see Numbers 22:1.
These instructions, with which the eyes of the Israelites were directed to the end of all their wandering, viz., the possession of the promised land, are arranged in two sections by longer introductory formulas (Numbers 33:50 and Numbers 35:1). The former contains the divine commands ( a ) with regard to the extermination of the Canaanites and their idolatry, and the division of the land among the tribes of Israel (Numbers 33:50-56); ( b ) concerning the boundaries of Canaan (Numbers 34:1-15); ( c ) concerning the men who were to divide the land (Numbers 34:16-29). The second contains commands ( a ) respecting the towns to be given up to the Levites (Numbers 35:1-8); ( b ) as to the setting apart of cities of refuge for unintentional manslayers, and the course to be adopted in relation to such manslayers (Num 35:9-34); and ( c ) a law concerning the marrying of heiresses within their own tribes (Numbers 36:1-13). - The careful dovetailing of all these legal regulations by separate introductory formulas, is a distinct proof that the section Numbers 33:50-56 is not to be regarded, as Baumgarten , Knobel , and others suppose, in accordance with the traditional division of the chapters, as an appendix or admonitory conclusion to the list of stations, but as the general legal foundation for the more minute instructions in Num 34-36.
Numbers 33:50-56
Command to Exterminate the Canaanites, and Divide their Land among the Families of Israel.
Numbers 33:51-53
When the Israelites passed through the Jordan into the land of Canaan, they were to exterminate all the inhabitants of the land, and to destroy all the memorials of their idolatry; to take possession of the land and well therein, for Jehovah had given it to them for a possession. הורישׁ , to take possession of (Numbers 33:53, etc.), then to drive out of their possession, to exterminate (Numbers 33:52; cf. Numbers 14:12, etc.). On Numbers 33:52, see Exodus 34:13. משׂכּית , an idol of stone (cf. Leviticus 26:1). מסּכת צלמי , idols cast from brass. Massecah , see at Exodus 32:4. Bamoth , altars of the Canaanites upon high places (see Leviticus 26:30).
Numbers 33:54-56
The command to divide the land by lot among the families is partly a verbal repetition of Numbers 26:53-56. וגו לו יצא אל־אשׁר : literally, “into that, whither the lot comes out to him, shall be to him” (i.e., to each family); in other words, it is to receive that portion of land to which the lot that comes out of the urn shall point it. “According to the tribes of your fathers:” see at Numbers 26:55. - The command closes in Numbers 33:55, Numbers 33:56, with the threat, that if they did not exterminate the Canaanites, not only would such as were left become “thorns in their eyes and stings in their sides,” i.e., inflict the most painful injuries upon them, and make war upon them in the land; but Jehovah would also do the very same things to the Israelites that He had intended to do to the Canaanites, i.e., drive them out of the land and destroy them. This threat is repeated by Joshua in his last address to the assembled congregation (Joshua 23:13).