Lectionary Calendar
Wednesday, April 22nd, 2026
the Third Week after Easter
Attention!
Tired of seeing ads while studying? Now you can enjoy an "Ads Free" version of the site for as little as 10¢ a day and support a great cause!
Click here to learn more!

Read the Bible

Complete Jewish Bible

Deuteronomy 1:9

"At that time I told you, ‘You are too heavy a burden for me to carry alone.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Government;   Israel;   Moses;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Courts of Justice;   Desert, Journey of Israel through the;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Blessing;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Beast;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Deuteronomy, the Book of;   Judges;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - On to Canaan;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Judge;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
I spoke to you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone:
King James Version
And I spake unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone:
Lexham English Bible
"And I spoke to them at that time, saying, ‘I am not able to bear you alone.
English Standard Version
"At that time I said to you, ‘I am not able to bear you by myself.
New Century Version
At that time I said, "I am not able to take care of you by myself.
New English Translation
I also said to you at that time, "I am no longer able to sustain you by myself.
Amplified Bible
"I spoke to you at that time, saying, 'I am not able to bear the burden of you alone.
New American Standard Bible
"And I spoke to you at that time, saying, 'I am not able to endure you alone.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And I spake vnto you the same time, saying, I am not able to beare you my selfe alone:
Legacy Standard Bible
"And I spoke to you at that time, saying, ‘I am not able to bear the burden of you alone.
Contemporary English Version
Moses said: Right after the Lord commanded us to leave Mount Sinai, I told you: Israel, being your leader is too big a job for one person.
Darby Translation
And I spoke unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone.
Easy-to-Read Version
"At that time I told you, ‘I can't take care of you by myself.
George Lamsa Translation
And I said to you at that time, I am not able to bear you myself alone;
Good News Translation
Moses said to the people, "While we were still at Mount Sinai, I told you, ‘The responsibility for leading you is too much for me. I can't do it alone.
Christian Standard Bible®
“I said to you at that time: I can’t bear the responsibility for you on my own.
Literal Translation
And I spoke to you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you by myself.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Then saide I vnto you at the same tyme: I am not able to beare you my self alone,
American Standard Version
And I spake unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone:
Bible in Basic English
At that time I said to you, I am not able to undertake the care of you by myself;
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And I spake vnto you in the same time, saying: I am not able to beare you my selfe alone.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And I spoke unto you at that time, saying: 'I am not able to bear you myself alone;
King James Version (1611)
And I spake vnto you at that time, saying, I am not able to beare you my selfe alone:
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And I spoke to you at that time, saying, I shall not be able by myself to bear you.
English Revised Version
And I spake unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone:
Berean Standard Bible
At that time I said to you, "I cannot carry the burden for you alone.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And Y seide to you in that time, Y may not aloone susteyne you, for youre Lord God hath multiplied you,
Young's Literal Translation
`And I speak unto you at that time, saying, I am not able by myself to bear you;
Update Bible Version
And I spoke to you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone:
Webster's Bible Translation
And I spoke to you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone:
World English Bible
I spoke to you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone:
New King James Version
Exodus 18:13-27">[xr] "And I spoke to you at that time, saying: "I alone am not able to bear you.
New Living Translation
Moses continued, "At that time I told you, ‘You are too great a burden for me to carry all by myself.
New Life Bible
"At that time I said to you, ‘I am not able to take care of you alone.
New Revised Standard
At that time I said to you, "I am unable by myself to bear you.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
So spake unto you, at that time saying, I am unable, by myself, to carry you.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And I said to you at that time:
Revised Standard Version
"At that time I said to you, 'I am not able alone to bear you;
THE MESSAGE
At the time I told you, "I can't do this, can't carry you all by myself. God , your God, has multiplied your numbers. Why, look at you—you rival the stars in the sky! And may God , the God-of-Your-Fathers, keep it up and multiply you another thousand times, bless you just as he promised. But how can I carry, all by myself, your troubles and burdens and quarrels? So select some wise, understanding, and seasoned men from your tribes, and I will commission them as your leaders."
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"I spoke to you at that time, saying, 'I am not able to bear the burden of you alone.

Contextual Overview

9 "At that time I told you, ‘You are too heavy a burden for me to carry alone. 10 Adonai your God has multiplied your numbers, so that there are as many of you today as there are stars in the sky. 11 May Adonai , the God of your ancestors, increase you yet a thousandfold and bless you, as he has promised you! 12 (ii) But you are burdensome, bothersome and quarrelsome! How can I bear it by myself alone? 13 Pick for yourselves from each of your tribes men who are wise, understanding and knowledgeable; and I will make them heads over you.' 14 "You answered me, ‘What you have said would be a good thing for us to do.' 15 So I took the heads of your tribes, men wise and knowledgable, and made them heads over you — leaders in charge of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties and of tens, and officers, tribe by tribe. 16 At that time I commissioned your judges, ‘Hear the cases that arise between your brothers; and judge fairly between a man and his brother, and the foreigner who is with him. 17 You are not to show favoritism when judging, but give equal attention to the small and to the great. No matter how a person presents himself, don't be afraid of him; because the decision is God's. The case that is too hard for you, bring to me and I will hear it.' 18 I also gave you orders at that time concerning all the things you were to do.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

I am not: Exodus 18:18, Numbers 11:11-14, Numbers 11:17

Reciprocal: Numbers 11:14 - General Deuteronomy 1:12 - General Acts 6:2 - we should Romans 13:6 - attending 1 Corinthians 13:7 - Beareth

Cross-References

Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Genesis 1:2
The earth was unformed and void, darkness was on the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God hovered over the surface of the water.
Genesis 1:5
God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. So there was evening, and there was morning, one day.
Genesis 1:6
God said, "Let there be a dome in the middle of the water; let it divide the water from the water."
Genesis 1:8
and God called the dome Sky. So there was evening, and there was morning, a second day.
Genesis 1:9
God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered together into one place, and let dry land appear," and that is how it was.
Genesis 1:11
God said, "Let the earth put forth grass, seed-producing plants, and fruit trees, each yielding its own kind of seed-bearing fruit, on the earth"; and that is how it was.
Genesis 1:28
God blessed them: God said to them, "Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea, the birds in the air and every living creature that crawls on the earth."
Genesis 1:29
Then God said, "Here! Throughout the whole earth I am giving you as food every seed-bearing plant and every tree with seed-bearing fruit.
Job 26:7
He stretches the north over chaos and suspends the earth on nothing.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And I spake unto you at that time,.... About that time; for it was after the rock in Horeb was smitten, and before they encamped at Mount Sinai, that Jethro gave the advice which Moses took, and proceeded on it, as here related; see Exodus 18:1

saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone; to rule and govern them, judge and determine matters between them. Jethro suggested this to Moses, and he took the hint, and was conscious to himself that it was too much for him, and so declared it to the people, though it is not before recorded; see Exodus 18:18.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

This appointment of the “captains” (compare Exodus 18:21 ff) must not be confounded with that of the elders in Numbers 11:16 ff. The former would number 78,600; the latter were 70 only.

A comparison between this passage and that in Exodus makes it obvious that Moses is only touching on certain parts of the whole history, without regard to order of time, but with a special purpose. This important arrangement for the good government of the people took place before they left Horeb to march direct to the promised land. This fact sets more clearly before us the perverseness and ingratitude of the people, to which the orator next passes; and shows, what he was anxious to impress, that the fault of the 40 years’ delay rested only with themselves!


 
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile