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Thursday, April 9th, 2026
Thursday in Easter Week
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New Living Translation

Deuteronomy 1:9

Moses continued, "At that time I told you, ‘You are too great a burden for me to carry all by myself.

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.
Complete Jewish Bible
"At that time I told you, ‘You are too heavy a burden for me to carry alone.
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 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 Moses continued, "At that time I told you, ‘You are too great a burden for me to carry all by myself. 10 The Lord your God has increased your population, making you as numerous as the stars! 11 And may the Lord , the God of your ancestors, multiply you a thousand times more and bless you as he promised! 12 But you are such a heavy load to carry! How can I deal with all your problems and bickering? 13 Choose some well-respected men from each tribe who are known for their wisdom and understanding, and I will appoint them as your leaders.' 14 "Then you responded, ‘Your plan is a good one.' 15 So I took the wise and respected men you had selected from your tribes and appointed them to serve as judges and officials over you. Some were responsible for a thousand people, some for a hundred, some for fifty, and some for ten. 16 "At that time I instructed the judges, ‘You must hear the cases of your fellow Israelites and the foreigners living among you. Be perfectly fair in your decisions 17 and impartial in your judgments. Hear the cases of those who are poor as well as those who are rich. Don't be afraid of anyone's anger, for the decision you make is God's decision. Bring me any cases that are too difficult for you, and I will handle them.' 18 "At that time I gave you instructions about everything 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 formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.
Genesis 1:5
God called the light "day" and the darkness "night." And evening passed and morning came, marking the first day.
Genesis 1:6
Then God said, "Let there be a space between the waters, to separate the waters of the heavens from the waters of the earth."
Genesis 1:8
God called the space "sky." And evening passed and morning came, marking the second day.
Genesis 1:9
Then God said, "Let the waters beneath the sky flow together into one place, so dry ground may appear." And that is what happened.
Genesis 1:11
Then God said, "Let the land sprout with vegetation—every sort of seed-bearing plant, and trees that grow seed-bearing fruit. These seeds will then produce the kinds of plants and trees from which they came." And that is what happened.
Genesis 1:28
Then God blessed them and said, "Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground."
Genesis 1:29
Then God said, "Look! I have given you every seed-bearing plant throughout the earth and all the fruit trees for your food.
Job 26:7
God stretches the northern sky over empty space and hangs 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!


 
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