Study Desk

God did the same thing for Esau's people. In the past the Horites lived in Seir. But Esau's people destroyed the Horites, and Esau's descendants still live there today.

God did the same thing for some people from Crete. The Avvites lived in the towns around Gaza, but the Cretans destroyed them, took the land, and live there now.)

We will pay you in silver for any food we eat or any water we drink. We only want to march through your country.

We defeated the town of Aroer on the edge of the Arnon Valley and the other town in the middle of that valley. The Lord let us defeat all the cities between the Arnon Valley and Gilead. No city was too strong for us.

But we kept all the cattle and the valuable things from the cities for ourselves.

Jair, from the tribe of Manasseh, took the whole area of Argob. That area went all the way to the border of the Geshurites and the Maacathites. It was named for Jair, and even today, people call Bashan the Towns of Jair.)

And to the tribe of Reuben and the tribe of Gad, I gave the land that begins at Gilead and goes from the Arnon Valley to the Jabbok River. The middle of the valley is one border. The Jabbok River is the border for the Ammonites.

But you must help your Israelite relatives until they take the land that the Lord is giving them on the other side of the Jordan River. Help them until the Lord gives them peace there, just as he did for you here. Then you may come back to this land that I have given you.'

Don't fear the kings of these lands, because the Lord your God will fight for you.'

"Then I begged the Lord to do something special for me. I said,

"I taught you the laws and rules that the Lord my God commanded me. I did this so you could obey them in the land you are ready to enter and take for your own.

"On the day the Lord spoke to you from the fire at Mount Horeb, you did not see him—there was no shape for God.

because the Lord your God hates for his people to worship other gods. And he can be like a fire that destroys!

But there in these other lands you will look for the Lord your God. And if you look for him with all your heart and soul, you will find him.

Has any other god ever tried to go and take a people for himself from inside another nation? No! But you yourselves have seen everything that the Lord your God did for you. He showed you his power and strength. You saw the troubles that tested the people. You saw miracles and wonders. You saw war and the terrible things that happened.

The three cities that Moses chose were Bezer in the high plains for the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gilead for the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan for the tribe of Manasseh.

Don't worship or serve idols of any kind, because I am the Lord your God. I hate for my people to worship other gods. People who sin against me become my enemies. And I will punish them, and their children, their grandchildren, and even their great-grandchildren.

But I will be very kind to people who love me and obey my commands. I will be kind to their families for thousands of generations!

‘You must honor your father and your mother. The Lord your God has commanded you to do this. If you follow this command, you will live a long time, and everything will go well for you in the land that the Lord your God gives you.

The Lord your God is always with you, and he hates for his people to worship other gods! So if you follow those other gods, the Lord will become very angry with you. He will destroy you from the face of the earth.