Deuteronomy 1:9

The Appointment of Leaders

9 At that time I said to you, “You are too heavy a burden for me to carry alone.

Read Chapter Compare

PREVIOUS Deuteronomy 1:8 NEXT Deuteronomy 1:10

Deuteronomy 1:9 in Other Translations

KJV

9 And I spake unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone:

ESV

9 "At that time I said to you, 'I am not able to bear you by myself.

NLT

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

MSG

9 At the time I told you, "I can't do this, can't carry you all by myself.

CSB

9 "I said to you at that time: I can't bear [the responsibility for] you on my own.

Deuteronomy 1:9 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 1:9

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 18:1-27 )

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 ) .

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Deuteronomy 1:9 In-Context

7 Break camp and advance into the hill country of the Amorites; go to all the neighboring peoples in the Arabah, in the mountains, in the western foothills, in the Negev and along the coast, to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great river, the Euphrates.

8 See, I have given you this land. Go in and take possession of the land the LORD swore he would give to your fathers—to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob—and to their descendants after them.”

9 At that time I said to you, “You are too heavy a burden for me to carry alone.

10 The LORD your God has increased your numbers so that today you are as numerous as the stars in the sky.

11 May the LORD, the God of your ancestors, increase you a thousand times and bless you as he has promised!

Cross References 2

1. S Numbers 11:14; Psalms 38:4
2. S Exodus 18:18