21
And the sons of Reuben, and of Gad, and of half the lineage of Manasseh, answered to the princes of the message of Israel, (And the sons of Reuben, and of Gad, and of the eastern half of the tribe of Manasseh, answered to the leaders of the families of Israel, and said,)
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The strongest Lord God himself of Israel knoweth, and Israel shall understand altogether; (The most strong Lord God of Israel himself knoweth, and Israel must also understand;)
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if we builded this altar for intent of trespassing, that is, of idolatry, the Lord keep not us, but punish he us in this present time; and if we did by that mind, that we should put thereon burnt sacrifice[s], and sacrifice(s), and peaceable sacrifices, he seek, and deem; (that if we have built this altar with the intention of trespassing, that is, for idolatry, the Lord should not allow us to live, and he should punish us right now; yea, if we did it for this purpose, so that we could put on it burnt sacrifices, and sacrifices, and peace offerings, or grain offerings, let him seek it out, and judge us right now;)
24
and not more, rather, (that) we did it with this thinking and treating, that we should say thus, (If) Your sons hereafter shall say to our sons, What is to you and to the Lord God of Israel? or, What claim (have) ye to be of his people?
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O! ye sons of Reuben, and ye sons of Gad, the Lord hath set a term, the flood Jordan, betwixt us and you; and therefore ye have no part in the Lord; and by this occasion your sons shall turn away our sons from the dread of the Lord. (and they say, O! ye sons of Reuben, and ye sons of Gad, the Lord hath set a border, the Jordan River, between us and you; and so ye have no part in the Lord; and in this way your sons and daughters shall turn away our sons and daughters from the fear of the Lord/from reverence for the Lord.)
26
Therefore we guessed (it) better, and we said, Build we an altar to us, not into burnt sacrifices, neither to sacrifices to be offered, (And so we thought about it, and we said to each other, Let us build an altar for ourselves, not for burnt sacrifices, nor for sacrifices to be offered,)
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but into witnessing betwixt us and you, and betwixt our children and your generation, that we serve the Lord, and that it be of our right to offer burnt sacrifices, and sacrifices, and peaceable sacrifices; and that your sons say not tomorrow to our sons, No part in the Lord is to you. (but as a witness between us and you, and between our children and your children, that we serve the same Lord, and that it be our right to offer burnt sacrifices, and sacrifices, and peace offerings, or grain offerings; and so your children shall not be able to say to our children tomorrow, and the next day, There is no part for you in the Lord.)
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And if your sons will say this, our sons shall answer (to) them, Lo! the altar of the Lord, which our fathers made, not into burnt sacrifices, neither into slain sacrifices, but into our and your witnessing everlasting (not for burnt sacrifices, nor for slain sacrifices, but for an everlasting witness between us and you).
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Far be this trespass from us, that we go away from the Lord, and forsake his steps, by an altar builded to burnt sacrifices, and slain sacrifices, and sacrifices of praising to be offered thereon, besides the altar of the Lord our God, that is builded before his tabernacle. (So let this trespass be far from us, that we would ever go away from the Lord, and forsake to follow his steps, with an altar built for burnt sacrifices, and slain sacrifices, and grain offerings to be offered on it, in addition to the altar of the Lord our God, that standeth before his Tabernacle.)
30
And when these things were heard, Phinehas, [the] priest, and [the] princes of the message of Israel, that were with him, were pleased; and they received gladly the words of the sons of Reuben, and of Gad, and of the half lineage of Manasseh. (And when these words were heard, Phinehas, the priest, and the leaders of the families of Israel who were with him, were pleased; and they gladly received the words of the sons of Reuben, and of Gad, and of the eastern half of the tribe of Manasseh.)
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And Phinehas, the priest, the son of Eleazar, said to them, Now we know, that the Lord is with you; for ye be alien, or guiltless, from this trespassing, and ye have delivered the sons of Israel from the hand, or punishing, of the Lord.