Numbers 32; Numbers 33; Numbers 34; Mark 9:30-50

1 The tribes of Reuben and Gad had very large herds and flocks. They looked at the lands of Jazer and Gilead. They saw that those lands were just right for livestock.

2 So they came to Moses and the priest Eleazar. They also came to the leaders of the community. They said,

3 "We have seen the cities of Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah and Heshbon. We've seen Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo and Beon.

4 All of them are in the land the LORD has brought under Israel's control. This land is just right for livestock. And we have livestock.

5 "We hope you are pleased with us," they continued. "If you are, please give us this land. Then it will belong to us. But don't make us go across the Jordan River."

6 Moses spoke to the people of Gad and Reuben. He said, "Should the rest of us go to war while you stay here?

7 The LORD has given the land of Canaan to the people of Israel. So why would you want to keep them from going over into it?

8 "That's what your fathers did. I sent them from Kadesh Barnea to check out the land.

9 They went up to the Valley of Eshcol and looked at the land. Then they talked the people of Israel out of entering the land the LORD had given them.

10 "The LORD's anger was stirred up that day. So he took an oath and made a promise. He said,

11 'Not one of the men who is 20 years old or more who came up out of Egypt will see the land. They have not followed me with their whole heart. I took an oath and promised to give the land to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

12 " 'But not one of these men will see it except Caleb and Joshua. Caleb is the son of Jephunneh, the Kenizzite. And Joshua is the son of Nun. They will see the land. They followed me with their whole heart.'

13 "The LORD's anger burned against Israel. He made them wander around in the desert for 40 years. They wandered until all of the people who had done evil in his sight had died.

14 "Now here you are, you bunch of sinners! You have taken the place of your fathers. And you are making the LORD even more angry with Israel.

15 What if you turn away from following him? Then he'll leave all of these people in the desert again. And it will be your fault when they are destroyed."

16 Then they came up to Moses. They said, "We would like to build pens here for our livestock. We would also like to build cities for our women and children.

17 "But we're ready to prepare ourselves for battle. We're even ready to go ahead of the people of Israel. We'll go with them until we've brought them to their place. While we're gone, our women and children will live in cities that have high walls around them. That will keep them safe from the people who are living in this land.

18 "We won't return to our homes until all of the people of Israel have received their share of the land.

19 "We won't receive any share with them on the west side of the Jordan River. We've already received our share here on the east side."

20 Then Moses said to them, "Do what you have promised to do. Prepare yourselves to fight for the Lord.

21 Prepare yourselves and go across the Jordan River. Fight for the LORD until he has driven out his enemies in front of him.

22 "When the land is under the LORD's control, you can come back here. Your duty to the LORD and Israel will be over. Then the LORD will give you this land as your own.

23 "But what if you fail to do your duty? Then you will be sinning against the Lord. And you can be sure that your sin will be discovered. It will be brought out into the open.

24 "So build up cities for your women and children. Make sheep pens for your flocks. But do what you have promised to do."

25 The people of Gad and Reuben spoke to Moses. They said, "We will do just as you command.

26 Our children and wives will remain here in the cities of Gilead. So will our flocks and herds.

27 But we will prepare ourselves for battle. We'll go across the Jordan River and fight for the Lord. We will do just as you have said."

28 Then Moses gave orders about them to the priest Eleazar. He gave the same orders to Joshua, the son of Nun. He also spoke to the family heads of the tribes of Israel.

29 He said, "The men of Gad and Reuben must prepare themselves for battle. They must go across the Jordan River with you. They must help you fight for the Lord. They must stay with you until the land has been brought under your control. If they do, give them the land of Gilead as their own.

30 "But what if they don't get ready for battle? What if they don't go across the Jordan with you? Then they must accept a share with you in Canaan."

31 The people of Gad and Reuben gave their answer. They said, "We will do what the LORD has said.

32 We'll get ready for battle. We'll go across the Jordan into Canaan. We'll fight for the LORD there. But the property we receive will be on this side of the Jordan River."

33 Then Moses gave their land to them. He gave it to the tribes of Gad and Reuben and half of the tribe of Manasseh. Manasseh was Joseph's son. One part of that land had belonged to the kingdom of Sihon, the king of the Amorites. The other part had belonged to the kingdom of Og, the king of Bashan. Moses gave that whole land to those two and a half tribes. It included its cities and the territory around them.

34 The people of Gad built up the cities of Dibon, Ataroth and Aroer.

35 They built up Atroth Shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah,

36 Beth Nimrah and Beth Haran. They built a high wall around each of those cities. They also built sheep pens for their flocks.

37 The people of Reuben built up Heshbon, Elealeh and Kiriathaim.

38 They also built up Nebo, Baal Meon and Sibmah. They gave new names to the cities they had built up.

39 The people of Makir, the son of Manasseh, went to the land of Gilead. They captured it. They drove out the Amorites who were living there.

40 So Moses gave Gilead to the people of Makir, the son of Manasseh. And they settled there.

41 Jair was a man in the family line of Manasseh. Jair captured Gilead's settlements. He called them Havvoth Jair.

42 Nobah captured Kenath and the settlements that were around it. He named it after himself.

1 Here are the places where the people of Israel stopped during their journey. When they came out of Egypt, they marched in companies like an army. Moses and Aaron led them.

2 The LORD commanded Moses to record their journey. Here are the places where they stopped.

3 The people of Israel started out from Rameses. It was the 15th day of the first month. It was the day after the Passover Feast. They marched out boldly in plain sight of all of the Egyptians.

4 The Egyptians were burying all of their oldest sons. The LORD had struck them down. He had done it when he punished their gods.

5 The people of Israel left Rameses and camped at Succoth.

6 They left Succoth and camped at Etham. Etham was on the edge of the desert.

7 They left Etham and turned back to Pi Hahiroth. It was east of Baal Zephon. They camped near Migdol.

8 They left Pi Hahiroth. Then they passed through the Red Sea into the desert. They traveled for three days in the Desert of Etham. Then they camped at Marah.

9 They left Marah and went to Elim. Twelve springs and 70 palm trees were there. So they camped at Elim.

10 They left Elim and camped by the Red Sea.

11 They left the Red Sea and camped in the Desert of Sin.

12 They left the Desert of Sin and camped at Dophkah.

13 They left Dophkah and camped at Alush.

14 They left Alush and camped at Rephidim. But there was no water there for the people to drink.

15 They left Rephidim and camped in the Desert of Sinai.

16 They left the Desert of Sinai and camped at Kibroth Hattaavah.

17 They left Kibroth Hattaavah and camped at Hazeroth.

18 They left Hazeroth and camped at Rithmah.

19 They left Rithmah and camped at Rimmon Perez.

20 They left Rimmon Perez and camped at Libnah.

21 They left Libnah and camped at Rissah.

22 They left Rissah and camped at Kehelathah.

23 They left Kehelathah and camped at Mount Shepher.

24 They left Mount Shepher and camped at Haradah.

25 They left Haradah and camped at Makheloth.

26 They left Makheloth and camped at Tahath.

27 They left Tahath and camped at Terah.

28 They left Terah and camped at Mithcah.

29 They left Mithcah and camped at Hashmonah.

30 They left Hashmonah and camped at Moseroth.

31 They left Moseroth and camped at Bene Jaakan.

32 They left Bene Jaakan and camped at Hor Haggidgad.

33 They left Hor Haggidgad and camped at Jotbathah.

34 They left Jotbathah and camped at Abronah.

35 They left Abronah and camped at Ezion Geber.

36 They left Ezion Geber and camped at Kadesh. Kadesh was in the Desert of Zin.

37 They left Kadesh and camped at Mount Hor. It was on the border of Edom.

38 The priest Aaron went up Mount Hor when the LORD commanded him to. That's where he died. It happened on the first day of the fifth month. It was the 40th year after the people of Israel came out of Egypt.

39 Aaron was 123 years old when he died on Mount Hor.

40 The Canaanite king of Arad lived in the Negev Desert in Canaan. He heard that the people of Israel were coming.

41 They left Mount Hor and camped at Zalmonah.

42 They left Zalmonah and camped at Punon.

43 They left Punon and camped at Oboth.

44 They left Oboth and camped at Iye Abarim. It was on the border of Moab.

45 They left Iyim and camped at Dibon Gad.

46 They left Dibon Gad and camped at Almon Diblathaim.

47 They left Almon Diblathaim and camped in the mountain range of Abarim near Nebo.

48 They left the mountain range of Abarim and camped on the flatlands of Moab. They were by the Jordan River across from Jericho.

49 They camped there along the Jordan River from Beth Jeshimoth to Abel Shittim.

50 On the flatlands of Moab the LORD spoke to Moses. He spoke to him by the Jordan River across from Jericho. The LORD said,

51 "Speak to the people of Israel. Tell them, 'Go across the Jordan River into Canaan.

52 Drive out all those who are living in the land. The statues of their gods are made out of stone and metal. Destroy all of those statues. And destroy all of the high places where they are worshiped.

53 " 'Take the land as your own. Settle down in it. I have given it to you.

54 Use lots when you give out the land. Do it based on the number of men who are in each tribe and family. Give a larger share to a larger group. And give a smaller group a smaller share. The share they receive by using lots will belong to them. Give out the shares based on the number of men in Israel's tribes.

55 " 'But suppose you do not drive out the people who are living in the land. Then those you allow to remain there will become like needles in your eyes. They will become like thorns in your sides. They will give you trouble in the land where you will live.

56 Then I will do to you what I plan to do to them.' "

1 The LORD spoke to Moses. He said,

2 "Give the people of Israel a command. Tell them, 'You are going to enter Canaan. The land will be given to you as your own. Here are the borders it will have.

3 " 'Your southern border will include some of the Desert of Zin. It will be along the border of Edom. On the east, your southern border will start from the end of the Dead Sea.

4 It will cross south of Scorpion Pass. It will continue on to Zin. From there it will go south of Kadesh Barnea. Then it will go to Hazar Addar and over to Azmon.

5 There it will turn and join the Wadi of Egypt. It will come to an end at the Mediterranean Sea.

6 " 'Your western border will be the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. That will be your border on the west.

7 " 'For your northern border, run a line from the Mediterranean Sea to Mount Hor.

8 Continue it from Mount Hor to Lebo Hamath. Then the border will go to Zedad.

9 It will continue to Ziphron. It will come to an end at Hazar Enan. That will be your border on the north.

10 " 'For your eastern border, run a line from Hazar Enan to Shepham.

11 The border will go down from Shepham to Riblah. Riblah is on the east side of Ain. From there the border will continue along the slopes east of the Sea of Galilee.

12 Then the border will go down along the Jordan River. It will come to an end at the Dead Sea. " 'That will be your land. And those will be its borders on every side.' "

13 Moses gave the people of Israel a command. He said, "Use lots when you give out the land. Each tribe will have its own share. The LORD has ordered it to be given to the nine and a half tribes.

14 "The families of the tribes of Reuben and Gad have already received their shares. The families of half of the tribe of Manasseh have also received their share.

15 Those two and a half tribes have received their shares east of the Jordan River. It flows near Jericho. Their land is toward the sunrise."

16 The LORD spoke to Moses. He said,

17 "Here are the names of the men who will give out the shares of the land to your people. They are the priest Eleazar and Joshua, the son of Nun.

18 Also appoint one leader from each tribe to help give out the land.

19 Here are their names. "Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, is from the tribe of Judah.

20 Shemuel, the son of Ammihud, is from the tribe of Simeon.

21 Elidad, the son of Kislon, is from the tribe of Benjamin.

22 Bukki, the son of Jogli, is the leader from the tribe of Dan.

23 Hanniel, the son of Ephod, is the leader from the tribe of Manasseh. Manasseh was the son of Joseph.

24 Kemuel, the son of Shiphtan, is the leader from the tribe of Ephraim. Ephraim was the son of Joseph.

25 Elizaphan, the son of Parnach, is the leader from the tribe of Zebulun.

26 Paltiel, the son of Azzan, is the leader from the tribe of Issachar.

27 Ahihud, the son of Shelomi, is the leader from the tribe of Asher.

28 Pedahel, the son of Ammihud, is the leader from the tribe of Naphtali."

29 Those are the men the LORD commanded to give out the shares of the land. They were commanded to give them to Israel in the land of Canaan.

30 They left that place and passed through Galilee. Jesus did not want anyone to know where they were.

31 That was because he was teaching his disciples. He said to them, "The Son of Man is going to be handed over to men. They will kill him. After three days he will rise from the dead."

32 But they didn't understand what he meant. And they were afraid to ask him about it.

33 Jesus and his disciples came to a house in Capernaum. There he asked them, "What were you arguing about on the road?"

34 But they kept quiet. On the way, they had argued about which one of them was the most important person.

35 Jesus sat down and called for the Twelve to come to him. Then he said, "If you want to be first, you must be the very last. You must be the servant of everyone."

36 Jesus took a little child and had the child stand among them. Then he took the child in his arms. He said to them,

37 "Anyone who welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me. And anyone who welcomes me doesn't welcome only me but also the One who sent me."

38 "Teacher," said John, "we saw a man driving out demons in your name. We told him to stop, because he was not one of us."

39 "Do not stop him," Jesus said. "No one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me.

40 Anyone who is not against us is for us.

41 "What I'm about to tell you is true. Suppose someone gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to me. That one will certainly not go without a reward.

42 "What if someone leads one of these little ones who believe in me to sin? If he does, it would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone tied around his neck.

43 "If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It would be better for you to enter God's kingdom with only one hand than to go into hell with two hands. In hell the fire never goes out.

45 "If your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It would be better for you to enter God's kingdom with only one foot than to have two feet and be thrown into hell.

47 "If your eye causes you to sin, poke it out. It would be better for you to enter God's kingdom with only one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell.

48 In hell, " 'The worms do not die. The fire is not put out.' (Isaiah 66:24)

49 Everyone will be salted with fire.

50 "Salt is good. But suppose it loses its saltiness. How can you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves. And be at peace with each other."