Wanderings in the wilderness
1Then we turned back and set out towards the wilderness along the route to the Red Sea,2:1 Or the Sea of Reeds as the Lord had directed me. For a long time we made our way around the hill country of Seir.
2Then the Lord said to me, 3‘You have made your way around this hill country long enough; now turn north. 4Give the people these orders: “You are about to pass through the territory of your relatives the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. They will be afraid of you, but be very careful. 5Do not provoke them to war, for I will not give you any of their land, not even enough to put your foot on. I have given Esau the hill country of Seir as his own. 6You are to pay them in silver for the food you eat and the water you drink.” ’
7The Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He has watched over your journey through this vast wilderness. These forty years the Lord your God has been with you, and you have not lacked anything.
8So we went on past our relatives the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. We turned from the Arabah road, which comes up from Elath and Ezion Geber, and travelled along the desert road of Moab.
9Then the Lord said to me, ‘Do not harass the Moabites or provoke them to war, for I will not give you any part of their land. I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot as a possession.’
10(The Emites used to live there – a people strong and numerous, and as tall as the Anakites. 11Like the Anakites, they too were considered Rephaites, but the Moabites called them Emites. 12Horites used to live in Seir, but the descendants of Esau drove them out. They destroyed the Horites from before them and settled in their place, just as Israel did in the land the Lord gave them as their possession.)
13And the Lord said, ‘Now get up and cross the Zered Valley.’ So we crossed the valley.
14Thirty-eight years passed from the time we left Kadesh Barnea until we crossed the Zered Valley. By then, that entire generation of fighting men had perished from the camp, as the Lord had sworn to them. 15The Lord’s hand was against them until he had completely eliminated them from the camp.
16Now when the last of these fighting men among the people had died, 17the Lord said to me, 18‘Today you are to pass by the region of Moab at Ar. 19When you come to the Ammonites, do not harass them or provoke them to war, for I will not give you possession of any land belonging to the Ammonites. I have given it as a possession to the descendants of Lot.’
20(That too was considered a land of the Rephaites, who used to live there; but the Ammonites called them Zamzummites. 21They were a people strong and numerous, and as tall as the Anakites. The Lord destroyed them from before the Ammonites, who drove them out and settled in their place. 22The Lord had done the same for the descendants of Esau, who lived in Seir, when he destroyed the Horites from before them. They drove them out and have lived in their place to this day. 23And as for the Avvites who lived in villages as far as Gaza, the Caphtorites coming out from Caphtor2:23 That is, Crete destroyed them and settled in their place.)
Defeat of Sihon king of Heshbon
24‘Set out now and cross the Arnon Gorge. See, I have given into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his country. Begin to take possession of it and engage him in battle. 25This very day I will begin to put the terror and fear of you on all the nations under heaven. They will hear reports of you and will tremble and be in anguish because of you.’
26From the Desert of Kedemoth I sent messengers to Sihon king of Heshbon offering peace and saying, 27‘Let us pass through your country. We will stay on the main road; we will not turn aside to the right or to the left. 28Sell us food to eat and water to drink for their price in silver. Only let us pass through on foot – 29as the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir, and the Moabites, who live in Ar, did for us – until we cross the Jordan into the land the Lord our God is giving us.’ 30But Sihon king of Heshbon refused to let us pass through. For the Lord your God had made his spirit stubborn and his heart obstinate in order to give him into your hands, as he has now done.
31The Lord said to me, ‘See, I have begun to deliver Sihon and his country over to you. Now begin to conquer and possess his land.’
32When Sihon and all his army came out to meet us in battle at Jahaz, 33the Lord our God delivered him over to us and we struck him down, together with his sons and his whole army. 34At that time we took all his towns and completely destroyed2:34 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them. them – men, women and children. We left no survivors. 35But the livestock and the plunder from the towns we had captured we carried off for ourselves. 36From Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Gorge, and from the town in the gorge, even as far as Gilead, not one town was too strong for us. The Lord our God gave us all of them. 37But in accordance with the command of the Lord our God, you did not encroach on any of the land of the Ammonites, neither the land along the course of the Jabbok nor that around the towns in the hills.
Kuyendayenda Mʼchipululu
1Kenaka tinabwerera ndi kuyamba ulendo wolowera ku chipululu motsatira njira ya ku Nyanja Yofiira, monga mmene Yehova anatilamulira. Kwa nthawi yayitali tinayendayenda cha ku dziko la mapiri la Seiri.
2Ndipo Yehova anati kwa ine, 3“Mwazungulira mokwanira dziko la mapiri, tsopano tembenukirani kumpoto. 4Apatse anthu malamulo awa: ‘Muli pafupi kudutsa mʼchigawo cha abale anu adzukulu a Esau okhala ku Seiri. Iwowa adzachita nanu mantha koma musamale kwambiri. 5Musayambane nawo popeza sindidzakupatsani gawo lina lililonse la dziko lawo ngakhale poti mungoyika phazi. Ndamupatsa Esau dziko lamapiri la Seiri kuti likhale lakelake. 6Inu muyenera kuwalipira ndi siliva pa chakudya chimene mudye ndi madzi amene mumwe.’ ”
7Yehova Mulungu wanu wakudalitsani mʼntchito zonse za manja anu. Iye wakuyangʼanirani pa ulendo wanu wodutsa mʼchipululu chachikulu. Yehova Mulungu wanu wakhala nanu mʼzaka makumi anayi, ndipo simunasowe kalikonse.
8Choncho tinapitiriza ulendo modutsa abale athu, adzukulu a Esau okhala ku Seiri. Tinapatukira njira ya ku Araba imene imachokera ku Elati ndi Ezioni Geberi ndipo tinayenda njira ya ku chipululu cha Mowabu.
9Ndipo Yehova anati kwa ine, “Musawavutitse Amowabu kapena kuwaputa kuti muchite nawo nkhondo popeza sindidzakupatsani gawo lina lililonse la dziko lawo. Ndinapereka Ari kwa adzukulu a Loti ngati chuma chawo.”
10(Aemi, anthu amphamvu ndi ochuluka komanso ataliatali ngati Aanaki amakhala kumeneko. 11Ngati Aanaki, nawonso ankawayesa kuti anali Arefai, koma Amowabu ankawatcha iwo Aemi. 12Ahori amakhala ku Seiri koma adzukulu a Esau anawapirikitsa. Iwo anawononga Ahori pamaso pawo nawakhalira pamalo pawo monga Aisraeli anachitira mʼdziko limene Yehova anawapatsa ngati chuma chawo).
13Ndipo Yehova anati, “Tsopano nyamukani ndipo muwoloke Chigwa cha Zeredi.” Choncho tinawoloka chigwacho.
14Panapita zaka 38 kuchokera pa nthawi imene tinachoka ku Kadesi Barinea mpaka pamene tinawoloka Chigwa cha Zeredi. Pa nthawi imeneyi nʼkuti mʼbado wonse wa anthu ankhondowo utawonongeka ku msasa monga Yehova anawalumbirira. 15Dzanja la Yehova linatsutsana nawo mpaka wonse anathera ku msasa.
16Tsono atafa munthu wotsiriza mwa anthu ankhondowo, 17Yehova anati kwa ine, 18“Lero mudutsa malire a Mowabu ku Ari podzera ku Ari. 19Mukafika kwa Aamoni, musawavutitse kapena kuwaputa, popeza sindidzakupatsani gawo lililonse la dziko la Aamoni. Ine ndalipereka dzikoli ngati chuma kwa adzukulu a Loti.”
20(Ilinso ankaliyesa dziko la Arefai amene ankakhala kumeneko. Koma Aamoni ankawatcha iwo Azamuzumi. 21Iwo anali anthu amphamvu ndiponso ochuluka, ataliatali ngati Aanaki. Yehova anawawononga ndi kuwachotsa pamaso pa Aamoni, amene anawapirikitsa nawakhalira pa malo pawo. 22Yehova anachitanso chimodzimodzi ndi adzukulu a Esau omwe anakhazikika ku Seiri atawononga Ahori powachotsa pamaso pawo. Iwo anawapirikitsa Ahoriwo ndi kuwakhalira pamalo pawo mpaka lero. 23Ndipo za Aavi omwe ankakhala mʼmidzi yofika mpaka ku Gaza, anagonjetsedwa ndi Akafitori wochokera ku Akafitori nakhala pamalo pawo).
Kugonjetsedwa kwa Sihoni Mfumu ya ku Hesiboni
24“Tsopano nyamukani, muwoloke khwawa la Arinoni. Taona ndapereka mʼmanja mwako Sihoni Mwamori mfumu ya Hesiboni ndi dziko lake lonse. Yambapo kutenga chuma chake ndi kumenyana naye nkhondo. 25Lero lomwe lino ndidzayamba kuyika chiopsezo ndi mantha pa mitundu yonse pansi pa thambo kuti akuope. Iwowo adzamva zambiri yako ndipo adzanjenjemera ndi kuwawidwa mtima chifukwa cha iwe.”
26Ine ndinatuma amithenga kuchokera ku chipululu cha Kedemoti kupita kwa Sihoni mfumu ya Hesiboni kukanena mawu ofuna mtendere ndipo ndinati, 27“Tiloleni tidutse mʼdziko mwanu. Ife tidzangodutsa ndi msewu waukulu, ndipo sitidzapatukira kumanja kapena kumanzere. 28Mutigulitse chakudya kuti tidye ndi madzi kuti timwe pa mtengo wa siliva. Mungotilola kuti tidutse, tikuyenda pansi 29monga mmene anatichitira adzukulu a Esau okhala ku Seiri ndi Amowabu okhala ku Ari mpaka titawoloka Yorodani kufika ku dziko limene Yehova Mulungu wathu akutipatsa.” 30Koma Sihoni mfumu ya Hesiboni sanalole kuti tidutse. Popeza Yehova Mulungu wanu analimbitsa mzimu wake, nawumitsa mtima wake kuti amupereke mʼmanja mwanu monga wachitira lero lino.
31Yehova anati kwa ine, “Taona ndayamba kumupereka Sihoni ndi dziko lake kwa iwe. Tsopano yamba kugonjetsa ndi kulanda dziko lake.”
32Sihoni ndi ankhondo ake atabwera kudzakumana nafe mwankhondo pa Yahazi, 33Yehova Mulungu anamupereka iye kwa ife ndipo tinankantha, pamodzi ndi ana ake aamuna ndi gulu lake lonse lankhondo. 34Pa nthawi imeneyi tinamulanda mizinda yake yonse ndi kuyiwononga kwathunthu, amuna, akazi ndi ana. Palibe amene anapulumuka. 35Koma ziweto ndi zinthu zonse zimene tinalanda mʼmizinda imene tinagonjetsayo, tinazitenga kukhala zathu. 36Kuchokera ku Aroeri mʼmphepete mwa mtsinje wa Arinoni ndi ku mzinda wa ku mtsinjeko mpaka kukafika ku Giliyadi, panalibe ndi mzinda ndi umodzi omwe umene unatikanika kuwugonjetsa. Yehova Mulungu wathu anatipatsa onsewo. 37Molingana ndi lamulo la Yehova Mulungu wathu, simunalowerere dziko lililonse la Aamoni, ngakhale dera lonse la ku mtsinje wa Yaboki kapena dera lozungulira dera la ku mizinda ya ku mapiri.
