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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1" /><title>Numbers 21 NLT</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/chapnew2.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/numbers/21.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="../topmenuchap/numbers/21-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="http://biblehub.com">Bible</a> > <a href="../">NLT</a> > Numbers 21</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../numbers/20.htm" title="Numbers 20">◄</a> Numbers 21 <a href="../numbers/22.htm" title="Numbers 22">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top">New Living Translation</td><td width="1%" valign="top"><a href="/p/nlt/esv/numbers/21.shtml" style="color:#001320" title="Parallel Chapters"> Par ▾ </a></td></tr></table></div><div class="chap"><p class="hdg">Victory over the Canaanites</p><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-1.htm"><b>1</b></a></span>The Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev, heard that the Israelites were approaching on the road through Atharim. So he attacked the Israelites and took some of them as prisoners. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-2.htm"><b>2</b></a></span>Then the people of Israel made this vow to the LORD: “If you will hand these people over to us, we will completely destroy<a href="#footnotes"><span class="fn">a</span></a> all their towns.” <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-3.htm"><b>3</b></a></span>The LORD heard the Israelites’ request and gave them victory over the Canaanites. The Israelites completely destroyed them and their towns, and the place has been called Hormah<a href="#footnotes"><span class="fn">b</span></a> ever since.</p><p class="hdg">The Bronze Snake</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-4.htm"><b>4</b></a></span>Then the people of Israel set out from Mount Hor, taking the road to the Red Sea<a href="#footnotes"><span class="fn">c</span></a> to go around the land of Edom. But the people grew impatient with the long journey, <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-5.htm"><b>5</b></a></span>and they began to speak against God and Moses. “Why have you brought us out of Egypt to die here in the wilderness?” they complained. “There is nothing to eat here and nothing to drink. And we hate this horrible manna!”</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-6.htm"><b>6</b></a></span>So the LORD sent poisonous snakes among the people, and many were bitten and died. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-7.htm"><b>7</b></a></span>Then the people came to Moses and cried out, “We have sinned by speaking against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take away the snakes.” So Moses prayed for the people.</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-8.htm"><b>8</b></a></span>Then the LORD told him, “Make a replica of a poisonous snake and attach it to a pole. All who are bitten will live if they simply look at it!” <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-9.htm"><b>9</b></a></span>So Moses made a snake out of bronze and attached it to a pole. Then anyone who was bitten by a snake could look at the bronze snake and be healed!</p><p class="hdg">Israel’s Journey to Moab</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-10.htm"><b>10</b></a></span>The Israelites traveled next to Oboth and camped there. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-11.htm"><b>11</b></a></span>Then they went on to Iye-abarim, in the wilderness on the eastern border of Moab. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-12.htm"><b>12</b></a></span>From there they traveled to the valley of Zered Brook and set up camp. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-13.htm"><b>13</b></a></span>Then they moved out and camped on the far side of the Arnon River, in the wilderness adjacent to the territory of the Amorites. The Arnon is the boundary line between the Moabites and the Amorites. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-14.htm"><b>14</b></a></span>For this reason <span class="it">The Book of the Wars of the </span><span class="sc"><span class="it">LORD</span></span> speaks of “the town of Waheb in the area of Suphah, and the ravines of the Arnon River, <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-15.htm"><b>15</b></a></span>and the ravines that extend as far as the settlement of Ar on the border of Moab.”</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-16.htm"><b>16</b></a></span>From there the Israelites traveled to Beer,<a href="#footnotes"><span class="fn">d</span></a> which is the well where the LORD said to Moses, “Assemble the people, and I will give them water.” <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-17.htm"><b>17</b></a></span>There the Israelites sang this song:</p><p class="b"/><p class="line1">“Spring up, O well!</p><p class="line2">Yes, sing its praises!</p><p class="line1"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-18.htm"><b>18</b></a></span>Sing of this well,</p><p class="line2">which princes dug,</p><p class="line1">which great leaders hollowed out</p><p class="line2">with their scepters and staffs.”</p><p class="b"/><p class="reg">Then the Israelites left the wilderness and proceeded on through Mattanah, <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-19.htm"><b>19</b></a></span>Nahaliel, and Bamoth. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-20.htm"><b>20</b></a></span>After that they went to the valley in Moab where Pisgah Peak overlooks the wasteland.<a href="#footnotes"><span class="fn">e</span></a></p><p class="hdg">Victory over Sihon and Og</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-21.htm"><b>21</b></a></span>The Israelites sent ambassadors to King Sihon of the Amorites with this message:</p><p class="b"/><p class="pmo"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-22.htm"><b>22</b></a></span>“Let us travel through your land. We will be careful not to go through your fields and vineyards. We won’t even drink water from your wells. We will stay on the king’s road until we have passed through your territory.”</p><p class="b"/><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-23.htm"><b>23</b></a></span>But King Sihon refused to let them cross his territory. Instead, he mobilized his entire army and attacked Israel in the wilderness, engaging them in battle at Jahaz. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-24.htm"><b>24</b></a></span>But the Israelites slaughtered them with their swords and occupied their land from the Arnon River to the Jabbok River. They went only as far as the Ammonite border because the boundary of the Ammonites was fortified.<a href="#footnotes"><span class="fn">f</span></a></p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-25.htm"><b>25</b></a></span>So Israel captured all the towns of the Amorites and settled in them, including the city of Heshbon and its surrounding villages. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-26.htm"><b>26</b></a></span>Heshbon had been the capital of King Sihon of the Amorites. He had defeated a former Moabite king and seized all his land as far as the Arnon River. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-27.htm"><b>27</b></a></span>Therefore, the ancient poets wrote this about him:</p><p class="b"/><p class="line1">“Come to Heshbon and let it be rebuilt!</p><p class="line2">Let the city of Sihon be restored.</p><p class="line1"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-28.htm"><b>28</b></a></span>A fire flamed forth from Heshbon,</p><p class="line2">a blaze from the city of Sihon.</p><p class="line1">It burned the city of Ar in Moab;</p><p class="line2">it destroyed the rulers of the Arnon heights.</p><p class="line1"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-29.htm"><b>29</b></a></span>What sorrow awaits you, O people of Moab!</p><p class="line2">You are finished, O worshipers of Chemosh!</p><p class="line1">Chemosh has left his sons as refugees,</p><p class="line2">his daughters as captives of Sihon, the Amorite king.</p><p class="line1"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-30.htm"><b>30</b></a></span>We have utterly destroyed them,</p><p class="line2">from Heshbon to Dibon.</p><p class="line1">We have completely wiped them out</p><p class="line2">as far away as Nophah and Medeba.<a href="#footnotes"><span class="fn">g</span></a>”</p><p class="b"/><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-31.htm"><b>31</b></a></span>So the people of Israel occupied the territory of the Amorites. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-32.htm"><b>32</b></a></span>After Moses sent men to explore the Jazer area, they captured all the towns in the region and drove out the Amorites who lived there. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-33.htm"><b>33</b></a></span>Then they turned and marched up the road to Bashan, but King Og of Bashan and all his people attacked them at Edrei. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-34.htm"><b>34</b></a></span>The LORD said to Moses, “Do not be afraid of him, for I have handed him over to you, along with all his people and his land. Do the same to him as you did to King Sihon of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon.” <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/numbers/21-35.htm"><b>35</b></a></span>And Israel killed King Og, his sons, and all his subjects; not a single survivor remained. Then Israel occupied their land.</p><A name="footnotes"></a><hr size="1" color="DDEEFF"><span class="mainfootnotes"><span class="mainfootnoteshdg">Footnotes:</span><br><span class="fn">a</span><note caller="+" style="f"><span class="fr">21:2 </span><span class="ft">The Hebrew term used here refers to the complete consecration of things or people to the </span><span class="sc">Lord</span><span class="ft">, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering; also in 21:3.</span><br><span class="fn">b</span><note caller="+" style="f"><span class="fr">21:3 </span><span class="it">Hormah</span><span class="ft"> means “destruction.”</span><br><span class="fn">c</span><note caller="+" style="f"><span class="fr">21:4 </span><span class="ft">Hebrew </span><span class="it">sea of reeds.</span><br><span class="fn">d</span><note caller="+" style="f"><span class="fr">21:16 </span><span class="it">Beer</span><span class="ft"> means “well.”</span><br><span class="fn">e</span><note caller="+" style="f"><span class="fr">21:20 </span><span class="ft">Or </span><span class="it">overlooks Jeshimon.</span><br><span class="fn">f</span><note caller="+" style="f"><span class="fr">21:24 </span><span class="ft">Or </span><span class="it">because the terrain of the Ammonite frontier was rugged;</span><span class="ft"> Hebrew reads </span><span class="it">because the boundary of the Ammonites was strong.</span><br><span class="fn">g</span><note caller="+" style="f"><span class="fr">21:30 </span><span class="ft">Or </span><span class="it">until fire spread to Medeba.</span><span class="ft"> The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.</span><br></span></div></div><div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center"><em>Holy Bible</em>, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. 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