One Year Bible.

The Tribes East of the Jordan

¹Now the Reubenites and Gadites, who had very large herds and flocks, surveyed the lands of Jazer and Gilead, and they saw that the region was suitable for livestock. ²So the Gadites and Reubenites came to Moses, Eleazar the priest, and the leaders of the congregation, and said, ³“Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon, ⁴which the LORD conquered before the congregation of Israel, are suitable for livestock — and your servants have livestock.”

⁵“If we have found favor in your sight,” they said, “let this land be given to your servants as a possession. Do not make us cross the Jordan.”

⁶But Moses asked the Gadites and Reubenites, “Shall your brothers go to war while you sit here? ⁷Why are you discouraging the Israelites from crossing into the land that the LORD has given them? ⁸This is what your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to inspect the land.

⁹For when your fathers went up to the Valley of Eshcol and saw the land, they discouraged the Israelites from entering the land that the LORD had given them. ¹⁰So the anger of the LORD was kindled that day, and He swore an oath, saying, ¹¹‘Because they did not follow Me wholeheartedly, not one of the men twenty years of age or older who came out of Egypt will see the land that I swore to give Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob— ¹²not one except Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua son of Nun— because they did follow the LORD wholeheartedly.’ ¹³The anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until the whole generation who had done evil in His sight was gone.

¹⁴Now behold, you, a brood of sinners, have risen up in place of your fathers to further stoke the burning anger of the LORD against Israel. ¹⁵For if you turn away from following Him, He will once again leave this people in the wilderness, and you will be the cause of their destruction.”

¹⁶Then the Gadites and Reubenites approached Moses and said, “We want to build sheepfolds here for our livestock and cities for our little ones. ¹⁷But we will arm ourselves and be ready to go ahead of the Israelites until we have brought them into their place. Meanwhile, our little ones will remain in the fortified cities for protection from the inhabitants of the land. ¹⁸We will not return to our homes until every Israelite has taken possession of his inheritance. ¹⁹Yet we will not have an inheritance with them across the Jordan and beyond, because our inheritance has come to us on the east side of the Jordan.”

²⁰Moses replied, “If you will do this— if you will arm yourselves before the LORD for battle, ²¹and if every one of your armed men crosses the Jordan before the LORD, until He has driven His enemies out before Him, ²²then when the land is subdued before the LORD, you may return and be free of obligation to the LORD and to Israel. And this land will belong to you as a possession before the LORD. ²³But if you do not do this, you will certainly sin against the LORD — and be assured that your sin will find you out. ²⁴Build cities for your little ones and folds for your flocks, but do what you have promised.”

²⁵The Gadites and Reubenites said to Moses, “Your servants will do just as our lord commands. ²⁶Our children, our wives, our livestock, and all our animals will remain here in the cities of Gilead. ²⁷But your servants are equipped for war, and every man will cross over to the battle before the LORD, just as our lord says.”

²⁸So Moses gave orders about them to Eleazar the priest, to Joshua son of Nun, and to the family leaders of the tribes of Israel. ²⁹And Moses said to them, “If the Gadites and Reubenites cross the Jordan with you, with every man armed for battle before the LORD, and the land is subdued before you, then you are to give them the land of Gilead as a possession. ³⁰But if they do not arm themselves and go across with you, then they must accept their possession among you in the land of Canaan.”

³¹The Gadites and Reubenites replied, “As the LORD has spoken to your servants, so we will do. ³²We will cross over into the land of Canaan armed before the LORD, that we may have our inheritance on this side of the Jordan.”

³³So Moses gave to the Gadites, to the Reubenites, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan — the land including its cities and the territory surrounding them.

³⁴And the Gadites built up Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer, ³⁵Atroth-shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah, ³⁶Beth-nimrah, and Beth-haran as fortified cities, and they built folds for their flocks.

³⁷The Reubenites built up Heshbon, Elealeh, Kiriathaim, ³⁸as well as Nebo and Baal-meon (whose names were changed), and Sibmah. And they renamed the cities they rebuilt.

³⁹The descendants of Machir son of Manasseh went to Gilead, captured it, and drove out the Amorites who were there. ⁴⁰So Moses gave Gilead to the clan of Machir son of Manasseh, and they settled there. ⁴¹Jair, a descendant of Manasseh, went and captured their villages and called them Havvoth-jair. ⁴²And Nobah went and captured Kenath and its villages and called it Nobah, after his own name.

Forty-Two Journeys of the Israelites

¹These are the journeys of the Israelites when they came out of the land of Egypt by their divisions under the leadership of Moses and Aaron. ²At the LORD’s command, Moses recorded the stages of their journey. These are the stages listed by their starting points:

³On the fifteenth day of the first month, on the day after the Passover, the Israelites set out from Rameses. They marched out defiantly in full view of all the Egyptians, ⁴who were burying all their firstborn, whom the LORD had struck down among them; for the LORD had executed judgment against their gods. ⁵The Israelites set out from Rameses and camped at Succoth.

⁶They set out from Succoth and camped at Etham, on the edge of the wilderness.

⁷They set out from Etham and turned back to Pi-hahiroth, opposite Baal-zephon, and they camped near Migdol.

⁸They set out from Pi-hahiroth and crossed through the sea, into the wilderness, and they journeyed three days into the Wilderness of Etham and camped at Marah.

⁹They set out from Marah and came to Elim, where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there.

¹⁰They set out from Elim and camped by the Red Sea.

¹¹They set out from the Red Sea and camped in the Desert of Sin.

¹²They set out from the Desert of Sin and camped at Dophkah.

¹³They set out from Dophkah and camped at Alush.

¹⁴They set out from Alush and camped at Rephidim, where there was no water for the people to drink.

¹⁵They set out from Rephidim and camped in the Wilderness of Sinai.

¹⁶They set out from the Wilderness of Sinai and camped at Kibroth-hattaavah.

¹⁷They set out from Kibroth-hattaavah and camped at Hazeroth.

¹⁸They set out from Hazeroth and camped at Rithmah.

¹⁹They set out from Rithmah and camped at Rimmon-perez.

²⁰They set out from Rimmon-perez and camped at Libnah.

²¹They set out from Libnah and camped at Rissah.

²²They set out from Rissah and camped at Kehelathah.

²³They set out from Kehelathah and camped at Mount Shepher.

²⁴They set out from Mount Shepher and camped at Haradah.

²⁵They set out from Haradah and camped at Makheloth.

²⁶They set out from Makheloth and camped at Tahath.

²⁷They set out from Tahath and camped at Terah.

²⁸They set out from Terah and camped at Mithkah.

²⁹They set out from Mithkah and camped at Hashmonah.

³⁰They set out from Hashmonah and camped at Moseroth.

³¹They set out from Moseroth and camped at Bene-jaakan.

³²They set out from Bene-jaakan and camped at Hor-haggidgad.

³³They set out from Hor-haggidgad and camped at Jotbathah.

³⁴They set out from Jotbathah and camped at Abronah.

³⁵They set out from Abronah and camped at Ezion-geber.

³⁶They set out from Ezion-geber and camped at Kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin.

³⁷They set out from Kadesh and camped at Mount Hor, on the outskirts of the land of Edom. ³⁸At the LORD’s command, Aaron the priest climbed Mount Hor and died there on the first day of the fifth month, in the fortieth year after the Israelites had come out of the land of Egypt. ³⁹Aaron was 123 years old when he died on Mount Hor.

⁴⁰Now the Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev in the land of Canaan, heard that the Israelites were coming. ⁴¹And the Israelites set out from Mount Hor and camped at Zalmonah.

⁴²They set out from Zalmonah and camped at Punon.

⁴³They set out from Punon and camped at Oboth.

⁴⁴They set out from Oboth and camped at Iye-abarim on the border of Moab.

⁴⁵They set out from Iyim and camped at Dibon-gad.

⁴⁶They set out from Dibon-gad and camped at Almon-diblathaim.

⁴⁷They set out from Almon-diblathaim and camped in the mountains of Abarim facing Nebo.

⁴⁸They set out from the mountains of Abarim and camped on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho.

⁴⁹And there on the plains of Moab they camped by the Jordan, from Beth-jeshimoth to Abel-shittim.

Instructions for Occupying Canaan

⁵⁰On the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho, the LORD said to Moses, ⁵¹“Speak to the Israelites and tell them: When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, ⁵²you must drive out before you all the inhabitants of the land, destroy all their carved images and cast idols, and demolish all their high places.

⁵³You are to take possession of the land and settle in it, for I have given you the land to possess. ⁵⁴And you are to divide the land by lot according to your clans. Give a larger inheritance to a larger clan and a smaller inheritance to a smaller one. Whatever falls to each one by lot will be his. You will receive an inheritance according to the tribes of your fathers.

⁵⁵But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land before you, those you allow to remain will become barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides; they will harass you in the land where you settle. ⁵⁶And then I will do to you what I had planned to do to them.”

Jeremiah Remains in Judah

¹This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD after Nebuzaradan captain of the guard had released him at Ramah, having found him bound in chains among all the captives of Jerusalem and Judah who were being exiled to Babylon.

²The captain of the guard found Jeremiah and said to him, “The LORD your God decreed this disaster on this place, ³and now the LORD has fulfilled it; He has done just as He said. Because you people have sinned against the LORD and have not obeyed His voice, this thing has happened to you. ⁴But now, behold, I am freeing you today from the chains that were on your wrists. If it pleases you to come with me to Babylon, then come, and I will take care of you. But if it seems wrong to you to come with me to Babylon, go no farther. Look, the whole land is before you. Wherever it seems good and right to you, go there.”

⁵But before Jeremiah turned to go, Nebuzaradan added, “Return to Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon has appointed over the cities of Judah, and stay with him among the people, or go anywhere else that seems right.” Then the captain of the guard gave him a ration and a gift and released him.

⁶So Jeremiah went to Gedaliah son of Ahikam at Mizpah and stayed with him among the people who were left in the land.

Gedaliah Governs in Judah

⁷When all the commanders and men of the armies in the field heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam over the land and that he had put him in charge of the men, women, and children who were the poorest of the land and had not been exiled to Babylon, ⁸they came to Gedaliah at Mizpah — Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan and Jonathan the sons of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth, the sons of Ephai the Netophathite, and Jezaniah son of the Maacathite — they and their men.

⁹Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, swore an oath to them and their men, assuring them, “Do not be afraid to serve the Chaldeans. Live in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it will go well with you. ¹⁰As for me, I will stay in Mizpah to represent you before the Chaldeans who come to us. As for you, gather wine grapes, summer fruit, and oil, place them in your storage jars, and live in the cities you have taken.”

¹¹When all the Jews in Moab, Ammon, Edom, and all the other lands heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant in Judah and had appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, over them, ¹²they all returned from all the places to which they had been banished and came to the land of Judah, to Gedaliah at Mizpah. And they gathered an abundance of wine grapes and summer fruit.

The Plot against Gedaliah

¹³Meanwhile, Johanan son of Kareah and all the commanders of the armies in the field came to Gedaliah at Mizpah ¹⁴and said to him, “Are you aware that Baalis king of the Ammonites has sent Ishmael son of Nethaniah to take your life?”

But Gedaliah son of Ahikam did not believe them.

¹⁵Then Johanan son of Kareah spoke privately to Gedaliah at Mizpah. “Let me go and kill Ishmael son of Nethaniah,” he said. “No one will know it. Why should he take your life and scatter all the people of Judah who have gathered to you, so that the remnant of Judah would perish?”

¹⁶But Gedaliah son of Ahikam said to Johanan son of Kareah, “Do not do such a thing! What you are saying about Ishmael is a lie.”

The Murder of Gedaliah

¹In the seventh month, Ishmael son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, who was a member of the royal family and one of the king’s chief officers, came with ten men to Gedaliah son of Ahikam at Mizpah, and they ate a meal together there. ²Then Ishmael son of Nethaniah and the ten men who were with him got up and struck down Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with the sword, killing the one whom the king of Babylon had appointed to govern the land. ³Ishmael also killed all the Jews who were with Gedaliah at Mizpah, as well as the Chaldean soldiers who were there.

⁴On the second day after the murder of Gedaliah, when no one yet knew about it, ⁵eighty men who had shaved off their beards, torn their garments, and cut themselves came from Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria, carrying grain offerings and frankincense for the house of the LORD. ⁶And Ishmael son of Nethaniah went out from Mizpah to meet them, weeping as he went.

When Ishmael encountered the men, he said, “Come to Gedaliah son of Ahikam.” ⁷And when they came into the city, Ishmael son of Nethaniah and the men with him slaughtered them and threw them into a cistern.

⁸But ten of the men among them said to Ishmael, “Do not kill us, for we have hidden treasure in the field— wheat, barley, oil, and honey!” So he refrained from killing them with the others.

⁹Now the cistern into which Ishmael had thrown all the bodies of the men he had struck down along with Gedaliah was a large one that King Asa had made for fear of Baasha king of Israel. Ishmael son of Nethaniah filled it with the slain.

¹⁰Then Ishmael took captive all the remnant of the people of Mizpah— the daughters of the king along with all the others who remained in Mizpah— over whom Nebuzaradan captain of the guard had appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam. Ishmael son of Nethaniah took them captive and set off to cross over to the Ammonites.

Johanan Rescues the Captives

¹¹When Johanan son of Kareah and all the commanders of the armies with him heard of all the crimes that Ishmael son of Nethaniah had committed, ¹²they took all their men and went to fight Ishmael son of Nethaniah. And they found him near the great pool in Gibeon.

¹³When all the people with Ishmael saw Johanan son of Kareah and all the commanders of the army with him, they rejoiced, ¹⁴and all the people whom Ishmael had taken captive at Mizpah turned and went over to Johanan son of Kareah. ¹⁵But Ishmael son of Nethaniah and eight of his men escaped from Johanan and went to the Ammonites.

¹⁶Then Johanan son of Kareah and all the commanders of the armies with him took the whole remnant of the people from Mizpah whom he had recovered from Ishmael son of Nethaniah after Ishmael had killed Gedaliah son of Ahikam: the soldiers, women, children, and court officials he had brought back from Gibeon. ¹⁷And they went and stayed in Geruth Chimham, near Bethlehem, in order to proceed into Egypt ¹⁸to escape the Chaldeans. For they were afraid of the Chaldeans because Ishmael son of Nethaniah had struck down Gedaliah son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon had appointed over the land.

The Woman and the Dragon

¹And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed in the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. ²She was pregnant and crying out in the pain and agony of giving birth.

³Then another sign appeared in heaven: a huge red dragon with seven heads, ten horns, and seven royal crowns on his heads. ⁴His tail swept a third of the stars from the sky, hurling them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, ready to devour her child as soon as she gave birth.

⁵And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter. And her child was caught up to God and to His throne. ⁶And the woman fled into the wilderness, where God had prepared a place for her to be nourished for 1,260 days.

The War in Heaven

⁷Then a war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. ⁸But the dragon was not strong enough, and no longer was any place found in heaven for him and his angels. ⁹And the great dragon was hurled down — that ancient serpent called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.

¹⁰And I heard a loud voice in heaven saying:

“Now have come the salvation and the power

and the kingdom of our God,

and the authority of His Christ.

For the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down —

he who accuses them day and night before our God.

¹¹They have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb

and by the word of their testimony.

And they did not love their lives

so as to shy away from death.

¹²Therefore rejoice, O heavens,

and you who dwell in them!

But woe to the earth and the sea;

with great fury the devil has come down to you,

knowing he has only a short time.”

The Woman Persecuted

¹³And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. ¹⁴But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle to fly from the presence of the serpent to her place in the wilderness, where she was nourished for a time, and times, and half a time.

¹⁵Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river to overtake the woman and sweep her away in the torrent. ¹⁶But the earth helped the woman and opened its mouth to swallow up the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. ¹⁷And the dragon was enraged at the woman and went to make war with the rest of her children, who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.

And the dragon stood on the shore of the sea.