Numbers 32:20-33

H. LAND GIVEN TO GAD, REUBEN, AND ONE-HALF OF MANASSEH vv. 20-33
TEXT

Numbers 32:20. And Moses said unto them, If ye will do this thing, if ye will go armed before the Lord to war, 21. And will go all of you armed over Jordan before the Lord, until he hath driven out his enemies from before him, 22. And the land be subdued before the Lord: then afterward ye shall return, and be guiltless before the Lord, and before Israel; and this land shall be your possession before the Lord. 23. But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the Lord: and be sure your sin will find you out. 24. Build you cities for your little ones, and folds for your sheep; and do that which hath proceeded out of your mouth. 25. And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben spake unto Moses, saying, Thy servants will do as my lord commandeth. 26. Our little ones, our wives, our flocks, and all our cattle, shall be there in the cities of Gilead: 27. But thy servants will pass over, every man armed for war, before the Lord to battle, as my lord saith. 28. So concerning them Moses commanded Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the chief fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel. 29. And Moses said unto them, If the children of Gad and the children of Reuben will pass with you over Jordan, every man armed to battle, before the Lord, and the land shall be subdued before you; then ye shall give them the land of Gilead for a possession: 30. But if they will not pass over with you armed, they shall have possessions among you in the land of Canaan. 31. And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben answered, saying, As the Lord hath said unto thy servants, so will we do. 32. We will pass over armed before the Lord into the land of Canaan, that the possession of our inheritance on this side Jordan may be ours. 33. And Moses gave unto them, even to the children of Gad, and to the children of Reuben, and unto half the tribe of Manasseh the son of Joseph, the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, the land, with the cities thereof in the coasts, even the cities of the country round about.

PARAPHRASE

Numbers 32:20. So Moses said to them, If you will do this, if you will go armed before the Lord 21, and all of your armed men cross over the Jordan before the Lord until he has driven his enemies out from before him, 22. then later you shall return and be guiltless before the Lord, and before Israel; and this land shall be your possession before the Lord. 23. But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out. 24. Build cities for yourselves, and for your little ones, and folds for your sheep; then do what you have promised. 25. And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben said to Moses, Your servants will do just as my lord commands. 26. Our little ones, our wives, our flocks and all our cattle shall be there in the cities of Gilead; 27. but your servants will pass over, every man armed for war, before the Lord to battle, just as my lord says.

28. So Moses gave command concerning them to Eleazar the priest, and to Joshua the son of Nun, and to the heads of the fathers-' households of the tribes of the children of Israel. 29. And Moses said unto them, If the children of Gad and the children of Reuben will pass with you across the Jordan, each man armed for battle, before the Lord, and the land shall be overcome before you, then you shall give them the land of Gilead for a possession; 30. but if they will not cross over with you armed, they shall have possessions among you in the land of Canaan. 31. And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben answered, saying, As the Lord has said unto your servants, that is just what we will do. 32. We will pass over armed before the Lord into the land of Canaan, in order that the possession of our inheritance may be ours on this side of the Jordan. 33. And Moses gave to them, to the sons of Gad and to the sons of Reuben and to one-half of the tribe of Manasseh the son of Joseph, the kingdom of Sihon, king of the Amorites, and the kingdom of Og, king of Bashan, the land with its cities and their environs, the cities in the surrounding country.

COMMENTARY

The offer of service is quite acceptable to Moses. If the tribes will keep their word to go before the Lord and fight until the land of Canaan is cleared, they may have their request, and their inheritance east of Jordan will be granted. Should they renege in any manner, however, and fail to do exactly as they have promised, their sins would be brought graphically to their attention, and they shall regret their folly. If a pledge made by an individual Israelite was considered inviolate, we may well attach supreme importance to such a promise made by this large segment of the nation. Failure under these circumstances could bring disaster upon the total nation.

We are told now (Numbers 32:33) of the inheritance of the one-half tribe of Manasseh, without having been told of the division of the tribe; they were not named at all in the negotiations. Whether there had been division within the tribe; whether Gad and Reuben were more prominent as spokesmen in the discussions; or, whether it was advisable to split the number because this tribe had multiplied so rapidly, we are not told. The answer may well be found later (Numbers 32:39-42).

QUESTIONS AND RESEARCH ITEMS

593.

Suggest what punishment the Lord might have brought upon the men of Gad, Reuben, and Manasseh if they failed to honor their pledge.

594.

Why does the half-tribe of Manasseh now join with the others in the pledge?

595.

What reasons may be given for the division of Manasseh's tribe?