Now the children of Reuben and the children of Gad had a very great multitude of livestock; and when they saw the land of Jazer and the land of Gilead, that behold, the place was a place for livestock,
the children of Gad and the children of Reuben came and spoke to Moses and to Eleazar the priest and to the leaders of the congregation, saying,
“Ataroth, and Dibon, and Jazer, and Nimrah, and Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Sebam, and Nebo, and Beon,
the land that Yahweh struck before the congregation of Israel, is a land for livestock; and your servants have livestock.”
They said, “If we have found favor in your eyes, let this land be given to your servants for a possession; do not bring us over the Jordan.”
Moses said to the children of Gad and to the children of Reuben, “Should your brothers go to the war, and you sit here?
Why do you discourage the heart of the children of Israel from going over into the land that Yahweh has given them?
Your fathers did so when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to see the land.
For when they went up to the valley of Eshcol and saw the land, they discouraged the heart of the children of Israel, that they should not go into the land that Yahweh had given them.
Yahweh’s anger was kindled in that day, and he swore, saying,
‘Surely none of the men who came up out of Egypt from 20 years old and upward will see the land that I swore to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob, because they have not wholly followed me;
except Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua the son of Nun, because they have fully followed after Yahweh.’
Yahweh’s anger was kindled against Israel and he made them wander back and forth in the wilderness 40 years, until all the generation who had done evil in the eyes of Yahweh was consumed.
Behold, you have risen up in your fathers’ place, an increase of sinful men to augment yet the fierce anger of Yahweh toward Israel.
For if you turn away from after him, he will yet again leave them in the wilderness, and you will destroy all this people.”
They came near to him and said, “We will build sheepfolds here for our livestock and cities for our little ones:
but we ourselves will be ready armed to go before the children of Israel until we have brought them to their place, and our little ones will dwell in the fortified cities because of the inhabitants of the land.
We will not return to our houses until the children of Israel have inherited every man his inheritance.
For we will not inherit with them on the other side of the Jordan and forward, because our inheritance is fallen to us on this side of the Jordan eastward.”
Moses said to them, “If you will do this thing, if you will arm yourselves to go before Yahweh to the war,
and every armed man of you will pass over the Jordan before Yahweh until he has driven out his enemies from before him
and the land is subdued before Yahweh, then afterward you may return and be guiltless toward Yahweh and toward Israel; and this land will be to you for a possession before Yahweh.
But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against Yahweh; and be sure your sin will find you out.
Build cities for your little ones and folds for your sheep; and do what has proceeded out of your mouth.”
The children of Gad and the children of Reuben spoke to Moses, saying, “Your servants will do as my lord commands.
Our little ones, our wives, our flocks, and all our livestock will be there in the cities of Gilead;
but your servants will pass over, every man who is armed for war, before Yahweh to battle, as my lord says.”
So Moses commanded 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.
Moses said to them, “If the children of Gad and the children of Reuben will pass with you over the Jordan, every man who is armed to battle, before Yahweh, and the land will be subdued before you, then you are to give them the land of Gilead for a possession;
but if they will not pass over with you armed, they must have possessions among you in the land of Canaan.”
The children of Gad and the children of Reuben answered, saying, “As Yahweh has said to your servants, so will we do.
We will pass over armed before Yahweh into the land of Canaan, and the possession of our inheritance will remain with us beyond the Jordan.”
Moses gave to them, even to the children of Gad and to the children of Reuben and to the half-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 according to its cities and borders, even the cities of the surrounding land.
The children of Gad built Dibon and Ataroth and Aroer,
and Atrothshophan and Jazer and Jogbehah,
and Beth-nimrah and Beth-haran: fortified cities and folds for sheep.
The children of Reuben built Heshbon and Elealeh and Kiriathaim,
and Nebo, and Baal-meon, (their names being changed) and Sibmah: and they gave other names to the cities that they built.
The children of Machir the son of Manasseh went to Gilead and took it, and dispossessed the Amorites who were in it.
Moses gave Gilead to Machir the son of Manasseh, and he lived in it.
Jair the son of Manasseh went and took its towns and called them Havvoth-jair.
Nobah went and took Kenath and its villages and called it Nobah after his own name.