Deuteronomy 2

Wandering in the Wilderness

1 “Then the Lord told us to turn around and head back into the wilderness toward the Red Sea. So we wandered around Mount Seir for a long time.”

2 “Then the Lord said to me,”

3 “‘You all have been going in circles around this mountain long enough, turn north!’”

God Tells Israel Not to Fight Edom

4 “‘Tell the people: You all are about to pass through the land of your relatives, the Edomites (descendants of Esau). They will be scared of you, so be careful.’”

5 “‘Do not start a fight with them. I have given Mount Seir to Esau’s family, and it is not your land.’”

6 “‘If you all need food or water, pay for it.’”

7 “‘The Lord has blessed you all these 40 years in the wilderness. You all lacked nothing.’”

Passing Through Moab Without Fighting

8 “So we moved past our relatives in Edom (Seir) and traveled through the wilderness past Moab.”

9 “Then the Lord said, ‘Do not mess with the Moabites (descendants of Lot). I have given them the land of Ar, and it is not for you.’”

God Had Removed the Previous Giants

10 “(Back in the day, the Emites used to live there. They were giants, as tall as the Anakites.)”

11 “(People called them Rephaites, just like the Anakites, but the Moabites called them Emites.)”

12 “(The Horites used to live in Seir, but Esau’s descendants wiped them out and took their land, just like Israel is about to do in Canaan.)”

Crossing the Zered Valley

13 “The Lord said, ‘Cross the Zered Valley.’ So we crossed.”

14 “It had been 38 years since we left Kadesh-Barnea. By this time, all the old generation (the doubters) had died, just like the Lord said.”

15 “The Lord made sure they were wiped out.”

God Says Do Not Fight the Ammonites

16 “Once all the old warriors were gone, the Lord spoke again.”

17 “He said,”

18 “‘Now you all are about to enter Ammonite territory. Do not mess with them.’”

19 “‘I have given that land to Lot’s descendants, it is not for you.’”

More Giants Who Were Defeated

20 “(This land used to belong to the Rephaites, a group of giants called the Zamzummites by the Ammonites.)”

21 “(They were huge, strong people, but the Lord wiped them out so the Ammonites could take the land.)”

22 “(Same thing happened in Seir, the Lord wiped out the Horites so Esau’s descendants could take over.)”

23 “(The Avvites used to live near Gaza, but the Philistines wiped them out.)”

God Gives Israel the Land of King Sihon

24 “Then the Lord said, ‘Get up! Cross the Arnon River! I have given you Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land. Take it!’”

25 “‘Starting today, all the nations will be terrified of you! They will hear about you all and shake in fear!’”

Israel Sends a Peace Offer to King Sihon

26 “From the wilderness of Kedemoth, I sent messengers to King Sihon of Heshbon with a peace offer.”

27 “I said, ‘Let us pass through your land. We will stay on the main road.’”

28 “‘If we eat or drink, we will pay for everything, just let us pass through.’”

29 “‘We passed through Edom and Moab without trouble. Let us do the same here.’”

King Sihon Refuses & Gets Destroyed

30 “But King Sihon refused to let us pass. The Lord hardened his heart because He planned to hand him over to us.”

31 “Then the Lord said, ‘I have given you Sihon and his land, start taking it now!’”

32 “Sihon brought his army out to fight us at Jahaz.”

33 “But the Lord gave him to us, we wiped him out, along with his sons and army.”

34 “Then we captured every city and killed every man, woman, and child, we left nobody alive.”

35 “We only took the livestock and valuables as plunder for ourselves.”

36 “From Aroer by the Arnon River all the way to Gilead, we took every city. Not one was too strong for us, because the Lord gave them all to us.”

God Sets Boundaries on the Conquest

37 “But the Lord told us not to touch the Ammonites, so we did not go near their land.”