1. The tribes of Reuben and Gad had a lot of livestock. When they saw how suitable the land of Jazer and Gilead was for cattle,
2. they went to Moses, Eleazar, and the other leaders of the community and said,
3-4. “This region which the Lord has helped the Israelites to occupy — the towns of Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sibmah, Nebo, and Beon — is good land for livestock, and we have so much livestock.
5. Please give us this land as our property, and do not make us cross the River Jordan and settle there.”
6. Moses replied, “Do you want to stay here while your fellow-Israelites go to war?
7. How dare you try to discourage the people of Israel from crossing the Jordan into the land which the Lord has given them?
8. That is what your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh Barnea to explore the land.
9. They went as far as the Valley of Eshcol and saw the land, but when they returned, they discouraged the people from entering the land which the Lord had given them.
10. The Lord was angry that day and made a promise:
11. ‘I swear that because they did not remain loyal to me, none of the men twenty years old or older who came out of Egypt will enter the land that I promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.’