1 The descendants of Reuben and the descendants of Gad had a great deal of livestock, a very large amount. When they saw that the land of Jazer and the land of Gilead was good country for livestock,
2 the descendants of Gad and the descendants of Reuben came to Moses, Eleazar the priest, and the chiefs of the congregation and said,
3 "Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon—
4 the land the LORD struck down before the congregation of Israel—is a land for livestock, and your servants have livestock."
5 They went on, "If we have found favor with you, let this land be given to your servants as our property. Do not make us cross the Jordan."
6 Moses said to the descendants of Gad and of Reuben, "Are your brothers to go to war while you stay here?
7 Why would you turn the hearts of the children of Israel away from crossing into the land the LORD has given them?
8 That is what your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to look over the land.
9 They went up as far as the Valley of Eshcol and looked over the land, and then turned the hearts of the children of Israel away from entering the land the LORD had given them.
10 The LORD's anger burned that day, and he swore an oath:
11 'Not one of the men who came up out of Egypt, twenty years old and above, will see the land I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, because they did not follow me wholeheartedly—
12 none except Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua son of Nun, for they followed the LORD wholeheartedly.'
13 The LORD's anger burned against Israel, and he made them wander about in the wilderness forty years, until the whole generation that had done evil in the LORD's sight was gone.
14 And here you are, a brood of sinful men, rising up in your fathers' place to add even more to the LORD's burning anger against Israel!
15 If you turn away from following him, he will once again leave them in the wilderness, and you will bring ruin on this whole people."
16 Then they came up to him and said, "We will build pens here for our flocks and towns for our little ones,
17 but we ourselves will arm and hurry ahead of the children of Israel until we have brought them to their place. Meanwhile our little ones will live in fortified towns, safe from the inhabitants of the land.
18 We will not go back to our homes until every one of the children of Israel has received his inheritance.
19 We will not take an inheritance with them across the Jordan and beyond, because our inheritance has fallen to us on this side of the Jordan, to the east."
20 Moses said to them, "If you do this—if you arm yourselves to go before the LORD into battle,
21 and all your armed men cross the Jordan before the LORD until he has driven his enemies out before him
22 and the land is brought under control before the LORD—then afterward you may return and be free of obligation to the LORD and to Israel, and this land will be your property before the LORD.
23 But if you do not do this, then you will have sinned against the LORD; and be sure your sin will catch up with you.
24 Build towns for your little ones and pens for your flocks, and do what you have promised."
25 The descendants of Gad and 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 livestock will stay there in the towns of Gilead,
27 while your servants, every man armed for war, cross over before the LORD to battle, as my lord says."
28 So Moses gave orders about them to Eleazar the priest, to Joshua son of Nun, and to the heads of the fathers' houses of the tribes of the children of Israel.
29 Moses told them, "If the descendants of Gad and of Reuben, every man armed for battle, cross the Jordan with you before the LORD, and the land is brought under control before you, give them the land of Gilead as their property.
30 But if they do not cross over armed with you, they must receive property among you in the land of Canaan."
31 The descendants of Gad and of Reuben answered, "Your servants will do what the LORD has said to us.
32 We will cross over armed before the LORD into the land of Canaan, but the property we inherit will remain ours across the Jordan."
33 So Moses gave to the descendants of Gad, the descendants of Reuben, and 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 with its towns and their territories, the towns of the surrounding land.
34 The descendants of Gad rebuilt Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer,
35 Atroth-shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah,
36 Beth-nimrah, and Beth-haran as fortified towns, and built pens for flocks.
37 The descendants of Reuben rebuilt Heshbon, Elealeh, Kiriathaim,
38 Nebo and Baal-meon (their names being changed), and Sibmah. They gave new names to the towns they rebuilt.
39 The sons of Machir son of Manasseh went to Gilead, captured it, and drove out the Amorites who were there.
40 So Moses gave Gilead to Machir son of Manasseh, and he settled there.
41 Jair son of Manasseh went and captured their tent villages and named them Havvoth-jair.
42 Nobah went and captured Kenath with its villages and named it Nobah after himself.