in the strife of the congregation, to sanctify me at the water before their eyes."

And Moses spake unto the Lord, saying: "Let the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the congregation, which may go out before them, and which may go in before them, and which may lead them out, and which may bring them in; that the congregation of the Lord be not as sheep which have no shepherd." And the Lord said unto Moses: "Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit, and lay thine hand upon him; and set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation; and give him in charge in their sight. And thou shalt put some of thine honor upon him, that all the congregation of the children of Israel may be obedient. And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall ask counsel for him after the judgment of Urim1 before the Lord: at his word shall they go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he, and all the children of Israel with him, even all the congregation."

And Moses did as the Lord commanded him: and he took Joshua, and set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation: and he laid his hands upon him, and gave him a charge, as the Lord commanded by the hand of Moses.

Settlement of Reuben and Gad (Num. xxxii. 1-9, 13-25, 33; xxxiii. 1, 2). Now the children of Reuben and the children of Gad had a very great multitude of cattle and when they saw the land of Jazer, and the land of Gilead, that behold, the place was a place for cattle; the children of Gad and the children of Reuben came and spake unto Moses, and to Eleazar the priest, and unto the princes of the congregation, saying: "Ataroth, and Dibon, and Jazer, and Nimrah, and Heshbon,

1 The Urim and the Thummim, mentioned in Ex. xxviii. 30 as something already familiar to Moses and the people, are nowhere described in the Old Testament. They were probably two objects used as lots that were cast in order to obtain an oracular answer, yes" or "no," from the Deity. Their nature may be suggested by the Tablets of Destiny of primitive Babylonian mythology. These were worn on the breasts of certain gods who acted as messengers or mediators between the other gods and men, just as the Urim and Thummim are worn on the breast of the high priest. Thus Marduk, wearing the Tab.. lets of Destiny, presided at the assembly of the gods when the lot was cast for the fate of a king or nation. The use of Urim and Thummim is mentioned on pp. 236, 260; but no instance of it is recorded as taking place after the death of David, when it doubtless gave way to the higher medium of inspired prophecy.

and Elealeh, and Shebam, and Nebo, and Beon, even the co try which the Lord smote before the congregation of Israel, is a land for cattle, and thy servants have cattle: wherefore," said they, "if we have found grace in thy sight, let this land be given unto thy servants for a possession, and bring us not over Jordan."

And Moses said unto the children of Gad and to the children of Reuben: "Shall your brethren go to war, and shall ye sit here? And wherefore discourage ye the heart of the children of Israel from going over into the land which the Lord hath given them? Thus did your fathers, when I sent them from Kadeshbarnea to see the land. For when they went up unto the valley of Eshcol, and saw the land, they discouraged the heart of the children of Israel.

"And the Lord's anger was kindled against Israel, and he made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until all the generation, that had done evil in the sight of the Lord, was consumed. And behold, ye are risen up in your fathers' stead, an increase of sinful men, to augment yet the fierce anger of the Lord toward Israel. For if ye turn away from after him, he will yet again leave them in the wilderness; and ye shall destroy all this people."

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And they came near unto him, and said: "We will build sheepfolds here for our cattle, and cities for our little ones: but we ourselves will go ready armed before the children of Israel, until we have brought them unto their place and our little ones shall dwell in the fenced cities because of the inhabitants of the land. We will not return unto our houses, until the children of Israel have inherited every man his inheritance. For we will not inherit with them on yonder side Jordan, or forward; because our inheritance is fallen to us on this side Jordan eastward."

And Moses said unto them: "If ye will do this thing, if ye will go armed before the Lord to war, and will go all of you armed over Jordan before the Lord, until he hath driven out his enemies from before him, and the land be subdued: then afterward ye shall return, and be guiltless before the Lord, and before Israel; and this land shall be your possession. But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the Lord: and be sure your sin will find you out. Build you cities for your little ones, and folds for your sheep; and do that which hath proceeded

out of your mouth." And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben answered, saying: "As the Lord hath said unto thy servants, so will we do."

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 with their borders, even the cities of the country round about.

These are the journeys of the children of Israel, which went forth out of the land of Egypt with their armies under the hand of Moses and Aaron. And Moses wrote their goings out according to their journeys by the commandment of the Lord.

Death of Moses (Deut. xxxii. 48–52; xxxiv. 1–10). And the Lord spake unto Moses that selfsame day, saying: "Get thee up into this mountain Abarim, unto mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, that is over against Jericho; and behold the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel for a possession and die in the mount whither thou goest up, and be gathered unto thy people; as Aaron thy brother died in mount Hor, and was gathered unto his people: because ye trespassed against me among the children of Israel at the waters of Meribah-Kadesh, in the wilderness of Zin; because ye sanctified me not in the midst of the children of Israel. Yet thou shalt see the land before thee; but thou shalt not go thither unto the land which I give the children of Israel."

And Moses went up from the plains of Moab unto the mountain of Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, that is over against Jericho. And the Lord shewed him all the land of Gilead, unto Dan, and all Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim, and Manasseh, and all the land of Judah, unto the utmost sea, and the south, and the plain of the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees, unto Zoar. And the Lord said unto him: "This is the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, saying, I will give it unto thy seed: I have caused thee to see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not go over thither." So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord. And he buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, over against Beth-peor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day.

And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old when he died his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated. And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days so the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended. And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom; for Moses had laid his hands upon him: and the children of Israel hearkened unto him, and did as the Lord commanded Moses.

And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face.

VII

THE INVASION OF CANAAN

The Summons to Conquest (Josh. i. 1-5, 10, 11). Now after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord it came to pass, that the Lord spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' minister, saying: "Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast. There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee."

Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying: "Pass through the host, and command the people, saying, Prepare you victuals; for within three days ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land, which the Lord your God giveth you to possess it."

Rahab and the Spies (Josh. ii. 1-iii. 1). And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying: "Go view the land, even Jericho." And they went, and came into an harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there.

And it was told the king of Jericho, saying: "Behold, there came men in hither to-night of the children of Israel to search out the country." And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying: Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the

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1 German excavations in 1908 unearthed the walls of ancient Jericho, as well as the northern part of its fortified citadel. Outside the walls were found many remains of Canaanite houses, some of which were built against the city wall. A group of Israelite houses was also found, dating from about 700 B. C., and containing numerous articles of household use: dishes, pots, stone corn-mills, lamps, etc.