1:1 This is what 1 Moses said to the assembly of Israel 2 in the Transjordanian 3 wastelands, the arid country opposite 4 Suph, 5 between 6 Paran 7 and Tophel, 8 Laban, 9 Hazeroth, 10 and Di Zahab 11
1:6 The Lord our God spoke to us at Horeb and said, “You have stayed 12 in the area of this mountain long enough.
9:25 I lay flat on the ground before the Lord for forty days and nights, 17 for he 18 had said he would destroy you.
32:20 He said, “I will reject them, 19
I will see what will happen to them;
for they are a perverse generation,
children 20 who show no loyalty.
33:12 Of Benjamin he said:
The beloved of the Lord will live safely by him;
he protects him all the time,
and the Lord 21 places him on his chest. 22
33:13 Of Joseph he said:
May the Lord bless his land
with the harvest produced by the sky, 23 by the dew,
and by the depths crouching beneath;
33:20 Of Gad he said:
Blessed be the one who enlarges Gad.
Like a lioness he will dwell;
he will tear at an arm – indeed, a scalp. 24
33:23 Of Naphtali he said:
O Naphtali, overflowing with favor,
and full of the Lord’s blessing,
possess the west and south.
33:24 Of Asher he said:
Asher is blessed with children,
may he be favored by his brothers
and may he dip his foot in olive oil. 25
33:27 The everlasting God is a refuge,
and underneath you are his eternal arms; 26
he has driven out enemies before you,
and has said, “Destroy!”
1 tn Heb “These are the words.”
2 tn Heb “to all Israel.”
3 tn Heb “on the other side of the Jordan.” This would appear to favor authorship by someone living on the west side of the Jordan, that is, in Canaan, whereas the biblical tradition locates Moses on the east side (cf. v. 5). However the Hebrew phrase בְּעֵבֶר הַיּרְדֵּן (bÿ’ever hayyrÿden) is a frozen form meaning “Transjordan,” a name appropriate from any geographical vantage point. To this day, one standing east of the Jordan can describe himself as being in Transjordan.
4 tn The Hebrew term מוֹל (mol) may also mean “in front of” or “near” (cf. NCV, TEV, CEV, NLT).
5 sn This place is otherwise unattested and its location is unknown. Perhaps it is Khirbet Sufah, 4 mi (6 km) SSE of Madaba, Jordan.
6 tn The Hebrew term בֵּין (ben) may suggest “in the area of.”
7 sn Paran is the well-known desert area between Mount Sinai and Kadesh Barnea (cf. Num 10:12; 12:16).
8 sn Tophel refers possibly to et£-T£afîleh, 15 mi (25 km) SE of the Dead Sea, or to Da‚bîlu, another name for Paran. See H. Cazelles, “Tophel (Deut. 1:1),” VT 9 (1959): 412-15.
9 sn Laban. Perhaps this refers to Libnah (Num 33:20).
10 sn Hazeroth. This probably refers to àAin Khadra. See Y. Aharoni, The Land of the Bible, 199-200.
11 sn Di Zahab. Perhaps this refers to Mina al-Dhahab on the eastern Sinai coast.
12 tn Heb “lived”; “dwelled.”
13 tn Heb “may he bless you.”
14 tn The Hebrew participle has an imminent future sense here, although many English versions treat it as a present tense (“is giving us,” NAB, NIV, NRSV) or a predictive future (“will give us,” NCV).
15 sn Anakites. See note on this term in Deut 1:28.
16 tn Heb “great and tall.” Many English versions understand this to refer to physical size or strength rather than numbers (cf. “strong,” NIV, NCV, NRSV, NLT).
17 tn The Hebrew text includes “when I prostrated myself.” Since this is redundant, it has been left untranslated.
18 tn Heb “the
19 tn Heb “I will hide my face from them.”
20 tn Heb “sons” (so NAB, NASB); TEV “unfaithful people.”
21 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the
22 tn Heb “between his shoulders.” This suggests the scene in John 13:23 with Jesus and the Beloved Disciple.
23 tn Heb “from the harvest of the heavens.” The referent appears to be good crops produced by the rain that falls from the sky.
24 tn Heb “forehead,” picturing Gad attacking prey.
25 sn Dip his foot in olive oil. This is a metaphor for prosperity, one especially apt in light of the abundance of olive groves in the area settled by Asher. The Hebrew term refers to olive oil, which symbolizes blessing in the OT. See R. Way, NIDOTTE 4:171-73.
26 tn Heb “and from under, arms of perpetuity.” The words “you” and “his” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Some have perceived this line to be problematic and have offered alternative translations that differ significantly from the present translation: “He spread out the primeval tent; he extended the ancient canopy” (NAB); “He subdues the ancient gods, shatters the forces of old” (NRSV). These are based on alternate meanings or conjectural emendations rather than textual variants in the