Deuteronomy 1:19 kjv
And when we departed from Horeb, we went through all that great and terrible wilderness, which ye saw by the way of the mountain of the Amorites, as the LORD our God commanded us; and we came to Kadeshbarnea.
Deuteronomy 1:19 nkjv
"So we departed from Horeb, and went through all that great and terrible wilderness which you saw on the way to the mountains of the Amorites, as the LORD our God had commanded us. Then we came to Kadesh Barnea.
Deuteronomy 1:19 niv
Then, as the LORD our God commanded us, we set out from Horeb and went toward the hill country of the Amorites through all that vast and dreadful wilderness that you have seen, and so we reached Kadesh Barnea.
Deuteronomy 1:19 esv
"Then we set out from Horeb and went through all that great and terrifying wilderness that you saw, on the way to the hill country of the Amorites, as the LORD our God commanded us. And we came to Kadesh-barnea.
Deuteronomy 1:19 nlt
"Then, just as the LORD our God commanded us, we left Mount Sinai and traveled through the great and terrifying wilderness, as you yourselves remember, and headed toward the hill country of the Amorites. When we arrived at Kadesh-barnea,
Deuteronomy 1 19 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Num 10:11-12 | On the twentieth day of the second month... the cloud lifted from over the tabernacle... And the people of Israel set out by stages from the wilderness of Sinai... | Departure from Sinai |
| Exod 13:21-22 | The LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud... and by night in a pillar of fire... | God's guidance in the wilderness |
| Deut 8:2-4 | Remember how the LORD your God led you all the forty years in the wilderness, to humble you, testing you... Your clothing did not wear out... | Wilderness as a place of testing & provision |
| Deut 8:15 | Who led you through the great and dreadful wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water... | Describing the "dreadful wilderness" |
| Pss 107:4-7 | Some wandered in desert wastes, finding no way to a city... Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble... and he led them by a straight way... | God guides the lost through wilderness |
| Neh 9:19-21 | You in your great mercies did not forsake them in the wilderness... your Spirit gave them understanding and your manna did you not withhold... Their clothes did not wear out... | God's unfailing provision and guidance |
| Jer 2:6 | They did not say, ‘Where is the LORD, who brought us up from the land of Egypt, who led us through the wilderness... a land of deserts and of pits...' | Remembering the challenging wilderness |
| Amos 2:10 | Also I brought you up from the land of Egypt and led you forty years in the wilderness... | God's leading through wilderness |
| Hos 13:5 | I knew you in the wilderness, in the land of drought... | God's intimate knowledge in wilderness |
| Exod 19:1-2 | On the third new moon after the people... they came into the wilderness of Sinai... and encamped... before the mountain. | Arrival at Sinai (Horeb) |
| Deut 1:6 | The LORD our God spoke to us in Horeb, saying, ‘You have stayed long enough at this mountain.' | God's command to leave Horeb |
| Deut 1:2 | It is eleven days' journey from Horeb to Kadesh-barnea by the way of Mount Seir. | Stating the direct journey time |
| Num 13:2-3 | Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel... And Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, at the command of the LORD... | Spies sent from Kadesh-barnea (Paran) |
| Num 14:1-4 | Then all the congregation raised a loud cry... and the people wept... And all the congregation said... ‘Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt.' | Rebellion at Kadesh-barnea |
| Deut 1:20-21 | Then I said to you, ‘You have come to the hill country of the Amorites, which the LORD our God is giving us. See, the LORD your God has set the land before you...' | The threshold of the Promised Land |
| Deut 1:26-28 | Yet you would not go up, but rebelled against the command of the LORD your God... | Israelites' rebellion after arrival |
| Gen 15:16 | And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.” | The Amorites' presence in Canaan |
| Josh 10:5-6 | So the five kings of the Amorites—the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, and the king of Eglon—gathered their forces... | Amorite strongholds in the land |
| Deut 9:1-3 | Hear, O Israel: You are today about to pass over the Jordan to go in to dispossess nations greater and mightier than yourselves... the Amorites, and the Canaanites... | Encountering the Amorites |
| Heb 3:7-19 | Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness... | Kadesh-barnea as a spiritual warning |
| 1 Cor 10:1-5 | For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud... But with most of them God was not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness. | Warnings from Israel's wilderness failures |
| Num 32:8-13 | This is what your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to see the land... None of the men... who came up out of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land... | Consequences of Kadesh-barnea rebellion |
| Ps 95:8-11 | Do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as on the day of Massah in the wilderness, when your fathers put me to the test... “Therefore I swore in my wrath, ‘They shall not enter my rest.’ ” | Recalling rebellion at Kadesh-barnea |
Deuteronomy 1 verses
Deuteronomy 1 19 Meaning
Deuteronomy 1:19 narrates the first significant phase of Israel's journey after receiving the law at Mount Horeb (Sinai). It describes their departure and passage through the vast, formidable wilderness, guided by God, culminating in their arrival at Kadesh-barnea. This verse establishes the geographical progression and highlights the divine command that orchestrated their movements towards the threshold of the Promised Land, setting the stage for the pivotal events of unbelief and their subsequent wandering.
Deuteronomy 1 19 Context
Deuteronomy is Moses' final address to the Israelites on the plains of Moab, just before they enter the Promised Land. This chapter, the beginning of Moses' first discourse, serves as a historical prologue, reviewing the past forty years of wandering. Moses recounts key events, emphasizing God's faithfulness and Israel's disobedience, particularly the pivotal rebellion at Kadesh-barnea. Verse 19 specifically describes the journey from Mount Horeb, where the covenant was made, to Kadesh-barnea, the threshold of Canaan, a journey that should have taken only eleven days. This recollection establishes the setting for the critical narrative of the spies and the resulting forty years of wilderness wandering due to Israel's unbelief.
Deuteronomy 1 19 Word analysis
- And when we departed (וַנִּסַּע – va-nissah): This verb implies a planned, ordered departure, "we pulled up stakes" or "we set out." It signifies a collective action initiating the next phase of their divinely appointed journey.
- from Horeb (מֵחֹרֵב – me-Horev): This refers to Mount Sinai, the Mountain of God, where the Law was given and the covenant established. It symbolizes the divine starting point for Israel's journey as God's covenanted people, moving from revelation to occupation.
- we went through (וַנֵּלֵךְ – va-nelekh): "And we walked," indicating continued movement and progression.
- all that great and dreadful wilderness (כָּל־הַמִּדְבָּר הַגָּדוֹל וְהַנּוֹרָא הַהוּא – kol-ha-midbar ha-gadol v'ha-nora ha-hu):
- `Midbar` (מִדְבָּר): Not merely barren desert but untamed, unsettled territory. It represents a place of physical hardship, testing, and dependence on God.
- `Gadol` (גָּדוֹל): "Great" in its vastness, scale, and challenge.
- `Nora` (וְהַנּוֹרָא): "Dreadful," "terrible," or "awe-inspiring." It evokes a sense of fear due to its dangers (wild animals, heat, lack of water, scorpions, serpents) but also the awesome display of God's presence and provision within it. This paradox highlights both human vulnerability and divine power.
- which you saw (אֲשֶׁר רְאִיתֶם – asher re'item): Moses addresses the present generation, including those who were young adults or children during the original journey. This eyewitness appeal adds weight to his retelling, establishing common ground and shared memory.
- on the way to the mount of the Amorites (דֶּרֶךְ הַר הָאֱמֹרִי – derech har ha-Emori): This refers to the highland region bordering the Promised Land, populated by the Amorites, a formidable Canaanite people. It marks their close proximity to the inherited land, setting up the impending encounter.
- as the LORD our God commanded us (כַּאֲשֶׁר צִוָּה יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ אֹתָנוּ – ka'asher tzivah YHWH Eloheinu otanu):
- `YHWH Eloheinu`: "The LORD our God," emphasizes the covenantal relationship and God's active, directive role.
- This phrase stresses divine initiative and guidance. The entire journey was not aimless but directed by God's precise instructions. This stands in poignant contrast to Israel's subsequent disobedience.
- and we came to Kadesh-barnea (וַנָּבֹא עַד קָדֵשׁ בַּרְנֵעַ – va-navo ad Kadesh-Barnea):
- `Kadesh-barnea`: A highly significant location. It was the appointed entry point to the Promised Land, a critical junction where the spies were sent, and where Israel’s faith was tested and found wanting. Their arrival here was God's fulfillment of leading them to the border; their failure here was the beginning of their long punitive wandering.
Deuteronomy 1 19 Bonus section
The journey described in Deut 1:19 was meant to be the direct and final leg into the Promised Land, explicitly designed by God to bring His people to their inheritance. The distance from Horeb (Sinai) to Kadesh-barnea was relatively short—only "eleven days' journey" (Deut 1:2). This rapid divine expedition underscores the subsequent irony and tragedy of the forty years of wandering, which directly resulted from Israel's lack of faith and rebellion at Kadesh-barnea (Num 13-14). Moses recounts this specific point to remind the new generation how close their parents were to entering God's rest, emphasizing that it was not God's plan or lack of power that prevented immediate entry, but their own disobedience.
Deuteronomy 1 19 Commentary
Deuteronomy 1:19 is a concise summary of the critical transition phase in Israel's journey from their initial formation as God's people at Mount Horeb to the very threshold of the Promised Land. Moses' recitation underscores the providential guidance of "the LORD our God" who "commanded" their every move through a "great and dreadful wilderness." This highlights not only the harsh physical realities faced by the Israelites but also God's awesome power and sustaining presence in such an environment. The journey from Horeb, where divine law was received, to Kadesh-barnea, the literal gateway to the land, was divinely ordained. This verse, by stating "as the LORD our God commanded us," implicitly foregrounds divine faithfulness. Tragically, this arrival at Kadesh-barnea, meant to be a swift entry, instead became the dramatic point of national failure due to unbelief, as detailed immediately following this verse in the Deuteronomy narrative. It sets the scene for one of the most significant lessons in Israelite history: God’s fidelity is constant, but human obedience is crucial for experiencing His blessings. The journey was not the problem; the heart was.