Whether the cloud lingered over the tabernacle for two days or for a month or longer, the Israelites remained in camp and did not break camp; but when it lifted, they broke camp.
Now thirty-eight years had elapsed between our departure from Kadesh-barnea and the crossing of the Wadi Zered; in the meantime the whole generation of soldiers had perished from the camp, as the Lord had sworn they should.
Command the people: You are now about to pass through the territory of your relatives, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. Though they are afraid of you, be very careful
Surely, the Lord, your God, has blessed you in all your undertakings; he has been concerned about your journey through this vast wilderness. It is now forty years that the Lord, your God, has been with you, and you have lacked nothing.