Numbers 21:1-3

E. VICTORY AT HORMAH Numbers 21:1-3

TEXT

Numbers 21:1. And when king Arad the Canaanite, which dwelt in the south, heard tell that Israel came by the way of the spies; then he fought against Israel, and took some of them prisoners. 2. And Israel vowed a vow unto the Lord, and said, If thou wilt indeed deliver this people into my hand, then I will utterly destroy their cities. 3. And the Lord hearkened to the voice of Israel, and delivered up the Canaanites; and they utterly destroyed them and their cities: and he called the name of the place Hormah.

PARAPHRASE

Numbers 21:1. When the Canaanite, the king of Arad, who dwelt in the Negev, heard that Israel came by the way of Atharim, he fought against Israel and took some of them prisoners. 2. And Israel made a vow to the Lord and said, If you will indeed deliver these people into my hand, then I will utterly destroy their cities. 3. And the Lord listened to the voice of Israel, and delivered up the Canaanites; and they utterly destroyed them and their cities; and he called the name of the place Hormah.

COMMENTARY

The Israelites had come approximately sixty miles from the region of the Canaanites since leaving Kadesh. The raid of Arad's king was quite apparently caused by false information, since Israel had headed away from this area. Perhaps they thought this was a guise, and that Israel would return to attack them. The term translated by the way of the spies is probably incorrect. Most of the more recent translations use the term Atharim, which must be a local place name. The Canaanites held the territory of what would later be the southern portion of the land of Judah, to the wilderness of Zin. The Israelites had passed through this section en route to Mount Hor. The offensive action of the Canaanites is aimed at taking the lead away from the Israelites by beating them to the attack. Their adventure is at least temporarily successful when they gain prisoners from their foray.
The vow of the Israelites is simple. If Jehovah will grant them victory, they will pronounce a kind of anathema upon the cities of the Canaanites. It was a means of designating them for total destruction, with no booty to be divided among the conquerors. The purpose, as PC affirms, would be to remove them from the sphere of private hatred, revenge, and cupidity, and place (them) upon a higher level (p. 270). The pledge is passed to the location, Hormah, or, the place of the ban. It is not altogether clear whether the term was intended for a single location, or for all the Canaanite cities in the general area of the attack. Carrying out the pledge necessarily must be deferred, since the Israelites have not intended to enter Canaan from the south. Fulfillment of the vow is mentioned in Joshua 12:14, although nothing unusual is said to have occurred at the time.

QUESTIONS AND RESEARCH ITEMS

371.

Why should the Canaanites go so far from their territory to attack Israel, when the Israelites were not immediately threatening them?

372.

What territory is included in -Arad-'?

373.

Give the terms of Israel's vow unto the Lord.

374.

Give the meaning of -Hormah-', and tell why it fits the occasion.

375.

In what way was the promise to destroy Arad any different from the instructions of God regarding other pagan cities?

376.

When was the destruction of Hormah carried out?