XXI. (1) AND WHEN KING ARAD... — The verse may be rendered thus: _Now the Canaanite, the King of Arad, which dwelt in the south country_ (or, _Negeb_)_ heard_ (or, _had heard_)_ that Israel had come by the way of Atharim_ (or, _of the spies_)_, and he fought_... The date of this occurrence is uncert... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THEY UTTERLY DESTROYED THEM AND THEIR CITIES. — The meaning of the verb which is here employed is to _devote to destruction,_ and hence to _destroy utterly._ It does not clearly appear whether this destruction was effected at once, or whether the fulfilment of the vow took place at a later perio... [ Continue Reading ]
BECAUSE OF THE WAY. — Better, _in_ (or, _on_)_ the way._ In addition to all the hardships and dangers of the journey, they were conscious that they were turning their backs upon the land of Canaan, instead of marching by a direct course into it.... [ Continue Reading ]
THIS LIGHT BREAD. — The word rendered _light_ denotes something vile or worthless. It was thus that the Israelites regarded the manna which was given to them from heaven; even as the “spiritual meat” which is given to Christ’s Church in His word and ordinances is too commonly regarded amongst oursel... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE LORD SENT FIERY SERPENTS... — Hebrew, _the serpents, the seraphim_ (_i.e.,_ the burning ones). (See Deuteronomy 8:15; Isaiah 14:29; Isaiah 30:6.) The word appears to denote a particular kind of serpent, as in the following verse. Some think that they were so called because of the bright fier... [ Continue Reading ]
MAKE THEE A FIERY SERPENT. — The single Hebrew word which is here employed is _saraph_ (a seraph), or _burning one,_ as in Numbers 21:6, where the word _nehashim_ — _serpents_ — occurs also. The meaning is explained in the following verse, in which it is said that Moses made “a serpent of brass.” S... [ Continue Reading ]
AND MOSES MADE A SERPENT OF BRASS. — The old serpent was the cause of death, temporal and spiritual. Christ Jesus, “in the likeness of sinful flesh” (Romans 8:3), was made sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21), and thus fulfilled, as He Himself explained to Nicodemus, the type of the brazen serpent (John... [ Continue Reading ]
AND PITCHED IN OBOTH. — The intermediate stations between Mount Hor and Oboth were Zalmonah and Punon (Numbers 33:41). The former of these places is thought by some to have derived its name from the Hebrew word _zelem_ (image, or likeness), and to have been the place at which the likeness of the ser... [ Continue Reading ]
AT IJE-ABARIM. — This word seems to denote _the heaps_ (or, _ruins_)_ of passages or of coast or river lands_ — _i.e.,_ of districts bordering upon the sea or a river. It is called _Iim_ or _Iyim_ simply in Numbers 33:45.... [ Continue Reading ]
ON THE OTHER SIDE OF ARNON. — Better, _by the side of the Arnon._ (Comp. Deuteronomy 2:24; Deuteronomy 2:26.) The Hebrew word which is here used does not determine on which side of the Arnon the encampment was. (Comp. Numbers 22:1, and Note.)... [ Continue Reading ]
THE BOOK OF THE WARS OF THE LORD. — Nothing is known about this book. The last days of Moses, as Baumgarten has observed, may have been a suitable time for the commencement of such a work. The history of the journey from Kadesh to the _Arboth Moab_ was not written by Moses until after the defeat of... [ Continue Reading ]
BY THE DIRECTION OF THE LAWGIVER. — Better, _with the ruler’s staff._ The same word occurs in Genesis 49:10, where it stands in parallelism to “the sceptre.” (See Note _in loc._) AND FROM THE WILDERNESS THEY WENT TO MAT-TANAH. — The Targums interpret this and Numbers 21:19 of the well, _And from th... [ Continue Reading ]
AND FROM BAMOTH IN THE VALLEY. — Better, _and from Bamoth to the valley that is_... The _country_ (or, rather, _field_) of Moab was a portion of the table-land which stretches from Rabbath Ammân to the Arnon. The valley in this table-land was upon the height of Pisgah — i.e., the northern part of th... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR THE BORDER OF THE CHILDREN OF AMMON WAS STRONG. — These words assign the reason why the conquests of the Amorites were arrested, not why the children of Israel did not take possession of the land of the Ammonites, with whom they were forbidden to meddle, and whose land they were not to occupy. ... [ Continue Reading ]
AND ISRAEL DWELT IN ALL THE CITIES OF THE AMORITES. — If, as appears most probable, this and the thirty-first verse form a part of the original narrative, the word which is rendered _dwelt_ should be rendered _sojourned,_ or _abode,_ and understood, in accordance with the frequent use of the word (a... [ Continue Reading ]
AND TAKEN ALL HIS LAND... — _i.e.,_ the land between the Arnon and the Jabbok, as it is explained in the last clause of the verse.... [ Continue Reading ]
(27-30) COME INTO HESHBON. — These verses appear to commemorate first the victory of the Amorites over the Moabites, and then that of the Israelites over the Amorites. They may be rendered thus: — “_Come ye to Heshbon!_ Let the city of Sihon be built up and restored! For a fire went out from Heshb... [ Continue Reading ]
THUS ISRAEL DWELT...-Better, _And Israel sojourned,_ &c. (See Note on Numbers 21:25.)... [ Continue Reading ]