Then we turned, and went up the way to Bashan. Og the king of Bashan came out against us, he and all his people, to battle at Edrei. Yahweh said to me, “Don’t fear him; for I have delivered him, with all his people, and his land, into your hand. You shall do to him as you did to Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived at Heshbon.”
So Yahweh our God delivered into our hand Og also, the king of Bashan, and all his people. We struck him until no one was left to him remaining. We took all his cities at that time. There was not a city which we didn’t take from them: sixty cities, all the region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan. All these were cities fortified with high walls, gates, and bars, in addition to a great many villages without walls. We utterly destroyed them, as we did to Sihon king of Heshbon, utterly destroying every inhabited city, with the women and the little ones. But all the livestock, and the plunder of the cities, we took for plunder for ourselves. We took the land at that time out of the hand of the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, from the valley of the Arnon to Mount Hermon. (The Sidonians call Hermon Sirion, and the Amorites call it Senir.) We took all the cities of the plain, and all Gilead, and all Bashan, to Salecah and Edrei, cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan. (For only Og king of Bashan remained of the remnant of the Rephaim. Behold, his bedstead was a bedstead of iron. Isn’t it in Rabbah of the children of Ammon? Nine cubits was its length, and four cubits its width, after the cubit of a man.)
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv1, 5, 6, 11 Therefore beside the commandment of the Lord, they had…
Therefore beside the commandment of the Lord, they had just occasion of his part to fight against him.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 5, 6, 11 Deu 3:1 Then we turned, and went up the…
Deu 3:1 Then we turned, and went up the way to Bashan: and Og the king of Bashan came out against us, he and all his people, to battle at Edrei.
Ver. 1. Then we turned.] How pleasant must the continuation of this holy history needs be to every good heart, out of the mouth of Moses! Methinks I see the people’s ears linked to his tongue with golden chains, as the heathens fable of their Hercules. And surely, if King Alphonsus and some others, of whom the physicians despaired, did recover health beyond all expectation, only by reading Livy, Curtius, Aventinus, &c., {a} what may we think may be done by these wholesome words, {b} these healing histories, if rightly regarded.
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{a} Joh. Bodin., De Utilita. Histor.
{b} λογοι υγιαινοντες.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11 Fear him not, though he be of so frightful…
Fear him not, though he be of so frightful a look and stature, Deu 3:11.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On v1 We have here another brave country delivered into the…
We have here another brave country delivered into the hand of Israel, that of Bashan; the conquest of Sihon is often mentioned together with that of Og, to the praise of God, the rather because in these Israel's triumphs began, Psa 135:11; Psa 136:19, Psa 136:20. See,
I. How they got the mastery of Og, a very formidable prince, 1. Very strong, for he was of the remnant of the giants (Deu 3:11); his personal strength was extraordinary, a monument of which was preserved by the Ammonites in his bedstead, which was shown as a rarity in their chief city. You might guess at his weight by the materials of his bedstead; it was iron, as if a bedstead of wood were too weak for him to trust to: and you might guess at his stature by the dimensions of it; it was nine cubits long and four cubits broad, which, supposing a cubit to be but half a yard (and some learned men have made it appear to be somewhat more), was four yards and a half long, and two yards broad; and if we allow his bedstead to be two cubits longer than himself, and that is as much as we need allow, he was three yards and a half high, double the stature of an ordinary man, and every way proportionable, yet they smote him, Deu 3:3. Note, when God pleads his people's cause he can deal with giants as with grasshoppers. No man's might can secure him against the Almighty. The army of Og was very powerful, for he had the command of sixty fortified cities, besides the unwalled towns, Deu 3:5. Yet all this was nothing before God's Israel, when they came with commission to destroy him. 2. He was very bold and daring: He came out against Israel to battle, Deu 3:1. It was wonderful that he did not take warning by the ruin of Sihon, and send to desire conditions of peace; but he trusted to his own strength, and so was hardened to his destruction. Note, Those that are not awakened by the judgments of God upon others, but persist in their defiance of heaven, are ripening apace for the like judgments upon themselves, Jer 3:8. God bade Moses not fear him, Deu 3:2. If Moses himself was so strong in faith as not to need the caution, yet it is probable that the people needed it, and for them these fresh assurances are designed; "I will deliver him into thy hand; not only deliver thee out of his hand, that he shall not be thy ruin, but deliver him into thy hand, that thou shalt be his ruin, and make him pay dearly for his attempt." He adds, Thou shalt do to him as thou didst to Sihon, intimating that they ought to be encouraged by their former victory to trust in God for another victory, for he is God, and changeth not.
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II. How they got possession of Bashan, a very desirable country. They took all the cities (Deu 3:4), and all the spoil of them, Deu 3:7. They made them all their own, Deu 3:10. So that now they had in their hands all that fruitful country which lay east of Jordan, from the river Arnon unto Hermon, Deu 3:8. Their conquering and possessing these countries was intended, not only for the encouragement of Israel in the wars of Canaan, but for the satisfaction of Moses before his death. Since he must not live to see the completing of their victory and settlement, God thus gives him a specimen of it. Thus the Spirit is given to those that believe as the earnest of their inheritance, until the redemption of the purchased possession.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv1–11 Then we turned and went up the way to…
Then we turned and went up the way to Bashan,.... Which seems to have been higher than the kingdom of Sihon: this was a fine country for pasturage, for the breeding of cattle, larger and lesser, and was famous for its oaks: it is the same country which in Josephus and others goes by the name of Batanea:
and Og the king of Bashan came out against us; got his forces together, and came out from Ashteroth, the royal city where he dwelt:
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he and all his people, to battle at Edrei; another city in his kingdom, about six miles from the former; see Deu 1:4.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv1, 8, 9, 10, 11 The conquest of Og and his country, ver. 1-11.…
The conquest of Og and his country, ver. 1-11. The distribution of it to the two tribes and an half, ver. 12-17. On condition of assisting their brethren, ver. 18-20. Joshua encouraged, ver. 21- 22. Moses prays that he may go into Canaan, v. 23-25. But is refused, yet permitted to see it, ver. 26-29.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv1, 4, 9, 11 The war with OG, king of Bashan, 1, 2.
CHAPTER III
The war with OG, king of Bashan, 1, 2.
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He is defeated, 3.
Sixty fortified cities with many unwalled towns taken, 4, 5.
The utter destruction of the people, 6.
The spoils, 7;
and extent of the land taken, 8-10.
Account of OG'S iron bedstead, 11.
The land given to the Reubenites, Gadites, and half tribe of
Manasseh, 12, 13.
Jair takes the country of Argob, 14.
Gilead is given unto Machir, 15.
And the rest of the land possessed by the Reubenites and Gadites,
16,17.
The directions given to those tribes, 18-20.
The counsel given to Joshua, 21, 22.
Moses's prayer to God for permission to go into the promised
land, 23-25;
and God's refusal, 26.
He is commanded to go up to Mount Pisgah to see it, 27;
and to encourage Joshua, 28.
They continue in the valley opposite to Beth-peor, 29.
NOTES ON CHAP. III
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv1, 8, 9, 10, 11 Deu 3:1. Og, the king of Bashan, came out…
Deu 3:1. Og, the king of Bashan, came out against us — As a further encouragement to the Israelites to confide in the power and faithfulness of God, Moses proceeds to remind them of the wonderful success they had had against Og, who appears to have been the first aggressor, Num 21:33.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv4, 5, 9, 10, 11 Threescore cities - Probably the cities of Jair in…
Threescore cities - Probably the cities of Jair in Bashan described in Deu 3:14 as Bashan-havoth-jair.
All the region of Argob - The Hebrew word here rendered “region,” means literally “rope” or “cable”; and though undoubtedly used elsewhere in a general topographical sense for portion or district (e. g. Jos 17:5), has a special propriety in reference to Argob (mod. Lejah). The name Argob means “stone-heap,” and is paraphrased by the Targums, Trachonitis Luk 3:1, or “the rough country;” titles designating the more striking features of the district. Its borders are compared to a rugged shore-line; hence, its description in the text as “the girdle of the stony country,” would seem especially appropriate. (Others identify Argob with the east quarter of the Hauran.)
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv1, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11 Turned. Instead of going forward across the Jordan, we…
Turned. Instead of going forward across the Jordan, we directed our arms against Basan, in the north. See Numbers xxi. 33.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv2, 3, 9, 11 The Lord said unto me, Fear him not: for…
The Lord said unto me, Fear him not: for I will deliver him, and all his people, and his land, into thy hand--Og's gigantic appearance and the formidable array of forces he will bring to the field, need not discourage you; for, belonging to a doomed race, he is destined to share the fate of Sihon [Num 21:25].
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv1, 4, 5, 8, 10, 11 THE CONQUEST OF THE KINGDOM OF OG — A…
THE CONQUEST OF THE KINGDOM OF OG — A VIEW OF THE LAND, Deu_3:1-11. After the defeat of Sihon the Israelites were able to move on in their march toward Jordan. As Og held Bashan and the northern part of Gilead, they took the road to Bashan, and met and defeated this powerful Amorite king at Edrei.
1. Bashan — A region celebrated for its oak groves and rich pastures and fine cattle. We find many references to it in the poetical books. Psa_22:12; Psa_68:15; Isa_2:13; Zec_11:2.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11 1. turned, and went up] See on Deu_1:7.
1. turned, and went up] See on Deu_1:7.
Bashan] Heb. the Bashan, so in all historical statements and sometimes in poetry in which however the article is oftener omitted (HGHL, 549 n. 7). In its wider sense the name covered all the land from the. Yarmûk to Ḥermon, Deu_4:43, Deu_33:22. But its proper application was confined to the land immediately N. of the Yarmûk and E. of Geshur and Ma‘akah, the present Jaulan (see below Deu_3:14, Deu_4:43): the S. end of Ḥauran, including ‘Ashtaroth (perhaps Tell el ‘Ashari) on the W., Edre‘i on the S. and Salkah on the S.E. (Deu_1:4, Deu_3:10, Jos_9:10; Jos_12:4; Jos_13:11 f., 31), the district known in Greek times as Batanea, and in the 10th century still called ‘Ard-el-Bathaniyeh, containing Edre‘i (Idrisi); but to-day the name has drifted N.E. to the E. of the Lejá. Ar. Bathnah means level, loamy land (Freytag) and suits the region. See HGHL, 549, 553, 570 f.
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Og] The name ‘Og, LXX Ιώγ and Ὤγ, does not occur except as that of the king of Bashan; the root meaning ‘curved’ or ‘round’ supplies some Ar. geographical names. W. R. Smith (Rel. of the Sem. 83) arguing that in Heb. a king’s name is usually joined with that of his people or of his capital (e.g. Sîḥôn, king of the Amorites, or of Ḥeshbon) and that ‘Ôg’s is the only exception, takes ‘Ôg ‘who is a mythical figure’ as presumably ‘an old god of the region.’
Edrei] Edre‘i on the S. frontier of Bashan (Deu_3:10), the Otara‘a of Egyptian inscriptions, Adra of Ptolemy, Adraa of Euseb., now Edhra‘at, Dera‘at or on Bedawee lips ’Azra‘at, a strong site on the S. edge of the gorge that forms the S. limit of Ḥauran, and further entrenched by a tributary ravine. In the rock beneath the walled city, a labyrinth of streets with houses and shops was excavated. That this marvel is not mentioned in the O.T. proves it of later date, and indeed its architecture and inscriptions point to the Greek period: HGHL, 576, ZDPV, xx. 118 ff. On the only possible remains in Bashan of ‘Ôg’s time see Driver, Deut., in loco.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 4, 6, 9, 10, 11 (1) Then.—In the Hebrew, a simple And. The history…
III.
(1) Then.—In the Hebrew, a simple And. The history of this movement is given in Num_21:32-33. For Edrei, see Num_21:33, from which this whole verse is repeated.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. H. Mackintosh 1880 · Public Domain On v1 Deuteronomy 3
Deuteronomy 3
"Then we turned, and went up the way to Bashan; and Og the king of Bashan came out against us, he and all his people, to battle at Edrei. And the Lord said unto me, Fear Him not: for I will deliver him, and all his people, and his land, into thy hand; and thou shalt do unto Him as thou didst unto Sihon king of the Amorites, which dwelt at Heshbon. So the Lord our God delivered into our hands Og also, the king of Bashan and all his people; and we smote him until none was left to him remaining. And we took all his cities at that time, there was not a city which we took not from them, threescore cities, all the region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan. All these cities were fenced with high walls, gates, and bars; beside unwalled towns a great many. And we utterly destroyed them, as we did unto Sihon, king of Heshbon, utterly destroying the men, women, and children of every city. But all the cattle, and the spoil of the cities, we took for a prey to ourselves." (Vers. 1-7.)
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The divine instructions as to Og king of Bashan were precisely similar to those given, in the preceding chapter with respect to Sihon the Amorite; and in order to understand both, we must look at them purely in the light of the government of God - a subject but little understood, though one of very deep interest and practical importance. We must accurately distinguish between grace and government. When we contemplate God in government, we see Him displaying His power in the way of righteousness, punishing evil doers; pouring out vengeance upon His enemies; overthrowing empires; upturning thrones; destroying cities, sweeping away nations, tribes and peoples. We find Him commanding His people to slay men, women and little children, with the edge of the sword; to set fire to their houses, and turn their cities into desolate heaps.
Again, we hear Him addressing the prophet Ezekiel in the following remarkable words, "Son of man, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon caused his army to serve a great service against Tyrus; every head was made bald, and every shoulder was peeled; yet had he no wages, nor his army, for Tyrus, for the service that he had served against it. Therefore, thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I will give the land of Egypt unto Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; and he shall take her multitude, and take her spoil, and take her prey; and it shall be the wages for his army. I have given him the land of Egypt for his labour wherewith he served against it, because they wrought for me, saith the Lord God." (Ezek. 29: 18-20.)
This is a very wonderful passage of scripture; setting before us a subject which runs through the entire volume of Old Testament scripture - a subject demanding our profound and reverent attention. Whether we turn to the five books of Moses, to the historical books, to the Psalms or to the prophets, we find the inspiring Spirit giving us the most minute details of God’s actings in government. We have the deluge in the days of Noah, when the whole earth, with all its inhabitants, with the exception of eight persons, was destroyed by an act of divine government. men, women, children, cattle, fowl and creeping things were all swept away and buried beneath the billows and waves of God’s righteous judgement.
Then we have in the days of Lot, the cities of the plain, with all their inhabitants, men, women and children, in a few short hours, consigned to utter destruction, overthrown by the hand of Almighty God, and buried beneath the deep dark waters of the Dead Sea - those guilty cities, "Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire."
Then, again, as we pass down along the page of inspired history, we see the seven nations of Canaan, men, women, and children, given over into the hands of Israel, for unsparing judgement; nothing that breathed was to be left alive.
But we may truly say, time would fail us, even to refer to all the passages of holy scripture which set before our eyes the solemn actings of the divine government. Suffice it to say that the line of evidence runs from Genesis to Revelation, beginning "with the deluge and ending with the burning up of the present system of things.
Now, the question is, Are we competent to understand these ways of God in government? Is it any part of our business to sit in judgement upon them? Are we capable of unravelling the profound and awful mysteries of divine Providence? Can we - are we called upon to - account for the tremendous fact of helpless babes involved in the judgement of their guilty parents? Impious; infidelity may sneer at these things; morbid sentimentality may stumble over them; but the true believer, the pious Christian, the reverent student of holy scripture will meet them all with this one simple but safe and solid question, "Shall not the judge of all the earth do right?"
This, we may rest assured, reader, is the only true way in which to meet such questions. If man is to sit in judgement upon the actings of God in government; if he can take upon himself to decide as to what is, and what is not worthy of God to do, then, verily, we have lost the true sense of God altogether. And this is just what the devil is aiming at. He wants to lead the heart away from God; and to this end, he leads men to reason and question and speculate in a region which lies as far beyond their ken as heaven is above the earth. Can we comprehend God? If we could, we should, ourselves, be God.
"We comprehend Him not,
Yet earth and heaven tell,
God sits as Sovereign on the throne
And ruleth all things well."
It is, at once, absurd and impious, in the very highest degree, for puny mortals to dare to question the counsels, enactments and ways of the Almighty Creator, and All-wise Governor of the universe. Assuredly, all who do so must, sooner or later find out their terrible mistake. Well would it be for all questioners and cavillers to give heed to the pungent question of the inspired apostle in Romans 9. "Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, why hast thou made me thus? Hath not the Potter power over the clay of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?"
How simple! How forcible! How unanswerable! This is the divine method of meeting all the hows, and whys, of infidel reason. If the potter has power over the lump of clay which he holds in his hand - a fact which none would think of disputing - how much more has the Creator of all things power over the creatures which His hand has formed! Men may reason and argue interminably as to why God permitted sin to enter; why He did not, at once, annihilate Satan and his angels; why He allowed the serpent to tempt Eve; why He did not keep her back from eating the forbidden fruit. In short, the hows, and whys, are endless; but the answer is one, "Who art thou, O man, that repliest against God?" How monstrous for a poor worm of the earth to attempt to sit in judgement upon the unsearchable judgements and ways of the Eternal God! What blind and presumptuous folly for a creature, whose understanding is darkened by sin, and who is thus wholly incapable of forming a right judgement about anything divine, heavenly or eternal, to attempt to decide how God should act, in any given case! Alas! alas! it is to be feared that thousands who now argue with great apparent cleverness, against the truth of God, will find out their fatal mistake when it will he too late to correct it.
And as to all those who, though very far from taking common ground with the infidel, are nevertheless troubled with doubts and misgivings as to some of God’s ways in government, and as to the awful question of eternal punishment, we would earnestly recommend them to study and drink in the spirit of that lovely little Psalm, 131. "Lord, my heart is not haughty, nor mine eyes lofty: neither do I exercise myself in great matters, or in things too high for me. Surely I have behaved and quieted myself as a child that is weaned of his mother: my soul is even as a weaned child."*
{*With regard to the solemn subject of eternal punishment, we here offer a few remarks, seeing that so very many, both in England and America, are troubled with difficulties respecting it. There are three considerations which, if duly weighed, will, we think, settle every Christian on the doctrine.
1. The first is this. There are seventy passages, in the New Testament, where the word "everlasting" or "eternal" (aionios) occur. It is applied to the "life" which believers possess; to the "mansions" into which they are to be received; to the "glory" which they are to enjoy; it is applied to God, Romans 16: 26; to the "salvation " of which our Lord Jesus Christ is the Author; to the "redemption" which He has obtained for us; and to the "Spirit." Then, out of the seventy passages referred to above, which the reader can verify in a few moments, by a glance at a Greek Concordance, there are seven in which the selfsame word is applied to the "punishment" of the wicked; to the "judgement" which is to overtake them; to the "fire" which is to consume them. Now, the question is, upon what principle, or by what authority can any one mark off these seven passages and say that, in them, the word [aionios] does not mean "everlasting," while in the other sixty-three it does? We consider the statement utterly baseless and unworthy the attention of any sober mind. We fully admit that, had the Holy Spirit thought proper, when speaking of the judgement of the wicked, to make use of a different word from that used in the other passages, reason would that we should weigh the fact. But no; He uses the same word invariably, so that if we deny eternal punishment, we must deny eternal life, eternal glory, an eternal Spirit, an eternal God, an eternal anything. In short, if punishment be not eternal, nothing is eternal so far as this augment is concerned. To meddle with this stone, in the archway of divine revelation, is to reduce the whole to a mass of ruin around us. And this is just what the devil is aiming at. We are fully persuaded that to deny the truth of eternal punishment is to take the first step on that inclined plane which leads down to the dark abyss of universal scepticism.
2. Our second consideration is drawn from the great truth of the immortality of the soul. We read in Genesis 2, that, "The Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." Upon this one passage, as upon an immovable rock, even if we had not another, we build the great truth of the immortality of the human soul. The fall of man made no difference as to this. Fallen or unfallen, innocent or guilty, converted or unconverted, the soul must live for ever.
The tremendous question is, "Where is it to live?" God cannot allow sin into His presence. "He is of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look upon iniquity." Hence, if a man dies in his sins, dies unrepentant, unwashed, unpardoned, then, most assuredly, where God is he never can come; indeed it is the very last place to which he would like to come. there is nothing for him but an endless eternity in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone.
3. And, lastly, we believe that the truth of eternal punishment stands intimately connected with the infinite nature of the atonement of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. If nothing short of an infinite sacrifice could deliver us from the consequences of sin, those consequences must be eternal. This consideration may not, perhaps, in the judgement of some, carry much weight with it; but to us its force is absolutely irresistible. We must measure sin and its consequences, as we measure divine love and its results, not by the standard of human sentiment or reason, but only by the standard of the cross of Christ.}
Then, when the heart has, in some measure, taken in this exquisite breathing, it may turn, with real profit, to the words of the inspired apostle, 2 Corinthians 10 "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds; casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ."
Doubtless, the philosopher, the scholar, the profound thinker would smile contemptuously at such a childish mode of dealing with such great questions. But this is a very small matter in the judgement of the devout disciple of Christ. The same inspired apostle makes very short work of all this world’s wisdom and learning. He says, "Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God; for it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness. And again, The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain." (1 Cor. 3.) And again, "It is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For after that in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe." (1 Cor 1:19-21.)
Here lies the grand moral secret of the whole matter. Man has to find out that he is simply a fool; and that all the wisdom of the world is foolishness. Humbling, but wholesome truth! Humbling, because it puts man in his right place. Wholesome, yea, most precious, because it brings in the wisdom of God. We hear a great deal, now-a-days, about science, philosophy and learning. “Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?”
Do we fully take in the meaning of these words? alas! it is to be feared they are but little understood. There are not wanting men who would fain persuade us that science has gone far beyond the Bible!* Alas! for the science, and for all those who give heed to it. If it has gone beyond the Bible, whither has it gone? In the direction of God, of Christ, of heaven, of holiness, of peace? Nay; but quite in the opposite direction. And where must it all end? We tremble to think, and feel reluctant to pen the reply. Still we must be faithful, and declare solemnly that the sure and certain end of that path along which human science is conducting its votaries is the blackness of darkness for ever.
{*We must distinguish between all true science and "science falsely so-called." And further, we must distinguish between the facts of science, and the conclusions of scientific men. The facts are what God has done and is doing; but when men set about drawing their conclusions from these facts, they make the most serious mistakes. However, it is a real relief to the heart to think that there are philosophers and men of science who give God His right place, and who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity.}
"The world by wisdom knew not God." What did the philosophy of Greece do for its disciples? It made them the ignorant worshippers of "AN UNKNOWN GOD." The very inscription on their altar published to the universe their ignorance and their shame. And may we not lawfully inquire if philosophy has done better for Christendom than it did for Greece? Has it communicated the knowledge of the true God? Who could dare to say Yes? There are millions of baptised professors throughout the length and breadth of Christendom who know no more of the true God than those philosophers who encountered Paul in the city of Athens.
The fact is this, every one who really knows God is the privileged possessor of eternal life. So our Lord Jesus Christ declares, in the most distinct manner, in John 17. "This is life eternal that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent." This is most precious to every soul that, through grace, has gotten this knowledge. To know God is to have life - life eternal.
But how can I know God? Where can I find Him? Can science and philosophy tell me? Have they ever told any one? Have they ever guided any poor wanderer into this way of life and peace? No; never, "The world by wisdom knew not God." The conflicting schools of ancient philosophy could only plunge the human mind into profound darkness and hopeless bewilderment; and the conflicting schools of modern philosophy are not a whit better. They can give no certainty, no safe anchorage, no solid ground of confidence to the poor benighted soul. Barren speculation, torturing doubt, wild and baseless theory is all that human philosophy, in any age or of any nation, has to offer to the earnest inquirer after truth.
How then are we to know God? If such a stupendous result hangs on this knowledge; if to know God is life eternal - and Jesus says it is - then how is He to be known? "No man hath seen God at any time; the only-begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him." (John 1: 18.)
Here we have an answer divinely simple, divinely sure. Jesus reveals God to the soul - reveals the Father to the heart. Precious fact! We are not. sent to creation, to learn who God is - though we see His power, wisdom and goodness there. We are not sent to the Law - though we see His justice there. We are not sent to providence - though we see the profound mysteries of His government there. No; if we want to know who and what God is, we are to look in the face of Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, who dwelt in His bosom before the worlds, who was His eternal delight, the object of His affections, the centre of His counsels. He it is who reveals God to the soul. We cannot have the slightest idea of what God is apart from the Lord Jesus Christ. "In him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead [Theotes] bodily." "God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God, in the face of Jesus Christ."
Nothing can exceed the power and blessedness of all this. There is no darkness here; no uncertainty. "The darkness is past, and the true light now shineth." Yes; it shineth in the face of Jesus Christ. We can gaze, by faith, on that blessed One; we can trace His marvellous path, on the earth; see Him going about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; mark His very looks, His words, His works, His ways; see Him healing the sick, cleansing the leper, opening the eyes of the blind, unstopping the ears of the deaf, causing the lame to walk, the maimed to be whole, raising the dead, drying the widows tears, feeding the hungry, binding up broken hearts, meeting every form of human need, soothing human sorrow, hushing human fears; and doing all these things in such a style, with such touching grace and sweetness, as to make each one feel, in his very inmost soul, that it was the deep delight of that loving heart thus to minister to his need.
Now, in all this, He was revealing God to man; so that if we want to know what God is, we have simply to look at Jesus. When Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us," the prompt reply was, "Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you, I speak not of myself; but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake."
Here is the rest for the heart. We know the true God and Jesus Christ whom He hath sent; and this is life eternal. We know Him as our own very God and Father and Christ as our own personal, loving Lord and Saviour; we can delight in Him, walk with Him, lean on Him, trust in Him, cling to Him, draw from Him, find all our living springs in Him; rejoice in Him, all the day long; find our meat and our drink in doing His blessed will, furthering His cause and promoting His glory.
Reader, do you know all this for yourself? Say, is it a living, divinely real thing in your own soul, this moment? This is true Christianity; and you should not be satisfied with anything less. You will, perhaps, tell us we have wandered far from Deuteronomy 3. But whither have we To the Son of God and to the soul of the reader. If this be wandering, be it so; it, most assuredly, is not wandering from the object for which we are penning these "Notes" which is to bring Christ and the soul together, or to bind them together, as the case may be. We would never, for one moment, lose sight of the fact that, both in writing and speaking, we have not merely to expound scripture, but to seek the salvation and blessing of souls. Hence it is that we feel constrained, from time to time, to appeal to the heart and conscience of the reader as to his practical state, and as to how far he has made his very own of these imperishable realities which pass in review before us. And we earnestly beseech the reader, whoever he may be, to seek a deeper acquaintance with God in Christ; and, as a sure consequence of this, a closer walk with Him and more thorough consecration of heart to Him.
This, we are thoroughly persuaded, is what is needed, in this day of unrest and unreality, in the world, and of lukewarmness and indifference, in the professing church. We want a very much higher standard of personal devotedness, more real purpose of heart to cleave to the Lord, and follow Him. There is much - very much to discourage and hinder. in the condition of things around us. The language of the men of Judah, in the days of Nehemiah, may with some measure of appropriateness and force, be applied to our times, " The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed, and there is much rubbish." But, thank God, the remedy now, as then, is to be found in this soul-stirring sentence, "Remember the Lord.
We now return to our chapter, in the remainder of which the lawgiver rehearses in the ears of the congregation the story of their dealings with the two kings of the Amorites, together with the facts connected with the inheritance of the two tribes and a half, on the wilderness side of Jordan. And, with regard to the latter subject, it is interesting to notice that he raises no question as to the right or the wrong of their choosing their possession short of the land of promise. Indeed, from the narrative given here, it could not be known that the two tribes and a half had expressed any wish in the matter. so far is our book from being a mere repetition of its predecessors.
Here are the words. "And this land, which we possessed at that time, from Aroer which is by the river Arnon, and half mount Gilead, and the cities thereof, gave I unto the Reubenites and to the Gadites, And the rest of Gilead and all Bashan, being the kingdom of Og, gave I unto the half tribe of Manasseh, all the region of Argob, with all Bashan, which was called the land of giants.... And I gave Gilead unto Machir. And unto the Reubenites, and unto the Gadites, I gave from Gilead even unto the river Arnon, half the valley, and the border, even unto the river Jabbok, which is the border of the children of Ammon.... And I commanded you at that time, saying, the Lord your God hath given you this land to possess it" - not a word about their having asked it
Ye shall pass over armed before your brethren the children of Israel, all that are meet for the war. But your wives and your little ones, and your cattle (for I know that ye have much cattle), shall abide in your cities which I have given you; until the Lord have given rest unto your brethren, as well as unto you, and until they also possess the land which the Lord your God hath given them beyond. Jordan; and then shall ye return every man unto his possession which I have given you."
In our studies on the Book of Numbers, we have dwelt upon certain facts connected with the settlement of the two tribes and a half, proving that they were below the mark of the Israel of God, in choosing their inheritance anywhere short of the other side of Jordan. But in the passage which we have just quoted, there is no allusion at all to this side of the question; because the object of Moses is to set before the whole congregation the exceeding goodness, loving-kindness, and faithfulness of God, not only in bringing them through all the difficulties and dangers of the wilderness, but also in giving them, every already, such signal victories over the Amorites, and putting them in possession of regions go attractive and so suited to them. In all this he is laying down the solid basis of Jehovah’s claim upon their hearty obedience to His commandments; and we can at once see and appreciate the moral beauty of overlooking entirely, in such a rehearsal, the question as to whether Reuben, Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh were wrong in stopping short of the land of promise. It is, to every devout Christian, a striking proof not only of the touching and exquisite grace of God, but also of the divine perfectness of scripture.
No doubt, every true believer enters upon the study of scripture with the full and deeply wrought conviction of its absolute perfectness in every part. He reverently believes that there is not, from the opening of Genesis to the close of Revelation, a single flaw, a single hitch, a single discrepancy - not one; all is as perfect as its divine Author.
But then the cordial belief of the divine perfectness of scripture, as a whole, can never lessen our appreciation of the evidences which come out in detail; nay, it enhances it exceedingly. Thus, for example, in the passage now before us, is it not perfectly beautiful to mark the absence of all reference to the failure of the two tribes and a half in the matter of choosing their inheritance, seeing that any such reference would be entirely foreign to the object of the lawgiver, and to the scope of the book! Is it not the joy of our hearts to trace such infinite perfections, such exquisite and inimitable touches? Assuredly it is; and not only so, but we are persuaded that the more the moral glories of the volume dawn upon our souls, and its living and exhaustless depths are unfolded to our hearts, the more we shall be convinced of the utter folly of infidel assaults upon it; and of the feebleness and gratuitousness of many well-meant efforts to prove that it does not contradict itself. Thank God, His word stands in no need of human apologists. It speaks for itself, and carries with it its own powerful evidences; so that we can say of it what the apostle says of his gospel, that, "If it be hid, it is hid to them that are lost; in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them." We are more and more convinced, each day that the most effective method of answering all infidel attacks upon the Bible is to cherish a more profound faith in its divine power and authority; and to use it as those who are most thoroughly persuaded of its truth and preciousness. The Spirit of God alone can enable any one to believe in the plenary inspiration of the holy scriptures. Human arguments may go for what they are worth; they may, doubtless, silence gainsayers; but they cannot read the heart; they cannot bring the genial rays of divine revelation to hear down in living saving power upon the soul; this is a work divine; and until it is done, all the evidences and arguments in the world must leave the soul in the moral darkness of unbelief but when it is done, there is no need of human testimony in defence of the Bible. External evidences, however interesting and valuable - and they are both - cannot add a single jot or tittle to the glory of that peerless Revelation which bears on every page, every paragraph, every sentence, the clear impress of its divine Author. As with the sun in the heavens, its every ray tells of the Hand that made it, so of the Bible, its every sentence tells of the Heart that inspired it. But, inasmuch as a blind man cannot see the sunlight, so neither can the unconverted soul see the force and beauty of holy scripture. The eye must be anointed with heavenly eye-salve, ere the infinite perfections of the divine Volume can be discerned or appreciated.
Now, we must own to the reader, that it is the deep, and ever deepening sense of all this that has led us to the determination not to occupy his time or our own, by reference to the attacks which have been made by rationalistic writers on that portion of the word of God with which we are now engaged. We leave this to other and abler hands. What we desire for ourselves and our readers is that we may feed at peace upon the green pastures which the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls has graciously thrown open to us; that we may help each other, as we pass along, to see more and more of the moral glory of that which lies before us; and thus to build each other up on our most holy faith. This will be far more grateful work to us, and we trust also to our readers, than replying to men who, in all their puny efforts to find out flaws in the holy volume, only prove to those capable of judging that they understand neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm. If men will abide in the dark vaults and tunnels of a dreary infidelity, and there find fault with the sun, or deny that it shines at all, let it be ours to bask in the light, and help others to do the same.
We shall now dwell for a little on the remaining verses of our chapter, in which we shall find much to interest, instruct and profit us.
And, first, Moses rehearses in the ears of the people, his charge to Joshua. And I commanded Joshua at that time, saying, Thine eyes have seen all that the Lord our God hath done unto these two kings: so shall the Lord do unto all the kingdoms whither thou passest. Ye shall not fear them: for the Lord your God he shall fight for you." (Vers. 21, 22.)
The remembrance of the Lord’s dealings with us, in the past, should strengthen our confidence in going on. The One who had given His people such a victory over the Amorites, who had destroyed such a formidable foe as Og king of Bashan, and given into their hands all the land of the giants, what could He not do for them? They could hardly expect to encounter in all the land of Canaan any enemy more powerful than Og whose bedstead was of such enormous dimensions as to call for the special notice of Moses. But what was he in the presence of his Almighty Creator? Dwarfs and giants are all alike to Him. The grand point is to keep God Himself ever before our eyes. Then difficulties vanish. If He covers the eyes, we can see nothing else; and this is the true secret of peace, and the real power of progress. "Thine eyes have seen all that the Lord your God hath done." And, as He has done, so He will do. He hath delivered; and He doth deliver; and He will deliver. Past, present, and future are all marked by divine deliverance.
Reader, art thou in any difficulty? Is there any pressure upon thee? Art thou anticipating, with nervous apprehension, some formidable evil? Is thine heart trembling at the very thought of it? It may be thou art like one who has come to the far end, like the apostle Paul in Asia, "Pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life." If so, beloved friend, accept a word of encouragement. It is our deep desire to strengthen your hands in God, and to encourage your heart to trust Him for all that is before you. "Fear not;" only believe. He never fails a trusting heart no, never. Make use of the resources which are treasured up for you in Him. Just put yourself, your surroundings, your fears, your anxieties, all into His hands, and leave them there.
Yes; leave them there. It is of little use your putting your difficulties, your necessities into His hands, and then, almost immediately, taking them into your own. We often do this. When in pressure, in need, in deep trial of some kind or other, we go to God, in prayer; we cast our burden upon Him, and seem to get relief. But alas; no sooner have we risen from our knees, than we begin again to look at the difficulty, ponder the trial, dwell upon all the sorrowful circumstances, until we are again at our very wits’ end.
Now, this will never do. It sadly dishonours God, and of course, leaves us unrelieved and unhappy. He would have our minds as free from care, as the conscience is free from guilt. His word to us is, "Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God." And what then? "The peace of God which passeth all understanding, shall keep [or garrison, phrouresei] your hearts and minds, through Christ Jesus."
Thus it was that Moses, that beloved man of God and honoured servant of Christ, sought to encourage his fellow labourer and successor, Joshua, in reference to all that was before him. "Ye shall not fear them; for the Lord your God he shall fight for you." Thus, too, did the blessed apostle Paul encourage his beloved son and fellow servant Timothy to trust in the living God; to be strong in the grace which is in Christ Jesus; to lean, with unshaken confidence, on God’s sure foundation; to commit himself, with unquestioning assurance, to the authority, teaching and guidance of the holy scriptures; and thus armed and furnished, to give himself, with holy diligence and true spiritual courage, to that work to which he was called. And thus, too, the writer and the reader can encourage one another, in these days of increasing difficulty, to cling, in simple faith, to that word which is settled for ever in heaven; to have it hidden in the heart as a living power and authority in the soul, something which will sustain us, though heart and flesh should fail, and though we had not the countenance or support of a human being. "All flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away; but the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you" (1 Peter 1: 24, 25.)
How precious is this! What comfort and consolation! What stability and rest! What real strength, victory and moral elevation! It is not within the compass of human language to set forth the preciousness of the word of God, or to define, in adequate terms, the comfort of knowing that the selfsame word which is settled for ever in heaven, and which shall endure throughout the countless ages of eternity, is that which has reached our hearts in the glad tidings of the gospel, imparting to us eternal life, and giving us peace and rest in the finished work of Christ, and a perfectly satisfying object in His adorable Person. Truly, as we think of all this, we cannot but own that every breath should be a hallelujah. Thus it shall be, by-and-by, and that for ever, all homage to His peerless Name!
The closing verses of our chapter present a peculiarly touching passage between Moses and his Lord, the record of which as given here is in lovely keeping, as we might expect, with the character of the entire book of Deuteronomy. "And I besought the Lord at that time, saying, O Lord God, thou hast begun to show thy servant thy greatness, and thy mighty hand; for what God is there in heaven or in earth, that can do according to thy works and according to thy might? I pray thee, let me go over, and see the good land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly mountain, and Lebanon. But the Lord was wroth with me for your sakes, and would not hear me: and the Lord said unto me, Let it suffice thee; speak no more unto me of this matter. Get thee up into the top of Pisgah, and lift up thine eyes westward, and northward, and southward, and eastward, and behold it with thine eyes: for thou shalt not go over this Jordan. But charge Joshua, and encourage him, and strengthen him; for he shall go over before this people, and he shall cause them to inherit the land which thou shalt see."(Vv. 23-28)
It is very affecting to find this eminent servant of God urging a request which could not be granted. He longed to see that good land beyond Jordan. The portion chosen by the two tribes and a half could not satisfy his heart. He desired to plant his foot upon the proper inheritance of the Israel of God. But it was not to be. He had spoken unadvisedly with his lips at the waters of Meribah; and, by the solemn and irreversible enactment of the divine government, he was prohibited from crossing the Jordan.
All this, the beloved servant of Christ most meekly rehearses in the ears of the people. He does not hide from them the fact that the Lord had refused to grant his request. True, he had to remind them that it was on their account. That was morally needful for them to hear. Still he tells them, in the most unreserved manner, that Jehovah was wroth with him; and that He refused to hear him - refused to allow him to cross the Jordan, and called upon him to resign his office and appoint his successor.
Now, it is most edifying to hear all this from the lips of Moses himself. It teaches us a fine lesson, if only we are willing to learn it. Some of us find it very hard indeed to confess that we have done or said anything wrong - very hard to own before our brethren that we have entirely missed the Lord’s mind, in any particular case. We are careful of our reputation; we are touchy and tenacious. And yet, with strange inconsistency, we admit, or seem to admit, in general terms, that we are poor, feeble, erring, creatures; and that, if left to ourselves, there is nothing too bad for us to say or to do. But it is one thing to make a most humiliating general confession, and another thing altogether to own that, in some given case, we have made a gross mistake. This latter is a confession which very few have grace to make. Some can hardly ever admit that they have done wrong.
Not so that honoured servant whose words we have just quoted. He, notwithstanding his elevated position as the called, trusted and beloved servant of Jehovah - the leader of the congregation, whose rod had made the land of Egypt to tremble, was not ashamed to stand before the whole assembly of his brethren, and confess his mistake, own that he had said what he ought not, and that he had earnestly urged a request which Jehovah could not grant.
Does this lower Moses in our estimation? The very reverse; it raises him immensely. It is morally lovely to hear his confession; to see how meekly he bows his head to the governmental dealings of God; to mark the unselfishness of his acting toward the man who was to succeed him in his high office. There was not a trace of jealousy or envy; no exhibition of mortified pride. With beautiful self-emptiness, he steps down from his elevated position, throws his mantle over the shoulders of his successor, and encourages him to discharge with holy fidelity, the duties of that high office which he himself had to resign.
"He that humbleth himself shall be exalted." How true was this in Moses’ case! He humbled himself under the mighty hand of God. He accepted the holy discipline imposed upon him by the divine government. He uttered not a murmuring word at the refusal of his request. He bows to it all, and hence he was exalted in due time. If government kept him out of Canaan, grace conducted him to Pisgah’s top, from whence, in company with his Lord, he was permitted to see that good land, in all its fair proportions - see it, not as inherited by Israel, but as given of God.
The reader will do well to ponder deeply the subject of grace and government. It is indeed a very weighty and practical theme, and one largely illustrated in scripture, though but little understood amongst us. It may seem wonderful to us, hard to be understood, that one so beloved as Moses should be refused an entrance into the promised land. But in this we see the solemn action of the divine government, and we have to bow our heads and worship. It was not merely that Moses, in his official capacity, or as representing the legal system, could not bring Israel into the land. This is true; but it is not all. Moses spake unadvisedly with his lips. He and Aaron his brother failed to glorify God, in the presence of the congregation; and for this cause, "The Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them." And, again, we read, "The Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron in mount Hor, by the coast of the land of Edom, saying, Aaron shall be gathered unto his people; for he shall not enter into the land which I have given unto the children of Israel, because ye rebelled against my word at the water of Meribah. Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up unto mount Hor; and strip Aaron of his garments, and put them upon Eleazar his son; and Aaron shall be gathered unto his people, and shall die there."
All this is most solemn. Here we have the two leading men in the congregation, the very men whom God had used to bring His people out of the land of Egypt, with mighty signs and wonders - "that Moses and Aaron" - men highly honoured of God; and yet refused entrance into Canaan. And for what? Let us mark the reason. "because ye rebelled against my word".
Let these words sink down into our hearts. It is a terrible thing to rebel against the word of God; and the more elevated the position of those who so rebel, the more serious it is, in every way, and the more solemn and speedy must be the divine judgement. "For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry."
These are weighty words, and we ought to ponder them deeply. They were uttered in the ears of Saul, when he had failed to obey the word of the Lord; and thus we have before us examples of a prophet, a priest and a king, all judged, under the government of God, for an act of disobedience. The prophet and the priest were refused entrance into the land of Canaan, and the king was deprived of his throne simply because they disobeyed the word of the Lord.
Let us remember this. We, in our fancied wisdom, might deem all this very severe. Are we competent judges? This is the grand question, in all such matters. Let us beware how we presume to sit in judgement on the enactments of divine government. Adam was driven out of paradise; Aaron was stripped of his priestly robes; Moses was sternly refused entrance into Canaan; and Saul was deprived of his kingdom; and for what? Was it for what men would call a grave moral offence - some scandalous sin? No; it was, in each case, for neglecting the word of the Lord. This is the serious thing for us to keep before us, in this day of human wilfulness in which men undertake to set up their own opinions, to think for themselves, and judge for themselves, and act for themselves. Men proudly put the question, " Has not every man a right to think for himself?" We reply, Most certainly not. We have a right to obey. To obey what? Not the commandments of men; not the authority of the so-called church; not the decrees of general councils; in a word, not any merely human authority, call it what you please; but simply the word of the living God - the testimony of the Holy Ghost - the voice of holy scripture. This it is that justly claims our implicit, unhesitating, unquestioning obedience. To this we are to bow down our whole moral being. We are not to reason; we are not to speculate; we are not to weigh consequences; we have nothing to do with results; we are not to say "Why?” or “Wherefore?" It is ours to obey, and leave all the rest in the hands of our Master. What has a servant to do with consequences? What business has he to reason as to results? It is of the very essence of a servant to do what he is told, regardless of all other considerations. Had Adam remembered this, he would not have been turned out of Eden. Had Moses and Aaron remembered it, they might have crossed the Jordan; had Saul remembered it, he would not have been deprived of his throne. And so, as we pass down along the stream of human history, we see this weighty principle illustrated, over and over again; and we may rest assured, it is a principle of abiding and universal importance.
And, be it remembered, we are not to attempt to weaken this great principle by any reasonings grounded upon God’s foreknowledge of all that was to happen, and all that man would do, in the course of time. Men do reason in this way, but it is a fatal mistake. What has God’s foreknowledge to do with man’s responsibility? Is man responsible or not? This is the question, If, as we most surely believe, he is, then, nothing must be allowed to interfere with this responsibility. Man is called to obey the plain word of God; he is, in no wise, responsible to know ought about God’s secret purposes and counsels. Man’s responsibility rests upon what is revealed, not upon what is secret. What, for example, did Adam know about God’s eternal plans and purposes, when he was set in the garden of Eden and forbidden to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil Was his transgression, in any wise, modified by the stupendous fact that God took occasion, from that very transgression, to display, in the view of all created intelligences, His glorious scheme of redemption through the blood of the Lamb? Clearly not. He received a plain commandment; and by that commandment his conduct should have been absolutely governed. He disobeyed, and was driven out of paradise, into a world which has, for well-nigh six thousand years, exhibited the terrible consequences of one single act of disobedience - the act of taking the forbidden fruit.
True it is, blessed be God, that grace has come into this poor sin-stricken world and there reaped a harvest which could never have been reaped in the fields of an unfallen creation. But man was judged for his transgression. He was driven out by the hand of God in government; and, by an enactment of that government, he has been compelled to eat bread in the sweat of his brow. "Whatsoever a man" no matter who - "soweth, that shall he also reap."
Here we have the condensed statement of the principle which runs all through the word, and is illustrated on every page of the history of God’s government. It demands our very gravest consideration. It is, alas! but little understood. We allow our minds to get under the influence of one-sided, and therefore false ideas of grace, the effect of which is most pernicious. Grace is one thing, and government is another. They must never be confounded. We would earnestly impress upon the heart of the reader the weighty fact that the most magnificent display of God’s sovereign grace can never interfere with the solemn enactments of His government.
C. H. Mackintosh, Notes on the Pentateuch — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11 Vers. 1-11. CONQUEST OF OG, KING OF BASHAN. The…
Vers. 1-11. CONQUEST OF OG, KING OF BASHAN. The Amorites had wrested from Moab a portion of the territory taken by the Moabites and the Edomites from the giant aborigines; and Og, who was of the same giant race, ruled over the northern half of the region of Gilead and over all Bashan. This district also God purposed Israel to possess; and therefore, before crossing the Jordan, a diversion was made north. wards by the Israelites, for the purpose of attacking this powerful chief. Og encountered them with all his host, but was signally defeated, and he and all his people were exterminated. Not fewer than three score fortified cities, besides villages, were captured by the Israelites, the whole country was subjugated, and all the cattle and material property taken as booty (cf. Num_21:33-35) cf. Num_21:33 We turnedi.e. took a new routeand went up (lNw, and we ascended). As Bashan was an upland region, they are very properly said to have gone up. Edrei, hod. Draa, with Roman and Arabian ruins, nearly three miles in circumference, but without inhabitants; not the same as the Edrei of ver. 10.
HOMILIES BY J. ORR Vers. 1-12. The conquest of Og.
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Og, King of Bashan, was a yet more formidable adversary than Sihon. We read with wonder of that extraordinary territory over which he ruled, the region of Argob, with its sixty cities built of black stone, hard as iron, and perched amidst the masses of basaltic rock, which are the characteristic feature of the district, and which formed an apparently impregnable barrier against assault. The suddenness, completeness, and decisiveness of the conquest of this region, naturally so strong, so thickly peopled, so powerfully defended, and ruled by a king of the race of giants, is in any view of it, an astonishing fact, and would naturally raise the courage of the Israelites to the highest pitch of confidence, while striking dismay into surrounding nations. (Deu_2:25) We consider
I OG"S CONFIDENT ATTACK. Like Sihon, he came out against the Israelites, "he and all his people" (ver. 1), and doubtless with great hopes of success. Had he been less confident, he would probably have remained within his fortifications. Though Joshua speaks (Jos_24:12) of him being driven forth by the hornet, the spirit of the attack reminds us of Goliath"s boastful advance against the armies of Saul. (1Sa_17:4-12) His assault symbolizes the giant-power of the world in its hostile relations to the Church: pagan papal infidel; science learning philosophy; powerful in itself, strongly entrenched, boastful in spirit. Voltaire boasted that it took twelve men to set up Christianity, but he would show that one man was sufficient to overthrow it. Christianity lasts still, but Voltaire?
II HIS COMPLETE ROUT (vers. 3-8). Moses dwells on the details of this astonishing victory with lively gratitude and wonder. The victory was, as in Sihon"s ease, complete, only here more remarkable from the strength of the cities and towns. And again all the people were devoted to destruction (ver. 6). Somewhat analogous to this rout have been many of the victories of Christianity. We think of the downfall of ancient paganism, so strongly entrenched, but now swept so entirely from the earth; of the collapse of eighteenth-century deism; of the mighty men of their own days, boastful of their power to destroy the Church"s faith, who are now, like Og, only remembered by their coffins. The tomes of Voltaire, Bolingbroke, Shaftesbury, and a host of others lie unread on dusty shelves, while the Bible is multiplying its circulation every year. New, and it may be even mightier, foes are springing up in our modern agnostic and positivist and pantheistic schools, but to the serious student of history there can be no real doubt as to the issue of the conflict.
III THE OCCUPATION OF HIS LAND (vers. 9-12). The land and the cities thus conquered were taken possession of by the conquerors, and as speedily as possible occupied. The enemy was dispossessed and spoiled. So did the Church in the early centuries first conquer, and then possess the ground previously held by paganism. "We are of yesterday, and yet we have filled every place belonging to you cities, islands, castles, towns, assemblies, your very camp, companies, palace, senate, forum. We leave you your temples only" (Tertullian). The same thing takes place as often as the treasures of unbelieving science, learning, and philosophy, in their varied forms and applications (inventions, arts, etc.), fall into the hands of the Church, and are made to subserve her ends. The unbelieving criticism of the Bible, e.g., has furnished a vast amount of material available for the purposes of faith. So the discoveries of science, which were dreaded as hostile, prove at last to be confirmatory and helpful, and are appropriated by belief. Every victory of Christianity in the outward world, or in the regions of thought, enlarges its possessions and extends its influence. J.O.
HOMILIES BY R.M. EDGAR Vers. 1-17. The destruction of Og, King of Bashan.
We have here an account of another conquest, for which the victory over Sihon, King of the Amorites, prepared the people. Bashan was "called the land of the giants" (ver. 13), and Og, the king, was manifestly the greatest of the giants hence the particulars about his bedstead, as being nine cubits long and four broad (ver. 11). In a rude age and country, force was the recognized ruler, and the biggest man in consequence was chosen chief. It was living and reigning by sense and sight the world"s regular way. Here, then, let us observe that
I THE VICTORY OVER SIHON, KING OF THE AMORITES, WAS A NEEDFUL PREPARATION FOR THE MORE SERIOUS ENTERPRISE OF THE CONQUEST OF BASHAN. The Lord leads his people, even in war, "from strength to strength." They try their swords upon the Amorites successfully before attempting to subdue the giants. They get a taste of successful war before they are asked to undertake the greater and more serious task of exterminating the giants of Bashan. And so it is in fighting the good fight of faith. One little victory over an easily besetting sin gives nerve for a greater task. The muscles of the soul grow strong through exercise, and greater victories are gained. Faithfulness in the little conducts to faithfulness in that which is much. (Luk_16:10)
II THE GIANTS BY THEIR UNWALLED TOWNS PROVED THEIR INTENSE FEELING OF SECURITY. They had their strongholds, no doubt, as "the giant cities of Bashan" still attest. But they had "unwalled towns a great many" (ver. 5). It is evident from this that their sense of personal security was intense. They confided in their size and powers. They imagined no one would have the temerity to attack them. It was the contrast to "assurance of faith what we might call "the assurance of sense." And this characterizes the enemies of God"s people more or less always. Self-confidence is the source of their power and of their misfortune in the end. It is an easy victory eventually which the Lord"s people, who have learned to have "no confidence in the flesh", (Php_3:3) obtain over their self-confident foes.
III THE VICTORY OVER THE GIANTS WAS COMPLETE, AMOUNTING TO AN EXTERMINATION. "And we utterly destroyed them, as we did unto Sihon, King of Heshbon, utterly destroying the men, women, and children, of every city" (ver. 6). This was absolutely necessary, as well as by the giants deserved. Had such foes been spared in the rear of the invasion, the Israelites would have had no sense of security. It was impossible to "mask these fortresses," as great armies can sometimes afford to do in modern warfare. It was better to exterminate these foes. They did so as the servants of God: His command was their warrant, and made their act defensible on moral as well as strategic grounds. And the victory God gives his people over their sins and foes is at last complete.
IV THE ALLOTMENT OF BASHAN AND THE LANDS ON THIS SIDE JORDAN GAVE THE INVADERS OF CANAAN AN IMPORTANT BASE OF OPERATIONS. No longer would they be, like Sherman in his advance through Savannah, marching on without a base. God gave them in Bashan the leverage they needed. Here they quartered the noncombatants till the land over Jordan was won. And so is it in the spiritual life. Out of one conquest future conquests are organized. We go forward in God"s guidance along a safe path to perfect victory. R.M.E.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On v1 So the Lord our God delivered into our hands…
Deu_3:1-11
So the Lord our God delivered into our hands Og also, king of Bashan.
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Mastery of formidable enemies
See--
1. How they got the mastery of Og, a very formidable prince.
(1) Very strong, for he was of the remnant of the giants (Deu_3:11). His personal strength was extraordinary; a monument of which was preserved by the Ammonites in his bedstead, which was shown as a rarity in their chief city. You might guess at his weight by the materials of his bedstead; it was iron, as if a bedstead of wood were too weak for him to trust to, And you might guess at his stature by the dimensions of it: it was nine cubits long, and four cubits broad; which, supposing a cubic to be but half a yard, was four yards and a half long, and two yards broad; and if we allow his bed to be two cubits longer than himself, and that is as much as we need allow, he was three yards and a half high, double the stature of an ordinary man, and every way proportionable; yet they smote him (Deu_3:3). When God pleads His peoples cause He can deal with giants as with grasshoppers. No mans might can secure him against the Almighty. His army likewise was very powerful, for he had the command of sixty fortified cities, besides unwalled towns (Deu_3:5); yet all this was nothing against Gods Israel, when they came with commission to destroy him.
2. He was very stout and daring; he came out against Israel to battle (Deu_3:1). It was wonder he did not take warning by the ruin of Sihon, and send to desire conditions of peace: but he trusted to his own strength and so was hardened to his own destruction. Those that are not awakened by the judgments of God upon others, but persist in their defiance of heaven, are ripening apace for the like judgments upon themselves (Jer_3:8). God bid Moses not fear him (Deu_3:2). If Moses himself was so strong in faith as not to need the caution, yet it is probable the people needed it; and for them these fresh assurances are designed, I will deliver him into thine hand. Not only deliver thee out of his hand, that he shall not be thy ruin; but deliver him into thy band, that thou shalt be his ruin, and make him pay dear for his attempt. He adds, Thou shalt do unto him as thou didst unto Sihon; intimating that they ought to be encouraged by their former victory to trust in God for another victory; for He is God, and changeth not.
2. How they got possession of Bashan, a very desirable country. They took all the cities (Deu_3:4), and all the spoil of them (Deu_3:7); they made them all their own (Deu_3:10), so that now they had in their hands all that fruitful country which lay east of Jordan, from the river Arnon unto Hermon (Deu_3:8). Their conquering and possessing of these countries was intended not only for the encouragement of Israel in the wars of Canaan, but for the satisfaction of Moses before his death; because he must not live to see the completing of their victory and settlement, God thus gives him a specimen of it. Thus the Spirit is given to them that believe, as the earnest of their inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession. (Matthew Henry, D. D.)
Review and prospect
Is it not remarkable that good causes and good men should meet with constant opposition? We are now perusing the history of a journey which was undertaken by Divine direction, and again and again we come upon the fact that the journey was from end to end bitterly opposed. Were this matter of ancient history we might, in a happier condition of civilisation and in a happier mood of mind, dispute the theory that Israel travelled under Divine direction and guidance; but this very thing is done today in our country, in all countries, in our own heart and life. Never man, surely, went to church without some enemy in the form of temptation, suggestion, or welcome in other directions, seeking to prevent his accomplishing the sacred purpose. He who would be good must fight a battle; he who would pray well must first resist the devil. This makes life very hard; the burden is sometimes too heavy; but the voice of history so concurs with the testimony of conscience, and the whole is so corroborated by the spirit of prophecy, that we must accept the discipline, and await with what patience God Himself can work within us the issue of the tragic miracle. Is there no compensatory consideration or circumstance? The Lord Himself must speak very distinctly in some conditions and relations of life. And the Lord said unto me. That is how the balance is adjusted. In the one verse, Og, king of Bashan; in the next verse--Jehovah. Thus the story of our life alternates--now an enemy, now a friend; now the fight is going to be too severe for us and we shall certainly fall, and now the Lord of hosts is in the van, and kings are burned by His presence as stubble is burned by the fire. What was the Divine message? It was a message adapted to the sensitiveness of the circumstances: Fear him not; for I will deliver him, and all his people, and his land, into thy hand: Get rid of fear, and you increase power. He who is strong in spirit is strong all through and through his nature; he who is only muscularly strong will fail in the fight. The brave heart, the soul alive with God--that will always conquer. Let us live and move and have our being in God. What was the consequence? We read the story in the fourth verse: And we took all his cities at that time, there was not a city which we took not from them, threescore cities, all the region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan. Opposition to God always means loss. There is no bad man who is successful. Do not let us interpret the word successful narrowly and partially, as if it were a term descriptive of mere appearances or momentary relationships. In the partial acceptation of the term the proposition will not bear examination; but in discussing great spiritual realities we must take in the full view; and, fixing the attention upon that view, the proposition remains an indestructible truth--that no bad man is really prosperous. He has no comfort. He eats like a glutton, but he has no true enjoyment; out of his bread he draws no poetry, no thought, no fire; it is lost upon him, for he is an evil eater. In his apparent wealth he is miserably poor. If it could be proved that a man can oppose God and be truly happy, the whole Christian kingdom would be destroyed by that proof, the word of the Lord, as written in the Book, is against the possibility. But what became of Og, the king of Bashan? We read in the eleventh verse, Behold his bedstead, etc. What an ending! How appropriate! How bitter the satire! Og, king of Bashan, came out to fight the people of God; a few verses are written in which battles are fought and cities taken, and at the end the bedstead of Og is nearly all that remains of the mighty king of Bashan! This is worthless fame; this is the renown that is pitiable. But there is no other renown for wicked men: they will leave a name in history, but a name the children will laugh at; they will leave behind them a memorial, but the memorial itself shall be an abiding sarcasm. The Lord turneth the counsel of the wicked upside down; the Lord will laugh at the wicked man and have all his devices in derision. His bedstead will be remembered when he himself is forgotten; he will be spoken of in the bulk and not in the quality; he will be measured like a log; he will be forgotten like an evil dream. The righteous shall be had in everlasting remembrance. Who would be wicked? Who would oppose God? Who would not rather coalesce with the heavens, and pray that the Spirit of God would work in the human heart the miracle of reconciliation with things eternal and celestial? (J. Parker, D. D.)
King Ogs bedstead
Why did not the Bible give us the size of the giant instead of the size of the bedstead? Why did it not indicate that the man was eleven feet high, instead of telling us that his couch was thirteen and a half feet long? No doubt among other things it was to teach us that you can judge of a man by his surroundings. Show me a mans associates, show me a mans books, show me a mans home, and I will tell you what he is without your telling me one word about him. Moral giants and moral pigmies, intellectual giants and intellectual pigmies, like physical giants or physical pigmies, may be judged by their surroundings. That man has been thirty years faithful in attendance upon churches and prayer meetings and Sunday schools, and putting himself among intense religious associations. He may have his imperfections, but he is a very good man. Great is his religious stature. That other man has been for thirty years among influences intensely worldly, and he has shut himself out from all other influences, and his religious stature is that of a dwarf. But let no one by this thought be induced to surrender to unfavourable environments. A man can make his own bedstead. Chantrey and Hugh Miller were born stonemasons, but the one became an immortal sculptor, and the other a Christian scientist whose name will never die. The late Judge Bradley worked his way up from a charcoal burner to the bench of the supreme court of the United States. Yes, a man can decide the size of his own bedstead. Notice furthermore, that even giants must rest. Such enormous physical endowment on the part of king Og might suggest the capacity to stride across all fatigue and omit slumber. No. He required an iron bedstead. Giants must rest. Not appreciating the fact, how many of the giants yearly break down! Giants in business, giants in art, giants in eloquence, giants in usefulness. Let no one think, because he has great strength of body or mind, that be can afford to trifle with his unusual gifts. King Og, no doubt, had a sceptre, but the Bible does not mention his sceptre. Yet one of the largest verses of the Bible is taken up in describing his bedstead. So God all up and down the Bible honours sleep. Adam, with his head on a pillow of Edenic roses, has his slumber blest by a Divine gift of beautiful companionship. Jacob, with his head on a pillow of rock, has his sleep glorified with a ladder filled with descending and ascending angels. Christ, with a pillow made out of the folded up coat of a fisherman, honours slumber in the back part of the storm-tossed boat. One of our national sins is robbery of sleep. Walter Scott was so urgent about this duty of slumber that, when arriving at a hotel where there was no room to sleep in, except that in which there was a corpse, inquired if the deceased had died of a contagious disease, and, when assured he had not, took the other bed in the room and fell into profoundest slumber. Those of small endurance must certainly require rest if even the giant needs an iron bedstead. Notice furthermore, that Gods people on the way to Canaan need not be surprised if they confront some sort of a giant. Had not the Israelitish host had trouble enough already? No! Red Sea not enough. Water famine not enough. Long marches not enough. Opposition by enemies of ordinary stature not enough. They must meet Og, the giant of the iron bedstead. Do you know the name of the biggest giant that you can possibly meet--and you will meet him? He is not eleven feet high, but one hundred feet high. His bedstead is as long as a continent. His name is Doubt. His common food is infidel books and sceptical lectures, and ministers who do not know whether the Bible is inspired at all or inspired in spots, and Christians who are more infidel than Christian. You will never reach the promised land unless you slay that giant. Kill doubt, or doubt will kill you. Another impression from my subject. The march of the Church cannot be impeded by gigantic opposition. That Israelitish host led on by Moses was the Church, and when Og, the giant, he of the iron bedstead, came out against him with another host--things must have looked bad for Israel. Moses of ordinary size against Og of extraordinary dimensions. Besides that, Og was backed up by sixty fortified cities. Moses was backed up seemingly by nothing but the desert that had worn him and his army into a group of undisciplined and exhausted stragglers. But the Israelites triumphed. The day is coming. Hear it, all ye who are doing something for the conquest of the world for God and the truth, the time will come when, as there was nothing left of Og, the giant, but the iron bedstead, kept at Rabbath as a curiosity, there will be nothing left of the giants of iniquity except something for the relic hunters to examine. (T. De Witt Talmage.)
The last of the giants
We, in our warfare, have many giants to contend against. As we go through our wanderings there are many places waste and wild as the tangled brakes and rugged rocks of Argob, in the land of Bashan. We have our wildernesses of temptation to pass over. In those wildernesses are many giants bigger than Og, more terrible than Anak, vaunting with greater insolence than Goliath of Gath. Perhaps you have conquered many of them. Is it so? Do they lie smitten and vanquished at your feet? Envious man, have you bound envy hand and foot and put him without your house and home? He is not dead, only chained. Beware lest in some unguarded moment he should be freed, and lead you captive with the accumulated power of long repose and the increased caution brought about by his former defeat. Is the evil spirit of anger vanquished which was formerly of such gigantic proportions? Or does it still rise at will from its bedstead to which, in prosperous sunshine, when nothing crosses us or thwarts us, it voluntarily retires? Is it bound there, or does it merely lie there in hiding, with no cords of religion to compel its slumbering inactivity? There are also Bunyans giants, some dead, some living--giants Pope and Pagan sadly disabled, giants Maul and Slaygood also disabled--giant Despair, still living in his dark dungeon with Mrs. Doubting his terrible wife. Giant Despair tells men and women to kill themselves, tells them God will never forgive them, shuts them up in his grim castle, and how can they escape? Those pilgrims found a key called Hope. With Hope in the breast adversity may be borne. The giant of Lust is a mighty giant also. And of all other giants the most dangerous to some natures. Many a sinner and some saints have found this the Og which has been last vanquished. God says, Fear not. Will you fear when your Maker tells you not to fear? Shall we not rather go and do our best against the sin that still struggles in our souls and would fain bring us to destruction? (S. B. James, M. A.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v1 CRITICAL NOTES.—Conquest of Og. Israel were able to advance…
CRITICAL NOTES.—Conquest of Og. Israel were able to advance to the Jordan after the defeat of Sihon and the conquest of his land. But Og, the Amonitish King, still kept the northern half of Gilead and all Bashan, a rugged mountainous country, valuable for rich and luxuriant pastures.
Deu_3:1. Came out. Without provocation, disliking the presence of the Israelites, or seeking to revenge the overthrow of his friends and allies, Og rushed to attack.
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Deu_3:2. Cf. Num_21:31, etc.
Deu_3:4. Argob (stony). A region including the sixty towns which formed the kingdom of Og in Bashan, i.e., all the towns of the land of Bashan, viz. (according to Deu_3:5) all the fortified towns besides the unfortified and open country towns of Bashan. (cf. Porter’s “Giant Cities of Bashan,” and “Historico-Geographical sketch of Bashan;” Camb. Essays, Art, “Ancient Bashan and the Cities of Og,” by Cyril Graham and Speak. Com. in loco).
Deu_3:8-11. Moses takes a retrospective view of the whole of the land taken on the other side of the Jordan; first of all (Deu_3:9) in its whole extent from the Arnon to Hermon, then (Deu_3:10) in its separate parts, to bring out in all its grandeur what the Lord had done for Israel. The notices of the different names of Hermon (Deu_3:9), and of the bed of king Og (Deu_3:11), are also subservient to this end.—Keil.
Deu_3:11. Giant’s Rephaim (Gen_14:5; Gen_15:20) bedstead of iron for strength, durability, and a prevention against insects which infest wood in warm climates. The ordinary cubit was eighteen inches. Now a bed is always larger than the man who sleeps in it. Probably Og had his bed made so large, partly for ostentation, partly “as a memorial of his superhuman greatness, on the occasion of some expedition of his against the Ammonites; and this bed may have been preserved in their capital as a proof of the greatness of their foe.”—Keil.
Deu_3:12 -Ver. 20. A review of the conquered land. “The land taken from the two kings was given by Moses to the two tribes and a half for a possession. The southern portion from Aroer in the Arnon valley (cf. Num_32:34), and half Gilead (as far as the Jablak, Deu_3:10) with its towns (which are enumerated, Jos_13:15-20; Jos_13:24-28) to the Reubenites and Gadites; and the northern half of Gilead, with the whole of Bashan (i.e. all the region of Argob, Deu_3:4, and Num_32:33.) to the half tribe of Manasseh.”—Keil.
Deu_3:15. Cf. Num_32:39-40; 1Ch_2:22.
Deu_3:16-17. The possession of Reuben and Gad is more exactly described according to its boundaries.
Deu_3:18-20. The two tribes and a half are reminded of the condition on which their possessions were given to them (cf. Num_32:20-32). Meet for war, lit., sons of power or might; not all men of war, or of age to war; but man specially powerful and fit for the enterprise.
Deu_3:22. He emphatic, if God Himself would fight, no need for fear.
Deu_3:25. Goodly mountain, the whole range of the mountains of Canaan, culminating in distant Lebanon—goodly, when contrasted with the arid desert. Moses longed to enter the land; naturally thought the Divine threatening was conditional and reversible, but his request not granted.
Deu_3:26. Wroth. Addressing the people, Moses mentions the punishment of their leaders as a most impressive warning to them (Speak. Com.). Their conduct was the occasion of his sin. Suffice, lit., enough for thee, be satisfied with what I have given and done for thee.
Deu_3:27. Pisgah, the northern portion of the mountains of Abarim. Top of Pisgah, i.e., Mount Nebo (Deu_24:1).
Deu_3:28. Cf. Deu_1:38; Deu_3:21; Deu_31:7; Num_27:23. A precise indication of the locality in which the address was given to Israel.
DIVINE ENCOURAGEMENT.—Deu_3:1-2
Before crossing Jordan, Israel turned and went northwards, “up the way to Bashan.” Og, a mighty king, ruled in that country. God purposed to give the Israelites all his lands, but they, perhaps, hesitated, or were afraid; hence the injunction, “Fear him not.”
I. The need of encouragement. In ordinary conflicts we have need of heart and courage. But special circumstances demand special help.
1. They were surrounded with dangers. In a rocky country (Argob), well suited to harass and entangle the invaders. With a powerful and warlike foe in front, well posted and defended in impregnable fortresses, they might well fear. Man, sinful man, is timid in spiritual conflict, and fear often leads to flight.
2. They were about to engage with a giant race. Og, the redoubtable leader, was the remnant of the Rephaim (Gen_14:5; Gen_15:20). The people were numerous and courageous. They “came out against us.” But giants are only pigmies before God.
II. The ground of encouragement. There is always reason for doing what God commands.
1. The Promise of God. “I will deliver him.” God’s promise is connected with His purpose, and what He has purposed He will do for us. Hence fear not, trust and obey.
2. Their own past experience. “Thou shalt do unto him as thou did’st unto Sihon.” One conquest gives joy and help for another. Every evil course forsaken, and every sinful habit subdued by God’s grace, give consciousness of God’s presence and qualify us for other contests. In our moral warfare let us have courage to do right, to resist temptation, and to serve God. To be undetermined when the work is so urgent, and the command to do it so authoritative, is disobedience and death.
THE CONQUEST OF OG.—Deu_3:1-7
“The last of his race in this region, he was still the ruler of his country; and the whole Amorite inhabitants from Hermon to the Jabbok, and from the Jordan to the desert, acknowledged the supremacy of this giant warrior. Og resolved to defend his country. It was a splendid inheritance, and he would not resign it without a struggle. Collecting his forces he marshalled them on the broad plain before Edrei. We have no details of the battle; but doubtless the Amorites and their leader fought bravely for country and for life. It was in vain; a stronger than human arm warred for Israel. Og’s army was defeated, and he himself was slain.”—Porter. Learn—
I. The power of right over might. God had given the land to Israel, and they were fighting for their possessions. Og was a mighty king. His people confided in his strength and their own prowess. They believed in worldly power, in physical force. In modern as well as in rude ages might is exalted and trusted. But “the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong.” “The fortunes of war” change, and one incautious step may end in ruin. Truth and right, God and His cause are mightiest and will prevail.
II. The impotence of hostile preparations against God. Og was confident in his attack. His cities were impregnable, and it was impossible for Israel to overcome them or escape. But how impotent to defend themselves. The sixty cities, walled to heaven and stoutly defended, were levelled to the dust. The rout was most wonderful and complete. So will it be with all power and hostility against the cause of God. “Voltaire boasted that it took twelve men to set up Christianity, but he would show that one man was sufficient to overthrow it,” says a writer. The giant power of this world may assault. Paganism, infidelity, and modern science may oppose, but God will defend His people and advance His kingdom.
III. The mysterious providence of God on behalf of His people. “Humanly speaking, Israel could never have conquered Og had he remained in the cities. They could not have invested the country, or endured long sieges. It would require no small amount of skill to entice these people from behind walls; and it is more improbable that such a people should, of their own free will, risk a battle in the open plain. There must have been some almost miraculous interference in favour of the Israelites. And from a casual notice in another place (Jos_24:12), we find that God sent a special scourge among these Rephaim in the shape of swarms of hornets, which we may suppose harassed them so much in their stone houses that they were driven out of their towns, and preferred the alternative of meeting the Israelites to perishing from the stings of these creatures.”—(Cyril Graham.) Thus by strange providences God helps His people.
THE CONQUEST OF TWO KINGS.—Deu_3:8-12
Sihon, king of Heshbon, and Og, king of Bashan, were two famous kings; conspicuous for bravery, high, and distinguished from all others, such was the dread they inspired that God gave Israel special encouragement in attacking them. These giants were conquered. “We utterly destroyed them.”
I. Conquest of enemies strong and numerous. These giants were strong in themselves, and in their cities and armies. They were strong in their feeling of security, and in their hope of victory. God never destroys His enemies in their weakness, but in their might, that the glory may be to His name. “I will break the chief (choice or highest) of their strength.” (Jer_49:35.)
II. Conquest to give place to others. Nations have their time, pass away, and give way to others. They are great one day and conquered the next. Their glory departs, and their inheritance is bestowed upon successors. Power, fame, and wealth are transferred from one to another; populations are destroyed and lands possessed to fulfil the purpose of God. Spiritually giant evils are overcome, and “rulers of the darkness of this world” are dislodged to secure and advance the interests of His people. In this we may learn—
1. God’s hatred to sin.
2. God’s severity against evil doers.
3. God’s kindness to His people.
III. Conquest most memorable. “This signal victory and its circumstances evidently impressed the people deeply at this time, and its memory, as the Psalms attest, lingered for ages after in the national mind.” (Speak Com.) Proverbs and inspired songs (cf. Num_21:27-30; Psa_135:11-12; Psa_136:19-21) commemorated the triumphs of Israel.
HOMILETIC HINTS AND SUGGESTIONS
Deu_3:1-2. Came out.
1. The boldness and self-confidence of the enemy. Men often infatuated by those very measures which they think are most wisely adopted.
2. The readiness of God to help, (a) In timidity. “Fear not.” (b) In danger. “I will deliver.” (c) In contest. “Thou shalt do unto him as thou didst unto Sihon.”
Deu_3:1-7. A famous victory. I. Victory promised before the battle. An evidence of God’s condescension and an encouragement to Israel. II. Victory gained by the strength of past experience. The conquest of Sihon prepared for the conquest of Og. The joy of victory spurs to further contest, and begets courageous faith. II. Victory most complete.
1. The cities destroyed.
2. The people exterminated.
3. The cattle taken; and
4. The land possessed and parcelled out to others.
Deu_3:11. King Og’s bedstead.
1. A monument of human folly. Trying to frighten by size.
2. A trophy of conquest. It might be seized as a prize, purchased from Israelites as a curiosity, or Og, being wounded, might have fled to Rabbath, and died on his own bedstead.
REVIEW OF CONQUERED TERRITORIES.—Deu_3:12-21
After the conquest of Sihon and Og, the remaining countries on the east side of Jordan were brought into subjection by the energy of Jair. This chief, according to the pastoral habits of his people, called the “Bashan villages”
(Num_32:41) by a name after his own, Bashan-havoth-jair. These conquered territories are reviewed in their extent and in their separate parts.
I. The method in which they were conquered. Whatever reason led the Israelites northwards, it was a matter of necessity as well as policy to secure a base of operations.
1. The lands were given by God, but acquired by human effort. God promised the land, but they had to fight and possess it. God’s purposes never interfere with our use of means, and the only way to secure possessions is to co-operate with Him.
2. The lands were finally subdued by chosen men. Jair occupied the pastoral parts, and Nobah (cf. Num_32:42), of the family of Machir, took Kenath, the capital, and gave his name to it. Pioneers have been found in all departments. In all warfare and enterprise a few heroic men have set examples, and stimulated others to follow them. They live among us in the records of history, and in the deeds of their lives. They bequeath to posterity a name to study, admire, and imitate.
II. The reasons for which they were held. Each tribe had its own conquests secured to them, and the boundaries so arranged as to prevent dispute. But wives and little ones were to be left in captured cities. Men of war were to go forward and drive out all the enemies before them, and then “return and be guiltless before the Lord” (cf. Num_32:20-23. The land was held on condition that they helped others. They fought for homes and inheritance for their brethren. Our wealth, position, and influence, are not given for selfish purposes, but to interest and help our fellow-men. We should be disinterested, for we can never be exempted in any service. This is the secret of personal enjoyment and successful work for Christ. “Then ye shall return unto the land of your posession and enjoy it.” Jos_1:13-15.
JOSHUA NOMINATED.—Deu_3:21-22
This reminiscence recalls God’s goodness in the appointment of Joshua (Num_27:12) which took place “at that time,” that is, after the conquest of the land on the east of Jordan. Joshua was honoured and qualified to succeed Moses, in an eminent degree, through the special service of the high priest, and the endowments of the Spirit of God. Yet the people needed encouragement in such a leader as Joshua, “Fear not,” etc. In these words, notice—
I. Past experience reminds of God’s goodness. “Thine eyes have seen,” etc. The testimony of sense and experience should be convincing enough. God’s goodness is not a mere declaration or display, but a matter of feeling and enjoyment. “O taste and see that the Lord is good.”
II. Past success a pledge of future help. “So shall the Lord do unto all the kingdoms whither thou passest.” What God had done to Sihon and Og, He could do unto all mighty men. His hand is never tired, never shortened, that it cannot save. What He begins for His people He will finish, and the victories of the past typify the future conquests of the gospel.
III. Present help should prompt to future courage. “The Lord your God shall fight for you,” therefore “fear not them.” When God is with us, our cause must be victorious. We reproach our leader, dishearten our comrades, and weaken ourselves, when we follow in fear and trembling. “Be strong, and quit yourselves like men,” that ye be not servants unto (your enemies). (1Sa_4:9.)
“Our doubts are traitors;
And make us lose the good we oft might win,
By fearing to attempt it.”—Shakespeare.
THE PRAYER OF MOSES.—Deu_3:23-28
Moses knew that he would not be permitted to enter Canaan, yet he desired to cross the Jordan and see the land. His request was not granted. In the answer we “behold the goodness and severity of God”—severity in the punishment of his sin and goodness in its mitigation.
I. The request of Moses. The entreaty is most fervent and affecting, containing an appeal to God’s greatness and power by which he was distinguished from heathen deities and known to his people.
1. To enjoy further manifestations of Divine goodness. “Thou hast begun to show.” The past was only a beginning, a foretaste. The more we see of Divine power and taste of Divine love, the more we desire to see.
2. To enter the land. “Let me go over and see the good land.” For this object had he lived, and when about to be realised he was disappointed. How often do we come near to success and never gain it! The hopes of a lifetime may be frustrated when apparently about to be realised.
3. To finish his work. It was natural for Moses to wish to retain the leadership to the end instead of resigning it into other hands. He had brought the people out of Egypt, why not lead them into Canaan and settle them in it? It is possible through sin to leave our work undone, or be made to resign it to others. But we must seek the honour of God, not our own, and be ready to encourage others whom God puts in our place.
II. The answer of God to this request. The prayer of Moses was not answered. God, in His infinite wisdom, refused, and besought him to urge the request no further. It was good for Israel, and good for Moses himself to be denied. “God,” says Cecil, “denies a Christian nothing, but with a design to give him something better.”
1. God demands submission to His will. “Let it suffice thee.” Be satisfied with past favours and present arrangements, and submit. Grace given, will be grace all sufficient. When we know God’s will, we must acquiesce at once without murmuring and disputing. “I besought the Lord thrice; and He said unto me, my grace is sufficient for thee.”
2. God refused entrance, but permits him to see the land. “Lift up thine eyes.” This view has been memorable in history, impressed our theology, and become a proverb in Christian life. Perhaps Moses was specially prepared for this vision, for “his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated.” Prayer is not always unsuccessful. God may refuse one thing and bestow another.
3. God assures him that his work shall be finished by the appointment of a successor. “Charge Joshua, for he shall go over before this people.” Workmen may be taken away, but the work shall go on. Moses may bring out of Egypt—Joshua must lead into Canaan. God finds the men; we are to train and charge them, to finish what we begin. Earnest workers, youthful vigour, shall never be wanting in the Christian Church. Hence, let us take encouragement, and fear to sin, lest we die before our special work is done. If Moses was excluded from Canaan, how can the sinner enter heaven? “They angered him also at the waters of strife, so that it went ill with Moses for their sakes.”
WISHING TO GO OVER JORDAN.—Deu_3:25
This desire seemed improper. For God had expressly said unto Moses and Aaron, “Ye shall not bring this congregation into the land.” Did Moses, then, through infirmity, think that God was changeable? No, but he thought whether the threatening was absolute, especially as it was not ratified by oath, as the exclusion of the people was. For many of God’s denunciations, in the sentence against Nineveh, for instance, have a condition implied, though not expressed, i.e., they will be executed unless repentance intervene; upon this principle it was possible for Moses to hope for retraction of the interdict. But the desire was a natural one. Natural to wish to enter Canaan as an object of curiosity, of which he had heard so much; still more as an object of hope, which had been promised so long with every enhancement. This animated the people to leave Egypt, and encouraged them in the desert. This was the end, the recompense of their toils for forty years, and now they had nearly reached it. How painful to miss the prize when the hand was seizing it—to have the cup dashed even from the lip! Yet the desire was refused. God sometimes refuses the desires of His servants, even the most eminent. He does this in two ways. Sometimes He does it in love. What is desired might prove dangerous and injurious. We should think badly of a father who gave a stone for bread, or a scorpion for a fish. But if the son were to ask for a scorpion instead of a fish, or cry for a sharp instrument, then would he not hate his child unless he rejected his wish? In many cases must a wise and good parent distinguish between wishes and wants! A child may wish for liberty, and want restraint; for a holiday, and want schooling; for dainties, and want medicine. Here the parent must act, not according to the wish, but the welfare of the child. How much better for the Jews had God turned a deaf ear to their importunity? Who knows what is good for a man in this life? No one but God—the good God. He sometimes refuses in anger. Wrath is incompatible with love; but anger is not: anger may even flow from it. Though Christians cannot be condemned, they may be chastened: and the law of the house is, that if the children obey not, He will visit with the rod. Hence those saved eternally may fall under present rebuke, and be refused many things on which they set their heart. By such conduct Providence teaches submission to His people, and the evil of sin to others. Yet His desire was partially indulged. The command to get on the top of Pisgah was not to tantalize him, but to be a mitigation of the severe sentence. The preservation of his sight fitted him for the gaze—the prospect showed him how worthy the country was of all that had been said about it; and would give him high views of the truth and goodness of God in His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. With this also was the influence of Divine grace which satisfied him and made him content with his condition. While his mind also raised to things above, in type and emblem, to a better country, into which he was immediately to enter—and there would be no want of Canaan. Thus in judgment God remembers mercy, and though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion. “Like as a father pitieth his children,” etc. (Condensed from Jay.)
HOMILETIC HINTS AND SUGGESTIONS
Deu_3:18-20. Your brethren. Armed before them to help them in warfare.
1. One party should not retire from active service or conflict until the rights of others are gained.
2. The welfare of one part of the community should be the concern of all.
3. There should be no schism nor separation in the body. This might easily have taken place with a geographical division so complete.
Deu_3:21; Deu_3:28. Appointment of Joshua 1. God’s care for His people.
2. God’s provision made for them—(a) In selecting suitable persons. (b) Securing them sympathy and co-operation. (c) In promising all needful help.
Deu_3:28.
1. The duties of Joshua (a) to lead into Canaan, “go over,” etc.; (b) divide the land and settle the tribes.” He shall cause them to inherit the land.”
2. The requirements of Joshua—(a) charge, (b) encourage, and (c) strengthen him.
Deu_3:25. Good land. Canaan promised—fruitful—the chosen home of God’s people and a type of heaven.
“All o’er those wide extended plains
Shines one eternal day;
There God, the Sun, for ever reigns,
And scatters night away.”—Stennett.
ILLUSTRATIONS TO CHAPTER 3
Deu_3:1-3. Og came out. Man pro-poses but God disposes. How many plans are rendered abortive by death. On the tomb of Mohammed II is the inscription, “I proposed to myself the conquest of Rhodes and proud Italy.” Og thought to destroy Israel. How different the result!
Deu_3:4-10. These cities. The conquest of Bashan, began under the leadership of Moses in person, was completed by Jair, one of the most distinguished chiefs of the tribe of Manasseh. In narrating his achievements, the sacred historian brings out another remarkable fact connected with this kingdom of Bashan. In Argob, one of its little provinces, Jair took no less than sixty great cities, “fenced with high walls, gates and bars; besides unwalled towns a great many.” Such a statement seems all but incredible. It would not stand the arithmetic of Bishop Colenso for a moment. Often, when reading the passage, I used to think that some strange statistical mystery hung over it; for how could a province measuring not more than thirty miles by twenty support such a number of fortified cities, especially when the greater part of it was a wilderness of rocks? But mysterious, incredible as this seemed, on the spot with my own eyes, I have seen that it is literally true. The cities are there to this day. Some of them retain the ancient names recorded in the Bible. Porter’s Giant Cities of Bashan.
Deu_3:11. Og. King of the district which under the name of Bashan, extended from the Jabbok up to the base of Hermon. There is no direct notice as in the case of Sihon, of his having invaded the country, and this omission, combined with the mention of his gigantic stature, warrants the conjecture that he was one of the leaders of the aboriginal race, for which Bashan had always been renowned.—Stanley.
Deu_3:18-20. Patriotism. Rest unto your brethren. He who loathes war and will do everything in his power to avert it, but who will in the last extremity, encounter its perils, from love of country and of home—who is willing to sacrifice himself and all that is dear to him in life, to promote the well-being of his fellow-man, will ever receive a worthy homage.—Abbott.
Deu_3:21-28. Never in the history of the chosen people, could there have been such a blank as that when they became conscious that “Moses, the servant of the Lord was dead.” He who had been their leader, their law giver, their oracle, as far back as their memory could reach, was taken from them at the very moment when they seemed most to need him. It was to fill up this blank that Joshua was called. The narrative labours to impress upon us the sense that the continuity of the nation and of its high purpose was not broken by the change of person and situation. “As I was with Moses, so will I be with thee” (Jos_1:5). There was indeed, as yet, no hereditary or fixed succession. But the germ of that succession is better represented by the very contrast between Moses and Joshua than in any other passage in the sacred history.—Stanley.
Deu_3:25. Let me go over. We wish to live; who can blame us? Life is sweet; but if our Maker have ordained that nothing but death can render us glorious, what madness is it to stick at the condition! Oh, our gross infidelity, if we do not believe that Great Arbitrer of the world infinitely wise, to know what is best for us; infinitely merciful, to will what He knows best; infinitely powerful, to do what He will!—Bp. Hall.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Sermon Bible 1900 · Public Domain On v1 I. It was a land, a good land, which…
Deu 3:25
I. It was a land, a good land, which Moses looked upon; it was a land of promise which God had prepared. Canaan was, in a sense, the heaven of Israel’s hope: the more heaven-like, perhaps, because it was so fair a feature of our world, because it was a land on which a foot could be firmly and joyfully planted—a home in which a man and family, a nation, could nobly dwell. St. Peter speaks of "a new heaven and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness." St. Peter and St. John looked for a scene which should be familiar, however transfigured, a scene which should keep its home-like character, however transformed.
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II. The images which are employed by the sacred writers as most expressive when they are treating of heaven are all borrowed from the higher forms of the development of man’s social and national life. This means that the human interests and associations prolong themselves in their integrity through death, and constitute the highest sphere of interest and activity in the eternal world. A home, a city, a country, a kingdom—these are the images; on the working out of these ideas the writers of the Scriptures spend all their force.
III. That good land beyond Jordan had some heaven-like feature herein: it was to be the theatre of the highest and holiest human association, under conditions most favourable to the most perfect development, and in an atmosphere of life which God’s benediction should make an atmosphere of bliss.
J. Baldwin Brown, The Soul’s Exodus and Pilgrimage, p. 361.
References: Deu 3:25, Deu 3:26.—Preacher’s Monthly, vol. vii., p. 299. Deu 3:27-29.—Parker, vol. v., p. 3. Deut 3—Parker, vol. iv., p. 90. Deu 4:1-23.—Clergyman’s Magazine, vol. iv.,p. 212. Deu 4:2.—H. L. Mansel, Bampton Lectures, 1858, p. 1. Deu 4:5-9.—J. Sherman, Penny Pulpit, No. 1901. Deu 4:6.—F. W. Farrar, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxii. p. 273.
The Sermon Bible, ed. William Robertson Nicoll (1888–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. R. Dummelow 1909 · Public Domain On v1 Review Of The Journey (concluded)
Review Of The Journey (concluded)
1-11. The conquest of Og, king of Bashan. See Num_21:33 to Num_35:5. The ruins of these cities remain to this day: see on Num_21:33.
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9. Sirion] means 'glittering like a polished shield,' and corresponds, therefore, to the name Mt. Blanc. The Hermon range is mostly covered with a cap of snow. In Deu_4:48; Hermon is also called 'Sion,' which means the same as Sirion, if indeed it is not a clerical error for that word.
10. Salchah] still existing under the name of Salkhad, a large town on the E. border of Bashan, lying on the great road from Galilee to the Persian Gulf.
11. The bedstead of iron of the giant king was in all probability his sarcophagus of black basalt which the Arabs still call 'iron.' Several such sarcophagi have been discovered E. of the Jordan. Conder believed that he discovered Og's 'bedstead' in the form of a huge stone throne at Rabbath. The word rendered 'bedstead' properly means a couch or divan: see e.g. Amo_3:12; Amo_6:4.
14. This took place later (see Jdg_10:3-4, and cp. Intro, to Numbers, § 2), and its insertion here indicates the work of a later hand, like the expression unto this day: cp. Deu_3:12. See on Num_32:41.
17. Chinnereth] the Lake of Gennesaret, or Sea of Galilee. The plain is again the Arabah: see on Num_1:1. Ashdod-pisgah] RV 'the slopes of Pisgah': cp. Deu_4:49.
18-20. See on Numbers 32.
23-28. See on Num_27:12-23.
J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Arno C. Gaebelein 1922 · Public Domain On v1 1. The conquest of Og (Deu 3:1-11)
CHAPTER 3
1. The conquest of Og (Deu 3:1-11)
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2. The land possessed (Deu 3:12-20)
3. Joshua in the place of Moses (Deu 3:21-29)
In obedience to the word of the Lord, they went to battle against Og, the king of Bashan. Obedience to the Lord and its results and blessing are the marks of the second and third chapters of Deuteronomy, while the first chapter shows disobedience and its fruit.
The kingdom of Og in Bashan was a powerful kingdom. The cities had high walls with gates and bars. Their number was sixty. Archaeological research has proven the existence of strong and fortified cities in that territory, the ruins of which may still be seen. The oldest dwellings and ruined towers of Hauran (Bashan) are described by C. Von Raumer in the following words: “Simple, built of heavy blocks of basalt, roughly hewn, and as hard as iron, with very thick walls, very strong stone gates and doors, many of which were about eighteen inches thick, and were formerly fastened with immense bolts, of which traces still remain; such houses as these may have been the work of the old giant tribe of Rephaim, whose king, Og, was defeated by the Israelites 3,000 years ago.” King Og was a giant, belonging to the remnant of the giant tribe of Rephaim. His iron bedstead is mentioned by Moses. There is nothing exaggerated about it. The bed was about twelve feet long and six feet broad, which does not mean that Og was as tall as that. Moses must have mentioned the bedstead of the slain giant, to remind the people of the great victory which the Lord had given them and to inspire them with confidence in the possession of the land. The Lord, who overthrew Og would certainly not fail them when they entered the land and met the enemies there.
They utterly destroyed men, women and children of every city. Many an infidel has sneered at this statement and blasphemed God, charging Him with cruelty and injustice for allowing such an extermination of human beings. God is righteous. These people were steeped in all kinds of vices and wickedness, similar to the depravity and vilest corruption of the Canaanites. God had to deal in judgment with them. He could not permit them to exist, and as the sovereign God He dealt with them in His righteous government.
“Now, the question is, Are we competent to understand these ways of God in government? Is it any part of our business to sit in judgment upon them? Are we capable of unraveling the profound and awful mysteries of divine providences? Can we--are we called upon to--account for the tremendous fact of helpless babes involved in the judgment of their guilty parents? Impious infidelity may sneer at these things; morbid sentimentality may stumble over them; but the true believer, the pious Christian, the reverent student of holy Scripture, will meet them all with this one simple but safe and solid question, ‘Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?’
“This, we may rest assured, is the only true way in which to meet such questions. If man is to sit in judgment upon the actings of God in government--if he can take upon himself to decide as to what is and what is not worthy of God to do, then, verily, we have lost the true sense of God altogether. And this is just what the devil is aiming at. He wants to lead the heart away from God; and to this end, he leads men to reason and question and speculate in a region which lies as far beyond their ken as heaven is above the earth. Can we comprehend God? If we could, we should ourselves be God” (C.H. Mackintosh).
This is a good answer to the infidel scoffer and should satisfy every Christian as well. The time is coming when the Lord will deal again in righteousness with this earth and then the slain of the Lord will be many.
The goodness and faithfulness of the Lord is thus unfolded by Moses in his address; it was meant for an encouragement to their faith and obedience. Next he speaks to them of the land, which the tribe of Reuben, Gad and half Manasseh received. We learned in our study of the book of Numbers that it was in self-will that they made the request. They were disobedient. Their failure is here completely overlooked by Moses. How beautifully this illustrates the grace of God!
He also reminded them of Joshua’s call to be his successor; it took place at that time, after the conquest of the land on the east of the Jordan. He had seen what the Lord had done and that was an assurance of what the Lord would do in the future. All is worded so as to encourage confidence in the Lord and obedience to His command. And is it not even so throughout His entire Word? Everything in His Word urges us on to trust in Him with fullest confidence. Happy are we if we do so and manifest that confidence by a loving obedience.
Then we find a prayer of Moses, which is unmentioned in Numbers. It is a beautiful prayer. He pleaded with the Lord to let him go over to see the good land. It could not be, on account of his sin at the waters of Meribah. Meekly he tells out the story of failure in the presence of the people and gives the Lord’s answer to him. Divine government had to shut him out from the land, but grace took him to the top of Pisgah to see, in company with the Lord, the land of promise.
Arno C. Gaebelein, The Annotated Bible (1913–1922) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v1 The Overthrow of King Og of Bashan
The Overthrow of King Og of Bashan
v. 1. Then we turned and went up the way to Bashan; and Og, the king of Bashan, came out against us, he and all his people, to battle at Edrei, Num 21:33-35.
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v. 2. And the Lord said unto me, Fear him not; for I will deliver him and all his people and his land in to thy hand; and thou shalt do unto him as thou didst unto Sihon, king of the Amorites, which dwelt at Heshbon. The children of Israel, then, were sure of the victory before ever the battle began.
v. 3. So the Lord, our God, delivered into our hands Og also, the king of Bashan, and all his people; and we smote him until none was left to him remaining; for it was again a war of extermination.
v. 4. And we Cook all his cities at that time, that is, the fortified towns; there was not a city which we took not from them, threescore cities, all the region of Argob, the northeastern section of this territory, 1Ki 4:13, about forty miles northeast of the Sea of Galilee, the entire kingdom sometimes being included in the name Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan; for these sixty cities may be said to have been the very heart of the country.
v. 5. All these cities were fenced with high walls, gates, and bars; beside unwalled towns a great many. The entire region is now known as the Hauran.
v. 6. And we utterly destroyed them, as we did unto Sihon, king of Heshbon, utterly destroying the men, women, and children of every city.
v. 7. But all the cattle and the spoil of the cities we took for a prey to ourselves.
v. 8. And we took at that time out of the hand of the two kings of the Amorites the land that was on this side Jordan, from the river of Arnon, which flows into the Dead Sea about the middle of its west side, unto Mount Hermon, in the extreme north, in the Anti-Lebanon range,
v. 9. (which Hermon the Sidonians call Sirion; and the Amorites call it Shenir,)
v. 10. all the cities of the plain, the valleys of Gilead, and all Gilead, and all Bashan, unto Salchah and Edrei, cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan.
v. 11. For only Og, king of Bashan, remained of the remnant of giants, of the nations of giants that had formerly inhabited this region, Gen 14:5; behold, his bedstead was a bedstead of iron; is it not in Rabbath of the children of Ammon? where Og may have left it on one of his campaigns of conquest. Nine cubits was the length thereof and four cubits the breadth of it, after the cubit of a man (at about 18 inches per cubit). Rabbath was the capital of the children of Ammon, and its ruins may be seen to this day.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv1, 3, 5, 8, 11 General Information:
General Information:
Moses continues reminding the people of Israel of what happened in the past.
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Og ... Sihon
These are names of kings. See how you translated these in Deuteronomy 1:4. (See: How to Translate Names)
Edrei ... Heshbon
These are names of cities. See how you translated these in Deuteronomy 1:4. (See: How to Translate Names)
Yahweh said to me, 'Do not fear him; ... given you ... under your control ... You will do ... as you did ... at Heshbon.'
Yahweh is speaking to Moses as if Moses were the Israelites, so the command "do not fear" and all instances of "you" and "your" are plural. (See: Forms of You)
fear him ... over him ... his people and his land
Here the words "him" and "his" refer to Og.
I have given you victory
Yahweh speaks of what he will do as if he had already done it. (See: Predictive Past)
You will do to him as you did to Sihon
The word "him" is a metonym for "his people." AT: "You will destroy Og and his people as you did Sihon" (See: Synecdoche)
translationWords
Bashan
king
people group
Yahweh
fear
Amorite
life
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv1, 4, 8, 9, 11 3:1-11 See Num 21:33-35.
3:1-11 See Num 21:33-35.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.