Sihon would not allow Israel to pass through his border, but Sihon gathered all his people together, and went out against Israel into the wilderness, and came to Jahaz. He fought against Israel. Israel struck him with the edge of the sword, and possessed his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, even to the children of Ammon; for the border of the children of Ammon was fortified. Israel took all these cities. Israel lived in all the cities of the Amorites, in Heshbon, and in all its villages. For Heshbon was the city of Sihon the king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab, and taken all his land out of his hand, even to the Arnon.
Therefore those who speak in proverbs say, “Come to Heshbon. Let the city of Sihon be built and established;
for a fire has gone out of Heshbon, a flame from the city of Sihon. It has devoured Ar of Moab, The lords of the high places of the Arnon.
Woe to you, Moab! You are undone, people of Chemosh! He has given his sons as fugitives, and his daughters into captivity, to Sihon king of the Amorites.
We have shot at them. Heshbon has perished even to Dibon. We have laid waste even to Nophah, Which reaches to Medeba.”
Thus Israel lived in the land of the Amorites. Moses sent to spy out Jazer. They took its villages, and drove out the Amorites who were there.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv24, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30 For the people were tall and strong like giants,…
For the people were tall and strong like giants, Deut. 2:20.
The river.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv23, 27, 30 Num 21:23 And Sihon would not suffer Israel to…
Num 21:23 And Sihon would not suffer Israel to pass through his border: but Sihon gathered all his people together, and went out against Israel into the wilderness: and he came to Jahaz, and fought against Israel.
Ver. 23. And Sihon would not.] He durst not trust them: men muse as they use: God had also hardened his heart, that he might come forth to fetch his own destruction. {Deu 2:30} Judgment need not go to find wicked men out; they run to meet their bane.
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 vv23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 32 Jahaz, a city, of which see Deu 2:32; Jer…
Jahaz, a city, of which see Deu 2:32; Jer 48:21.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv23–31 For Heshbon was the city of Sihon the king…
For Heshbon was the city of Sihon the king of the Amorites,.... His royal city, where he kept his palace, where he had resided for some time, and perhaps some of his predecessors; and therefore being now in his possession when taken by the Israelites, they had a good right and title to keep it, and dwell in it: and indeed this is here given as a reason of it:
who had fought against the former king of Moab; either the king that reigned before Balak, or some king of Moab, that reigned formerly, against whom one of the name of Sihon, which might be a common name to the kings of the Amorites, as Pharaoh to the Egyptians, had engaged in war:
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and taken all his land out of his hand, even unto Arnon; and had been in the hands of the Amorites some years; and therefore the Moabites had no reason to object to the Israelites dwelling in it, and possessing it, which they had not taken from them, but from the Amorites in a lawful war. And for proof of this, reference is had to the bards and poets of those times, who were the persons that transmitted in verse the history of famous actions to posterity.
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 vv24, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 32 From Arnon - Or, which reached from Arnon; and…
From Arnon - Or, which reached from Arnon; and so here is a description or limitation of Sihon's conquest and kingdom, that is, extended only from Arnon, unto the children of Ammon; and then the following words, for the border of the children of Ammon was strong, come in very fitly, not as a reason why the Israelites did not conquer the Ammonites, for they were absolutely forbidden to meddle with them, Deut. iii, 8, but as a reason why Sihon could not enlarge his conquests to the Ammonites, as he had done to the Moabites. Jabbok - A river by which the countries of Ammon and Moab were in part bounded and divided. Strong - Either by the advantage of the river, or by their strong holds in their frontiers.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv26–27 Verse 26. For Heshbon was the city of Sihon,…
Verse 26. For Heshbon was the city of Sihon, &c.] It appears therefore that the territory now taken from Sihon by the Israelites was taken from a former king of Moab, in commemoration of which an epikedion or war song was made, several verses of which, in their ancient poetic form, are here quoted by Moses.
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 vv24, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 32 Num 21:24. From Arnon — Or, which reached from…
Num 21:24. From Arnon — Or, which reached from Arnon; and so here is a description or limitation of Sihon’s conquest and kingdom, that it extended only from Arnon unto the children of Ammon — And then the following words, for the border of the children of Ammon was strong, come in very fitly, not as a reason why the Israelites did not conquer the Ammonites, for they were absolutely forbidden to meddle with them, (Deu 3:8,) but as a reason why Sihon could not enlarge his conquests to the Ammonites, as he had done to the Moabites. Jabbok — A river by which the countries of Ammon and Moab were in part bounded and divided. Strong — Either by the advantage of the river, or by their strong holds in their frontiers.
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 vv24, 25, 27, 29, 32 Jabbok (now Wady Zerka: compare Gen 32:22) runs eastward…
Jabbok (now Wady Zerka: compare Gen 32:22) runs eastward under Rabbah of the children of Ammon, thence westward, and reaches the Jordan, 45 miles north of the Arnon. It was between Rabbah and Gerasa that it formed the Ammonite boundary.
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 vv23, 24, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 32 Jasa was not far from the Arnon, between Medaba…
Jasa was not far from the Arnon, between Medaba and Dibon, Isaias xv. 4. (Eusebius)
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 vv24, 25, 26, 27, 29 from Arnon unto Jabbok--now the Zurka. These rivers formed…
from Arnon unto Jabbok--now the Zurka. These rivers formed the southern and northern boundaries of his usurped territory.
for the border of . . . Ammon was strong--a reason stated for Sihon not being able to push his invasion further.
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 vv23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30, 32 23. Jahaz — “A place trodden down.” See Jos_13:18,…
23. Jahaz — “A place trodden down.” See Jos_13:18, note.
Fought against Israel — According to Josephus the Amorite army contained every man in the nation fit to bear arms. Being unable to fight when away from the shelter of their cities, and being galled by the slings and arrows of the Hebrews, in their intense thirst the Amorites rushed to the stream, and to the shelter of the ravine of the Arnon, and were slaughtered in vast numbers.
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 vv23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 32 23. the wilderness] See on Num_21:13.
23. the wilderness] See on Num_21:13.
Jahaz] Deu_2:32, Isa_15:4, Jer_48:34. The form Jahzah is used in Jos_13:18; Jos_21:36, Jdg_11:20 (Heb.), Jer_48:21, 1Ch_6:78. The site is unknown, but it evidently lay on the eastern boundary of Sihon’s territory, since he came thither to prevent Israel from crossing it. In agreement with this it is twice mentioned with Kedemoth (Jos_13:18; Jos_21:36 f.), which is the name of ‘the wilderness’ in Deu_2:26, and twice seems to be named as a limit of Moab, at some distance from Heshbon (Isa_15:4, Jer_48:34).
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 vv24, 25, 26, 27, 31 (24) For the border of the children of Ammon…
(24) For the border of the children of Ammon was strong.—These words assign the reason why the conquests of the Amorites were arrested, not why the children of Israel did not take possession of the land of the Ammonites, with whom they were forbidden to meddle, and whose land they were not to occupy. (See Deu_2:19.)
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 32 And he came to Jahaz, or Jahzah, a place…
And he came to Jahaz, or Jahzah, a place of which we know nothing.
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 v32 Og the king of Bashan went out against them.
Num_21:32-35
Og the king of Bashan went out against them.
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War with the king of Bashan
When God had removed one great rub out of Israels way to Canaan, namely, Sihon, king of Heshbon, now starts up another remora, greater (at least in person) than the former, namely, Og king of Bashan, who came forth to war against them (Num_21:33-35), but more largely described (Deu_3:1-22), wherein Gods kindness to Israel in that war with the king of Bashan is amply characterised.
1. The occasion of the war. Og came forth and gave the first assault against Israel, before they assaulted him or his people (Num_21:2), together with which we are told what a formidable adversary this king was, being a man of prodigious stature, whereof a conjecture may easily be collected from the vast length of his bed (Num_21:11).
2. The management of this war.
(1) God doth encourage Israel with comfortable words, and enabled them to do the deed in conquering the enemy (Num_21:2-3).
(2) Then Israel (thus encouraged and enabled by the Lord of Hosts) went forth in the strength of the Lord (Psa_71:16), and smote them taking all their cities and villages, walled and unwalled, and their whole country, destroying all ages and sexes, and taking the spoil of all their cattle (Num_21:4-10).
3. The event of this conquest, which was the consequence of the victory, namely, the distribution of this new conquered country to the tribes of Reuben and Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh (verses 12-17), and the terms upon which this country was thus distributed to those tribes (verses 18-20), which happy event was a pledge for encouraging Joshua to be confident of all his future conquests (verses 21, 22). From this whole history arises this following, namely, when one evil or impediment in our way to heaven is removed, God often permits another and worse to spring up for our new exercise; as it was here with Israel, no sooner had they vanquished Sihon (who stood in their way to Canaan), but immediately Og starts up to make them a new opposition. His formidable stature might have made Israel to fly, as niter Goliath made them, for want of faith (1Sa_17:24). He was likely one of the remnant of those Rephaims, or giants, whom Chedorlaomer and his company of kings smote in Ashtoreth (Gen_14:5, with Jos_13:12), for Og reigned there. (C. Ness.)
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The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv24, 27, 29, 31 Israel attacked
Israel attacked
Here "Israel" refers to the people of Israel. AT: "The Israelites attacked" (See: Metonymy)
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with the edge of the sword
"with the sharp part of the sword." The "edge of the sword" is associated with death and complete destruction. AT: "and completely defeated them" (See: Metonymy)
took their land
"conquered the land of the Amorites." Here the word "their" refers to the Amorites.
the people of Ammon ... the Amorites
"the Ammonites ... the Amorites" or "the people of Ammon ... the people of Amor." These names are similar, but they refer to two different people groups.
was fortified
"was strongly defended." The Israelites did not attack the Ammonites.
Heshbon and all of its villages
Here "its" is possessive to show that a relationship existed between the city of Heshbon and these nearby villages. AT: "Heshbon and the nearby villages that it controlled"
Sihon had taken all his land
Here "his" refers to the king of Moab.
translationWords
Israel
sword
people group
Ammon
stronghold
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 vv25–30 21:25 The area conquered at this time became home…
21:25 The area conquered at this time became home to the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh (cp. ch 32).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.