Chapter 3

1 The story of the conquest of Og king of Bashan. 11 The bigness of his bed. 12 The distribution of those lands to the two tribes and half. 23 Moses’ prayer to enter into the land. 26 He is permitted to see it.

1. Turned, and went. See Num. 21:32, 33.

Bashan. Probably from the Hebrew root meaning “to be soft,” “to be smooth.” The noun as a proper name would mean “smooth,” “fertile,” which is true of the region from the Yarmuk northward to Hermon. It has few trees, but a rich soil ideal for grain.

2. Fear him not. A repetition of Num. 21:34.

Deliver him. Compare Ex. 23:31; Deut. 7:24; 20:13.

3. Smote him. See Num. 21:35.

4. Argob. See 1 Kings 4:13. The meaning of the Heb. word ХArgob is not known.The area is east of the Sea of Galilee in the highland region of southeast Bashan, and included the cities of Karnaim and Ashtaroth.

6. Destroyed. The same word as in ch. 2:34 and meaning, basically, “to devote to,” “to dedicate,” that is, here, to destruction.

8. The land. The territory allotted to Gad and Reuben and the half tribe of Manasseh.

Arnon unto mount Hermon. The southern and northern boundaries of “the land.” Hermon, some 9,100 ft. above sea level, dominates the entire region.

9. Sirion. As the borders of several nations met at Mt. Hermon, it was given a name by each border people in their own language. The name Sirion, for Hermon, appears in the Ugaritic literature of northern Syria. For other instances of such differences in names see Gen. 23:2 and 31:47.

10. All the cities. The various types of territory within the conquered country are here mentioned.

Salchah and Edrei. See Joshua 13:11; Num. 21:33.

11. Giants. Literally, “Rephaim,” a very ancient people included among those defeated by Chedorlaomer and the kings associated with him (Gen. 14:5). They lived on both sides of the Jordan, and seem to have belonged to an earlier group of inhabitants of the region.

Bedstead. The word thus translated is also given as “couch” (Ps. 6:6; Amos 3:12; 6:4). It may refer also to a sarcophagus, or tomb.

13. Land of giants. Literally, the “land of the Rephaim” (see on v. 11). King Og was the last of the “giants.”

14. Jair. His mother was of the tribe of Manasseh, but his father was of the tribe of Judah (see 1 Chron. 2:22). Jair had conquered this territory, which was, accordingly, given to him and his descendants (Num. 32:41).

Geshuri and Maachathi. This was the district between the Yarmuk and Hermon, being the western part of Bashan (see Gen. 22:24; 2 Sam. 15:8; 1 Chron. 19:6).

15. Machir. That portion of Gilead that had not been given to the children of Gad was allotted to the descendants of Machir (Num. 32:40).

16. Half the valley. The stream that flowed through the valley, or wadi, was to form the boundary.

Jabbok. This stream was to be the other boundary of the territory. It was here that Jacob wrestled with the Angel (Gen. 32:22–24).

17. Chinnereth. The Sea of Chinnereth (Joshua 12:3; 13:27). There was also a city of the same name (Joshua 19:35), from which the lake received its name. It was on the northwestern shore of the lake, its ruins now being known as Tell elРФOreimeh. The Sea of Chinnereth is the NT Sea of Galilee, also called the Lake of Gennesaret, and later known as the Sea of Tiberias.

The salt sea. Known also as the Dead Sea, “the sea of the plain” (Deut. 4:49; 2 Kings 14:25, cf. Gen. 14:3; Num. 34:3, 12).

Under Ashdoth-pisgah eastward. Literally, “under the slopes of Pisgah on the east” (RSV). Mt. Pisgah, with its peak, Nebo, now called RaЖs esРSiaЖghah, is in the mountains of Abarim, overlooking the Dead Sea from the eastern side (see Num. 27:12; Deut. 34:1–3).

18. I commanded you. A reference to the command given to the tribes of Reuben and Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh (see Num. 32:20).

Hath given you this land. As they had specifically requested (Num. 32:20–22).

Armed. See Num. 32:17–32.

Before your brethren. The members of the two tribes were to be an advance guard of the army of Israel. Compare the valor of Gad in ch. 33:20.

19. Your wives. See Num. 32:16, 24, 26.

20. Rest. When the Promised Land was occupied, Joshua dismissed the armies of the two and a half tribes to return to their own territory on the other side of Jordan (Joshua 22:4).

21. Thine eyes have seen all. Literally, “thine own eyes, these were the ones seeing all.” Moses’ appeal was to the people to remember the way by which God had led them.

22. The Lord. The last half of the verse reads literally, “Jehovah your God, He is the one fighting for you.” The pronoun “he” is emphatic.

23. I besought. The form of the Hebrew verb suggests the translation, “I was seeking favor of the Lord for myself.” This was when God told Moses that he would not enter the Land of Promise but must die at the border (Num. 27:12, 13).

24. Begun to shew. Moses was eager to witness the end of the conquest of Canaan, as he had its beginning.

Mighty hand. See Joshua 4:24. The hand is a symbol of power, for it is the instrument by which power is exercised. It is translated “dominion” in 1 Chron. 18:3 and 2 Chron. 21:8.

What God is there? Moses knew that other nations believed in a heaven peopled by many goods, but he knew that there was but one God; all others were figments of the imagination.

25. See. In the sense of becoming acquainted with firsthand, that is, by personal experience.

That goodly mountain, and Lebanon. Literally, “this good hill country and Lebanon,” or perhaps better, “this good mountain, even Lebanon.” The name Lebanon, from the verb “to be white,” means “white (mountain).” The cool, wooded slopes of the mountain and its snow-covered cap looked inviting and desirable in contrast to the desert country. Moses longed to walk in the cool of Lebanon.

26. Was wroth. From a word whose root means “to pass over.” The form here used being reflexive, the word means “to exceed the limit,” that is, to be beside oneself in respect to someone or some incident (see Ps. 78:21, 59, 62).

27. Pisgah. See on v. 17.

Not go over. Compare Deut. 31:2 and Joshua 1:2, 11.

28. He shall go over. The pronoun is emphatic: “He is the one who shall cross over.” By this emphasis Moses knew that the decision was irrevocable.

29. Beth-peor. The first word of this compound term means “house.” The second word, “peor,” may be from a root meaning “to be greedy,” “to be open,” “to have eager desire.” In this case the name would mean, “the house of desire.” In this vicinity Moses was buried by God (ch. 34:6).

Ellen G. White comments

1-11PP 435-437

2     PP 436

4, 5 PP 435

24-27PP 462

25   DA 421; PP 479

26   PP 419, 420; 3T 319

26, 27  SR 166

27   MH 508