Deuteronomy 2 · WEB
Wandering, Then Moving: Edom, Moab, and the First Victories
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Then we turned and took our journey into the wilderness by the way to the Red Sea, as the LORD spoke to me; and we encircled Mount Seir many days.
2The LORD spoke to me, saying,
3"You have encircled this mountain long enough. Turn northward.
4Command the people, saying, 'You are to pass through the border of your brothers the children of Esau, who dwell in Seir; and they will be afraid of you. Take careful heed to yourselves therefore.
5Don't contend with them; for I will not give you any of their land, no, not so much as for the sole of a foot to tread on; because I have given Mount Seir to Esau for a possession.
6You shall purchase food from them for money, that you may eat; and you shall also buy water from them for money, that you may drink.
7For the LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hand. He has known your walking through this great wilderness. These forty years the LORD your God has been with you. You have lacked nothing."'
8So we passed by from our brothers the children of Esau, who dwell in Seir, from the way of the Arabah, from Elath and from Ezion Geber. We turned and passed by the way of the wilderness of Moab.
9The LORD said to me, "Don't bother Moab, neither contend with them in battle; for I will not give you any of his land for a possession, because I have given Ar to the children of Lot for a possession."
10(The Emim lived there before, a great and numerous people, and tall as the Anakim.
11These also are considered Rephaim, as the Anakim; but the Moabites call them Emim.
12The Horites also lived in Seir before, but the children of Esau succeeded them. They destroyed them from before them, and lived in their place, as Israel did to the land of his possession, which the LORD gave to them.)
13"Now rise up, and cross the brook Zered." We went over the brook Zered.
14The days in which we came from Kadesh Barnea, until we crossed the brook Zered, were thirty-eight years; until all the generation of the men of war were consumed from the middle of the camp, as the LORD swore to them.
15Moreover the hand of the LORD was against them, to destroy them from the middle of the camp, until they were consumed.
16So it happened, when all the men of war had finally died from among the people,
17that the LORD spoke to me, saying,
18"You are to pass over Ar, the border of Moab, today.
19When you come near the children of Ammon, don't bother them, nor contend with them; for I will not give you any of the children of Ammon's land for a possession, because I have given it to the children of Lot for a possession."
20(That also is considered a land of Rephaim: Rephaim lived there before; but the Ammonites call them Zamzummim,
21a great and numerous people, and tall as the Anakim; but the LORD destroyed them before them; and they succeeded them, and lived in their place,
22as he did for the children of Esau, who dwell in Seir, when he destroyed the Horites from before them; and they succeeded them, and lived in their place even to this day.
23And the Avvim who lived in villages as far as Gaza, the Caphtorim who came from Caphtor destroyed them, and lived in their place.)
24"Rise up, take your journey, and pass over the valley of the Arnon. Behold, I have given into your hand Sihon the Amorite king of Heshbon, and his land. Begin to possess it, and contend with him in battle.
25I will begin to put the dread of you and the fear of you on the peoples who are under the whole sky, who shall hear the report of you, and shall tremble and be in anguish because of you."
26I sent messengers out of the wilderness of Kedemoth to Sihon king of Heshbon with words of peace, saying,
27"Let me pass through your land. I will only go along the road. I will turn neither to the right hand nor to the left.
28You shall sell me food for money, that I may eat; and give me water for money, that I may drink. Only let me pass through on my feet,
29as the children of Esau who dwell in Seir and the Moabites who dwell in Ar did to me, until I cross the Jordan into the land which the LORD our God gives us."
30But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass by him; for the LORD your God hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, that he might deliver him into your hand, as it is today.
31The LORD said to me, "Behold, I have begun to deliver up Sihon and his land before you. Begin to possess, that you may inherit his land."
32Then Sihon came out against us, he and all his people, to battle at Jahaz.
33The LORD our God delivered him up before us; and we struck him, his sons, and all his people.
34We took all his cities at that time, and utterly destroyed every inhabited city, with the women and the little ones. We left no one remaining.
35Only the livestock we took for plunder for ourselves, with the plunder of the cities which we had taken.
36From Aroer, which is on the edge of the valley of the Arnon, and the city that is in the valley, even to Gilead, there was not a city too high for us. The LORD our God delivered all up before us.
37Only to the land of the children of Ammon you didn't come near: all along by the river Jabbok, and the cities of the hill country, and wherever the LORD our God forbade us.
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Summary
Moses recalls Israel's long circuit around Edom and Moab during the forty years of wandering. God instructs Israel not to provoke Edom (descendants of Esau) or Moab and Ammon (descendants of Lot), since those lands belong to those nations by God's assignment. When the forty years are complete and the old generation has died, God commands Israel to move north and grants them victory over Sihon, the Amorite king of Heshbon, who refused to let them pass peacefully. This first military victory is a sign of greater conquests to come.
Themes
- God's sovereign allocation of lands to different peoples, including non-Israelite nations
- Patience and waiting for God's timing — forty years of preparation
- God's providential care: "You have lacked nothing" during the wilderness years
- The beginning of holy war and Israel's identity as a conquering nation under God's direction
Key verses
- Deut 2:25 — “I will begin to put the dread of you and the fear of you on the peoples who are under the whole sky, who shall hear the report of you, and shall tremble and be in anguish because of you.”
- Deut 2:30 — “But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass by him; for the LORD your God hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, that he might deliver him into your hand.”
- Deut 2:7 — “For the LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hand. He has known your walking through this great wilderness. These forty years the LORD your God has been with you. You have lacked nothing.”
Context & background
The regions mentioned in this chapter correspond to territory in modern-day Jordan and southern Syria. Edom occupied the highland area southeast of the Dead Sea (southern Jordan today). Moab lay east of the Dead Sea in central Jordan. Ammon's territory was in the area of modern Amman, Jordan's capital city — in fact, "Amman" preserves the ancient name "Ammon." The Arnon River (Wadi Mujib in modern Jordan) was a major boundary, and the conquest of Heshbon (modern Hesban, Jordan) represents the first Israelite military victory on the road to Canaan.
Cross-references
- Genesis 19:36-38 — The origin of Moab and Ammon as descendants of Lot
- Genesis 36:1-9 — The origin of Edom as descendants of Esau
- Numbers 20:14-21 — Edom's original refusal to allow Israel to pass
- Numbers 21:21-30 — The first account of the defeat of Sihon
- Romans 9:17-18 — Paul cites the hardening of a ruler's heart as part of God's sovereign plan