passed by. Compare Numbers 20:21 ; Numbers 21:11-13 . from Elath, &c. Gulf of Akabah. Compare Numbers 33:35 , Numbers 33:36 , and 1 Kings 9:26 . wilderness of Moab. See the route, Judges 11:16-18 . read more
"And we turned and passed by the way of the wilderness of Moab. And Jehovah said unto me, Vex not Moab neither contend with them in battle; for I will not give thee of his land for a possession; because I have given Ar unto the children of Lot for a possession. (The Emim dwelt therein aforetime, a people great, and many, and tall, as the Anakim: these also are accounted Rephaim, as the Anakim; but the Moabites call them Emim. The Horites also dwelt in Seir aforetime, but the children of Esau... read more
8-18. we passed . . . through the way of the plain—the Arabah or great valley, from Elath ("trees") (the Ailah of the Greeks and Romans). The site of it is marked by extensive mounds of rubbish. Ezion-geber—now Akaba, both were within the territory of Edom; and after making a circuit of its southeastern boundary, the Israelites reached the border of Moab on the southeast of the Salt Sea. They had been forbidden by divine command to molest the Moabites in any way; and this special honor was... read more
2. The march from Kadesh to the Amorite frontier 2:1-23Following Israel’s second departure from Kadesh (Numbers 20) the nation set out for "the wilderness" (Deuteronomy 2:1). This was probably the wilderness of Moab to the east of the Dead Sea. They traveled by "the way to the Red Sea" (Deuteronomy 2:1). This probably refers to the caravan route that ran from several miles south of the Dead Sea to Elath. Elath stood at the northern tip of the Gulf of Aqabah. Then they "circled" around to the... read more
Review of the Journey (continued)1. The Red sea] i.e. the Gulf of Akaba. On Mt. Seir see Numbers 20:22-29. 4. Through the coast] RV ’through the border,’ as in Numbers 20:18. The Edomites, however, refused to give them a passage through their country: see Numbers 20:14-21. The Israelites accordingly went southward towards Elath and Ezion-geber at the N. end of the Gulf of Akaba (see Deuteronomy 2:8 and on Numbers 20:22), and so round Edom to the country of the Moabites. 9. The Moabites and the... read more
(8) When we passed . . . from . . . Esau . . . through the way of the plain from Elath.—The route from Seir, after Esau’s refusal, was southward to Ezion-geber, at the head of the Gulf of Akabah, and Elath, a few miles south-east of Ezion-geber, on the same coast. They then turned northward, and going round the territory of Edom, reached the country of Moab. read more
Deuteronomy 2:30 Professor Andrew Harper remarks on this verse that the writer 'does not mean... to lay upon God the causation of Sihon's obstinacy, so as to make the man a mere helpless victim. His thought rather is, that as God rules all, so to Him must ultimately be traced all that happens in the world. In some sense all acts, whether good or bad, all agencies, whether beneficent or destructive, have their source in, and their power from, Him. But nevertheless men have moral responsibility... read more
THE DIVINE GOVERNMENTDeuteronomy 1:1-46; Deuteronomy 2:1-37; Deuteronomy 3:1-29AFTER these preliminary discussions we now enter upon the exposition. With the exception of the first two verses of chapter 1, concerning which there is a doubt whether they do not belong to Numbers, these three chapters stand out as the first section of our book. Examination shows that they form a separate and distinct whole, not continued in chapter 4; but there has been a great diversity of opinion as to their... read more
3. After the Forty Years and From Conflict to Conquest CHAPTER 2 1. From Kadesh to the land of the Amorites (Deuteronomy 2:1-23 ) 2. The command to possess (Deuteronomy 2:24-25 ) 3. The conquest of Sihon (Deuteronomy 2:26-37 ) The many days in the first verse are the thirty-eight years. We must notice the little word “we.” “We turned and took our journey into the wilderness.” Moses, Aaron, his sons, Joshua, Caleb and the faithful Levites turned back with the unfaithful, murmuring... read more
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Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Deuteronomy 2:1-37
From Kadesh to Jordan (2:1-3:29)God told the Israelites that if they went through the land of Edom, they were not to seize any territory. This was partly because Edom was Israel’s brother nation (being descended from Esau), and partly because the Edomites’ territory, formerly possessed by the Horites, had been given them by God (2:1-7). Similar restrictions applied to Israel’s relations with the nations of Moab and Ammon, both of which were also related to Israel (being descended from Lot).... read more