Deuteronomy 3:4

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Deuteronomy 3:1-11

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, Ps. 135:11; 136:19, 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 (Deut. 3:11); his personal strength was extraordinary, a monument of which was preserved by the Ammonites in his bedstead,... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Deuteronomy 3:4

And we took all his cities at that time ,.... Not only Edrei where the battle was fought, and Ashteroth his capital city, but all the rest in his kingdom: there was not a city which we took not from them ; not one stood out, but all surrendered on summons; the number of which follows: three score cities ; which was a large number for so small a country, and shows it to be well inhabited: all the region of Argob ; which was a small province of the kingdom of Og in Bashan :... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Deuteronomy 3:4

All the region of Argob - ארגב חבל כל col chebel Argob , all the cable or cord of Argob; this expression, which is used in various other parts of Scripture, (see, in the original, Amos 7:17 ; Micah 2:5 ; Deuteronomy 32:9 ; Psalm 16:6 ;), shows that anciently land was measured by lines or cords of a certain length, in a similar way to that by the chain among us, and the schoenus or cord among the Egyptians. Some think that it was the region of Argob that was afterwards called... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Deuteronomy 3:4

Verse 4 4.And we took all the cities. He here more fully relates what He had brieflytouched upon in Numbers. He says that sixty, well-fortified cities were taken, besides the villages. Hence we infer both the extent of the country, and also the special power of God in the aid He afforded them, in that they took, in so short a time, so many cities well closed in, and begirt with high walls; as if they were merely travelling, through a peaceful land in security, and with nothing to do. After the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Deuteronomy 3:1-11

EXPOSITION 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... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Deuteronomy 3:1-12

The conquest of Og. 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,... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Deuteronomy 3:1-17

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" ( Deuteronomy 3:13 ), 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 ( Deuteronomy 3:11 ). In a rude age and country , force was the recognized ruler, and the biggest man in consequence... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Deuteronomy 3:1-20

Self-propagating conquest. There is solid truth in the French proverb: "It is the first step that costs." An untried course makes large demands on a man's thought, self-watchfullness, and energy; but when habit is acquired, the machinery of the soul works with smooth facility. Enterprises which are most arduous at the first, become by repetition as simple as a natural instinct. I. CONQUEST INDUCES NEW ENERGY . The joy of conquest is a spur to fresh endeavor. The appetite for... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Deuteronomy 3:4

Threescore cities ; probably the same as the Bashan-havoth jair, afterwards mentioned ( Deuteronomy 3:14 ). The region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan. The region of Argob comprised the kingdom of Og, and Bashan was another name for the same country; extending from the Jabbok to Hermon, and embracing both the northern part of Gilead, and what was afterwards in a stricter sense Bashan, viz. the land north of the Wady Zerka ( hod . Jebel Ajlan) to Hermon. The name Argob is... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Deuteronomy 3:4

Threescore cities - Probably the cities of Jair in Bashan described in Deuteronomy 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. Joshua 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 Luke 3:1, or “the rough... read more

Group of Brands