Verses 1-3
Numbers 21:1-Leviticus : . Success over the King of Arad.— Since Arad, the modern Tell Arad, 17 miles from Hebron, was in the south of Canaan, and a successful advance of the whole people in that direction would hardly have been followed by a circuit round Edom ( Numbers 21:4 f .) with a view to the invasion of Canaan from the E., it is likely that this section relates to an independent movement on the part of the tribes of Judah and Simeon ( cf. Judges 1:16 f., where, however, the advance is represented as made from Jericho).
Numbers 21:1 . Atharim: the place and the meaning of the name are unknown.
Numbers 21:2 . utterly destroy: persons and (in general) property “ devoted” ( mg.) to a deity were destroyed as being taboo, and therefore likely to involve danger to all who might come in contact with them (pp. 99, 114, Deuteronomy 2:34 *, Joshua 6:17 *).
Numbers 21:3 . Hormah: for the meaning, see mg. The name here seems to designate a district including more cities than one. The place had been the scene of a defeat ( Numbers 14:40-Romans :).
Be the first to react on this!