Verse 14
14. Book of the wars of the Lord This was probably a collection of ballads composed beside the watchfires of the camp in commemoration of the victories of the Israelites over their enemies. From the title we infer that religious inspiration mingled largely with the poetic. In the spirit of true piety the victories are ascribed, not to the prowess of Israel, but to the might of Jehovah. Possibly this book is referred to in Exodus 17:14-16. The fragment here quoted is obscure because it is sundered from the context. It is quoted simply to confirm the statement that the Arnon is the boundary of Moab.
What he did This is an erroneous translation of והב , Vaheb, the name of a place on the border of the Amorite and Moabite territories where Israel conquered in battle.
In the Red Sea This is another erroneous translation of Suphah, mistaken for Suph, the Red Sea. The exact location of Suphah is as little known as is that of Vaheb, both being found in no other place than in the following fragment of the old song:
“Vaheb in Suphah.
And the valleys of Arnon,
And the slope of the valleys
That inclineth toward the dwelling of Ar,
And leaneth upon the border of Moab.”
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