Deuteronomy 2: 1 – 37
Conquering the giants in your life
2 “Then we turned and journeyed into the wilderness of the Way of the Red Sea, as the LORD spoke to me, and we skirted Mount Seir for many days. 2 “And the LORD spoke to me, saying: 3 ‘You have skirted this mountain long enough; turn northward. 4 And command the people, saying, “You are about to pass through the territory of your brethren, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir; and they will be afraid of you. Therefore watch yourselves carefully. 5 Do not meddle with them, for I will not give you any of their land, no, not so much as one footstep, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession. 6 You shall buy food from them with money, that you may eat; and you shall also buy water from them with money, that you may drink. 7 “For the LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hand. He knows your trudging through this great wilderness. These forty years the LORD your God has been with you; you have lacked nothing.” ’ 8 “And when we passed beyond our brethren, the descendants of Esau who dwell in Seir, away from the road of the plain, away from Elath and Ezion Geber, we turned and passed by way of the Wilderness of Moab. 9 Then the LORD said to me, ‘Do not harass Moab, nor contend with them in battle, for I will not give you any of their land as a possession, because I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot as a possession.’ ” 10 (The Emim had dwelt there in times past, a people as great and numerous and tall as the Anakim. 11 They were also regarded as giants, like the Anakim, but the Moabites call them Emim. 12 The Horites formerly dwelt in Seir, but the descendants of Esau dispossessed them and destroyed them from before them, and dwelt in their place, just as Israel did to the land of their possession which the LORD gave them.) 13 “ ‘Now rise and cross over the Valley of the Zered.’ So we crossed over the Valley of the Zered. 14 And the time we took to come from Kadesh Barnea until we crossed over the Valley of the Zered was thirty-eight years, until all the generation of the men of war was consumed from the midst of the camp, just as the LORD had sworn to them. 15 For indeed the hand of the LORD was against them, to destroy them from the midst of the camp until they were consumed. 16 “So it was, when all the men of war had finally perished from among the people, 17 that the LORD spoke to me, saying: 18 ‘This day you are to cross over at Ar, the boundary of Moab. 19 And when you come near the people of Ammon, do not harass them or meddle with them, for I will not give you any of the land of the people of Ammon as a possession, because I have given it to the descendants of Lot as a possession.’ ” 20 (That was also regarded as a land of giants; giants formerly dwelt there. But the Ammonites call them Zamzummim, 21 a people as great and numerous and tall as the Anakim. But the LORD destroyed them before them, and they dispossessed them and dwelt in their place, 22 just as He had done for the descendants of Esau, who dwelt in Seir, when He destroyed the Horites from before them. They dispossessed them and dwelt in their place, even to this day. 23 And the Avim, who dwelt in villages as far as Gaza—the Caphtorim, who came from Caphtor, destroyed them and dwelt in their place.) 24 “ ‘Rise, take your journey, and cross over the River Arnon. Look, I have given into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land. Begin to possess it, and engage him in battle. 25 This day I will begin to put the dread and fear of you upon the nations under the whole heaven, who shall hear the report of you, and shall tremble and be in anguish because of you.’ 26 “And I sent messengers from the Wilderness of Kedemoth to Sihon king of Heshbon, with words of peace, saying, 27 ‘Let me pass through your land; I will keep strictly to the road, and I will turn neither to the right nor to the left. 28 You 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 foot, 29 just as the descendants of Esau who dwell in Seir and the Moabites who dwell in Ar did for me, until I cross the Jordan to the land which the LORD our God is giving us.’ 30 “But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass through, for the LORD your God hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, that He might deliver him into your hand, as it is this day. 31 “And the LORD said to me, ‘See, I have begun to give Sihon and his land over to you. Begin to possess it, that you may inherit his land.’ 32 Then Sihon and all his people came out against us to fight at Jahaz. 33 And the LORD our God delivered him over to us; so we defeated him, his sons, and all his people. 34 We took all his cities at that time, and we utterly destroyed the men, women, and little ones of every city; we left none remaining. 35 We took only the livestock as plunder for ourselves, with the spoil of the cities which we took. 36 From Aroer, which is on the bank of the River Arnon, and from the city that is in the ravine, as far as Gilead, there was not one city too strong for us; the LORD our God delivered all to us. 37 Only you did not go near the land of the people of Ammon—anywhere along the River Jabbok, or to the cities of the mountains, or wherever the LORD our God had forbidden us.
Are you facing any giants today?
Is living from paycheck to paycheck, barely making ends meet, a giant in your life?
Is being unemployed or under-employed a giant in your life?
Does the working condition of your job stink? Is your boss an evil despot? Has this become a Giant in your life?
Is having someone you love addicted to drugs or alcohol a giant in your life?
Is having your spouse unfaithful either in word or deed a giant in your life?
How are you dealing with your giants? Are you making the typical response? – Fight, flight, or surrender?
When the 10 spies gave their report then “all” the men of Israel were fearful for their lives.
How do we deal with these giants? Here are seven keys to defeating the giants in your life.
1. Show up for the battle ready to fight.
Sometimes you don’t get to pick the place or the time but you must always be ready for the fight.
First, sometimes you must take the fight to the enemy.
Second, you have to expect the return of what belongs to you plus restitution.
There will be times in life when the enemy takes what belongs to you. He will steal your income, your home, a family member, your time and/or health. You must be aggressive in going after what the enemy has taken.
Third, you must be ready for battle in season and out of season.
Finally, remember you will never win a battle you don’t show up for.
2. Don’t run or flee from the battle.
Ignoring a problem will never make it go away or lessen the intensity of the battle you’re facing.
Running in the midst of a fire fight with the devil with either make you a prisoner or a casualty but never a victor.
If someone or something is causing you a problem it’s better to face the consequences. Someone once said, if you want to be the leader of the band you must be willing to face the music.
When you’re in the midst of a battle and someone yells “incoming” it’s important to know who’s in the foxhole with you. You don’t have to run from any battle because you always know who’s with you in your foxhole and in every adversity you’ll ever face.
3. Don’t be afraid.
If you’re facing difficult, if not, seemingly impossible financial or other attacks of the enemy you can take comfort in know that God has promised you that He will never leave you nor forsake you. He’s with you no matter where or what kind of battle you’re facing. With God by your side there is no reason to fear or ever doubt the outcome of the battle.
There are forty-four times in the King James Version of the Bible where we’re told to “be not afraid.”
Let’s look at four key verses of the forty-four in the King James Bible.
“be not afraid of him” 2 Kings 1:15
“be not afraid of them: for the LORD thy God is with thee” Deuteronomy 20:1
“Thus saith the LORD unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's.” 2 Chronicles 20:15
“ Be not afraid, only believe.” Mark 5:36
These four verses tell us to not be afraid of “him” or “them” but to “only believe.”
With God on our side we have no reason to be afraid.
Hebrews 13:6 in the Amplified Bible says:
“So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently and boldly say, The Lord is my Helper; I will not be seized with alarm [I will not fear or dread or be terrified]. What can man do to me?”
Even though God should only have to tell us something once sometimes we have to be reminded when we’re facing the Giant of doubt and fear.
4. Don’t worry about what other people may think.
In the final analysis no one else can fight your battles and no one else take your place on Judgment Day. You and you alone are accountable for what you do or don’t do.
Other people may face a shortage of money, opportunities, courage and/or wisdom but there’s one area where they never experience a shortage and that’s in opinions of what you should and/or shouldn’t do.
Why do some of your co-workers talk about you behind your back?
Why do some of your friends and even family members get angry on your initiative and desire for a better quality of life?
Your success becomes a reflection of their lack of success.
Sadly, some people instead of confessing up to their lack of success seek to minimize who you are, what you do or are capable of doing so it will not reflect poorly on them.
It’s important that you understand other people’s motivation for the hurtful things they may say but it’s critically important that you never allow their opinion of you to determine what you do or don’t do.
In life, there may be times when you will ask “what have I done now.”
The attitude and actions of others may not be so much as to what you’re doing as to what they are not doing.
Consider the words of Colossians 3:23 in the Amplified Bible which says:
“Whatever may be your task, work at it heartily (from the soul), as [something done] for the Lord and not for men.”
Remember, it’s not important others think but what God thinks about what you’re doing.
5. You choose the weapons.
There are three things you should know when it comes to choosing your weapons.
First, get rid of anything that doesn’t work for you.
Eliminate anything that can be weaknesses or that will restrict you movement and possibilities of success.
In the marketplace remember that just because somebody else does something that it may not work the same way for you.
Second, find something that will work for you. Play to your strengths.
Third, you have weapons that can defeat every foe.
2 Corinthians 10:4 in the Amplified Bible says:
“For the weapons of our warfare are not physical [weapons of flesh and blood], but they are mighty before God for the overthrow and destruction of strongholds.”
You have weapons at your disposal which are undefeatable in every battle you will ever face.
6. Understand the rewards of winning.
Never make any mistake about it the battles that you’re facing is for territory for the rewards that God has promised you.
The enemy wants to keep you up to your eyeballs in debt and strung out by payments and with little, if any hope of ever becoming debt free. The enemy wants you to believe that where you are in life right now is where you’re going to stay. That’s simply, not true.
The world says “to the victor go the spoils.” When you let Him help you, when you are obedient to His word then your financial stability will become a reality.
7. Do something with what’s in your hand.
You should always start where you are with what you’ve got at the moment.
2 Timothy 1:14 in The Living Bible says:
“Guard well the splendid, God-given ability you received as a gift from the Holy Spirit who lives within you.”
In every battle you face being empowered by the Holy Spirit will GUARANTEE your victory and your ability to defeat every giant of debt, lack, sickness, despair and doubt.
You’ll defeat every giant you face because God is on your side.
2 “Then we turned and journeyed into the wilderness of the Way of the Red Sea, as the LORD spoke to me, and we skirted Mount Seir for many days.
Finally they had had to submit to what God had said, and they had begun their wanderings. Whether it was because Moses had insisted at God’s command, or because conditions had made it inevitable, they had left Kadesh and taken the route by ‘the way to the Red Sea’, just as Yahweh had said. And for a considerable time they had wandered around Mount Seir, the range of mountains south of the Dead Sea. They had not, however, been very happy about it and it had resulted in the attempted coup by Dathan and Abiram (Numbers 16).
So the parameters have now been laid down. Although his hearers did not realize it the whole history of Israel has been laid out in microcosm. Moses has laid down the foundations for the future. The land and the future is Yahweh’s. It is available for all who will respond to Him in belief and will obey Him. He has done His part. He has multiplied them. He has established them as a righteous nation. Now it is up to them. If they respond to His covenant they may enter into it and enjoy its blessing and Yahweh’s protection. If they do so respond He will lead them and fight for them. He will be to them like a father bearing his son. But if they fail to go on believing, if they fail to go on obeying Him, then He will also drive them out of the land, as He drove out their fathers, so that they too will be forever wandering around, getting nowhere. The choice lies with them.
The principles that lie behind this first chapter will be continually repeated throughout the book. He is giving His people the land, but if they fail to respond truly to Him they will lose it.
It should be stressed that nothing of all this determined the eternal destiny of these people. As with us that was determined by their own personal individual response to the way of forgiveness that God had laid open to them. He had not forsaken them completely. But we may see in this chapter a parable of the Christian life. For the newly converted Christian, life often seems like a wilderness journey, but as he learns to trust Christ more he can enter into rest, the rest of trust and obedience. Sadly, however, many fear what obedience to God will result in and so do not go forward, thus sentencing them to a life in the wilderness. The writer to the Hebrews used it as an illustration of life as an unbeliever in contrast with life as a believer (Hebrews 3-4).
So their fathers had failed to receive the land. But now the people are stirred up to go forward and take the land which God is giving them. He stresses, however, that there are also others to whom He has given land, and that that land is not theirs for the taking. That land belongs to the nations to whom Yahweh has given it. Israel cannot have it because it has been given to those nations by Yahweh. These are Edom, Moab and Ammon, all descended from Terah, Abraham’s father, and connected with Abraham.
The first are related to the children of Esau, and ‘Mount Seir was given to Esau for a possession’ (2.5) while the other two are ‘descended’ from Lot and receive their land as from him. Theirs is the land which He has given to the children of Lot for a possession (2.9, 19). To all three He has given their land for the sake of their fathers, for the sake of Abraham. For it is He Who disposes of land in accordance with His will (32.8) although Israel (Jacob) are special, for they are His portion.
By this means it is emphasized to Israel that when Yahweh gives land to a nation it is under His protection. He Is the Lord of all land and can give it to whom He will. Here is a shining example to them of what it means to dwell in land given by Yahweh. Let them then go forward to claim their own. The land that Yahweh gives them will be as secure to them as the land of Edom, Moab and Ammon are secure to those nations if only they are obedient. But they must not touch what Yahweh has given to others.
However, the same was not true of the Amorites. The land that they were in possession of did not belong to them. They were among those whose iniquity was now full (Genesis 15.16). They had forfeited the land. Thus the land of Sihon was Israel’s for the taking.
Interspersed with the information about Edom, Moab and Ammon are two statements concerning Israel. The first confirms the way that Yahweh has blessed the second generation in the wilderness (verse 7) and the second that He has destroyed all the first generation who were disobedient in Israel (verses 14-15). If His people are, in His will, to enjoy blessing in their land like Edom, Moab and Ammon have, they must remember both, that God blesses those who obey Him and curses those who do not.
The first people who would be approached by Israel were Edom, described here as ‘sons of Esau’. Esau was Jacob’s elder brother and had made his home in Mount Seir gathering around him a band of men and combining with others to form the nation of Edom (Genesis 33.16; 36.6-9). They were thus seen as a ‘brother’ tribe.
2 “And the LORD spoke to me, saying: 3 ‘You have skirted this mountain long enough; turn northward.
Again it is stressed that we have the words of Moses as received by revelation from Yahweh. The period of waiting was over. Now they were to cease their wandering around the mountainous wilderness and move northward. It was time for them to possess the land in order to fulfill His promise to their forefathers. This northward movement is in direct contrast to their previous ‘movement’ southward as they fled from the Amorites and then returned to the wilderness.
4 And command the people, saying, “You are about to pass through the territory of your brethren, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir; and they will be afraid of you. Therefore watch yourselves carefully. 5 Do not meddle with them, for I will not give you any of their land, no, not so much as one footstep, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession.
In order to reach the land they must pass through or along the borders of Edom. But Edom would be afraid of them. However, they were not to seek a quarrel with them for Edom lived in the land given to their forefather Esau by Yahweh as a possession. Indeed Israel did not have permission to set even one foot on Edom’s soil. Not an inch of it is given to them.
6 You shall buy food from them with money, that you may eat; and you shall also buy water from them with money, that you may drink.
Rather than fight with Edom they were to demonstrate their friendly intentions by offering silver in exchange for food and water. While they still had the manna they would be delighted to have what they no doubt saw as ‘proper food’ as well. Water would be short in Edom, and wells and springs carefully guarded. There must be no raiding; all was to be done circumspectly. Both food and water were to be bought. This behavior prevented a buildup of hostility and no doubt contributed to the fact that Edom did not later seek to take advantage of the time when the warriors of Reuben, Gad and Manasseh were mainly away from home.
7 “For the LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hand. He knows your trudging through this great wilderness. These forty years the LORD your God has been with you; you have lacked nothing.” ’
That this purchase of food and water was possible was because Yahweh had prospered them. ‘The work of their hand’ may well have included pottery, jewelry and ornaments, weaving, metalwork and so on, which had been sold on to passing traders, and even to friendly desert tribes. This, along with treasures brought from Egypt and not used, had ensured that they were wealthy enough to purchase food for all. Although He had refused them entry into the land God had not utterly forsaken them. He had watched over their walking in the wilderness, and had been with them. We gather elsewhere that it was for Abraham’s sake. This is one of the rare places where we are given an insight into their thirty eight year wandering.
So as they consider Edom, safely settled in the land given to them by Yahweh, the second generation of Israel are to recognize themselves as a people whom Yahweh has blessed even in the wilderness, so that they can be sure that He also has blessings in store for them.
8 “And when we passed beyond our brethren, the descendants of Esau who dwell in Seir, away from the road of the plain, away from Elath and Ezion Geber, we turned and passed by way of the Wilderness of Moab.
This friendly description of Edom fits well with first impressions on approaching the land, and having avoided conflict with them.
Moab too had been given possession of their land by Yahweh, because of His love for Abraham. Thus they too were not to be troubled. And they were to note that in giving them the land He had dealt with the Emim, a people the equal of the Anakim (Giants).
9 Then the LORD said to me, ‘Do not harass Moab, nor contend with them in battle, for I will not give you any of their land as a possession, because I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot as a possession.’ ”
The same principle applied to Moab as to Edom. Their land too had been given to them by Yahweh. In their case it was because they were the children of Lot, Abraham’s nephew (Genesis 13.5-11). Through Abraham blessing had come on many. Seeing these people also would be an encouragement of the fact that land which Yahweh gives to the peoples whom He chooses because they are sons of Abraham becomes theirs and remains theirs.
Thus they were not to fight with them or show belligerence towards them. Their land was not for Israel. Ar, their chief city,
10 (The Emim had dwelt there in times past, a people as great and numerous and tall as the Anakim. 11 They were also regarded as giants, like the Anakim, but the Moabites call them Emim. 12 The Horites formerly dwelt in Seir, but the descendants of Esau dispossessed them and destroyed them from before them, and dwelt in their place, just as Israel did to the land of their possession which the LORD gave them.)
We must remember that Israel had been in terror of the Anakim (Giants). Thus Moses assured them that a similar people to the Anakim once dwelt in the land now possessed by Moab, but Moab had defeated them. There they were called the Emim, but they were seen as Rephaim just as the Anakim were, and they were as great, and as many, and as tall. Rephaim were later seen as ghostly figures (Psalm 88.10; Isaiah 14.9; 26.14, 19).
Furthermore, as well as being able to defeat them, Moab had been able to defeat the powerful Horites. They were defeated by Chederlaomer and his fellow-kings, as were the Rephaim and the Emim (Genesis 14.5-6), which may have contributed to their downfall. Thus Moses wanted his people to know that none of these peoples were invincible, and that God could do the same for Israel.
13 “ ‘Now rise and cross over the Valley of the Zered.’ So we crossed over the Valley of the Zered.
Having passed by Esau, and having been given their instructions concerning Moab, they were to rise and cross the Wadi Zered which was the southern border of Moab.
This was clearly seen as a crisis point and is dated. Between the first visit to Kadesh and their arrival at the Zered thirty eight years had passed because of Yahweh’s ban on the men of war who had failed to respond to His command to enter Canaan. Note the emphasis on their obedience. They crossed the Zered as He had commanded. This new generation obeyed Yahweh explicitly. It may be that they also used the Zered valley as a passageway, moving along between Edom and Moab.
14 And the time we took to come from Kadesh Barnea until we crossed over the Valley of the Zered was thirty-eight years, until all the generation of the men of war was consumed from the midst of the camp, just as the LORD had sworn to them. 15 For indeed the hand of the LORD was against them, to destroy them from the midst of the camp until they were consumed.
Thus since leaving Kadesh the first time thirty eight years had passed. In those thirty eight years the hand of Yahweh had ensured the deaths of all who had refused to enter Canaan who were of military age. None were left in the camp.
This solemn statement placed here in the midst of the descriptions of nations who had possessed their lands as a result of Yahweh’s goodness towards them, and because of their relationship to Abraham, again brings home the lesson that Israel’s similar possession will be dependent on obedience. Until the unbelieving men of war were dead Yahweh would do nothing positive about the invasion of Canaan, but as soon as this had occurred, and the last man had died, Yahweh gave His command to move forward.
Ammon, Moab’s brother tribe, had also been given possession of their land by Yahweh, because of His love for Abraham. Thus they too were not to be bothered. And they were to note that in giving them the land He had dealt with the Zamzummim, a people of the Rephaim, the equal of the Anakim. Yahweh had had no problem with dealing with the Anakim (all giants).
16 “So it was, when all the men of war had finally perished from among the people, 17 that the LORD spoke to me, saying:
Once the last of unbelieving Israel died (with the exception of Caleb, Joshua and Moses), their bodies buried one by one in the wilderness, the order came to advance across the Zered and along the border between Moab and Ammon.
18 ‘This day you are to cross over at Ar, the boundary of Moab. 19 And when you come near the people of Ammon, do not harass them or meddle with them, for I will not give you any of the land of the people of Ammon as a possession, because I have given it to the descendants of Lot as a possession.’ ”
Ammon too were to be safe from being troubled for their land too had been given to them by Yahweh, and permanently belonged to them as their possession. They too were a reminder of Yahweh’s faithfulness to Abraham and his family, and the certainty of His fulfillment of His will.
20 (That was also regarded as a land of giants; giants formerly dwelt there. But the Ammonites call them Zamzummim, 21 a people as great and numerous and tall as the Anakim. But the LORD destroyed them before them, and they dispossessed them and dwelt in their place, 22 just as He had done for the descendants of Esau, who dwelt in Seir, when He destroyed the Horites from before them. They dispossessed them and dwelt in their place, even to this day. 23 And the Avim, who dwelt in villages as far as Gaza—the Caphtorim, who came from Caphtor, destroyed them and dwelt in their place.)
Once again it is stressed that peoples like the Anakim have been defeated, this time by Ammon. They were not invincible. Here they were called Zamzummim (Giants). These too were the dreaded Rephaim. But Yahweh had destroyed them from before them, and as with Edom, had enabled them to dwell safely in their land in their place (as He would with Israel).
Thus while passing by these nations Israel were to learn from them a number of lessons. Firstly that God is able to give land to whom He will, and ensure their safe possession of it. And secondly that God Is well able to deal with even the most fearsome of opponents, whether they be Horim (2.12,22), Emim (2.10-11), Zamzummim (2.20), or Avvim (2.23) even though they be as tall as the Anakim (2.10-11, 21). And at the same time they are to remember that Yahweh has shown them great blessing in the wilderness, while at the same time dealing severely with their disobedient fathers. The point behind all this is, let the lessons be learned!
24 “ ‘Rise, take your journey, and cross over the River Arnon. Look, I have given into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land. Begin to possess it, and engage him in battle.
They were now therefore to rise and cross the River Arnon and its valley and approach the Amorites, under Sihon king of Heshbon, north of Moab. In spite of the fact that Israel would offer friendship the result would be fierce battle during which they would commence taking possession of the land which was to be theirs. This was Yahweh’s decision and His purpose. This land had been snatched from Moab by Sihon. It was not his, and he and his people were Amorites, due for destruction.
25 This day I will begin to put the dread and fear of you upon the nations under the whole heaven, who shall hear the report of you, and shall tremble and be in anguish because of you.’
This day is the day when they ‘passed over Ar the border of Moab’. Serious battles were now beginning. Not only would they defeat the Amorites, but that defeat would echo and re-echo throughout the vicinity, including Canaan. People would begin to fear them and their approach, and tremble. That would mean that their enemies would be defeated almost before they started. Now the new generation was to benefit by what was previously promised to the previous generation if they were faithful. Our
Behind the treatment of the Amorites lies the concept of holiness. Israel were a holy nation (Exodus 19.6), and the land promised to Abraham was a holy land (Exodus 15.17), the land of Yahweh’s inheritance (Exodus 15.17), belonging to Yahweh. Thus nothing unholy could be allowed to remain in it. That was why the unbelieving Israel had been refused residence in the land (1.28). That was why the Canaanites must be utterly destroyed from it. They had defiled the land. That is why once the land has been taken in holy war by God’s holy nation, all the inhabitants, men, women and children, must be ‘devoted’ to Yahweh in death in order to purge the land. The stain of the sinfulness of the Canaanites must be removed by the shedding of blood. That is Yahweh’s sentence. And that is why if His people depart from holiness they too must be driven from the land. It is a holy land for a holy people.
26 “And I sent messengers from the Wilderness of Kedemoth to Sihon king of Heshbon, with words of peace, saying, 27 ‘Let me pass through your land; I will keep strictly to the road, and I will turn neither to the right nor to the left. 28 You 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 foot,
Emissaries were sent to Sihon with the reasonable request that they be allowed to pass along the highway, paying their way, and the promise was given that they would not stray from the highway. They would pay for all provisions required. The children of Esau and the Moabites had to a certain extent allowed their passage, for they had not attacked them, and they had suffered no harm. Would they not do the same? Their aim, Moses explained, was simply to reach the Jordan where they could pass over it and enter the land which Yahweh had promised to give them.
29 just as the descendants of Esau who dwell in Seir and the Moabites who dwell in Ar did for me, until I cross the Jordan to the land which the LORD our God is giving us.’ 30 “But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass through, for the LORD your God hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, that He might deliver him into your hand, as it is this day.
Moses makes it clear that it was never Yahweh’s intention for Sihon to agree. Yahweh all along knew Sihon’s innermost thoughts. And He had assessed him correctly. By this approach Yahweh hardened Sihon’s spirit, and made his heart obstinate. But this was not an independent act. It was because of what Sihon was. He could not blame God. Had he been amenable it would not have hardened his heart. (Numbers 21.23 where the blame is laid squarely on him). He may well have been angry at the thought that this people were intending to invade Canaan where many of his brother Amorites were. He was also no doubt suspicious of what would happen when such a large contingent suddenly arrived in the middle of his land. They could then fan out and attack, taking the Amorites by surprise. And he knew that neither Edom nor Moab had been quite as accommodating as Moses had made it sound. Thus he refused, demonstrating His refusal to respond to Yahweh’s request.
31 “And the LORD said to me, ‘See, I have begun to give Sihon and his land over to you. Begin to possess it, that you may inherit his land.’
Then God told Moses that if he would look he would see that the beginning of Sihon’s delivering up was taking place. He would see the army of Sihon coming to make war and prevent their access. They could now go forward and begin to possess the land. As a result of Sihon’s refusal and show of force Israel retaliate and capture their cities and their land, and thus take possession of the land and a multitude of flocks and herds.
32 Then Sihon and all his people came out against us to fight at Jahaz. 33 And the LORD our God delivered him over to us; so we defeated him, his sons, and all his people. 34 We took all his cities at that time, and we utterly destroyed the men, women, and little ones of every city; we left none remaining. 35 We took only the livestock as plunder for ourselves, with the spoil of the cities which we took.
Moses points out that Sihon came as described, with all his warriors, and there was a great battle at Jahaz at which Sihon and his forces were routed. And as far as Israel were concerned it was all Yahweh’s doing. This was then followed by a campaign in which each of the cities was subdued. All the cities were destroyed (‘devoted’) and every man, woman and child put to death, as Yahweh had commanded must be done with the Canaanites. Their corruption had gone so far that there was no other remedy. Only the cattle were spared, along with all the spoils taken.
It should be noted that Sihon and his people had had two other options. The first was to accept the treaty offered, which would have done them no harm, indeed would have done them good, the other was to remain within their walled cities safe out of harm’s way. The treaty could be offered to them because strictly they were not in the Promised Land and so would not be a snare to Israel. But it is made clear that it was Yahweh’s purpose that His judgment should come on them.
We know now that the country was surrounded by fortified border posts. (It was one thing to capture the cities of a defeated army, another to capture those filled with armed men who have not suffered defeat). Thus Sihon brought his judgment on himself and his people by leaving his defended cities and attacking Israel. It was also the law of warfare that if a city surrendered it would be spared. If it resisted its men would be put to the sword (20.10-15). This went one step further because the Canaanites were under God’s sentence of judgment, and by choosing to take sides with them Sihon had put himself under the curse.
We understandably see this as very harsh. But before we presume to condemn God we must consider the situation.
• 1). Had the women been spared they would have led Israel into idolatry, as the women at Baal-peor had done (Numbers 25.1-3).
• 2). Had the children been spared they would have grown up with vengeance in their hearts against those who had destroyed their parents and their nation. And many of them would already have become submerged in idolatry. Furthermore this would have been repeated wherever they went in Canaan. They would have been sitting on a huge time bomb.
• 3). It was Yahweh’s purpose to destroy the Canaanites/Amorites as a judgment on them for centuries of evil and sin. He had withheld this judgment for over 400 years (Genesis 15.16) and more, but things had only got worse, not better. As the righteous Judge He had the right to determine what should be done and how it should be done (so as also to teach Israel a lesson about the severity of sin). What would be wrong for us was not wrong for the Judge of the entire world. He could have destroyed them by plague or wild beasts or earthquakes or thunderbolts. He chose to do it through Israel. The only question we should ask is how could a holy God allow any sinners to live? Why did He stop at the Canaanites? That is the unanswerable question, for that reveals the depths of sin as it is, until we find the answer in the coming of His Son to save us.
It should be noted that the corollary of this is that Yahweh was seen as having the right to do what He would with all nations. He was not limited to Israel. The whole world was seen as subject to His judgment, as Abraham had made clear long before (Genesis 18.25).
36 From Aroer, which is on the bank of the River Arnon, and from the city that is in the ravine, as far as Gilead, there was not one city too strong for us; the LORD our God delivered all to us.
So of every city from south (on the banks of the Arnon) to north (the region of Gilead) not one city was too strong to prevent Israel from taking it. God delivered all of them up to Israel. The ruins of Aroer, a Moabite border city, do literally look down the huge ravine through which flows the Arnon.
In the past the ancestor spies said, ‘There was not a city too high for us.’ where the complaint had been that ‘the cities are great and fenced up to heaven’. They now discovered that Yahweh did keep His promises and was able to deal with the worst possible situations, with cities great and ‘fenced up to heaven’, that is having high walls.
37 Only you did not go near the land of the people of Ammon—anywhere along the River Jabbok, or to the cities of the mountains, or wherever the LORD our God had forbidden us.
But those whom Yahweh had declared untouchable were not in any way bothered, just as Sihon and his people would not have been dealt with had they not acted belligerently. The children of Ammon were not touched in any way. Everything their side of the River Jabbok was left alone, including all the cities of their hill-country. Israel touched nothing in the region that Yahweh their covenant God had forbidden. The emphasis is on the fact that they were totally obedient. How different they now were from their fathers, and from what they would be like in a few decades time. The River Jabbok left the Jordan going eastward. Then it turned south and marked the boundaries of Sihon’s kingdom and Ammon.
It may reasonably be asked how far this justifies religious wars. The answer is that it does not. This was a unique occasion. Nowhere did our King Jesus ever suggest that men should fight for Christianity. What they were called on to do was humbly die for it (or should we say, for Him). Violence was forbidden. Christians were to love their enemies and do good to those who hated them. No exceptions were stated, whereas at this period there was one exception, the evil and degraded Canaanites. This does not prevent a nation from defending itself from attack that is another matter. What it forbids is deliberately and belligerently going to war. God has not given us a land or a city to fight for. The land and city He has given to us is where no one can touch it.
