(II). Victory In The Wars of Yahweh (Numbers 21:21 to Numbers 25:18).
Having tasted victory against the king of Arad, and come to the land of plenty, Yahweh now provided them with a series of victories forced on them by belligerent enemies. These would give them possession of the land of plenty on that side of Jordan, continuing the theme of the new beginning. These victories were important. Through their being forced on Israel they had to face them without thinking too hard, so that by the time that they had triumphed they were adequately prepared for ventures ahead. Had they had time to think they might well have decided that Sihon and Og were too powerful for them, but they had no time to think, and Yahweh reversed the defeat of their fathers by the Canaanites/Amorites (Numbers 14:45 compare Deuteronomy 1:44) by giving glorious victories.
Analysis.
a The defeat of Sihon king of the Amorites in the land of the Moabites, with the result that they dwelt there (Numbers 21:21-31).
b The defeat in the north of Og, king of Bashan, by their armies, and they possess his land (Numbers 21:32-35).
c The people finally arrive at the plains of Moab and pitch their tents there (Numbers 21:31 to Numbers 22:1).
b The defeat of the evil influence of Balaam brought from the north by the Moabites (Numbers 22:2 to Numbers 24:25).
a The defeat of the evil influence of Moab in the land of the Moabites (Numbers 25).
The territory that Israel were now operating in was in the land of the Moabites, although it was a section under the control of the Amorites who had seized it from Moab. Moses in fact wished to pass amicably by the land of Sihon, king of the Amorites but Sihon sought to prevent it. That was why he felt able to invade it and take possession of it. These were Amorites, akin to the Canaanites, and thus fair game. Nor had their land been given to them by Yahweh. They were trespassers. Yet they would have been left alone had they been cooperative, for they were not strictly people of ‘the land'. But Deuteronomy 2:30 confirms that it was Yahweh's intention that the attack and defeat took place.
This would then be followed by a campaign against Og, king of Bashan and a ‘battle' of another kind between Yahweh and the prophet Balaam who was recruited by Moab to curse Israel. They were moving on from victory to victory. It would only be their own lustful desires that would drag them down and bring God's chastening on them (25). This was a reminder of the fact that the enemy we must most beware of is our own selves.
The term Amorite has various meanings in the Old Testament. It can refer to all the people of Canaan, (e.g. Genesis 15:16), to tribes living in the hill country of Canaan (Joshua 5:1; Joshua 10:5; Judges 1:34), to inhabitants of the Negeb and the region to the southeast of the Dead Sea (Genesis 14:7), and very often, as here, to the inhabitants east of the Jordan under the rule of Sihon and Og.
Battles with the Amorites (Numbers 21:21-35).
Now commenced the epoch-making battles with the two kings of the Amorites on the east side of the Jordan which would provide Israel with its first conquered land.
1). The Defeat of Sihon, King of the Amorites (Numbers 21:21-31).
While what is now described passes in a few verses we must not overlook what was involved. The taking of the land of the Amorites and of their fortified cities would not have been easy and would have taken considerable time and effort. But as the poem above made clear, Yahweh was with Israel and thus progress was rapid. It was Israel's first period of sustained warfare.
Analysis.
a Plea to Sihon to be allowed to pass through the land of the Amorites (Numbers 21-22).
b Sihon refuses and belligerently faces up to Israel (Numbers 21:23).
c Sihon is defeated and his land possessed up to the borders of Ammon (Numbers 21:24).
c The cities of Sihon which were once Moab's are possessed (Numbers 21:25).
b Sihon's belligerency against Moab (the song of Heshbon) (Numbers 21:25-29).
a Israel taunt Sihon and settle in the land of the Amorites (Numbers 21:30-31).
A Plea to Sihon to Be Allowed to Pass Unscathed Through The Land of the Amorites (Numbers 21:21-22).
‘And Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, saying,'
In accordance with practise messengers were sent requesting safe passage without interference. They brought Moses' words to the king.
“ Let me pass through your land. We will not turn aside into field, or into vineyard. We will not drink of the water of the wells. We will go by the king's highway, until we have passed your border.”
The request was from ‘king' to king. ‘Let me pass through your land.' It was then promised that if he did so they would use only the highway and not trespass on their fields or drink their water. This was referring to the continuation of ‘the Kings Highway', the trade route to Damascus, which would make travel easier.