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| 1 And the Canaanite king Arad dwelling in the south, heareth that Israel hath come the way of the Atharim, and he fighteth against Israel, and taketh [some] of them captive. |
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| 2 And Israel voweth a vow to Jehovah, and saith, 'If Thou dost certainly give this people into my hand, then I have devoted their cities;' |
Vowed a vow – Because of a pre-emptory attack by the Canaanites. R3101:2
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| 3 and Jehovah hearkeneth to the voice of Israel, and giveth up the Canaanite, and he devoteth them and their cities, and calleth the name of the place Hormah. |
The Canaanites – Representing sin, its enticements and blandishments in the weaknesses of the flesh. R3101: 3
Utterly destroyed – Not then, but a parenthesis showing that they later kept their vow. R3101:2
Hormah – So called, meaning "utter destruction," because of their vow. R3101:2
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| 4 And they journey from mount Hor, the way of the Red Sea, to compass the land of Edom, and the soul of the people is short in the way, |
Compass the land – To take a shortcut through Edom, typical of taking in the pleasures of this life and the fellowship of the world as part of the Christian life. R5267:5 *
Of Edom – Type of Christendom. D15
Much discouraged – Type of how in the nominal churches there is an opposition to the narrow way of self-sacrifice. R5267:6
Because of the detour around Edom. R5316:1
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| 5 and the people speak against God, and against Moses, 'Why hast thou brought us up out of Egypt to die in a wilderness for there is no bread, and there is no water, and our soul hath been weary of this light bread.' |
Spake against God – Against the voice of the Lord through the Scriptures and against all those who walk in the wilderness way. R5267:6*
Loatheth this light bread – Representing a tendency of spiritual Israelites to lose their appreciation for spiritual food and go hungering after the pleasures of the world. Such a yielding to worldly appetites will surely expose them to the bite of the serpent of sin. R2300:2
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| 6 And Jehovah sendeth among the people the burning serpents, and they bite the people, and much people of Israel die; |
Fiery – Supposed to have been thus called because of red streaks upon the head. Their bite so inflames the nervous system as to cause the feeling of fire throughout the entire body, often resulting in death in a few hours. R4048:2
In India several thousand people die annually from the bite of the cobra. R3101:4
Serpents – Representing sin. "The sting of death is sin." (1 Cor. 15:56) R5239:1, R4037:5, R4048:4, R5316:4; PD34/45
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| 7 and the people come in unto Moses and say, 'We have sinned, for we have spoken against Jehovah, and against thee; pray unto Jehovah, and He doth turn aside from us the serpent;' and Moses prayeth in behalf of the people. |
Pray unto the LORD – On such occasions they understood that it was a punishment and made no effort to use medicines. R2029:2
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| 8 And Jehovah saith unto Moses, 'Make for thee a burning [serpent], and set it on an ensign; and it hath been, every one who is bitten and hath seen it he hath lived. |
When he looketh – Our mission has been during the reign of sin and death to point the sin-bitten to the Savior. R5316:4; SM767:1
Not when Jesus was made flesh, nor when exalted, but only when looked upon does he give life; looking by the eyes of understanding is expressed by the word believing. R1328:5*
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| 9 And Moses maketh a serpent of brass, and setteth it on the ensign, and it hath been, if the serpent hath bitten any man, and he hath looked expectingly unto the serpent of brass he hath lived. |
Made a serpent – Primarily representing sin, Satan's agent in alluring our first parents into condemnation hence our Lord Jesus, who took the sinner's place. "He made him who knew no sin to be a sin-offering for us." (2 Cor. 5:21 Diaglott) R4049:4, R4970:1, R5847:1; Q498:T
Of brass – Copper, symbolizing the perfect humanity of our Lord. T18; R3101:6
Upon a pole – Type of the cross. "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up." (John 3:14) R5239:1, R4037:5, R4049:1
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| 10 And the sons of Israel journey, and encamp in Oboth. |
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| 11 And they journey from Oboth, and encamp in Ije-Abarim, in the wilderness that [is] on the front of Moab, at the rising of the sun. |
Moab – The Moabites were children of Lot, Abraham's nephew. R5316:1
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| 12 From thence they have journeyed, and encamp in the valley of Zared. |
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| 13 From thence they have journeyed, and encamp beyond Arnon, which [is] in the wilderness which is coming out of the border of the Amorite, for Arnon [is] the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorite; |
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| 14 therefore it is said in a book, 'The wars of Jehovah,' 'Waheb in Suphah, And the brooks of Arnon; |
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| 15 And the spring of the brooks, Which turned aside to the dwelling of Ar, And hath leaned to the border of Moab.' |
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| 16 And from thence [they journeyed] to Beer; it [is] the well [concerning] which Jehovah said to Moses, 'Gather the people, and I give to them water.' |
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| 17 Then singeth Israel this song, concerning the well they have answered to it: |
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| 18 'A well digged it have princes, Prepared it have nobles of the people, With the lawgiver, with their staves.' And from the wilderness [they journeyed] to Mattanah, |
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| 19 and from Mattanah to Nahaliel, and from Nahaliel to Bamoth, |
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| 20 and from Bamoth in the valley which [is] in the field of Moab [to] the top of Pisgah, which hath looked on the front of the wilderness. |
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| 21 And Israel sendeth messengers unto Sihon king of the Amorite, saying, |
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| 22 'Let me pass through thy land, we do not turn aside into a field, or into a vineyard, we do not drink waters of a well; in the king's way we go, till that we pass over thy border.' |
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| 23 And Sihon hath not suffered Israel to pass through his border, and Sihon gathereth all his people, and cometh out to meet Israel into the wilderness, and cometh in to Jahaz, and fighteth against Israel. |
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| 24 And Israel smiteth him by the mouth of the sword, and possesseth his land from Arnon unto Jabbok unto the sons of Ammon; for the border of the sons of Ammon [is] strong. |
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| 25 And Israel taketh all these cities, and Israel dwelleth in all the cities of the Amorite, in Heshbon, and in all its villages; |
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| 26 for Heshbon is a city of Sihon king of the Amorite, and he hath fought against the former king of Moab, and taketh all his land out of his hand, unto Arnon; |
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| 27 therefore those using similes say 'Enter ye Heshbon, Let the city of Sihon be built and ready, |
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| 28 For fire hath gone out from Heshbon, A flame from the city of Sihon, It hath consumed Ar of Moab, Owners of the high places of Arnon. |
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| 29 Wo to thee, O Moab, Thou hast perished, O people of Chemosh, He hath given his sons who escape Also his daughters Into captivity, to a king of the Amorite Sihon! |
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| 30 And we shoot them, Perished hath Heshbon unto Dibon, And we make desolate unto Nophah, Which [is] unto Medeba.' |
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| 31 And Israel dwelleth in the land of the Amorite, |
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| 32 and Moses sendeth to spy out Jaazer, and they capture its villages, and dispossess the Amorite who [is] there, |
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| 33 and turn and go up the way of Bashan, and Og king of Bashan cometh out to meet them, he and all his people, to battle, [at] Edrei. |
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| 34 And Jehovah saith unto Moses, 'Fear him not, for into thy hand I have given him, and all his people, and his land, and thou hast done to him as thou hast done to Sihon king of the Amorite, who is dwelling in Heshbon.' |
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| 35 And they smite him, and his sons, and all his people, until he hath not left to him a remnant, and they possess his land. |
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