1‘Then we turned and traveled toward Bashan. And Og the king of Bashan came out to fight us with all his people at Edraim. 2And Jehovah said to me, Don’t be afraid of him, because I’m giving him, all his people, and all of his land into your hands. So, do to him as you did to Seon, the king of the Amorites who lived in Hesh-Eboneh. 3‘And Jehovah our God did give him into our hands, as well as all of his people. We cut them down until none of his seed was left, 4and then we captured all of his cities. For at that time, there were sixty cities all around the country of Argob that belonged to King Og. 5They were all strong cities with high walls, high gates, and strong locks. [We also captured] many Pherezite cities, 6and we destroyed everything, as we had done to Seon the king of Hesh-Eboneh. We destroyed each city in its order, as well as all the women and children. 7However, we took all the cattle and looted the cities. 8‘At that time, we also captured land that belonged to two Amorite kings who [lived on] the other side of the Jordan, which land ran from the brook of Arnon to Hermon. 9(The Phoenicians call Hermon, SaniOr, but the Amorites called it SanIr.) 10We captured all the cities of Misor, all of Gilead, all of Bashan as far as Elcha and Edraim, which were cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan. 11‘Og, the king of Bashan was the last of the Raphain. {Look!} His bed (which was found in the capital city of the children of Ammon) was made of iron, and {Look!} it was thirteen feet long and six feet wide! 12‘So at that time, we inherited all the land from AroEr (along the border of the Arnon), plus half of Mount Gilead, which cities I gave to Reuben and Gad. 13Then I gave the rest of Gilead and all of Og’s kingdom of Bashan to the half-tribe of ManasSeh, which includes all the country around Argob (which [used to be] the land of the Raphain). 14‘Then JaIr (the son of ManasSeh) took all the country around Argob, as far as the borders of GarGasi and MachAthi, and he named them after himself – Bashan, ThavOth, and JaIr – which is what they are still called today. 15Then I gave Gilead to MachIr, 16and I gave the land below Gilead – from the middle of the brook of Arnon, which borders the children of Amman, all the way to Jaboc – to Reuben and Gad. 17So, the Araba and the Jordan are the boundaries of MachanAreth, running east from the Sea of [Galilee] to the [Dead] Sea below AsedOth Phasga. 18‘And at that time, I told [the men of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of ManasSeh] that Jehovah their God had given them this land by lottery, and that all the mighty [men] should then arm themselves and march ahead of their brothers, the children of Israel. 19However, they are to leave their wives, children, and cattle (I know that they have many cattle) in the cities that I have given them, 20until Jehovah our God provides their brothers a haven (as He has given them) and they inherit the land that Jehovah is giving them on the other side of Jordan… when each one has his own inheritance. 21‘That’s when I told JoShua: You have seen everything that Jehovah our God did to these two kings, and that’s what He’s going to do to all the kingdoms that you are crossing over to there. 22So, you must not be afraid of them, because Jehovah our God will fight for you. 23‘Then I went to Jehovah and asked, 24Lord God; You have just begun to show Your strength, Your power, Your mighty hand and mighty arm to Your servants. For, what God is there in heaven or on earth that can do as You have done by Your might? 25So, [please] allow me to cross into this good land and see what’s beyond the Jordan… its wonderful mountains and the borders of Lebanon. 26‘But Jehovah replied, Because you didn’t show respect or listen to Me, don’t ask Me about this anymore. 27Now, climb to the top of the rocks and look west, north, south, and east… look with your eyes, because you may not cross the Jordan! 28Then speak to JoShua… give him strength and encourage him, because he’s going to lead these people, and it is he who will give them their inheritance in the land that you’ve seen. 29‘Well thereafter, we camped in the valley near the house of Phogor.’
Jamieson Fausset Brown Bible Commentary 1 CONQUEST OF OG, KING OF BASHAN. (Deu. 3:1-20)
we turned, and went up the way to Bashan--Bashan ("fruitful" or "flat"), now El-Bottein, lay situated to the north of Gilead and extended as far as Hermon. It was a rugged mountainous country, valuable however for its rich and luxuriant pastures.
Og the king of Bashan came out against us--Without provocation, he rushed to attack the Israelites, either disliking the presence of such dangerous neighbors, or burning to avenge the overthrow of his friends and allies.
2 The Lord said unto me, Fear him not: for I will deliver him, and all his people, and his land, into thy hand--Og's gigantic appearance and the formidable array of forces he will bring to the field, need not discourage you; for, belonging to a doomed race, he is destined to share the fate of Sihon [
Num 21:25].
3 Argob was the capital of a district in Bashan of the same name, which, together with other fifty-nine cities in the same province, were conspicuous for their lofty and fortified walls. It was a war of extermination. Houses and cities were razed to the ground; all classes of people were put to the sword; and nothing was saved but the cattle, of which an immense amount fell as spoil into the hands of the conquerors. Thus, the two Amorite kings and the entire population of their dominions were extirpated. The whole country east of the Jordan--first upland downs from the torrent of the Arnon on the south to that of the Jabbok on the north; next the high mountain tract of Gilead and Bashan from the deep ravine of Jabbok--became the possession of the Israelites.
9 Hermon--now Jebel-Es-Sheick--the majestic hill on which the long and elevated range of Anti-Lebanon terminates. Its summit and the ridges on its sides are almost constantly covered with snow. It is not so much one high mountain as a whole cluster of mountain peaks, the highest in Palestine. According to the survey taken by the English Government Engineers in 1840, they were about 9376 feet above the sea. Being a mountain chain, it is no wonder that it should have received different names at different points from the different tribes which lay along the base--all of them designating extraordinary height: Hermon, the lofty peak; "Sirion," or in an abbreviated form "Sion" (
Deut 4:48), the upraised, glittering; "Shenir," the glittering breastplate of ice.
11 only Og king of Bashan remained of the remnant of giants--literally, "of Rephaim." He was not the last giant, but the only living remnant in the trans-jordanic country (
Josh 15:14), of a certain gigantic race, supposed to be the most ancient inhabitants of Palestine.
behold, his bedstead was a bedstead of iron--Although beds in the East are with the common people nothing more than a simple mattress, bedsteads are not unknown. They are in use among the great, who prefer them of iron or other metals, not only for strength and durability, but for the prevention of the troublesome insects which in warm climates commonly infest wood. Taking the cubit at half a yard, the bedstead of Og would measure thirteen and a half feet, so that as beds are usually a little larger than the persons who occupy them, the stature of the Amorite king may be estimated at about eleven or twelve feet; or he might have caused his bed to be made much larger than was necessary, as Alexander the Great did for each of his foot soldiers, to impress the Indians with an idea of the extraordinary strength and stature of his men [LE CLERC]. But how did Og's bedstead come to be in Rabbath, of the children of Ammon? In answer to this question, it has been said, that Og had, on the eve of engagement, conveyed it to Rabbath for safety. Or it may be that Moses, after capturing it, may have sold it to the Ammonites, who had kept it as an antiquarian curiosity till their capital was sacked in the time of David. This is a most unlikely supposition, and besides renders it necessary to consider the latter clause of this verse as an interpolation inserted long after the time of Moses. To avoid this, some eminent critics take the Hebrew word rendered "bedstead" to mean "coffin." They think that the king of Bashan having been wounded in battle, fled to Rabbath, where he died and was buried; hence the dimensions of his "coffin" are given [DATHE, ROOS].
12 this land, which we possessed at that time, from Aroer . . . gave I unto the Reubenites and to the Gadites--The whole territory occupied by Sihon was parcelled out among the pastoral tribes of Reuben and Gad. It extended from the north bank of the Arnon to the south half of mount Gilead--a small mountain ridge, now called Djelaad, about six or seven miles south of the Jabbok, and eight miles in length. The northern portion of Gilead and the rich pasture lands of Bashan--a large province, consisting, with the exception of a few bleak and rocky spots, of strong and fertile soil--was assigned to the half-tribe of Manasseh.
14 Jair the son of Manasseh took all the country of Argob--The original inhabitants of the province north of Bashan, comprising sixty cities (
Deut 3:4), not having been extirpated along with Og, this people were afterwards brought into subjection by the energy of Jair. This chief, of the tribe of Manasseh, in accordance with the pastoral habits of his people, called these newly acquired towns by a name which signifies "Jair's Bedouin Villages of Tents."
unto this day--This remark must evidently have been introduced by Ezra, or some of the pious men who arranged and collected the books of Moses.
15 I gave Gilead unto Machir--It was only the half of Gilead (
Deut 3:12-
Deut 3:13) which was given to the descendants of Machir, who was now dead.
16 from Gilead--that is, not the mountainous region, but the town Ramoth-gilead,
even unto the river Arnon half the valley--The word "valley" signifies a wady, either filled with water or dry, as the Arnon is in summer, and thus the proper rendering of the passage will be--"even to the half or middle of the river Arnon" (compare
Josh 12:2). This prudent arrangement of the boundaries was evidently made to prevent all disputes between the adjacent tribes about the exclusive right to the water.
25 I pray thee, let me go over, and see the good land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly mountain, and Lebanon--The natural and very earnest wish of Moses to be allowed to cross the Jordan was founded on the idea that the divine threatening might be conditional and revertible. "That goodly mountain" is supposed by Jewish writers to have pointed to the hill on which the temple was to be built (
Deut 12:5;
Exod 15:2). But biblical scholars now, generally, render the words--"that goodly mountain, even Lebanon," and consider it to be mentioned as typifying the beauty of Palestine, of which hills and mountains were so prominent a feature.
26 speak no more unto me of this matter--that is, My decree is unalterable.