1. Lesson One of the Book of Daniel, Introduction to the Book of Daniel

Lesson 39,  Geography Study Concerning the Scriptures, Israel's Conquest of Transjordan

Israel’s Conquest of Transjordan

At the time of the Exodus, Transjordan was occupied by Edomite, Moabite, Ammonite, and Amorite kingdoms. 

The first three of these peoples were peoples distantly related to Israel.

Genesis 19:36-38,  Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their father. ³⁷And the firstborn bare a son, and called his name Moab: the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day. ³⁸And the younger, she also bare a son, and called his name Benammi: the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day.

Genesis 36:1,  Now these are the generations of Esau, who is Edom. 

Up to this point there were no confrontations or battles with Edom, Moab, and Ammon but the battles in Transjordan began with the Amorites, namely the kingdoms of Sihon and Og. 

At the close of the thirty-eight year period in the neighborhood of Kadesh, the Israelites asked permission of the Edomites to cross through their country en route to Canaan. 

Numbers 20:14-21,  And Moses sent messengers from Kadesh unto the king of Edom, Thus saith thy brother Israel, Thou knowest all the travail that hath befallen us: ¹⁵How our fathers went down into Egypt, and we have dwelt in Egypt a long time; and the Egyptians vexed us, and our fathers: ¹⁶And when we cried unto the LORD, he heard our voice, and sent an angel, and hath brought us forth out of Egypt: and, behold, we are in Kadesh, a city in the uttermost of thy border: ¹⁷Let us pass, I pray thee, through thy country: we will not pass through the fields, or through the vineyards, neither will we drink of the water of the wells: we will go by the king’s high way, we will not turn to the right hand nor to the left, until we have passed thy borders. ¹⁸And Edom said unto him, Thou shalt not pass by me, lest I come out against thee with the sword. ¹⁹And the children of Israel said unto him, We will go by the high way: and if I and my cattle drink of thy water, then I will pay for it: I will only, without doing any thing else, go through on my feet. ²⁰And he said, Thou shalt not go through. And Edom came out against him with much people, and with a strong hand. ²¹Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his border: wherefore Israel turned away from him.

Numbers 20:23-29 mentions the death of Aaron and his burial on Mount Hor but the location of Mount Hor is uncertain.

Numbers 20:22-29,  And the children of Israel, even the whole congregation, journeyed from Kadesh, and came unto mount Hor. ²³And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron in mount Hor, by the coast of the land of Edom, saying, ²⁴Aaron shall be gathered unto his people: for he shall not enter into the land which I have given unto the children of Israel, because ye rebelled against my word at the water of Meribah. ²⁵Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up unto mount Hor: ²⁶And strip Aaron of his garments, and put them upon Eleazar his son: and Aaron shall be gathered unto his people, and shall die there. ²⁷And Moses did as the LORD commanded: and they went up into mount Hor in the sight of all the congregation. ²⁸And Moses stripped Aaron of his garments, and put them upon Eleazar his son; and Aaron died there in the top of the mount: and Moses and Eleazar came down from the mount. ²⁹And when all the congregation saw that Aaron was dead, they mourned for Aaron thirty days, even all the house of Israel.

When Edom refused to grant this permission Israel was forced to take a circuitous route. 

So instead of crossing Edom at Punon to access the King’s Highway, they were forced to travel south as far as Ezion-geber on the Gulf of Aqaba. 

This detour was more than 175 miles under conditions of torrid heat. 

It was on this detour that the incident of the bronze serpent happened. 

Numbers 21:4-9,  And they journeyed from mount Hor by the way of the Red sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way. ⁵And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread. ⁶And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died. Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people. ⁸And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. ⁹And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.

Then they turned northward again and passed Mount Seir in Edom. 

At the Zered River, Israel entered Moab without incident. 

Crossing the Arnon they went into the country of Sihon, king of the Amorites, who sought to prevent them from passing through his land.

At Jahaz, Sihon was defeated in a battle, the report of which struck terror in the hearts of the inhabitants of Canaan.

Numbers 21:21-31,  And Israel sent messengers unto Sihon king of the Amorites, saying, ²²Let me pass through thy land: we will not turn into the fields, or into the vineyards; we will not drink of the waters of the well: but we will go along by the king’s high way, until we be past thy borders. ²³And Sihon would not suffer Israel to pass through his border: but Sihon gathered all his people together, and went out against Israel into the wilderness: and he came to Jahaz, and fought against Israel. ²⁴And Israel smote him with the edge of the sword, and possessed his land from Arnon unto Jabbok, even unto the children of Ammon: (AMMONITES AND THE AMORITES) for the border of the children of Ammon was strong. ²⁵And Israel took all these cities: and Israel dwelt in all the cities of the Amorites, in Heshbon, and in all the villages thereof. ²⁶For Heshbon was the city of Sihon the king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab, and taken all his land out of his hand, even unto Arnon. ²⁷Wherefore they that speak in proverbs say, Come into Heshbon, let the city of Sihon be built and prepared: ²⁸For there is a fire gone out of Heshbon, a flame from the city of Sihon: it hath consumed Ar of Moab, and the lords of the high places of Arnon. ²⁹Woe to thee, Moab! thou art undone, O people of Chemosh: he hath given his sons that escaped, and his daughters, into captivity unto Sihon king of the Amorites. ³⁰We have shot at them; Heshbon is perished even unto Dibon, and we have laid them waste even unto Nophah, which reacheth unto Medeba.  ³¹Thus Israel dwelt in the land of the Amorites.

We get further information about this time from Rahab the Harlot in Jericho.

Joshua 2:10 For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. ¹¹And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the LORD your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath.

A further battle with Og, king of Bashan, at Edrei, established the military position of Israel east of the Jordan.

Numbers 21:33-35,  And they turned and went up by the way of Bashan: and Og the king of Bashan went out against them, he, and all his people, to the battle at Edrei. ³⁴And the LORD said unto Moses, Fear him not: for I have delivered him into thy hand, and all his people, and his land; and thou shalt do to him as thou didst unto Sihon king of the Amorites, which dwelt at Heshbon (JUST ABOVE THE DEAD SEA ON THE KINGS HIGHWAY) ³⁵So they smote him, and his sons, and all his people, until there was none left him alive: and they possessed his land.

The story of Balaam illustrates the hopelessness of the situation from the standpoint of the Moabites and their allies.  A soothsayer or magician was imported from Pethor to place a curse on Israel and so bring about their defeat.

Numbers 22:1-6,  And the children of Israel set forward, and pitched in the plains of Moab on this side Jordan by Jericho. ²And Balak the son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites. ³And Moab was sore afraid of the people, because they were many: and Moab was distressed because of the children of Israel. ⁴And Moab said unto the elders of Midian, Now shall this company lick up all that are round about us, as the ox licketh up the grass of the field. And Balak the son of Zippor was king of the Moabites at that time. ⁵He sent messengers therefore unto Balaam the son of Beor to Pethor, which is by the river of the land of the children of his people, to call him, saying, Behold, there is a people come out from Egypt: behold, they cover the face of the earth, and they abide over against me: ⁶Come now therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people; for they are too mighty for me: peradventure I shall prevail, that we may smite them, and that I may drive them out of the land: for I wot that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is cursed.

Unable to do this, Balaam actually pronounced blessings upon Israel. 

Later, however, Balaam suggested that the Moabites invite the Israelites to take part in their fertility cult worship at Baal-peor. 

This orgy of licentiousness brought about a divine judgment on Israel, although God did not blot our His people as Balaam desired.

The tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half of the tribe of Manasseh looked upon the rich Transjordanian pastureland as suitable for their herds and flocks.  They requested permission to settle there. 

Numbers 31:1- 5,  Now the children of Reuben and the children of Gad had a very great multitude of cattle: and when they saw the land of Jazer, and the land of Gilead, that, behold, the place was a place for cattle; ²The children of Gad and the children of Reuben came and spake unto Moses, and to Eleazar the priest, and unto the princes of the congregation, saying, ³Ataroth, and Dibon, and Jazer, and Nimrah, and Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Shebam, and Nebo, and Beon, ⁴Even the country which the LORD smote before the congregation of Israel, is a land for cattle, and thy servants have cattle: ⁵Wherefore, said they, if we have found grace in thy sight, let this land be given unto thy servants for a possession, and bring us not over Jordan.

Moses granted this permission on condition that the men cross with the other tribes and take part in the conquest of Canaan before returning to their inheritance.