Numbers 20:1-13 -- Other instances of rebellion over the next forty years are not recounted. The period is popularly referred to as the Forty Years' Wandering, but it doesn't seem from the text they actually wandered at all, but stayed in the vicinity of the Paran Wilderness (Deuteronomy 1:46). Miriam, Moses' sister was buried near Kadesh-barnea, on the northern edge of Paran. Perhaps the wandering was of morals. The rebellious nature of this people finally infected Moses himself. His natural anger at their constant carping and whining got the best of him, and he disobeyed Jehovah's instructions. It's not uncommon in that part of the world for limestone formations to conceal water, but without our modern technology, it was only by revelation from Jehovah that Moses could identify where to seek it. The water found was abundant, but His failure cost him entry into the Promised Land.
21:1-3 -- A little out of sequence in the text is the raid by the chieftain of a community called Arad. This was a small clan of Canaanites holding territory on the northern edge of the Negev desert. The reprisal was apparently quick and easy to execute, and no spoils were taken for private use. Moses renamed the place Hormah, often translated as "Destruction," but also meaning something set aside for total destruction as an offering to Jehovah (the concept was of a costly act of self-denial, rather than the item's usefulness to Him). This was a means of healing the raw memories of defeat at another Hormah nearly forty years before. Though never positively identified by archaeologists, Arad would have been on the southern approach to Palestine, and the first to face an invasion from Israel. Of course, the one opportune moment for entering that land from the south was long gone. Now they would have to come in from the east, across the Jordan River.
20:14-21 -- The usual route for such an approach was the King's Highway. This was a wide and well-used path dating back before the time of Abraham. The road ran through several independent kingdoms, and each maintained their own portion of the route as a source of toll and services revenue. Israel would first have to cross the Kingdom of Edom, which at that time occupied the hills east of the Rift Valley, and south east of the Dead Sea. Edom refused passage, even with generous offers of payment for services. No doubt, Edom's rulers knew that conquest was the eventual purpose of Israel, and no amount of reassurance could convince them that their cousins had not added Edom to the list of lands they aspired to occupy. Edom's troops marshaled a visible presence on the southern border. The defense of this southern border, a long uphill climb, was much easier than fending off an enemy already inside the kingdom. Jehovah made it clear that He would not permit Israel to defeat these close relatives, so they must take the long way around, the south and east, over open terrain with few roads.
20:22-29; 21:4-9 -- On this circuitous route was Mount Hor, a landmark named after the ancient Hurrians displaced by the Edomites. It was here Aaron passed his high priesthood over to his son, Eleazer, and died. No one can be sure of the exact identity of this landmark today, but we have some idea of the route. The only reasonable place to mount the heights east of the Rift Valley outside of Edom was down close to the Gulf of Aqabah. Ezion-geber there on the shore at the apex of the Gulf was a mining and shipping center, and much of the trade would have run west to Egypt, past the Sea of Reeds. Thus, the route was referred to as the Way of the Sea of Reeds. No sooner had the time of mourning for Aaron passed but the nation began to grumble about the difficulty of the route. Such talk would certainly lead to a revolt, but they passed through an area infested with bronze-colored poisonous snakes. The metallic bronze version Moses made was mounted on the national standard, and would have been near the Tabernacle.
21:10-20 -- There is celebration over a well dug at the bottom of a wadi. In some places these seasonal water courses held water in a sandy bottom year-round. No more than the thrust of a staff might bring it to the surface. This was the last event recorded before the actual conquest begins. In passing, we have a sample of an older document, perhaps the direct handiwork of Moses or one of his assistants. This Book of the Wars of Jehovah has never been seen in modern times, nor mentioned in any other text we have today. It would appear to be a book of verse, most likely the original source for our text. The inserted Hebrew verse is much older than the narrative. To a nomadic nation of Semites, writing would be relatively unimportant as a means of record keeping. Recitations of epic poetry would be more accurately transmitted over a longer time span than if the book had simply been prose written on the fragile materials available at that time. Once the nation settled in the Promised Land, it would be much easier to have developed the culture and habits of keeping written records. Most of these would have been kept as a part of the royal treasury, and in the Temple that was eventually built. Since it was a stated concern of Jehovah to preserve these records, we can be sure that nothing essential was lost in the process.
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Ed Hurst
revised 12 February 2004
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