Deuteronomy 2 Don't bug Lot's family either

seekeroftruth

Well-Known Member
Deuteronomy 2:8 So we went on past our relatives the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. We turned from the Arabah road, which comes up from Elath and Ezion Geber, and traveled along the desert road of Moab.

9 Then the Lord said to me, “Do not harass the Moabites or provoke them to war, for I will not give you any part of their land. I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot as a possession.”

10 (The Emites used to live there—a people strong and numerous, and as tall as the Anakites. 11 Like the Anakites, they too were considered Rephaites, but the Moabites called them Emites. 12 Horites used to live in Seir, but the descendants of Esau drove them out. They destroyed the Horites from before them and settled in their place, just as Israel did in the land the Lord gave them as their possession.)

13 And the Lord said, “Now get up and cross the Zered Valley.” So we crossed the valley.

14 Thirty-eight years passed from the time we left Kadesh Barnea until we crossed the Zered Valley. By then, that entire generation of fighting men had perished from the camp, as the Lord had sworn to them. 15 The Lord’s hand was against them until he had completely eliminated them from the camp.​

I would think that they were on a holiday vacation, based on the families they have seen on their journey. Now the Moabites were distant cousins. Lot was Jacob's cousin. Oh I think everyone remembers Lot. He's the one that just barely got out of Sodom before God destroyed the city and everyone in it. Lot's wife was turned into a pillar of salt because she wouldn't get her butt in gear.

This is from the easy English commentary.

God told the Israelites which territory they must not capture. God had given that territory to the families of Esau and Lot. This statement taught them that there was only one God. He had given to each nation its own country. No false god had given it to them. The Rephaites were a group of very tall people. They lived in Canaan before the Israelites arrived. The name ‘Emite’ means ‘the terrible people’. The word ‘Zamzummin’ means ‘the wicked men’. Israelite men were old enough to fight when they were 20 years old. (See Numbers 1:3.) Moses reminded the Israelites that they had wandered for 38 years in the desert. During that time, all the people who had left Egypt over 20 years old had died.

This comes from a site called "foundations for freedom.net".

They were not to ‘harass’ Moab or provoke them to war. The Lord was again very clear on what they were to and not to do. The most straightforward way would have been to go through the middle of Moab over the King’s Highway which proceeded north and south. We are not sure whether Moab refused them as Edom had, but the fact is that they went around Moab. Although not mentioned here, Moab and Ammon refused to trade food to the Israelites. “No Ammonite or Moabite shall enter the assembly of the LORD” (Deuteronomy 23:3).

They went northward until the Dead Sea and from their went east along the River Zered which runs in between Edom and Moab. The precise journey is unknown. Places like Oboth and Lyeabarim mentioned in Numbers 21:11 are unknown where the details are given in fuller description. It is the description of the place “in the wilderness which is opposite Moab, to the east” which helps us see that they went fully around Moab rather than on the convenient King’s Highway. They came in from the east.

God also kept the communities separate. The whole incident with Balaam is not mentioned here. By keeping fear between the communities, the Lord would preserve the uniqueness of the Israelites. Balaam finally used the merging of the communities to cause destruction which Phinehas put a quick stop to (Numbers 25:7). Again we see God focusing on the Israelite’s obedience in not harassing Moab and leaving out details about their sins.

Here are a couple of "maps" used by the freedom site.
Through Edom.jpg Journeyeast.jpg

No doubt, if God had allowed these stupid humans to go directly up the Kings Highway, those stupid humans would have lost more men to the gods of the Moabites..... don't you think? Sex was part of the religious ceremonies of the Moabites.

Some of our cousins are not the best people to spend time with. Sometimes you do have to give some relatives a wide berth to keep yourself out of trouble.

There are people in my family, including an ex-husband, that are like the Moabites to me. It hurts sometimes to say that the reason I don't have anything to do with them is the choices they make. Years ago I stayed loyal to them because everyone always told me that I had to stay and be an example.

However, sometimes, it doesn't matter how much light you shine. There is still stuff that is harmful. Think about it.... if you turn on a light, it doesn't make a snake disappear.... Now I am reminded of what Jesus said.

Matthew 10:34 “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.

They had to avoid the Moabites.... and I might have family I should avoid as well.

:coffee:
 
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