Deuteronomy 3 You have to fight

seekeroftruth

Well-Known Member
Deuteronomy 3:12 Of the land that we took over at that time, I gave the Reubenites and the Gadites the territory north of Aroer by the Arnon Gorge, including half the hill country of Gilead, together with its towns. 13 The rest of Gilead and also all of Bashan, the kingdom of Og, I gave to the half-tribe of Manasseh. (The whole region of Argob in Bashan used to be known as a land of the Rephaites. 14 Jair, a descendant of Manasseh, took the whole region of Argob as far as the border of the Geshurites and the Maakathites; it was named after him, so that to this day Bashan is called Havvoth Jair.[d]) 15 And I gave Gilead to Makir. 16 But to the Reubenites and the Gadites I gave the territory extending from Gilead down to the Arnon Gorge (the middle of the gorge being the border) and out to the Jabbok River, which is the border of the Ammonites. 17 Its western border was the Jordan in the Arabah, from Kinnereth to the Sea of the Arabah (that is, the Dead Sea), below the slopes of Pisgah.

18 I commanded you at that time: “The Lord your God has given you this land to take possession of it. But all your able-bodied men, armed for battle, must cross over ahead of the other Israelites. 19 However, your wives, your children and your livestock (I know you have much livestock) may stay in the towns I have given you, 20 until the Lord gives rest to your fellow Israelites as he has to you, and they too have taken over the land that the Lord your God is giving them across the Jordan. After that, each of you may go back to the possession I have given you.”​

I got this from the easy English site.

Moses describes how he divided the land to the east of the River Jordan. He gave some land to the tribes of Reuben and Gad. He gave the rest of the land to half the tribe called Manasseh. Those tribes had especially asked for that land. So Moses let them live there. They still had to help the rest of the tribes to possess their parts of the land. They could not rest until they had done that.

The Israelites who wanted to live on the east of the River Jordan still had to help the other Israelites. The nation had to act as a group, with God as their leader. Their wives, their families and their cattle would remain in their country. Perhaps the men who were too young or too old to fight would look after them. The men who crossed the River Jordan could return to their own country. However, they had to help the other Israelites first. Moses ordered Joshua to lead the battle. Moses told him not to be afraid. Moses reminded Joshua about what God had done to the two kings, Sihon and Og. God would help Joshua to defeat other kings in the same way.​

This is from the BibleTrack site.

The conquered territory was subsequently given to the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh at their request. This transaction was negotiated with Moses in Numbers 32 (see notes). The other half of Manasseh settled on the west side of the Jordan River with the remaining tribes. The memory of this great conquest was a monumental victory all through the national history of Israel, as is the case hundreds of years later in Psalms 135:11 and 136:20. When times were tough for the Jews, they would look back to God's miraculous provision on that day.

So the descendants of two of Jacob's sons and one of Jacob's grandsons now have their allotment of land. The deal struck requires the men of fighting age to assist the others secure their land. With two big, big, big battles in their belt, they are ready.

This comes from the "freedom" site.

The Israelites who had gained their inheritance would still need to join the main army in conquering the rest of the land. This was obvious. Without it, there would be much disharmony, cause for lack of morale and maybe inner war as to who should get the land on the west of the Jordan. Starting in 3:18 Moses tells them to go over armed before their brethren. They would and did fight the main battles. They still needed to trust God, however.

They left their wives, children and flocks all on the other side. They would first need to see victory on the east side of the Jordan before they could return.

The advantage seen on not battling Edom, but especially Moab and Ammon, was that they now had neighbors who were not as jittery over the plans of Israel. Israel clearly avoided confrontation with these three countries. They could see that, whatever the reason, Israel was not interested in occupying their land. It would have been much easier for the Israelites to just go right through their land on the ‘public’ highway. But having respected their wishes, they became quasi-peaceful neighbors.

Good deal!

:coffee:
 
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