God’s Word Translation
Numbers 21:24
24But Israel defeated them in battle and took possession of their land from the Arnon Valley to the Jabbok River. ⌞They stopped at⌟ the border of the Ammon because it was fortified.
Numbers 21:24 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And Israel smote him with the edge of the sword, and possessed his land from Arnon unto Jabbok, even unto the children of Ammon: for the border of the children of Ammon was strong.
- New International Version (NIV)Israel, however, put him to the sword and took over his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, but only as far as the Ammonites, because their border was fortified.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And Israel defeated him with the edge of the sword and took possession of his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, as far as to the Ammonites, for the border of the Ammonites was strong.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then Israel defeated him with the edge of the sword, and took possession of his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, as far as the people of Ammon; for the border of the people of Ammon was fortified.
Context of Numbers 21:24
22“Let us go through your country. We won’t go through any of your fields or vineyards or drink any of the water from your wells. We’ll stay on the king’s highway until we’ve passed through your territory.” 23Sihon wouldn’t let Israel pass through his territory. Sihon gathered all his troops and came out into the desert to attack Israel. When Sihon’s troops came to Jahaz, they fought against Israel. But Israel defeated them in battle and took possession of their land from the Arnon Valley to the Jabbok River. ⌞They stopped at⌟ the border of the Ammon because it was fortified. 25Israel took all those Amorite cities, including Heshbon and all its villages, and lived in them. 26Heshbon was the city of King Sihon of the Amorites. He had fought the former king of Moab and had taken all his land up to the Arnon Valley.
Read all of Numbers 21Numbers 21:24 word by word
וַיַּכֵּ֥הוּ יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לְפִי־חָ֑רֶב וַיִּירַ֨שׁ אֶת־אַרְצ֜וֹ מֵֽאַרְנֹ֗ן עַד־יַבֹּק֙ עַד־בְּנֵ֣י עַמּ֔וֹן כִּ֣י עַ֔ז גְּב֖וּל בְּנֵ֥י עַמּֽוֹן׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- smoteנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
- him with the edgeפֶּהpeh · lip: edgeH6310
- of the swordחֶ֫רֶבchereb · swordH2719
- and possessedיָרַשׁyârash yârêsh · to possess: takeH3423
- his landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- from Arnonאַרְנוֹן'arnôn 'arnôn · ArnonH769
- unto Jabbokיַבֹּקyabbôq · JabbokH2999
- even unto the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
- of Ammonעַמּוֹן‛ammôn · AmmonH5983
- for the borderגְּבוּלgebûl gebûl · border: boundaryH1366
- strongעַז‛az · strongH5794
Cross-references for Numbers 21:24
- Numbers 32:1The tribes of Reuben and Gad had a large number of livestock. They saw that the regions of Jazer and Gilead were a good place for livestock.
- Deuteronomy 2:31The Lord said to me, “I have begun to give you Sihon and his country. Go ahead! Take possession of his land.”
- Deuteronomy 29:7When you came to this place, King Sihon of Heshbon and King Og of Bashan came out to fight us, but we defeated them.
- Joshua 9:10We also heard everything he did to the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, King Sihon of Heshbon and King Og of Bashan in Ashtaroth.
- Joshua 12:1These are the kings of the land east of the Jordan River that the people of Israel defeated. Israel also took possession of their lands from the Arnon Valley to Mount Hermon, and all the eastern plains.
- Joshua 13:8The tribes of Reuben and Gad with half of the tribe of Manasseh had received their inheritance east of the Jordan River, since the Lord’s servant Moses had already given it to them.
- Joshua 24:8“After that I brought you to the land of the Amorites who lived on the east side of the Jordan River. They fought you. However, I handed them over to you. So you took their land, and I destroyed them in front of you.
- Judges 11:21But the Lord God of Israel handed Sihon and all his people over to Israel. Israel defeated them and took possession of all the land of the Amorites who lived there.
- Judges 12:1The men of Ephraim were summoned to fight. They crossed ⌞the Jordan River⌟ to Zaphon. They said to Jephthah, “Why did you fight against Ammon without inviting us to go with you? Now we’re going to burn your house down with you in it.”
- Nehemiah 9:22You gave kingdoms and nations to the Israelites and assigned them their boundaries. So they took possession of the land of Sihon, the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of King Og of Bashan.
- Psalms 135:10He is the one who defeated many nations and killed mighty kings:
- Psalms 136:19King Sihon of the Amorites— because his mercy endures forever.
- Amos 2:9I destroyed the Amorites in front of them, although the Amorites were as tall as cedars and as strong as oaks. I destroyed their fruit above the ground and their roots below it.
- Numbers 21:13They moved from there and set up camp on the other side of the Arnon Valley in the desert that extends into Amorite territory. (The Arnon Valley is the border between Moab and the Amorites.)
- Genesis 32:22During that night he got up and gathered his two wives, his two slaves and his eleven children and crossed at the shallow part of the Jabbok River.
- Deuteronomy 3:16I gave the tribes of Reuben and Gad some of Gilead from the Arnon Valley (the middle of the valley is the border) to the Jabbok River, which is the border of Ammon.
Commentaries on Numbers 21:24
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 24Jabbok (now Wady Zerka: compare Genesis 32:22) runs eastward under Rabbah of the children of Ammon, thence westward, and reaches the Jordan, 45 miles north of the Arnon. It was between Rabbah and Gerasa that it formed the Ammonite boundary.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 21-35Verses 21-35 Sihon went with his forces against Israel, out of his own borders, without provocation, and so ran upon his own ruin. The enemies of God's church often perish by the counsels they think most wisely taken. Og, king of Bashan, instead of being warned by the fate of his neighbours, to make peace with Israel, makes war with them, which proves in like manner his destruction. Wicked men do their utmost to secure themselves and their possessions…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 21-24King Sihon's land was between Moab and Ammon. God would not allow the Israelites to invade Ammon, Edom, or Moab (Deuteronomy 2:19; Deuteronomy 2:4–9). This was because they were relatives (Genesis 19:30–38; 32:3). Yet, Israel needed to cross Transjordan (the region across the Jordan River) to enter Canaan. Sihon's territory was the natural route.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2424. from Arnon unto Jabbok--now the Zurka. These rivers formed the southern and northern boundaries of his usurped territory. for the border of ... Ammon was strong--a reason stated for Sihon not being able to push his invasion further.Read the comment
Topics related to Numbers 21:24
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Numbers 21
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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