Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
He recounts the passage of the Hebrews through the borders of Idumea, verse 4, and of Moab, verse 9, and of Ammon, verse 18, leaving the inhabitants of those lands untouched. Finally, the war and victory over Sihon, verse 24.
Vulgate Text: Deuteronomy 2:1-37
1. And setting out from there, we came into the wilderness which leads to the Red Sea, as the Lord had told me: and we went around mount Seir for a long time. 2. And the Lord said to me: 3. It is enough for you to go around this mountain; go toward the north; 4. and command the people, saying: You shall pass through the borders of your brothers, the sons of Esau, who dwell in Seir, and they will fear you. 5. See therefore carefully that you do not provoke them: for I will not give you of their land even as much as the print of one foot can tread, because I have given mount Seir to Esau as a possession. 6. You shall buy food from them with money, and eat: you shall draw water bought with money, and drink. 7. The Lord your God has blessed you in every work of your hands; He has known your journey, how you have passed through this great wilderness for forty years; the Lord your God dwelling with you, and nothing was lacking to you. 8. And when we had passed by our brothers, the sons of Esau, who dwelt in Seir, by the way of the plain from Elath and Ezion-geber, we came to the way that leads into the desert of Moab. 9. And the Lord said to me: Do not fight against the Moabites, nor enter into battle against them: for I will not give you anything of their land, because I have given Ar to the sons of Lot as a possession. 10. The Emim were the first inhabitants of it, a people great and strong, and so tall that of the stock of Enakim, 11. they were believed to be giants, and were like the sons of Enakim. And the Moabites call them Emim. 12. In Seir also the Horites formerly dwelt: who being expelled and destroyed, the sons of Esau dwelt there, as Israel did in the land of his possession, which the Lord gave to him. 13. Rising up then to cross the torrent Zared, we came to it. 14. And the time in which we traveled from Kadesh-barnea to the crossing of the torrent Zared was thirty-eight years: until the entire generation of fighting men was consumed from the camp, as the Lord had sworn: 15. whose hand was against them, that they should perish from the midst of the camp. 16. And after all the warriors had fallen, 17. the Lord spoke to me, saying: 18. You shall today pass through the borders of Moab, the city named Ar: 19. and approaching the neighborhood of the sons of Ammon, take care not to fight against them, nor be stirred to battle: for I will not give you of the land of the sons of Ammon, because I have given it to the sons of Lot as a possession. 20. It was accounted a land of giants: and in it formerly dwelt giants, whom the Ammonites call Zamzummim, 21. a people great and numerous, and of tall stature, like the Anakim, whom the Lord destroyed before them: and He made them dwell in their place, 22. as He had done for the sons of Esau, who dwell in Seir, destroying the Horites and giving them their land, which they possess to this day. 23. The Avvim also, who dwelt in Hazerim as far as Gaza, the Cappadocians expelled: who, coming forth from Cappadocia, destroyed them and dwelt in their place. 24. Arise, and cross the torrent Arnon: behold, I have delivered into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land; begin to possess it, and join battle against him. 25. Today I will begin to send terror and dread of you upon the peoples who dwell under the whole heaven: so that hearing your name they may tremble, and shake like women in travail, and be seized with pain. 26. So I sent messengers from the wilderness of Kedemoth to Sihon, king of Heshbon, with words of peace, saying: 27. We will pass through your land; we will go by the public road: we will not turn aside to the right or to the left. 28. Sell us food for money, that we may eat: give us water for money, and so we will drink. Only grant us passage, 29. as the sons of Esau, who dwell in Seir, and the Moabites, who dwell in Ar, have done: until we come to the Jordan and cross over to the land which the Lord our God will give us. 30. But Sihon the king of Heshbon was unwilling to give us passage: because the Lord your God had hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, that He might deliver him into your hands, as you now see. 31. And the Lord said to me: Behold, I have begun to deliver Sihon and his land to you; begin to possess it. 32. And Sihon came out against us with all his people to battle at Jahaz. 33. And the Lord our God delivered him to us: and we struck him with his sons and all his people. 34. And we took all his cities at that time, killing the inhabitants of them, men and women and little children; we left nothing in them. 35. Except the cattle, which fell to the share of those who plundered: and the spoils of the cities which we took, 36. from Aroer, which is upon the bank of the torrent Arnon, and the town which is situated in the valley, as far as Gilead. There was not a village or city that escaped our hands: the Lord our God delivered all of them to us. 37. Except the land of the sons of Ammon, which we did not approach: and all that is adjacent to the torrent Jabbok, and the cities of the mountains, and all the places from which the Lord our God forbade us.
Verse 1: We Went Around Mount Seir
Verse 1. WE WENT AROUND MOUNT SEIR, -- that is, Idumea: for the father of the Idumeans was Esau, who was called Edom, because he was red; and Seir, because he was hairy. See these circuits of the Hebrews through the desert and around Idumea, depicted to the life in the tables of Adrichomius. Moreover, Idumea is called a mountain because it is high and mountainous. Hence Obadiah, verses 3 and 9, says the Idumeans dwell in the clefts of the rocks and mountains, and adds: "If you have been exalted as the eagle, and if you have set your nest among the stars, from there I will bring you down, says the Lord." So Saint Jerome, On Hebrew Places.
Verse 3: Go Toward the North
Verse 3. GO TOWARD THE NORTH, -- go toward the promised land, which is to the north of Idumea, around which you have gone for a long time toward the south and east; but having mercy on you, I wish you to shorten your journey through the borders of Idumea as quickly as possible, so that you may proceed directly into Canaan, namely by passing between the Moabites and Ammonites, through the kingdoms of Og and Sihon.
Verse 4: You Shall Pass Through the Borders of the Sons of Esau
Verse 4. YOU SHALL PASS THROUGH THE BORDERS OF YOUR BROTHERS, THE SONS OF ESAU. -- For although in Numbers XX, 21, the Idumeans initially denied passage to the Hebrews; yet from this passage, and from verses 6 and 29, it is clear that they eventually granted the Hebrews passage, at least through the borders of their region. So Abulensis, although Lyra with Rabbi Solomon thinks otherwise.
Verse 5: Do Not Provoke Them
Verse 5. DO NOT PROVOKE THEM, -- In Hebrew, "do not mingle war," that is, with them.
Verse 6: You Shall Buy Food from Them with Money
Verse 6. YOU SHALL BUY FOOD FROM THEM WITH MONEY, AND EAT. -- Hence it is clear that the Hebrews, devoted to meat and their bellies, in the desert not only ate manna but also other foods, which they either bought from the Idumeans and other neighboring peoples, or hunted, or obtained from their own flocks. The same is clear from Joshua I, 11; so Andreas Masius on that passage, Pererius on Exodus XIII, disputation 7, Lorinus on chapter XVI of Wisdom, Abulensis on Exodus XVI, Question XII.
Verse 10: The Emim Were the First Inhabitants
Verse 10. THE EMIM WERE THE FIRST INHABITANTS OF IT, -- that is, of Moab. Note: There were formerly different kinds, or lineages, of giants, as is clear from Genesis XIV, 5. For some were called Emim, that is, "terrible," namely in appearance, on account of their immense height and the vastness of their bodies: for ema in Hebrew means "terror." So the Chaldean and Saint Jerome in his Questions on Genesis, chapter XIV. Again, Oleaster derives Emim from amma, that is "cubit," as if to say: Men of cubits, namely of many. Second were the Rephaim, who are named both elsewhere and here in verse 11 in the Hebrew, so called either from the first giant, their progenitor, Rapha, who is mentioned in I Chronicles XX, 6; or because they made men's spirits faint and overwhelmed and dissolved them by their immense stature and bulk: for rapha means "to loosen, to dissolve." R. Nehemannus, and following him Andreas Masius on Joshua XII, 4, think the Rephaim were a cognomen of the Hivites; for since the Hivites were named from serpents, because like them they inhabited caves in the earth, hence they were likewise called Rephaim, as if to say "those of the underworld," because they dwelt underground in caves: for thus Isaiah, chapter XXVI, verse 14, calls the dead Rephaim. Third were the Anakim, namely the children and descendants of Anak the giant, concerning whom see Joshua XXI, 14, and chapter XV, verses 13 and 14. Some however think Anak is not a proper name but a cognomen, as if to say "Torquatus" (the necklace-wearer), because these giants walked about wearing necklaces: for anac means a necklace. So among the Romans, T. Manlius, from the necklace which he stripped from a Gaul in battle at the Anio, was called Torquatus.
Verse 12: In Seir the Horites Formerly Dwelt
Verse 12. IN SEIR ALSO THE HORITES FORMERLY DWELT (concerning whom see Genesis XIV, 5, whom Chedorlaomer struck, devastating the highlands of Seir. Andreas Masius on Joshua XII, 4, believes the Horites were Troglodytes, and so called from the caves which they inhabited (for chur means a hole, a cave, a cavern) just like the Hivites, whose kinsmen the Horites were, whom afterward the Idumeans expelled, as is said here, just as the Hebrews expelled the Amorites: for this is what follows:) AS ISRAEL DID IN THE LAND OF HIS POSSESSION, -- that is, in the land of the two kings, Og and Sihon: for the Israelites had not yet entered the rest of the promised land.
Verse 15: Whose Hand Was Against Them
Verse 15. WHOSE (THE LORD'S) HAND WAS AGAINST THEM, -- as if to say: The Lord's power, might, and vengeance, which among men is customarily exercised by the hand, was stretched out against the murmurers, that they should perish, or, as the Hebrew has it, to destroy or crush them in the desert.
Verse 19: Because I Have Given It to the Sons of Lot
Verse 19. BECAUSE I HAVE GIVEN IT TO THE SONS OF LOT. -- The sons of Lot were Ammon and Moab: hence on account of Lot's merits, God willed that Ammon and Moab should pass to his descendants, just as He willed that Idumea should pass to the descendants of Esau, on account of the merits of Isaac and Abraham, their grandfathers, after the Horites had been expelled, and He did not want the Hebrews to invade or occupy it.
Verse 20: The Zamzummim
Verse 20. IN IT (AMMON) FORMERLY DWELT GIANTS, WHOM THE AMMONITES CALL ZAMZUMMIM. -- These are the ones called Zuzim in Genesis XIV, 5, that is, "the strong," as the Septuagint translates there; for hence in Hebrew mezuzot are the doorposts of houses, because they are strong and firm. And Zamzummim in Hebrew means, first, "wicked and criminal": for zimmah means wickedness, crime. Second, of unusual and unheard-of size. Third, famous, renowned, who are on the lips and in the estimation of men: hence the Chaldean translates chushbane, that is, "notable, renowned": for the root zamam means to think, to reckon, to plot and contrive. Hence it seems that the Ammonites and Moabites, just like the Hebrews, used the Hebrew language: for Zuzim, Zamzummim, Emim (verse 11), are Ammonite and Moabite names, just as they are Hebrew. For Lot, their father, lived in the household of Abraham the Hebrew, his uncle, and descended from Eber, in whose family the Hebrew language remained during the division of nations and languages at Babel. For all these nations, and indeed all the Canaanites, used the Canaanite language, which Saint Jerome teaches in Isaiah chapter XIX to be related to the Hebrew language. Hence also the spies sent by Joshua to Jericho spoke with Rahab the Canaanite woman, certainly understanding her Canaanite language, and being understood by her. See Serarius on Joshua chapter II, Question XXV.
Verse 21: He Made Them Dwell in Their Place
Verse 21. AND (THE LORD) MADE THEM (THE AMMONITES) DWELL IN THEIR PLACE (in place of the Zamzummim).
Verse 23: The Cappadocians Expelled the Avvim
Verse 23. THE AVVIM ALSO, ETC., THE CAPPADOCIANS EXPELLED, -- as if to say: Just as the Avvim were expelled by the Cappadocians, the Horites by the Idumeans, the Rephaim by the Ammonites: so also the inhabitants of Palestine, and especially Sihon with his people, will be expelled by you, O Hebrews. Whether these Cappadocians were Greeks or Palestinians, I will discuss in Jeremiah XLVII, 4.
Verse 25: Today I Will Begin to Send Terror
Verse 25. TODAY I WILL BEGIN TO SEND TERROR AND DREAD OF YOU UPON THE PEOPLES WHO DWELL UNDER ALL HEAVEN, -- to whom, namely, the fame of the things done by Me for you will reach, as follows. The word "all" must therefore be taken in a fitting sense. So Oleaster.
Rabbi Solomon teaches, or rather invents, that the terror of Moses was under all heaven: because in the victory over Sihon and Og the sun stood still, just as it stood still when Joshua fought against many kings at Gibeon, Joshua X, 12. For Scripture says nothing of the sort about Moses.
Verses 28-29: Only Grant Us Passage
Verses 28 and 29. ONLY (WE ASK ONLY) THAT YOU GRANT US PASSAGE, AS THE SONS OF ESAU HAVE DONE (through the borders of their territory, as I said at verse 4) AND THE MOABITES, WHO DWELL IN AR. -- First, therefore, the Moabites gave some passage in the borders of Ar to the Hebrews; but shortly afterward, seeing that Sihon the king was being slain by them, they began to fear for themselves, especially when the Hebrews a second time approached them by another route; whence they called Balaam to curse the Hebrews, Numbers XXII, 5. So Abulensis. Andreas Masius in Joshua chapter XII, 3, thinks Ar is Areopolis.
Verse 30: The Lord Hardened His Spirit
Verse 30. BECAUSE THE LORD YOUR GOD HAD HARDENED HIS SPIRIT, -- by withdrawing from him the grace that softens, and on the other hand by casting into him dread and fear of the Hebrews: for a Gentile king had reason to fear that the Hebrews, under the pretense of passage, would treacherously seize his kingdom; and so by presenting to him the Hebrews' petition for passage, which He foreknew he would absolutely refuse; whence it followed that the Hebrews would attempt the same by force and war, in which Sihon would succumb and be delivered into their hands. See on hardening what was said on Exodus chapter VII, verse 3.
Verse 33: We Struck Him with His Sons
Verse 33. AND WE STRUCK HIM WITH HIS SONS AND ALL HIS PEOPLE. -- Josephus relates, apparently from his own imagination, as is his custom embellishing events, that in this war many of the Amorites died of thirst; others, rushing toward the river Arnon, were pierced with javelins: others, fleeing to the walls, were intercepted by slingers and utterly destroyed.
From what has been said so far, it is clear that Moses, although excluded from the Holy Land just like Aaron, nevertheless had many privileges and joys beyond him. First, that he entered into a part of the Holy Land which is beyond the Jordan, namely into Gilead: while Aaron had already died before on mount Hor. Second, that he defeated Og and Sihon, seized their kingdoms, and divided them among his people. Third, that he received the blessing of Balaam. Fourth, that he destroyed the Midianites. Fifth, that from nearby he surveyed the entire promised land. So Abulensis.
Verse 34: Killing Men and Women and Little Children
Verse 34. KILLING THE INHABITANTS OF THEM, MEN AND WOMEN AND LITTLE CHILDREN. -- Because God had commanded that all the nations whose cities the Hebrews were to possess should be totally destroyed, as is clear from chapter XX, verse 16.
Verse 37: Adjacent to the Torrent Jabbok
Verse 37. THAT IS ADJACENT TO THE TORRENT JABBOK, -- where Jacob wrestled with the angel, Genesis XXXII, 22, and it pertains to the Ammonites.