Números 21

Números 21

Ryle - Christ “lifted up” and put to shame on Calvary is the ladder by which Christians “enter into the holiest,” and are at length landed in glory. It is true that we are sinners;—but Christ has suffered for us. It is true that we deserve death;—but Christ has died for us. It is true that we are guilty debtors;—but Christ has paid our debts with His own blood. This is the real Gospel! This is the good news! On this let us lean while we live. To this let us cling when we die. Christ has been “lifted up” on the cross, and has thrown open the gates of heaven to all believers. Carson - That bronze snake on a pole was the means God used to give new (physical) life to the children of Israel if they were bitten in the plague of snakes that had been sent in as a punishment for the persistent murmuring. By God’s provision, new life was graciously granted. Why then should it be thought so strange that by the gracious provision of this same God there should be new spiritual life, indeed ‘eternal life’ (v. 15)? Mattoon comparing the looking at the serpent with believing in Jesus - Each man had to look for himself. No man could look for the benefit of another. It was not enough to know about the serpent. You had to look upon it. Each person must come to Christ in faith on the Lord's terms. You cannot get saved by another person's faith. You must personally put your faith in Christ. Knowing about the Lord is not enough to save you from your sins. This serpent on the pole was a picture of Jesus Christ. Utley on the significance of the serpent - The central truth is that humans must trust and obey God’s word, even when they do not fully understand it. God provided a way for the Israelites to be saved from the snake bites if they would only believe. This belief was evidenced by their own obedience to His word/promise. Merrill Tenney observes that "Although Jesus did not elaborate the details of this allusion, it has several applicable aspects: 1. The ancient Israelites were guilty of disobedience and a grumbling and unthankful spirit. 2. They were under the condemnation of God and were being punished for their sin. 3. The object elevated before them was the emblem of their judgment. 4. They were unable to rescue themselves. 5. The poison of the serpents was deadly, and there was no antidote for it. 6. They were urged to look at the serpent in order to receive life. (Borrow EBC-old edition) Rob Mattoon The Brazen Serpent.... A Picture of Christ 1. The brazen serpent was made like a fiery serpent, yet, without a sting. Christ was made like unto sinful man, yet without sin. 2 Corinthians 5:21+—For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. Romans 8:3+—For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: 2. The serpent was cursed in the Garden of Eden. Christ was made a curse for us, taking the sin of the world upon Himself. He identified Himself with our guilt so that we might be identified with Him in glory. Galatians 3:13+—Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: 3. Brass in the Bible is a symbol or picture of judgment. The judgment of God was upon Jesus Christ because He bore our sins. Brass was actually copper. The red serpent was a reminder of the blood that Christ shed upon the cross. 4. As the metal passed through the furnace to be molded in the form of a serpent, the Captain of our Salvation brought deliverance through His suffering. Hebrews 2:10+—For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. 5. Both the serpent and Christ were lifted up as objects of faith and deliverance to those who were dying. The words "lifted up" are from the Greek word hupsoo {hoop-so'-o}. This word was used of being lifted up on the cross and being lifted up into glory at the time of His ascension. It means "to exalt or raise to a place of honor." The cross lifted up Christ to a place of glory. John 12:23—And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified. 6. The cure of the brazen serpent was unknown to reason and it was simple. All they had to do is look by faith. Salvation is simple too. The Christian life begins by looking to the Lord for salvation. Isaiah 45:22—Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. We are to continue to look to the Lord all throughout our lives until the very end of it. We are to be lifting Him up or magnifying Him. Hebrews 12:2+—Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. Philippians 1:20+—According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death. Philippians 3:20+—For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: 7. We receive eternal or everlasting life by looking to the Lord. Eternal life deals not only with the quantity of life, but the quality of life. Eternal life gives peace with God and with men. Since we are forgiven, we must be forgiving. We are to see men as God sees them. Eternal life gives us peace in this life and with ourselves. In spite of our trials or weaknesses, we face them with the Lord at our side. Let me ask, "Are you lifting up the Lord in your life?" Salvation may come quietly, but we must not remain quiet about it. S Lewis Johnson on the Brazen (Bronze) Serpent Now one final thing we want to look at the brazen serpent, so let us read Numbers 21:4-9. Well to make it a little easier, let us begin at verse 4 through verse 9. “And they journeyed from Mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea, to go compass the land of Edom; and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way.” They are so illustrative of us but this is the last time it happens by the way. So the people was much discouraged because of the way and the people spake against God and against Moses, “Wherefore have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no bread.” They did not have to say this. They just turned on the record player. “Neither is there any water and our soul loatheth this light bread.” The psalmist calls it the food of angels. But they call it light bread, that they loathe, the manna. And so the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people and they bit the people and much people of Israel died. Therefore the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned.” They are slow to learn. “And we have sinned for we have spoken against the Lord and against thee; pray unto the Lord that He take away the serpents from us.” And Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said unto Moses, “Make thee a fiery serpent and set it upon a pole; and it shall come to pass, that everyone that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.” And Moses made a serpent of brass or copper and put it upon a pole; and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived. Now you do not have to be told that this is something that the Lord Jesus Christ, not only read but studied because when he was talking to Nicodemus, he had made reference to it. He said this. John chapter 3:14-15+. “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” So the Lord Jesus finds in this an illustration of his own saving ministry. Now of course it is such a beautiful illustration of the Lord’s work that I am not surprised that Old Testament scholars can find some further difficulty with this passage because in 2 Kings 18:4, we read in the time of Hezekiah, this copper serpent was still in existence. And so what would you think that an Old Testament professor sitting at his desk looking for something unique on which to write an article for Novum Testamentum, might be thinking about. Well he would be thinking I need a subject, I need a startling subject, I need a subject I can write my article on it and I will get some recognition and maybe I will get to be applauded professor of Old Testament at the university of whatever. So why not this incident here being written, because after all, the Books of Moses were written long after the time of Moses. We all know that. Don’t we? That is, we scholars. So why not this incident, being written in order to explain how that serpent was found in the day of Hezekiah? So this is the fictitious explanation of the serpent destroyed by Hezekiah. Well it does not take much reading to see that that is not true. Now in John 3:14, we read, “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up.” So the Lord Jesus is the authentication for this particular incident. And further, he uses it as an illustration of his own ministry. That is a striking symbolism when you think about it. Here are people who are bitten by serpents and so being bitten by a serpent, the Lord is going to provide a remedy for it and his remedy is to make a serpent of brass and put it on a pole. Now you would think that he would think of something other than a serpent, saved by a serpent. What a strange thing? Saved by a serpent! But here we have actually an incident in which if a person was bitten and if he followed the instructions, he would look off at that if it is copper, it is a reddish colored snake and in looking off at the reddish colored snake, he would be healed. Well the analogies I think are clear when you think about it because the symbolism is a symbolism found in the Old Testament sacrificial rights. For in the Old Testament sacrificial rights, animals are slain, blood is shed in order that sinful men may be delivered from their sins. And the offerings of the Old Testament are the offerings of animal slain, blood shed in order that men who are guilty of trespass or sin or whatever may be cleansed. So here is life from the dead. The Israelites are sinners. They have been complaining and they represent sinners. They are dying physically. But they represent sinners who die spiritually. They are delivered by a serpent. Now the serpent suggests sin of course. In fact that goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden and so the serpent suggests sin. The remedy is a supernatural remedy because a brazen serpent cannot heal. It is sufficient for all, everyone who looks is healed; it is infallible, you do not have to look twice, you have to look once. You know, do not read any one who said I looked, but I was not healed, he looked and he was. God is not treating us all fairly. It was infallible, it was enduring. In fact, this serpent existed on into the time of Hezekiah. We know it was unique. It was the only way in which you could be healed and it was personal. I like the way that Moses is told to put this because he says in verse 9, “And Moses made a serpent of brass and put it on a pole and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.” A father could not do it for a son. A mother could not do it for a child. Your friend could not do it for you. A priest could not do it for someone else. Aaron or anybody else could not do it for anyone else but that individual person only had to respond. I want to say just one more word about the serpent I would like to suggest to you. When the Lord Jesus used this and when he said, “As Moses lifted up the serpent, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,” he is thinking of himself as being lifted up as the penal sacrifice for a sinful man. In fact, putting in two particular texts. He hath made him to be sin for us. That is why he is pictured as a serpent. He has made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin that we might become the righteousness of God in him. Or Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law being made a curse for us. So how appropriate it is. Bitten by the serpent of sin, the one who is to be the means by which we are delivered is one who in his saving work is the curse for sin, is made the penal sacrifice through substitution for sinners. One thinks of the personal side of it and of Wesley’s words as he described what happened to him in Aldersgate Street in London when he heard the prefaced Luther’s commentary on the Roman’s read. Among his words are these. “An assurance was given me that he had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death.” Can you not imagine some Hebrew youngster maybe from the tribe of well Dan or Naphtali and you can imagine him moving out around the barn or whatever and suddenly one of these little snakes strikes him and he realizes that he has been bitten. He begins to feel the poison coming through and finally he is carried in to a tent and there he just awaits because he knows this has happened to others, the death, that is sure to come. And someone hears about the brazen serpent that Moses has put on a pole and he rushes in and he says to this young Hebrew fellow from the tribe of Dan, look Moses has put a serpent on a pole and if you look to the serpent, you will live. Others have tried it and they have lived. And I can imagine him say it because he is the member of the Unitarian Church. And he will say that is so irrational. What possible connection can there be between a serpent of brass or the pole and the fact that I am dying in this tent. You can look at my ankle here and see the swelling. What connection has a brass serpent got with this? But I have seen it happen. That I can hear him say, now if it were some kind of ointment, something that the priest would do if he would bring in some new medicine, some like some of those other churches have, some of those Mormons, they talk about salamanders and things like that. If they would bring in and if they would strike their hand over the place, I can see how there might be some connection with that. But looking at a pole and just looking at it, why just imagine that those people that you saw healed are just some of those credulous fundamentalists. But we Unitarians and Mormons and others who are enlightened, we obviously see that there is no connection between that serpent on the pole and the fact that I am dying of the fever here now. But of course that may see irrational. It may seem strange. But it was the divine remedy. And the gospel is the divine remedy. It is the divine remedy for sin. And we have all been bitten and the Scriptures say and our Lord is the authority, “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up.” That whosoever is baptized shall be saved. Now whosoever believes it, as a matter of fact, anything that is more of an activity than simply looking is an obfuscation of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. That is the remedy. The serpent on the pole and the means by which it becomes ours is the look of faith. Anything added to that is to make the Gospel other than the gospel. Aren’t these marvelous incidents? Magnificent pedagogical devices to prepare Israel for the coming of him who as the serpent on the pole was and is the remedy for sin. Let us bow in a word of prayer. [Prayer] Father we thank Thee for these marvelous incidents from the Old Testament that so marvelously and beautifully illustrate the saving ministry of our great priestly offering, our great high priest who offered himself as Thee penal sacrifice through substitution by which the people of God are saved now and forever. We give Thee thanks for him. We pray Lord that Thou wilt by Thy grace enable us to be fruitful in the preaching of him. For Jesus’ sake. Amen. Numbers 21:9 And Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on the standard; and it came about, that if a serpent bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived. BGT Numbers 21:9 καὶ ἐποίησεν Μωυσῆς ὄφιν χαλκοῦν καὶ ἔστησεν αὐτὸν ἐπὶ σημείου καὶ ἐγένετο ὅταν ἔδακνεν ὄφις ἄνθρωπον καὶ ἐπέβλεψεν ἐπὶ τὸν ὄφιν τὸν χαλκοῦν καὶ ἔζη NET Numbers 21:9 So Moses made a bronze snake and put it on a pole, so that if a snake had bitten someone, when he looked at the bronze snake he lived. NLT Numbers 21:9 So Moses made a snake out of bronze and attached it to a pole. Then anyone who was bitten by a snake could look at the bronze snake and be healed! ESV Numbers 21:9 So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live. NIV Numbers 21:9 So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived. KJV Numbers 21:9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived. YLT Numbers 21:9 And Moses maketh a serpent of brass, and setteth it on the ensign, and it hath been, if the serpent hath bitten any man, and he hath looked expectingly unto the serpent of brass -- he hath lived. LXE Numbers 21:9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a signal-staff: and it came to pass that whenever a serpent bit a man, and he looked on the brazen serpent, he lived. ASV Numbers 21:9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and set it upon the standard: and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he looked unto the serpent of brass, he lived. CSB Numbers 21:9 So Moses made a bronze snake and mounted it on a pole. Whenever someone was bitten, and he looked at the bronze snake, he recovered. NKJ Numbers 21:9 So Moses made a bronze serpent, and put it on a pole; and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived. NRS Numbers 21:9 So Moses made a serpent of bronze, and put it upon a pole; and whenever a serpent bit someone, that person would look at the serpent of bronze and live. NAB Numbers 21:9 Moses accordingly made a bronze serpent and mounted it on a pole, and whenever anyone who had been bitten by a serpent looked at the bronze serpent, he recovered. NJB Numbers 21:9 Moses then made a serpent out of bronze and raised it as a standard, and anyone who was bitten by a serpent and looked at the bronze serpent survived. GWN Numbers 21:9 So Moses made a bronze snake and put it on a pole. People looked at the bronze snake after they were bitten, and they lived. serpent of: 2Ki 18:4 Joh 3:14,15 12:32 Ro 8:3 2Co 5:21 when he: Isa 45:22 Zec 12:10 Joh 1:29 Heb 12:2 1Jn 3:8 he lived: Joh 6:40 Ro 1:17 5:20,21 Numbers 21 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries SIN JUDGED SALVATION GIVEN And Moses made a bronze (nechosheth) serpent (nahas/nachash) and set it on the standard - Moses obeys without questioning what is ostensibly a somewhat unusual command by Jehovah. There is a good lesson for us today, that when God gives us a command in Scripture, one we might even consider "unusual" (e.g., Mt 5:44+), we should take the "Moses approach" and obey without question and without hesitation so that we too might experience the blessings of obedience, even as Moses was blessed to see bitten, dying Israelites remain alive! It is interesting that the first use of word for standard (nec/nes) was Exodus 17:15+ when Moses recorded the great Name of the LORD, "The LORD My Banner." (banner = nec/nes). And it came about, that if a serpent (nahas/nachash) bit any man, when he looked to the bronze (nechosheth) serpent (nahas/nachash), he lived - The Word of the LORD's promise was proven true (just as it always is!) Israelites bitten with an otherwise fatal injection of venom, looked and lived! The word looked (nabat) in the Septuagint is epiblepo which means to look with favor, to gaze upon, to look intently, attentively. In other words they believed and lived. They believed what might seem implausible or even ridiculous and they lived. In the same way many who once were skeptics and laughed at a dead man coming back to life, have over the millennia come to their senses, and believed the humanly impossible and lived (Acts 16:31+). Looked (05027) (nabat) carries the root idea of that which one does with the eye and can describe everything from a mere glance (1Sa 17:42) to a careful, sustained, and favorable contemplation (Isa 5:12; Ps 74:20; Ps 119:6, 15, Hab 1:5). Nabat speaks of of physical "looking" (Ex 3:6) and (as in Ps 119:18) of figurative "looking", that is, spiritual apprehension (1Sa 16:7). The first OT use of Nabat is in Ge 15:5 where God made a promise to Abraham (" “Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.”) and in Ge 15:6+ "Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness." So Abraham looked at the Heavens (and God's promise of a seed, the Messiah, Gal 3:16+) and then he believed. Related Resources: D. J. Wiseman, “Flying Serpents,” Tyndale Bulletin 23 (1972): 108–10 K. R. Joines, “The Bronze Serpent in the Israelite Cult,” JBL 87 (1968): 245–56. Question: Why is a bronze serpent used to save the Israelites in Numbers 21:8-9? Answer: Throughout the wilderness wanderings of the Israelites, God was constantly teaching them things about Himself and about their own sinfulness. He brought them into the wilderness, to the same mountain where He revealed Himself to Moses, so that He could instruct them in what He required of them. Shortly after the amazing events at Mt. Sinai, God brought them to the border of the Promised Land, but when the people heard the reports from the spies, their faith failed. They said that God could not overcome the giants in the land. As a result of this unbelief, God sent them into the wilderness to wander until that generation died out (Numbers 14:28-34). In Numbers 21, the people again got discouraged, and in their unbelief they murmured against Moses for bringing them into the wilderness. They had already forgotten that it was their own sin that caused them to be there, and they tried to blame Moses for it. As a judgment against the people for their sin, God sent poisonous serpents into the camp, and people began to die. This showed the people that they were the ones in sin, and they came to Moses to confess that sin and ask for God’s mercy. When Moses prayed for the people, God instructed him to make a bronze serpent and put it on a pole so the people could be healed (Numbers 21:5-7). God was teaching the people something about faith. It is totally illogical to think that looking at a bronze image could heal anyone from snakebite, but that is exactly what God told them to do. It took an act of faith in God’s plan for anyone to be healed, and the serpent on the stick was a reminder of their sin which brought about their suffering. There is no connection between this serpent and the serpent which Satan spoke through in the Garden of Eden. This serpent was symbolic of the serpents God used to chastise the people for their unbelief. A couple of additional lessons are taught in the Bible regarding this bronze serpent. The people did get healed when they looked at the serpent, and the image was kept for many years. Many years later, when the Israelites were in the Promised Land, the serpent became an object of worship (2 Kings 18:4). This shows how easy it is for us to take the things of God and twist them into idolatry. We must never worship the tools or the people God chooses to use, but always bring the honor and glory to God alone. The next reference we find in the Bible to this serpent is in John 3:14. Jesus indicated that this bronze serpent was a foreshadowing of Him. The serpent, a symbol of sin and judgment, was lifted up from the earth and put on a tree, which was a symbol of a curse (Galatians 3:13). The serpent lifted up and cursed symbolized Jesus, who takes away sin from everyone who would look to Him in faith, just like the Israelites had to look to the upraised symbol in the wilderness. Paul is reminding the Galatians that Jesus became a curse for us, although He was blameless and sinless—the spotless Lamb of God. “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). GotQuestions.org Numbers 21:10 Now the sons of Israel moved out and camped in Oboth. BGT Numbers 21:10 καὶ ἀπῆραν οἱ υἱοὶ Ισραηλ καὶ παρενέβαλον ἐν Ωβωθ NET Numbers 21:10 The Israelites traveled on and camped in Oboth. NLT Numbers 21:10 The Israelites traveled next to Oboth and camped there. ESV Numbers 21:10 And the people of Israel set out and camped in Oboth. NIV Numbers 21:10 The Israelites moved on and camped at Oboth. KJV Numbers 21:10 And the children of Israel set forward, and pitched in Oboth. YLT Numbers 21:10 And the sons of Israel journey, and encamp in Oboth. LXE Numbers 21:10 And the children of Israel departed, and encamped in Oboth. ASV Numbers 21:10 And the children of Israel journeyed, and encamped in Oboth. CSB Numbers 21:10 The Israelites set out and camped at Oboth. NKJ Numbers 21:10 Now the children of Israel moved on and camped in Oboth. NRS Numbers 21:10 The Israelites set out, and camped in Oboth. NAB Numbers 21:10 The Israelites moved on and encamped in Oboth. NJB Numbers 21:10 The Israelites set out and camped at Oboth. GWN Numbers 21:10 The Israelites moved and set up camp at Oboth. Numbers 21 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Beginning in Nu 20:10 and going through Nu 20:20 we have a summary of Israel's route toward the Promised Land. There is a more detailed account of their journey in Nu 33:41-49. Now the sons of Israel moved out and camped in Oboth - In light of the dramatic preceding context, this is almost an understatement. Presumably the venomous vipers did not follow them, but that would not matter, as the desert was the normal habitat of "fiery serpents and scorpions" (Dt 8:15). It follows that it is highly likely that other Israelites were bitten during this journey. And we do know that the Bronze Serpent Standard persisted (2 Ki 18:4) and therefore would have been available for anyone who was bitten. Holman Bible Dictionary on Oboth - (oh' bahth) Place name meaning, “fathers” or “water skins.” (ED: Fausset however says "Οboth means "holes dug for water") A wilderness station (Numbers 21:10-11 ; Numbers 33:43-44 ), perhaps identical with Ain el-Weiba near Panon (modern Feinan). Related Resources: International Standard Bible Encyclopedia Oboth Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia Oboth McClintock and Strong's Bible Encyclopedia Oboth Fausset Bible Dictionary Oboth Numbers 21:11 They journeyed from Oboth and camped at Iyeabarim, in the wilderness which is opposite Moab, to the east. BGT Numbers 21:11 καὶ ἐξάραντες ἐξ Ωβωθ παρενέβαλον ἐν Αχελγαι ἐκ τοῦ πέραν ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ ἥ ἐστιν κατὰ πρόσωπον Μωαβ κατὰ ἀνατολὰς ἡλίου NET Numbers 21:11 Then they traveled on from Oboth and camped at Iye Abarim, in the wilderness that is before Moab, on the eastern side. NLT Numbers 21:11 Then they went on to Iye-abarim, in the wilderness on the eastern border of Moab. ESV Numbers 21:11 And they set out from Oboth and camped at Iye-abarim, in the wilderness that is opposite Moab, toward the sunrise. NIV Numbers 21:11 Then they set out from Oboth and camped in Iye Abarim, in the desert that faces Moab toward the sunrise. KJV Numbers 21:11 And they journeyed from Oboth, and pitched at Ijeabarim, in the wilderness which is before Moab, toward the sunrising. YLT Numbers 21:11 And they journey from Oboth, and encamp in Ije-Abarim, in the wilderness that is on the front of Moab, at the rising of the sun. LXE Numbers 21:11 And having departed from Oboth, they encamped in Achalgai, on the farther side in the wilderness, which is opposite Moab, toward the east. ASV Numbers 21:11 And they journeyed from Oboth, and encamped at Iyeabarim, in the wilderness which is before Moab, toward the sunrising. CSB Numbers 21:11 They set out from Oboth and camped at Iye-abarim in the wilderness that borders Moab on the east. NKJ Numbers 21:11 And they journeyed from Oboth and camped at Ije Abarim, in the wilderness which is east of Moab, toward the sunrise. NRS Numbers 21:11 They set out from Oboth, and camped at Iye-abarim, in the wilderness bordering Moab toward the sunrise. NAB Numbers 21:11 Setting out from Oboth, they encamped in Iye-abarim in the desert fronting Moab on the east. NJB Numbers 21:11 Then they left Oboth and camped at Iye-Abarim, in the desert on the eastern border of Moab. GWN Numbers 21:11 Next they moved from Oboth and set up camp at Iye Abarim in the desert west of Moab. Numbers 21 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Moab - Arnon River on North and Wadi Zered on South FSB notes that "This section and the next (Nu 21:21–35) are not in chronological order, since the battle with the Amorites (Nu 21:21–35) would have likely been before Israel entered the Jordan Valley. As with many OT passages that list numerous locations, many of these sites are unknown. They journeyed from (nasa - pulled up tent pegs) Oboth and camped at Iye-abarim, in the wilderness which is opposite Moab, to the east (“the rising of the sun”) - Journeyed is nasa means "to pull up," "to pluck out," such as pulling up the pegs of a tent when the camp moves on (Isa. 33:20) thus it lends itself naturally to the general term of "traveling" or "journeying." So here it pictures Israel as pulling up their tent stakes and moving on. Nasa later became a technical term meaning to break camp and move out. Considering that Numbers is a book of wandering or journeying, it is not surprising that over 100 uses of nasa are found in this book picture Israel as desert travellers, each pulling up their tent-pegs, folding their tents, and setting out with flocks and herds on the next stage of their journey. The word wilderness (midbār) is translated in Lxx with eremos which describes an empty or uninhabited place which is desolate. NET NOTE - These places are uncertain. Oboth may be some 15 miles (25 km) from the south end of the Dead Sea at a place called ‘Ain el-Weiba. Iye Abarim may be the modern Mahay at the southeastern corner of Moab. See J. Simons, The Geographical and Topographical Texts of the Old Testament. Wilderness (04057) (midbār) means wilderness or desert. midbār is used to describe three types of country in general: pastureland (Joshua 2:22; Psalm 65:12 [H 13]; Jeremiah 23:10), uninhabited land (Deut. 32:10; Job 38:26; Proverbs 21:19; Jeremiah 9:1), and large areas of land in which oases or cities and towns exist here and there. The wilderness of Judah has at least a half-dozen cities in it. The wilderness of Jordan (the alluvial plain) contains cities, and the wilderness of Sinai has within it a number of oases. midbār is also used figuratively (Hosea 2:5; Jeremiah 2:31). The largest tracts called midbār are Sinai, the Negeb, the Jordan Valley, and the Arabian desert. Specific wilderness areas are: Beer-sheba (Genesis 21:14), Paran (Genesis 21:21; Numbers 10:12; Numbers 12:16; Numbers 13:3, 26; 1 Samuel 25:1), Sin (Exodus 16:1; Ex 17:1; Nu 33:11-12), Sinai (Numbers 1:19, etc; Exodus 19:1-2; Leviticus 7:38); Zin (Numbers 13:21 etc.; Deut. 32:51; Joshua 15:1), Bethaven (Joshua 18:12), Judah (Judges 1:16; Psalm 63 title), Ziph (1 Samuel 23:14; 1 Samuel 26:2), Maon (1 Samuel 23:24-25), Gibeon (2 Samuel 2:24), Damascus (1 Ki 19:15), Edom (2 Kings 3:8), Jeruel (2 Chron. 20:16) Shur (Exodus 15:22; Exodus 16:1; Numbers 1:19 etc.), Etham (Numbers 33:8), Kedemoth (Deut. 2:26), Tekoa (2 Chron. 20:20), Kadesh (Psalm 29:8; Psalm 63 title), and Egypt (Ezekiel 20:35). The wilderness is often described negatively as without grapes, fountains, pools of water, rivers, pleasant places—or as in a notable statement: "Can God furnish a table in the wilderness?" (Psalm 78:19). (Earl Kalland in TWOT - online) Gilbrant - Midhbār refers to an open area of land which is sparsely populated and is generally dry in climate. The term applies to areas which are dry deserts as well as open grazing lands. The KJV, RSV and NASB usually translate this term as "wilderness" while the NIV usually uses the word "desert." The etymology of midhbār is debated. It may be derived from dāvar, "to speak," "to drive away" (see BDB, TWOT). Such derivations do exist in Arabic, Ugaritic and a number of late Aramaic dialects. The term is applied to areas within the tribes of Benjamin and Judah and to the land south of Israel, which today is called the Sinai Peninsula. "Desert" is a good description for the Sinai Peninsula area, while "wilderness" or "steppe" better applies to the areas within Benjamin and Judah. The term is never used for areas within the northern tribes. The area around Damascus is the only place in the north which is referred to as a wilderness, as it sits on the fringe of the Syrian Desert (1 Kings 19:15). The Book of Joshua divides the tribe of Judah into four geographical regions. The number of cities associated with each region demonstrates that a midhbār is a sparsely populated area. From the region of the Negeb, which is south of Beer-Sheba, Judah acquired twenty-nine towns and villages. From the western foothills, which extended from the Mediterranean coast toward the area of Jerusalem, Judah acquired forty-two towns and villages. From the hill country, which included the area of Jerusalem and Hebron, Judah acquired thirty-eight towns and villages, but from the wilderness area, which was along the Dead Sea, Judah only acquired six towns and villages. This area is called the wilderness of Judah. It may have been this region between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea which Jesus entered to be tempted of the devil. The area between Jerusalem and Jericho is the setting of the story of the Good Samaritan. Other terms which highlight the sense of isolation are associated with the midhbār. On the Day of Atonement, a designated man was to take the scapegoat into the wilderness, which in temple times would have been the Judean wilderness. This land is further described as a solitary place, gezfirāh. Moses described the land in which Israel wandered as a great and terrible desert with fiery serpents, scorpions and no water (Deut. 8:15). He also called it a barren and howling place (Deut. 32:12). God would judge the cities which rebelled against Him, and He would make them deserted and forsaken (Isa. 27:10) and uninhabited like the wilderness (Jer. 22:6). He would make the land of Judah like a desolate wilderness which no one passes through (Jer. 9:10ff). The wilderness is barren in contrast to populated and fruitful lands. The Israelites repeatedly made comparisons between the land of Egypt and the wilderness in which they were traveling. Egypt was a place of service, but it was also a place of life, while the desert was a place of death (Exo. 14:11f). They described it as a place without food and water (Num. 21:5). They contrasted it with the land flowing with milk and honey (Num. 16:13). Isaiah contrasted it with a fruitful field (Isa. 32:15). When a river dries up, it becomes like a midhbār (Isa. 50:2). Ezekiel compared it with an open field in which scavengers roam (Ezek. 29:5). Hosea spoke of the east wind which comes across the desert and dries up the land of Israel (Hos. 13:15). In contrast, the wilderness is sometimes associated with the pastoral lifestyle. In these passages, the wilderness does not have the negative connotations mentioned above. Moses pastured the flocks of Jethro in the wilderness (Exo. 3:1). David also pastured sheep in the wilderness (1 Sam. 17:28). It is from this more romantic view of the wilderness that the Song of Songs draws its imagery (3:6; 8:5). Isaiah declared that God would begin the time of restoration in the wilderness. Exiled among the nations, Israel was in the wilderness. It was there that they were to prepare the way for the Lord (Isa. 40:3). In the barren land of Israel, God would transform the wilderness and bring forth water and trees (Isa. 41:19; 43:20). Wilderness areas are often identified with a prominent city or place within the region. The city of Kadesh stood between the wilderness of Paran to the south and the wilderness of Zin to the north. It was in these two areas that Israel spent most of their forty years (Num. 13:26; 20:1; 33:36). The wilderness of Zin also marked the southern border of Judah (Josh. 15:1). Some of the time David was hiding from King Saul was spent in the strongholds in the wilderness of Ziph, which was a city about four miles south of Hebron, and in the wilderness of Maon, four miles further south (1 Sam. 23:14f, 25). It was in this region of southern Judah that David had his encounter with Nabal and Abigail. He also spent time in the wilderness of En-Gedi near the Dead Sea (1 Sam. 24:1). En-Gedi is within the wilderness of Judah, and the title of Ps. 63 indicates that David wrote it during his time in the Judean wilderness. The southern border of Israel is often defined in terms of the wilderness (Exo. 23:31; Num. 34:3; Deut. 11:24). The area east of the Jordan was also defined as a wilderness (Deut. 1:1). The land Israel was entering was a land flowing with milk and honey. While Israel was in exile, they were in a type of wilderness. There is a theological message presented in this midhbār theme. Outside of the land of Israel is death, chaos and emptiness. God was with Israel in the wilderness for forty years, and God was with Israel during the Babylonian exile. He never ceased providing for his people, but God's full provision for his people was within the land. In the land was abundance and life without slavery. (Complete Biblical Library) Midbar - 269x in 255v desert(11), deserts(1), wilderness(257). - Gen. 14:6; Gen. 16:7; Gen. 21:14; Gen. 21:20; Gen. 21:21; Gen. 36:24; Gen. 37:22; Exod. 3:1; Exod. 3:18; Exod. 4:27; Exod. 5:1; Exod. 5:3; Exod. 7:16; Exod. 8:27; Exod. 8:28; Exod. 13:18; Exod. 13:20; Exod. 14:3; Exod. 14:11; Exod. 14:12; Exod. 15:22; Exod. 16:1; Exod. 16:2; Exod. 16:3; Exod. 16:10; Exod. 16:14; Exod. 16:32; Exod. 17:1; Exod. 18:5; Exod. 19:1; Exod. 19:2; Exod. 23:31; Lev. 7:38; Lev. 16:10; Lev. 16:21; Lev. 16:22; Num. 1:1; Num. 1:19; Num. 3:4; Num. 3:14; Num. 9:1; Num. 9:5; Num. 10:12; Num. 10:31; Num. 12:16; Num. 13:3; Num. 13:21; Num. 13:26; Num. 14:2; Num. 14:16; Num. 14:22; Num. 14:25; Num. 14:29; Num. 14:32; Num. 14:33; Num. 14:35; Num. 15:32; Num. 16:13; Num. 20:1; Num. 20:4; Num. 21:5; Num. 21:11; Num. 21:13; Num. 21:18; Num. 21:23; Num. 24:1; Num. 26:64; Num. 26:65; Num. 27:3; Num. 27:14; Num. 32:13; Num. 32:15; Num. 33:6; Num. 33:8; Num. 33:11; Num. 33:12; Num. 33:15; Num. 33:16; Num. 33:36; Num. 34:3; Deut. 1:1; Deut. 1:19; Deut. 1:31; Deut. 1:40; Deut. 2:1; Deut. 2:7; Deut. 2:8; Deut. 2:26; Deut. 4:43; Deut. 8:2; Deut. 8:15; Deut. 8:16; Deut. 9:7; Deut. 9:28; Deut. 11:5; Deut. 11:24; Deut. 29:5; Deut. 32:10; Deut. 32:51; Jos. 1:4; Jos. 5:4; Jos. 5:5; Jos. 5:6; Jos. 8:15; Jos. 8:20; Jos. 8:24; Jos. 12:8; Jos. 14:10; Jos. 15:1; Jos. 15:61; Jos. 16:1; Jos. 18:12; Jos. 20:8; Jos. 24:7; Jdg. 1:16; Jdg. 8:7; Jdg. 8:16; Jdg. 11:16; Jdg. 11:18; Jdg. 11:22; Jdg. 20:42; Jdg. 20:45; Jdg. 20:47; 1 Sam. 4:8; 1 Sam. 13:18; 1 Sam. 17:28; 1 Sam. 23:14; 1 Sam. 23:15; 1 Sam. 23:24; 1 Sam. 23:25; 1 Sam. 24:1; 1 Sam. 25:1; 1 Sam. 25:4; 1 Sam. 25:14; 1 Sam. 25:21; 1 Sam. 26:2; 1 Sam. 26:3; 2 Sam. 2:24; 2 Sam. 15:23; 2 Sam. 15:28; 2 Sam. 16:2; 2 Sam. 17:16; 2 Sam. 17:29; 1 Ki. 2:34; 1 Ki. 9:18; 1 Ki. 19:4; 1 Ki. 19:15; 2 Ki. 3:8; 1 Chr. 5:9; 1 Chr. 6:78; 1 Chr. 12:8; 1 Chr. 21:29; 2 Chr. 1:3; 2 Chr. 8:4; 2 Chr. 20:16; 2 Chr. 20:20; 2 Chr. 20:24; 2 Chr. 24:9; 2 Chr. 26:10; Neh. 9:19; Neh. 9:21; Job 1:19; Job 24:5; Job 38:26; Ps. 29:8; Ps. 55:7; Ps. 65:12; Ps. 75:6; Ps. 78:15; Ps. 78:19; Ps. 78:40; Ps. 78:52; Ps. 95:8; Ps. 102:6; Ps. 106:9; Ps. 106:14; Ps. 106:26; Ps. 107:4; Ps. 107:33; Ps. 107:35; Ps. 136:16; Prov. 21:19; Cant. 3:6; Cant. 8:5; Isa. 14:17; Isa. 16:1; Isa. 16:8; Isa. 21:1; Isa. 27:10; Isa. 32:15; Isa. 32:16; Isa. 35:1; Isa. 35:6; Isa. 40:3; Isa. 41:18; Isa. 41:19; Isa. 42:11; Isa. 43:19; Isa. 43:20; Isa. 50:2; Isa. 51:3; Isa. 63:13; Isa. 64:10; Jer. 2:2; Jer. 2:6; Jer. 2:24; Jer. 2:31; Jer. 3:2; Jer. 4:11; Jer. 4:26; Jer. 9:2; Jer. 9:10; Jer. 9:12; Jer. 9:26; Jer. 12:10; Jer. 12:12; Jer. 13:24; Jer. 17:6; Jer. 22:6; Jer. 23:10; Jer. 25:24; Jer. 31:2; Jer. 48:6; Jer. 50:12; Lam. 4:3; Lam. 4:19; Lam. 5:9; Ezek. 6:14; Ezek. 19:13; Ezek. 20:10; Ezek. 20:13; Ezek. 20:15; Ezek. 20:17; Ezek. 20:18; Ezek. 20:21; Ezek. 20:23; Ezek. 20:35; Ezek. 20:36; Ezek. 23:42; Ezek. 29:5; Ezek. 34:25; Hos. 2:3; Hos. 2:14; Hos. 9:10; Hos. 13:5; Hos. 13:15; Joel 1:19; Joel 1:20; Joel 2:3; Joel 2:22; Joel 3:19; Amos 2:10; Amos 5:25; Zeph. 2:13; Mal. 1:3 Related Resources: Holman Bible Dictionary Iye-Abarim - (i ihee-ab' uh rihm) Place name meaning, “ruins of the crossings.” Station in the wilderness wanderings (Numbers 21:11 ) near Moab. It is apparently near mount Abarim. See Abarim . It is apparently abbreviated as Iim in Numbers 33:45 (KJV). Some Bible geographers locate it at khirbet Aii southwest of Kerak or modern Mahay, but this is far from certain. Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible Iye-Abarim - IYE-ABARIM (‘Iyim of the regions beyond,’ distinguishing this place from the Iim of Joshua 15:29 ). The station mentioned in Numbers 21:11 ; Numbers 33:44 (in Numbers 33:45 Iyim alone) and described ( Numbers 21:11 ) as ‘in the wilderness which is before Moab toward the sun-rising,’ and more briefly ( Numbers 33:44 ) as ‘in the border of Moab.’ Nothing is known as to its position beyond these indications. International Standard Bible Encyclopedia Iye-Abarim - ı̄ - yē - ab´a - rim ( עיּי העברים , ‛ı̄yē hā - ‛ăbhārı̄m , "the heaps of the Abarim"; the King James Version Ije-abarim ; in Numbers 21:11 the Septuagint reads Codex Vaticanus, Χαλγλεί , Chalgleı́ ): A place in the journeyings of Israel named after Oboth, said to be "in the wilderness which is before Moab, toward the sunrising" (Numbers 21:11 ), "in the border of Moab" (Numbers 33:44 ). The indications of position here given are not sufficient to guide to any identification, and, so far, nothing has been discovered in the district to help us. Called simply "Iyim" (the King James Version "Iim") in Numbers 33:45 . Numbers 21:12 From there they set out and camped in Wadi Zered. BGT Numbers 21:12 ἐκεῖθεν ἀπῆραν καὶ παρενέβαλον εἰς φάραγγα Ζαρετ NET Numbers 21:12 From there they moved on and camped in the valley of Zered. NLT Numbers 21:12 From there they traveled to the valley of Zered Brook and set up camp. ESV Numbers 21:12 From there they set out and camped in the Valley of Zered. NIV Numbers 21:12 From there they moved on and camped in the Zered Valley. KJV Numbers 21:12 From thence they removed, and pitched in the valley of Zared. YLT Numbers 21:12 From thence they have journeyed, and encamp in the valley of Zared. LXE Numbers 21:12 And thence they departed, and encamped in the valley of Zared. ASV Numbers 21:12 From thence they journeyed, and encamped in the valley of Zered. CSB Numbers 21:12 From there they went and camped at Zered Valley. NKJ Numbers 21:12 From there they moved and camped in the Valley of Zered. NRS Numbers 21:12 From there they set out, and camped in the Wadi Zered. NAB Numbers 21:12 Setting out from there, they encamped in the Wadi Zered. NJB Numbers 21:12 They set out from there and camped in the gorge of the Zered. GWN Numbers 21:12 From there they moved and set up camp at the Zered River. Wadi Zered.: De 2:13,14, Numbers 21 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Zered Marking Boundary Between Edom and Moab to the North CROSSING INTO THE PROMISED LAND From there they set out (nasa - pulled up tent pegs) and camped in Wadi Zered - Holman Bible Dictionary says Wadi Zered (also called “valley of Zered") is where "The Israelites crossed this book marking an end to their wilderness wandering and entrance into the Promised Land." Moses records "Now arise and cross over the brook Zered yourselves.’ So we crossed over the brook Zered. 14 “Now the time that it took for us to come from Kadesh-barnea until we crossed over the brook Zered was thirty-eight years, until all the generation of the men of war perished from within the camp, as the LORD had sworn to them." (Dt 2:13-14) Wadi (05158)(nachal) means torrent, torrent valley, wadi, a dry ravine that became a raging torrent during rainy season. W E Vine - Nacḥal occurs about 139 times in biblical Hebrew and in all periods. This noun represents a dry valley in which water runs during the rainy season: "And Isaac departed thence, and pitched his tent in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there" (Gen. 26:17, the first biblical appearance). The word can signify the "wady" when it is full of rushing water. Indeed, it appears to describe the rushing water itself: "And he took them, and sent them over the brook …" (Ge 32:23). Sometimes naḥal means a permanent stream or "river": "These shall ye eat of all that are in the waters: whatsoever hath fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the rivers, them shall ye eat" (Lev. 11:9). Finally, the word represents a miner's shaft (only once in the Scripture): "They open shafts in a valley away from where men live" (Job 28:4, rsv). The Pentateuch consistently distinguishes between extra-Egyptian waterways (calling them naḥal, 13 times, and nāhār, 13 times) and inter-Egyptian waterways (calling them y(e)'or). This distinction demonstrates the kind of firsthand knowledge and historical concern expected from a mature eyewitness. Naḥal is used figuratively of many things that emerge and disappear suddenly or that have extreme onrushing power such as the pride of nations (Isa. 66:12), the strength of the invader (Jer. 47:2), and the power of the foe (Psa. 18:4). Torrents of oil do not please God if the offerer's heart is wrongly disposed (Mic. 6:7). God overfloods the godly with torrents of His good pleasure (Psa. 36:8). The eschaton is typified by streams, or torrents, in the desert (Ezek. 47:5-19; cf. Exod. 17:3ff.). (Vine's Expository Dictionary of Old Testament and New Testament Words) Nachal - 123v - brook(44), brooks(5), flowing(1), ravine(2), ravines(2), river(13), rivers(5), shaft(1), stream(5), streams(5), torrent(7), torrents(3), valley(39), valleys(4), Wadi(1), wadi(1), wadis(3). Gen. 26:17; Gen. 26:19; Gen. 32:23; Lev. 11:9; Lev. 11:10; Lev. 23:40; Num. 13:23; Num. 13:24; Num. 21:12; Num. 21:14; Num. 21:15; Num. 24:6; Num. 32:9; Num. 34:5; Deut. 1:24; Deut. 2:13; Deut. 2:14; Deut. 2:24; Deut. 2:36; Deut. 2:37; Deut. 3:8; Deut. 3:12; Deut. 3:16; Deut. 4:48; Deut. 8:7; Deut. 9:21; Deut. 10:7; Deut. 21:4; Deut. 21:6; Jos. 12:1; Jos. 12:2; Jos. 13:9; Jos. 13:16; Jos. 15:4; Jos. 15:7; Jos. 15:47; Jos. 16:8; Jos. 17:9; Jos. 19:11; Jdg. 4:7; Jdg. 4:13; Jdg. 5:21; Jdg. 16:4; 1 Sam. 15:5; 1 Sam. 17:40; 1 Sam. 30:9; 1 Sam. 30:10; 1 Sam. 30:21; 2 Sam. 15:23; 2 Sam. 17:13; 2 Sam. 22:5; 2 Sam. 23:30; 2 Sam. 24:5; 1 Ki. 2:37; 1 Ki. 8:65; 1 Ki. 15:13; 1 Ki. 17:3; 1 Ki. 17:4; 1 Ki. 17:5; 1 Ki. 17:6; 1 Ki. 17:7; 1 Ki. 18:5; 1 Ki. 18:40; 2 Ki. 3:16; 2 Ki. 3:17; 2 Ki. 10:33; 2 Ki. 23:6; 2 Ki. 23:12; 2 Ki. 24:7; 1 Chr. 11:32; 2 Chr. 7:8; 2 Chr. 15:16; 2 Chr. 20:16; 2 Chr. 29:16; 2 Chr. 30:14; 2 Chr. 32:4; 2 Chr. 33:14; Neh. 2:15; Job 6:15; Job 20:17; Job 21:33; Job 22:24; Job 28:4; Job 30:6; Job 40:22; Ps. 18:4; Ps. 36:8; Ps. 74:15; Ps. 78:20; Ps. 83:9; Ps. 104:10; Ps. 110:7; Ps. 124:4; Prov. 18:4; Prov. 30:17; Eccl. 1:7; Cant. 6:11; Isa. 7:19; Isa. 11:15; Isa. 15:7; Isa. 27:12; Isa. 30:28; Isa. 30:33; Isa. 34:9; Isa. 35:6; Isa. 57:5; Isa. 57:6; Isa. 66:12; Jer. 31:9; Jer. 31:40; Jer. 47:2; Lam. 2:18; Ezek. 47:5; Ezek. 47:6; Ezek. 47:7; Ezek. 47:9; Ezek. 47:12; Ezek. 47:19; Ezek. 48:28; Joel 3:18; Amos 5:24; Amos 6:14; Mic. 6:7 Henry