The Skeptics Annotated Bible (166 page)

29 Then I said unto you, Dread not, neither be afraid of them.

30 The LORD your
God
which goeth before you, he
shall fight for you
, according to all that he did for you in Egypt before your eyes;

(1.30)
“God … shall fight for you.”

31 And in the wilderness, where thou hast seen how that the LORD thy God bare thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, until ye came into this place.

32 Yet in this thing ye did not believe the LORD your God,

33 Who went in the way before you, to search you out a place to pitch your tents in, in fire by night, to shew you by what way ye should go, and in a cloud by day.

34 And the LORD heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, and sware, saying,

35 Surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see that good land, which I sware to give unto your fathers,

36 Save Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him will I give the land that he hath trodden upon, and to his children, because he hath wholly followed the LORD.

37 Also the LORD was angry with me for your sakes, saying, Thou also shalt not go in thither.

38 But Joshua the son of Nun, which standeth before thee, he shall go in thither: encourage him: for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.

39 Moreover your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, and your children, which in that day had no knowledge between good and evil, they shall go in thither, and unto them will I give it, and they shall possess it.

40 But as for you, turn you, and take your journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea.

41 Then ye answered and said unto me, We have sinned against the LORD, we will go up and fight, according to all that the LORD our God commanded us. And when ye had girded on every man his weapons of war, ye were ready to go up into the hill.

42 And the LORD said unto me, Say unto them, Go not up, neither fight; for I am not among you; lest ye be smitten before your enemies.

43 So I spake unto you; and ye would not hear, but rebelled against the commandment of the LORD, and went presumptuously up into the hill.

44 And the Amorites, which dwelt in that mountain, came out against you, and chased you, as bees do, and destroyed you in Seir, even unto Hormah.

45 And ye returned and wept before the LORD; but the LORD would not hearken to your voice, nor give ear unto you.

46 So ye abode in Kadesh many days, according unto the days that ye abode there.

2
Then we turned, and took our journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea, as the LORD spake unto me: and we compassed mount Seir many days.

2 And the LORD spake unto me, saying,

3 Ye have compassed this mountain long enough: turn you northward.

4 And command thou the people, saying, Ye are to pass through the coast of your brethren the children of Esau, which dwell in Seir; and they shall be afraid of you: take ye good heed unto yourselves therefore:

5 Meddle not with them; for I will not give you of their land, no, not so much as a foot breadth; because I have given mount Seir unto Esau for a possession.

6 Ye shall buy meat of them for money, that ye may eat; and ye shall also buy water of them for money, that ye may drink.

7 For the LORD thy God hath blessed thee in all the works of thy hand: he knoweth thy
walking through this great wilderness: these forty years
the LORD thy God hath been with thee; thou hast lacked nothing.

(2.7)
“Walking through this great wilderness: these forty years.”
It took the Israelites 40 years to travel from Egypt to Canaan, yet such a journey should have taken no more than a few weeks.

8 And when we passed by from our brethren the children of Esau, which dwelt in Seir, through the way of the plain from Elath, and from Ezion-gaber, we turned and passed by the way of the wilderness of Moab.

9 And the LORD said unto me,
Distress not the Moabites, neither contend with them in battle
: for I will not give thee of their land for a possession;
because I have given Ar unto the children of Lot for a possession.

(2.9)
“Distress not the Moabites, neither contend with them in battle … because I have given Ar unto the children of Lot for a possession.”
God gave the Moabites and the Ammonites (2.19) special protection since they were the descendents of Lot’s drunken, incestuous affair with his daughters (Genesis
19.30-38
)
145 How should the Moabites be treated?

(2.10-11) Land of the giants

10
The Emims
dwelt therein in times past,
a people great
, and many,
and tall, as the Anakims
;

(2.10-11)
“The Emims … a people great … and tall, as the Anakims;”

11
Which also were accounted giants
, as the Anakims; but the Moabites call them Emims.

(2.11)
“Which also were accounted giants.”

12 The Horims also dwelt in Seir beforetime; but the children of Esau succeeded them, when they had destroyed them from before them, and dwelt in their stead; as Israel did unto the land of his possession, which the LORD gave unto them.

13 Now rise up, said I, and get you over the brook Zered. And we went over the brook Zered.