Deuteronomy2

The Israelites, after circling Mount Seir, are commanded by God to turn northward. God instructs them not to attack the Edomites, Moabites, or Ammonites, as these lands were given to Esau and Lot's descendants. After the generation of men of war had perished, God commanded Israel to conquer Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, whom they utterly defeated and dispossessed.
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The Long Circuit Around Mount Seir

1
Then we turned back and headed for the wilderness by way of the Red Sea, as the LORD had instructed me, and for many days we wandered around Mount Seir. ​
2
At this time the LORD said to me,
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“You have been wandering around this hill country long enough; turn to the north ​
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and command the people: ‘You will pass through the territory of your brothers, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. They will be afraid of you, so you must be very careful.
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Do not provoke them, for I will not give you any of their land, not even a footprint, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as his possession. ​
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You are to pay them in silver for the food you eat and the water you drink.’”
7
Indeed, the LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He has watched over your journey through this vast wilderness. The LORD your God has been with you these forty years, and you have lacked nothing. ​
8
So we passed by our brothers, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. We turned away from the Arabah road, which comes up from Elath and Ezion-geber, and traveled along the road of the Wilderness of Moab.

Prohibition Against Attacking Moab

9
Then the LORD said to me, “Do not harass the Moabites or provoke them to war, for I will not give you any of their land, because I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot as their possession.” ​
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(The Emites used to live there, a people great and many, as tall as the Anakites.
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Like the Anakites, they were also regarded as Rephaim, though the Moabites called them Emites.
12
The Horites used to live in Seir, but the descendants of Esau drove them out. They destroyed the Horites from before them and settled in their place, just as Israel did in the land that the LORD gave them as their possession.) ​

The End of the Wilderness Generation

13
“Now arise and cross over the Brook of Zered.” So we crossed over the Brook of Zered. ​
14
The time we spent traveling from Kadesh-barnea until we crossed over the Brook of Zered was thirty-eight years, until that entire generation of fighting men had perished from the camp, as the LORD had sworn to them. ​
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Indeed, the LORD’s hand was against them, to eliminate them from the camp, until they had all perished. ​
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Now when all the fighting men among the people had died,
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the LORD said to me,

Prohibition Against Attacking Ammon

18
“Today you are going to cross the border of Moab at Ar.
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But when you get close to the Ammonites, do not harass them or provoke them, for I will not give you any of the land of the Ammonites. I have given it to the descendants of Lot as their possession.” ​
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(That too was regarded as the land of the Rephaim, who used to live there, though the Ammonites called them Zamzummites. ​
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They were a people great and many, as tall as the Anakites. But the LORD destroyed them from before the Ammonites, who drove them out and settled in their place,
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just as He had done for the descendants of Esau who lived in Seir, when He destroyed the Horites from before them. They drove them out and have lived in their place to this day.
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And the Avvim, who lived in villages as far as Gaza, were destroyed by the Caphtorites, who came out of Caphtor and settled in their place.)

Command to Conquer Sihon the Amorite

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“Arise, set out, and cross the Arnon Valley. See, I have delivered into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land. Begin to take possession of it and engage him in battle. ​
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This very day I will begin to put the dread and fear of you upon all the nations under heaven. They will hear the reports of you and tremble in anguish because of you.” ​
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So from the Wilderness of Kedemoth I sent messengers with an offer of peace to Sihon king of Heshbon, saying, ​
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“Let us pass through your land; we will stay on the main road. We will not turn to the right or to the left.
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You can sell us food to eat and water to drink in exchange for silver. Only let us pass through on foot,
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just as the descendants of Esau who live in Seir and the Moabites who live in Ar did for us, until we cross the Jordan into the land that the LORD our God is giving us.”
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But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass through, for the LORD your God had made his spirit stubborn and his heart obstinate, that He might deliver him into your hand, as is the case this day. ​
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Then the LORD said to me, “See, I have begun to deliver Sihon and his land over to you. Now begin to conquer and possess his land.”
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So Sihon and his whole army came out for battle against us at Jahaz.
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And the LORD our God delivered him over to us, and we defeated him and his sons and his whole army.
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At that time we captured all his cities and devoted to destruction the people of every city, including women and children. We left no survivors. ​
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We carried off for ourselves only the livestock and the plunder from the cities we captured.
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From Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley, along with the city in the valley, even as far as Gilead, not one city had walls too high for us. The LORD our God gave us all of them. ​
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But you did not go near the land of the Ammonites, or the land along the banks of the Jabbok River, or the cities of the hill country, or any place that the LORD our God had forbidden. ​

Study Notes for Deuteronomy 2

Verse 1

This verse opens Moses' historical recollection, covering the 38-year period of wandering which began after the rebellion at Kadesh-Barnea (Num 14). The route compassed Mount Seir, the territory of Edom.

Verse 3

This divine command marks the end of the punitive wandering period. The generation under judgment had finally died off, and God was now ready to direct the new generation toward the promised land.

Verse 5

God’s sovereignty is highlighted here; He had already distributed the territories of Edom (descendants of Esau) and Israel (descendants of Jacob), and Israel was forbidden to violate the established boundaries of their kin.

Verse 7

Moses reminds Israel of God’s steadfast provision during the forty years. Because the LORD had supplied all their needs miraculously, they had no justification for plundering or seizing Edomite resources.

Verse 9

Similar to the Edomites, the Moabites were spared because they were descendants of Lot, Abraham’s nephew. This demonstrates that God’s covenant protection extended to the relatives of the patriarchs.

Verse 12

This verse offers a theological precedent. Just as God enabled the Edomites to displace the Horims, He will enable Israel to displace the Canaanites. God is sovereign over the fate of all nations.

Verse 13

The brook Zered served as a geographical marker that the Israelites crossed to leave the wilderness behind and enter the territory adjacent to the Transjordan kingdoms.

Verse 14

This chronological note confirms that 38 years elapsed between the rebellion at Kadesh-Barnea and the arrival at the Zered, fulfilling the divine oath that the generation of fighting men would perish (Num 14:29).

Verse 15

The death of the old generation was not merely natural attrition but a direct punitive act of the LORD. This emphasizes the seriousness of unbelief and the necessity of purification before conquest.

Verse 19

The Ammonites, also descendants of Lot, were protected just like the Moabites and Edomites. This principle of respecting boundaries highlights God’s controlled and purposeful distribution of land.

Verse 20

The parenthetical notes (vv. 20-23) reinforce the theme that God controls history and conquest. The Ammonites’ ability to conquer the formidable Zamzummim was entirely due to God’s intervention, paralleling Israel's situation.

Verse 24

This verse marks the shift from peaceful passage to mandated holy war. The Amorites, unlike the kin nations (Edom, Moab, Ammon), were explicitly designated for destruction and their land for possession.

Verse 25

God initiates the conquest by instilling terror (dread and fear) in the local inhabitants. This illustrates that the victory is secured not by Israel's strength, but by God’s psychological warfare and divine power.

Verse 26

Moses follows the standard protocol of offering peaceful passage first (cf. Deut 20:10). This demonstrates that Israel only resorted to battle after their diplomatic request was rejected.

Verse 30

Sihon’s obstinate rejection of the peace overture was divinely orchestrated. God hardened his heart to ensure a conflict, thereby providing the legal and theological justification for Israel to seize his land.

Verse 34

The 'utterly destroyed' (Hebrew: *herem*) command applied to the Amorites. This practice ensured the removal of pagan influence and cultic practices from the land God intended for His people.

Verse 36

The conquest of Sihon’s territory (from the Arnon River north to Gilead) served as a powerful sign of God's faithfulness and a rehearsal for the greater conquest west of the Jordan.

Verse 37

Moses reiterates that Israel strictly obeyed God's geographical boundaries, respecting the land God had designated for the descendants of Lot (Ammon).

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