Bereans Corner
Bereans Corner
Thru the Bible - #136 -Numbers 21 - Arad conquered
Welcome to Berean's Corner, the podcast where we go through books of the Bible chapter by chapter and verse by verse. Wherever you are in the world, thank you for joining. Grab a glass of water, a cup of coffee or tea and let's thank you for joining me. It is a beautiful day to get into the Lord's word. Open up your Bible to Numbers, chapter 21. As we continue today, we are looking at Erad, concord, numbers, chapter 21, and let's read Numbers 21.
Speaker 2:When the Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev, heard that Israel was coming along the road to Atharim, he attacked the Israelites and captured some of them. Then Israel made this vow to the Lord If you will deliver these people into our hands, we will totally destroy their cities. The Lord listened to Israel's plea and gave the Canaanites over to them. They completely destroyed them and their towns. So the place was named Hormah. They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way. They spoke against God and against Moses and said why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread, there is no water, and we detest this miserable food. Then the Lord sent venomous snakes among them. They bit the people and many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said we sinned when we spoke against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take the snakes away from us. So Moses prayed for the people. The Lord said to Moses Make a snake, put it up on a pole. Anyone who is bitten can look at it and live. 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.
Speaker 2:The Israelites moved on and camped at Oboth. Then they sent out from Oboth and camped in Ai Abarim, in the desert that faces Moab, toward the sunrise. From there they moved on and camped in the Zered Valley. They set out from there and camped alongside the Arnon, which is in the desert, extending into Amorite territory. The Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites. That is why the book of the wars of the Lord says Waheb in Suphah and the ravines, the Arnon and the slopes of the ravines that led to the site of Ar and lie along the border of Moab. From there they continued on to Beir, the well, where the Lord said to Moses Gather the people together and I will give them water. Then Israel sang this song Spring up O well. Sing about it, about the well that the princes dug, that the nobles of the people sank the nobles with scepters and staffs. Then they went from the desert to Matanah, from Matanah to Nahaliel, from Nahaliel to Barmoth and from Barmoth to the valley in Moab where the top of Pisgah overlooks the wasteland.
Speaker 2:Israel sent messengers to say to Sion, king of the Amorites, let us pass through your country. We will not turn aside into any field or vineyard or drink water from any well. We will travel along the king's highway until we have passed through your territory. But Sion would not let Israel pass through his territory. He mustered his entire army and marched out into the desert against Israel. Mustered his entire army and marched out into the desert against Israel. When he reached Jehaz, he fought with Israel. 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.
Speaker 2:Israel captured all the cities of the Amorites and occupied them, including Heshbon and all its surrounding settlements. Heshbon was the city of Sion, king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab and had taken from him all his land, as far as the Arnon. That is why the poets say come to Heshbon and let it be rebuilt, let Sion's city be restored. Fire went out from Heshbon, ablaze from the city of Sion. It consumed Ar of Moab, the citizens of Arnon's heights. Woe to you, o Moab. You are destroyed. O people of Chemosh. He has given up his sons as fugitives and his daughters as captives to Sion, king of the Amorites. But we have overthrown them. Heshbon is destroyed all the way to Dabon. We have demolished them as far as Nofar, which extends to Medeba.
Speaker 2:So Israel settled in the land of the Amorites. After Moses had sent spies to Gezer, the Israelites captured its surrounding settlements and drove out the Amorites who were there. Then they turned and went up along the road toward Bashan, and Og, king of Bashan, and his whole army, marched out to meet them in battle. At Edre, the Lord said to Moses Do not be afraid of them, for I have handed him over to you with his whole army and his land. Do to him what you did to sign. King of the Amorites who reigned in Heshpen. So they struck him down, together with his sons and his whole army, leaving them no survivors, and they took possession of his land.
Speaker 1:Now. The last time we were together, we looked at the death of Moses' siblings, miriam and Aaron. Today we're looking at how this next generation of Israelites are not serious about God in the same way the generation before them was. Now there are three subjects in this chapter. There is Arad being conquered, which is the title of this lesson. There's also the bronze serpent, and there is also the two victories that we will talk about and discuss, and we will break this chapter down into five parts.
Speaker 1:Part one the people are given a victory by God. We see this in verses one through three, verses one through three of numbers 21. When the Canaanite, the king of Arad, who lived in the Negev, heard that Israel was coming by the way of at the ring, then he fought against Israel and took some of them captive. So Israel made a vow to the Lord and said if thou would indeed deliver this people into my hand, then I will utterly destroy their cities. And the Lord heard the voice of Israel and delivered up the Canaanites. Then they utterly destroyed them and their cities. Thus the name of the place was called Hormah. This seems to be a good you know, a good moment of momentum for Israel, now, after all that they have been through, they now have a victory that the Lord has given them. They asked the Lord for the victory and the Lord lord delivered, which brings us to part two, the bronze serpent. We see this in verses four through nine.
Speaker 1:Then they set out from mount hor by the way of the red sea to go around the land of edom and the people became impatient because of the journey. And the people spoke against God and Moses why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water and we loathe this miserable food. The Lord sent fiery serpents among the people and they bit the people so that many of Israel died. So the people came to Moses and said we have sinned because we have spoken against the Lord, and you intercede with the Lord that he may remove the serpents from us. And Moses interceded for the people. Then the Lord said to Moses make a fiery serpent and set it on a standard, and it shall come about that everyone who is bitten when he looks at it, he shall live. 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.
Speaker 1:Now, jesus cited this passage about himself. Matter of fact, let's uh, look at that real quick. Hold, quick, hold your finger right here and go to John, chapter 3, john, chapter 3. And when you get to john chapter 3, if you're there, we are looking at verse 14. This is jesus speaking as moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness. Even so, must the son of man be lifted up?
Speaker 1:Now, what is interesting is that, years later, israel was worshiping this bronze serpent, this bronze serpent that moses made, and hezekiah the king destroyed it. Go to 2 Kings. Let's look at that. 2 Kings, chapter 18. 2 Kings, chapter 18, and we are looking at verse 4. He removed this is about Hezekiah. He removed the high places and broke down the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherah. He also broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days, the sons of Israel burned incense to it and it was called Nehushtim. So we see the Israel was even worshiping this thing. It also reminds me of the passage in Romans, where the people were doing this same thing. Hold your finger back at Numbers 21 and go to Romans, romans, chapter 1. When you get there and we will see it's mentioned there romans chapter. Romans, chapter 1, and we are looking at verse 25, for they exchanged the truth of god for a lie, and worship and serve the creature rather than the creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. So that's what these people were doing they were worshiping.
Speaker 1:Instead of worshiping of the creator, they were worshiping the things that was created. Now we will move on to part three. Back here. In numbers 21, israel gets to, moving towards moab. We see this in verses 10 to 20. Now, the sons of israel moved out and camped in Oboth and they journeyed from Oboth and camped in Ayyabarin, in the wilderness which is opposite Moab, to the east. From there they set out and camped in Wadah Zered. From there they journeyed and camped on the other side of the Arnon, which is in the wilderness that comes out of the border of the Amorites, for the Arnon is the border of Moab, between the border of the Amorites. For the R9 is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites. Therefore, it is said in the book of the war of the Lord Rahab, in Shaphat and Wadash in R9, and the slope of the Wadash that extends to the site of Ar and leans to the border of Moab, and from there they continue to bear. That is where the Lord said to Moses assemble the people that I may give them water. Then Israel sang this song spring up, oh well, sing to it. The well which the leaders, which the leaders sank, which the nobles of the people dig with the scepter and with their staffs, and from the wilderness they continue to Methanein, and from Methanein to Nahalael, and from Nahalael to Batmoth, and from Batmoth to the valley that is in the land of Moab, at the top of Pisgah, which overlooks the wasteland. So Israel is doing some moving here. They got some momentum about them. They fell off again with their complaining. The Lord sent the fiery serpents. The Lord sent them, like the Lord always does for us. He sent them a means of escape, a means of peace and a means of healing. And now they are on the move, which brings us to part four.
Speaker 1:Israel gets two victories. The first was against the Amorites. We see this in verses 21 through 32. Then Israel sent messengers to Shahan, king of the Amorites, saying let me pass through your land. We will not turn off into the field or vineyards, we will not drink water from wells, we will go by the king's highway until we have passed through your border. But but Shahan would not permit Israel to pass through the border. So Shahan gathered all his people and went out and gathered excuse me against Israel in the wilderness and came to Jahaz and fought against Israel. Then Israel struck him with the edge of the sword and took possession of his land from the Arnon to the Jadak, as far as the sons of Ammon, for the border of the sons of amman was jazer. And israel took all these cities and israel lived in all the cities of the amorites in his bond and in all her villages, for his bond was the city of shahan, king of the amorites, who have fought against the former king of moab and had taken all his land out of his hand as far as our nine.
Speaker 1:I want to stop right there real quick and point out something you know. You hear a lot of times people talk about land being stolen. That is absolutely not true. What happens is is that people conquer a people and then they take a land. I don't care what land it is on these seven continents, the land was not stolen. What happened is is that someone comes along and they take the land and conquer the people who are there. The people who were there before they conquered the people before them and took the land, and the people before that conquered the people before them and took the land, and it goes on and on.
Speaker 1:Reading this made me think about that. That that's how land is acquired. Someone comes along, they conquer it and they and that's how the land becomes someone else's possession pick it back up in verse 27. Therefore, those who use proverbs say come to heshbon, let it be built. So let the city of shahan be established. For a fire went forth from heshbon, a flame from the town of shahan. It devoured our of moab the dominant heights.
Speaker 1:Heist of Arnon. Woe to you, o Moab. You are ruined. O people of Shemesh, he has given his sons as fugitives and his daughters into captivity to an Ammonite king, excuse me, the Amorite king, shahan, but we have cast them down. Heshbon is ruined as far as Dibon. Then we have laid waste even to Nafar, which reaches to Medabai.
Speaker 1:Thus, israel lived in the land of the Amorites and Moses sent to spy out Jazeer and they captured his villages and dispossessed the Amorites who were there villages and dispossessed the Amorites who were there. So we see they moving on and more land is is more land is being conquered, which brings us to the fifth part, the second victory. Now, this one was against Bashan. We see this in verses 33 through 35. Then they turned and went up by the way of Bashan and Og, the king of Bashan, went out with all his people for the battle of Idra. But the Lord said to Moses do not fear him, for I have given him into your hand and all his people and his land, and you shall do to him as you did to Shahan, king of the Amorites, who lived in Hezbollah. So they killed him and his sons and all his people until there was no remnant left him and they possessed his land. Once again, we see what happened. They went in and they did the land, not to mention that the Lord gave this into their hand. Now Moses speaks of this battle. You know he speaks of this battle and the land in the future.
Speaker 1:Since we're at the end of this chapter, just go to the right in your Bible a little bit. Let's look at that right now. Go to Deuteronomy, chapter three. There we go and we can look at this right now, deuteronomy chapter three. I am looking at verses one through eight, deuteronomy three, one through eight.
Speaker 1:Then we turn and went up the road to Bashan and all King of Bashan, with all his people, came out to meet us in battle at Adri. But the Lord said to me do not fear him, for I have delivered him, with all his people, came out to meet us in battle at Adra. But the Lord said to me do not fear him, for I have delivered him and all his people and his land into your hand, and you shall go to do just as you did to Shahan, king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon. So the Lord, our God, delivered Og, also king of Bashan, with all his people, into our hand and we smoked them until no survivor was left and we captured all his cities. At that time, there was not a city which we did not take from them. Sixty cities, all the region of Argog, the kingdom of Og and Bashan. All these were cities fortified, with high walls, gates and and bars, besides a great many unwalled towns, and we utterly destroyed them, as we did to shahan, king of heshbon, utterly destroying the men, women and children of every city, but all the animals and the spoils of the cities we took as our booty. Thus, we took the land at that time from the hand of the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, from the valley of Arnon to Mount Hermon, drop down to verse 11. For only our king of Bashan was left of the remnant of the Raphaim. Behold, his bedstead was an iron bedstead. It is in Rabbi of the sons of amman. Its length was nine cubits and it's with four cubits by ordinary cubits. So we see later on that moses also speaks on this battle. Okay, that brings us to the end of numbers, chapter 21.
Speaker 1:As always, I hope that you got something out of this lesson. I hope that it encouraged you and I hope that you have been following along with all the other lessons, as we put this bible together in chronological order so you can see this whole, so the greatest story ever told, piece by piece. As always, I'm asking you to pray for me. Pray for me to have the strength to keep standing in the scriptures and to walk that straight, narrow path, and I am doing the same for you wherever. Wherever you are on these seven continents, I am praying for you. I appreciate you a great deal. That is all for now, god bless.
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