The Mystery of Esau and Ephraim

Deuteronomy 19

¹ “When the Lord thy God hath cut off the nations whose land the Lord thy God giveth thee, and thou succeedest them and dwellest in their cities and in their houses, — the Lord thy God giveth thee; the seven nations of the land of Canaan, whose destruction was of the Lord for their sins, and whose land was a gift to the children of Israel;

— and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their cities, and in their houses; should possess their land in their stead, by virtue of the gift of it to them by the Lord, and inhabit their cities and houses built by them.

² thou shalt separate three cities for thee in the midst of thy land which the Lord thy God giveth thee to possess it. — thou shalt separate three cities for thee; there were to be six cities of refuge in all, but Moses had already appointed three on that side of Jordan where they now were;

— three were before ordered to be separated from those inhabited by the tribes of Reuben and Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh, Deuteronomy 4:41: namely, Bezer, Ramoth-Gilead and Golan.

³ Thou shalt prepare thee a way, and divide the borders of thy land, which the Lord thy God giveth thee to inherit, into three parts, that every slayer may flee thither. — thou shalt prepare thee a way; the roads leading to them were to be kept in good condition and the brooks or rivers to be spanned by good bridges;

— divide the coasts of thy land; into three parts, the whole extent of the country from the south to the north. The three cities on each side of Jordan were opposite to each other, “as two rows of vines in a vineyard.”

⁴ “And this is the case of the slayer who shall flee thither, that he may live: Whoso killeth his neighbor ignorantly, whom he hated not in time past—

— and this is the case of the slayer, which shall flee thither, that he may live; it was not any slayer that might have protection in these cities, but such who were thus and thus circumstanced, or whose case was as whoso killeth his neighbour ignorantly; without intention, as the Targum of Jonathan, did not design it, but was done by him unintentional;

⁵ as when a man goeth into the wood with his neighbor to hew wood, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the ax to cut down the tree, and the head slippeth from the helve and lighteth upon his neighbor, so that he die — he shall flee unto one of those cities and live,

— he shall flee unto one of these cities, and live; be safe and secure from the avenger of blood; such an one might have the benefit of one of these cities;

⁶ lest the avenger of the blood pursue the slayer while his heart is hot and overtake him, because the way is long, and slay him, whereas he was not worthy of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in time past.

— and overtake him, because the way is long, and slay him; wherefore it was proper that everything should be done to make the way to these cities as easy and as short as it could be;

⁷ Therefore I command thee, saying, ‘Thou shalt separate three cities for thee.’ — thou shalt separate three cities for thee; this was to be done as soon as they were settled in the land of Canaan, and established these cities as soon as when the inhabitants were cut off, or driven out, or however subdued.

⁸ And if the Lord thy God enlarge thy border, as He hath sworn unto thy fathers, and give thee all the land which He promised to give unto thy fathers, — and if the Lord thy God enlarge thy coast; three additional sanctuaries were to be established in the event of their territory extending over the country from Hermon and Gilead to the Euphrates (Genesis 15:18; Exodus 23:31).

⁹ if thou shalt keep all these commandments to do them, which I command thee this day — to love the Lord thy God and to walk ever in His ways — then shalt thou add three cities more for thee besides these three,

— and then shall thou add three cities more besides these three; three more in the land of Canaan, besides the three now ordered to be separated in it;

¹⁰ that innocent blood be not shed in thy land which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon thee. — that innocent blood be not shed; as it would be if such a slayer as before described was killed by the avenger of blood, before he could get to one of these cities of refuge;

¹¹ “But if any man hate his neighbor, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him and smite him mortally, so that he die, and he fleeth into one of these cities,

— and lie in wait for him knowing and expecting he will come by in such a way at such a time; and rise up against him; out of the place where he lay in wait, just at the time he is passing by;

¹² then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him thence, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die.

— then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him thence; the Targum of Jonathan says, “the wise men of his city,” appointed by the Sanhedrin, or court of judicature, or at least the civil magistrates of that city, to which such a murderer belonged, had a power to send to the city of refuge whither he was fled;

— that he may die; that is, after the examination and trial of him, and when he is found guilty, and sentence is passed upon him, then he was to be delivered into the hands of the avenger of blood, to be the executioner of that sentence.

¹³ Thine eye shall not pity him, but thou shalt put away the guilt of innocent blood from Israel, that it may go well with thee. — thine eye shall not pity him; this is the elders, judges, and civil magistrates of the city to which he belonged, who is not to be supposed to have any pity or compassion on such a criminal;

¹⁴ “Thou shalt not remove thy neighbor’s landmark, which they of old time have set in thine inheritance, which thou shalt inherit in the land that the Lord thy God giveth thee to possess it.

— it is the will of God that every one should know his own; which they of old have set in thine inheritance; and not to injure a man’s property, and alienate his lands to the use of another;

¹⁵ “One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth. By the mouth of two witnesses or by the mouth of three witnesses shall the matter be established. — at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established; either for acquittance or condemnation;

¹⁶ If a false witness rise up against any man to testify against him that which is wrong, — if a false witness rise up against any man; in a court of judicature;

¹⁷ then both the men involved in the controversy shall stand before the Lord, before the priests and the judges who shall be in those days; — before the priests and the judges which shall be in those days; which shall compose the Sanhedrin, or court of judicature;

¹⁸ and the judges shall make diligent inquisition. And behold, if the witness be a false witness and hath testified falsely against his brother, — and the judges shall make diligent inquisition; into the case before them, into the nature of the evidence and proof that each witness brings for or against; so the Targum of Jonathan, “the judges shall interrogate the witnesses of their times fairly;”

¹⁹ then shall ye do unto him as he had thought to have done unto his brother; so shalt thou put the evil away from among you. — then shall ye do unto him as he had thought to have done unto his brother; inflict the same fine or punishment on him he thought to have brought his brother under by his false testimony of him;

— whether any pecuniary fine, or whipping and scourging, or the loss of a member, or the value of it, or death itself; whether stoning, strangling, burning, or to be slain by the sword;

— so shalt thou put the evil away from among you; the evil man that bears a false testimony of his brother, or the guilt of sin which would be incurred by conniving at him.

²⁰ And those who remain shall hear and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil among you. — and those which remain shall hear, and fear; those which survive the false witness shall hear of the punishment inflicted on him, and fear to commit the like sin, lest they should be punished in like manner.

²¹ And thine eye shall not pity; but life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot. — and thine eye shall not pity; the false witness when convicted; this is directed to the judges, who should not spare such an one through favour or affection, but pronounce a righteous sentence on him, and see it executed, in proportion to the crime;

— eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot; that is, the price of an eye an eye; practically, however, a pecuniary compensation might be accepted for the offence.

Deuteronomy 20

¹ “When thou goest out to battle against thine enemies, and seest horses and chariots and a people more than thou, be not afraid of them; for the Lord thy God is with thee, who brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

— when thou goest out to battle against thine enemies; the land of Canaan being to be gained by conquest, in a war of God’s special appointment; and the Israelites, after their settlement in it, being likely to be exposed to invasions from, or quarrels with the neighbouring nations;

— which brought thee out of the land of Egypt; who were reminded for the encouragement of their faith and confidence in him; for he that did that for them, what is it he cannot or will not do?

² And it shall be, when ye have come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people, — the priest; not the high priest, but one appointed for that purpose, and called “the anointed of the war” hence, perhaps the expression of Jeremiah 6:4, “prepare ye war”

— they appoint a priest to speak to the people at the time of war, and they anoint him with the anointing oil, and he is called the anointed of war; twice the anointed of war speaks unto the people;

³ and shall say unto them, ‘Hear, O Israel: Ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies. Let not your hearts faint; fear not and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them; — Let not your hearts faint, fear not; but the opposite could also be true:

“for they will turn away thy son from following Me, that they may serve other gods. So will the anger of the Lord be kindled against you and destroy thee suddenly” Deuteronomy 7:4

⁴ For the Lord your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you. — a reassurance of a promise made to Abraham from Genesis:

“I am thy shield! Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the River Euphrates” Genesis 15

⁵ And the officers shall speak unto the people, saying, ‘What man is there who hath built a new house and hath not dedicated it? Let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man dedicate it.

— what man is there; these questions show that, primarily, all Israelites of military age (20 to 50) were expected to attend the muster; then those who were unprepared for the campaign were suffered to depart;

⁶ And what man is he that hath planted a vineyard and hath not yet eaten of it? Let him also go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle and another man eat of it. — what man is there; this and the following exceptions are to be understood only of a war allowed by God;

⁷ And what man is there who hath betrothed a wife and hath not taken her? Let him go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle and another man take her.’

— lest he die in the battle, and another man dedicate it; as the Targum of Jonathan says, “let him go and return to his house, lest sin prevent him from rejoicing with his wife and he be slain in the battle, and another take her.”

⁸ And the officers shall speak further unto the people, and they shall say, ‘What man is there that is fearful and fainthearted? Let him go and return unto his house, lest his brethren’s heart faint as well as his heart.’

— these cases were founded on the principle that a man’s heart being deeply engrossed by something at a distance, he would not be very enthusiastic in the public service; thus God also provides even for men’s infirmities;

— let him go and return to his house; lest, by his pale looks and trembling joints, his fainting fits and swoons, he discourage the rest in the same company with him, and by his example make them unfit for war also.

⁹ And it shall be, when the officers have made an end of speaking unto the people, that they shall make captains of the armies to lead the people. — that they shall make captains of armies to lead on the people; on to battle; that is, either the officers should do this, that they might be generals of the army, who constituted captains under them, to lead the people on to battle;

¹⁰ “When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it. — when thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it; this is to be understood of an arbitrary war, which they engaged in of themselves, or were provoked to by their enemies; which was their own choice, and according to their own will and pleasure;

¹¹ And it shall be, if it make thee an answer of peace and open unto thee, then it shall be that all the people who are found therein shall be tributaries unto thee, and they shall serve thee. — shall be tributaries unto thee: pay a yearly tax imposed upon them, as the Moabites sometimes did, and which was paid in lambs and rams with the wool, II Kings 3:4

— and they shall serve thee; be in continual bondage and servitude; and upon occasion be called out to any public service, as joining them against their enemies, rebuilding or repairing palaces, cities, or walls of cities, and the like; and in general acknowledge their dominion over them by paying an annual tribute, or sending gifts unto them; thus the Moabites, Syrians, and Edomites, became the servants of David, II Samuel 8:2.

¹² And if it will make no peace with thee, but will make war against thee, then thou shalt besiege it. — and if it will make no peace with thee; will not accept of terms of peace offered: but will make war against thee; come out and fight, or prepare to defend themselves: then thou shall besiege it; surround and block it up on all sides with their forces;

¹³ And when the Lord thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword. — thou shall smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword; the men in it, grown persons, as distinguished from little ones; because it was owing to these it was not surrendered at once, when terms of peace were offered;

¹⁴ But the women and the little ones, and the cattle and all that is in the city, even all the spoil thereof, shalt thou take unto thyself; and thou shalt eat the spoil of thine enemies which the Lord thy God hath given thee.

— but the women, the little ones, and the cattle; these were to be spared; women, and all that is in the city, even all the spoil thereof, shall thou take unto thyself; gold, silver, merchandise, household goods, utensils in trade, and whatever was of any worth and value to be found in their houses;

— and thou shall eat the spoil of thine enemies, which the Lord thy God hath given thee; that is, enjoy all their wealth and riches, estates and possessions; for this is not to be restrained to things eatable only.

¹⁵ Thus shalt thou do unto all the cities which are very far off from thee, which are not of the cities of these nations. — thus shalt thou do unto all the cities which are very far off from thee; as all such were reckoned that were outside the land of Israel, even all in their neighbouring nations, the Moabites, Edomites, Ammonites, Syrians;

— for the children of Israel never went to war with any very distant nations, unless they came unto them and invaded them; nor did they seek to carry their conquests to any great distance, when the most powerful and victorious, as in the days of David and Solomon;

— the Targum of Jonathan says “Thus shall you do to all cities that are remote from you, which are not of the cities of these seven nations;” the seven nations of the land of Canaan; all that were not of them were accounted foreign cities, and at a distance.

¹⁶ But of the cities of these people which the Lord thy God doth give thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth, — but of the cities of those people, which the Lord thy God doth give thee for an inheritance; the cities of the seven nations, six of which are mentioned by name in the next verse:

— thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth; the reason of this severity was because of their wickedness, the capital crimes and gross abominations they were guilty of, when the measure of their iniquities was full, plus others such as idolatry, incest, witchcraft, soothsaying, and necromancy; for which they reserved total destruction;

¹⁷ but thou shalt utterly destroy them, namely: the Hittites, and the Amorites, the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee, — forbearance, however, was not to be shown toward these Canaanite nations, who were to be utterly exterminated;

¹⁸ that they teach you not to do according to all their abominations which they have done unto their gods, so ye should sin against the Lord your God.

— that they teach you not to do after all their abominations; this is another reason why they were to be utterly destroyed, not only because of the abominations which they committed, but to prevent the Israelites being taught by them to do the same;

¹⁹ “When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an ax against them, for thou mayest eat of them; and thou shalt not cut them down to employ them in the seige, for the tree of the field is man’s life.

— the trees thereof; the fruit trees, as appears from the following words; not of the cutting down of all, but only some of them, as the conveniency of the siege might require; for the tree of the field is man’s life; by the fruit of which, among other things, his life is supported and maintained;

²⁰ Only the trees which thou knowest are not trees for meat, thou shalt destroy and cut them down; and thou shalt build bulwarks against the city that maketh war with thee, until it be subdued.

— if only the trees which thou knowest that they are not trees for eating, these trees do not bear edible fruits, then mayest thou hew them down;

— and thou shall build bulwarks against the city that maketh war; build bulwarks of the trees cut down, and raise batteries with them, or make machines and weapons from their wood, to cast stones into the city to annoy the inhabitants of it, in order to make them surrender, until they are totally subdued.

~ by Japheth on May 18, 2024.

Posted in Books of Moses