Occupation of Transjordan

(Book of Numbers 32:1 - 32:42) 
The tribes of Reuben and Gad possessed a remarkably large number of livestock.  When they saw that the lands of Jazer and Gilead were ideal for their flocks and herds, they came to Moses, Eleazar the priest, and the leaders of the community and declared, "Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon, lands pacified by Jehovah for the sake of the Israelite people, are well suited for all our livestock.  Please approve our request, grant us, your servants, permission to settle in this land, rather than making us cross to the other side of the River Jordan."

Moses rebuked the men of Gad and Reuben, "Do you intend to sit here idly while your brother Israelites go to war?  Why are you trying to dissuade the rest of the Israelites from crossing the River Jordan to the land Jehovah has granted them?  That's just what your ancestors did when I sent them to Kardesh Barnea to explore the land.  After they had gone up the Eshcol Valley and surveyed the terrain, they discouraged the Israelites from entering the land Jehovah had given them.  On that day Jehovah’s ire was aroused and he swore, 'Of all of those that I liberated from Egypt, none who is twenty years or above will ever set eyes upon the fertile land I promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, for they have not followed me faithfully -- except Caleb son of Jephunneh, the Kenizzite, and Joshua son of Nun, who have followed Jehovah faithfully.'  And so Jehovah's wrath was vented against the Israelites and he made them wander in the desert for 40 years, until the entire generation that had rebelled against him had perished.  Here you are, you brood of sinners, repeating the sin of your fathers and making Jehovah even more enraged at Israel!  If you people of Gad and Reuben defy him again and Jehovah again abandons the entire nation of Israel in the desert, you will be responsible for its destruction.”

But they approached him and explained, "We just want to build some pens for our livestock and fortified settlements in which our women and children may safely dwell.  But we will be in the fore when the Israelites take arms, and we will remain so until they are securely settled in their new land.  Our families may take refuge in the forts we have built so that they will be protected from the local population.  We will not return home until all the Israelites have settled the lands that are its inheritance.  But we will not claim any inheritance of land on that side of the Jordan, for we wish to accept our grant of land on this side of the Jordan."

Moses told them, "If you abide by what you say, if you will take up arms and fight for Jehovah, if your army will cross the River Jordan and keep up the fight until Jehovah has expelled his enemies, then, when Jehovah has pacified the country, you may return.  You will have satisfied your obligations to Jehovah and to the rest of the Israelite people.  And this land will be recognized as your property by Jehovah.  If you do not do this, though, you will have committed a sin against Jehovah --  and rest assured that your sin will not go unpunished.  Go ahead and build the settlements for your families and the pens for your livestock.  But do what you have promised!"

The Gadites and Reubenites thus promised Moses, "We, your servants, will follow your instructions explicitly.  Our wives and children, flocks and herds will remain here in the towns of Gilead.  All of us who are able to bear arms will cross the river Jordan and fight for Jehovah, just as you, our master, bids us."

Moses then gave orders concerning them to Eleazar the priest and the clan heads of Israel's tribes.  He told them, "Fighting men from the tribes of Gad and Reuben are to cross the River Jordan with you and fight for Jehovah.  If they do so and remain until the land is subdued, then the lands of Gilead will be their property.  But if they refuse to take arms and cross the river with you, then they must accept an inheritance with you in Canaan."

The Gadites and Reubenites reiterated their vow, "We, your servants, will do as Jehovah has commanded.   We will take arms and cross the River Jordan into Canaan to fight for Jehovah -- but our inheritance of land is on this side of the river."

Moses granted to Gadites, the Reubenites and to the half the tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph land that was once the territories of King Sihon of the Amorites and King Og of Bashan, all the land and cities, as well as the surrounding regions and towns.  The Gadites restored and fortified the cities of Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer, Atroth Shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah, Beth Nimrah and Beth Haran, and they built pens for their livestock.  The Reubenites restored Heshbon, Elealah, and Kiriathaim, as well as Nebo, Baal Meon (whose names were changed), and Sibmah.  (Many of the conquered towns they rebuilt were given new names.) 

The clan of Machir son of Manasseh attacked Gilead, conquered it, and expelled the Amorites who lived there.  Thus Moses gave Gilead to the Machirites, and they settled there.  Jair, another clan of the tribe of Manasseh, captured many towns in the area of Gilead and changed the name of the region to Havvoth Jair [the towns of Jair].  A certain Nobah captured Kenath and the surrounding area and thus named it Nobah after himself.

Notes
1. An important element of the Jehovan religion and fundamental to his agreement with the Israelite people is Jehovah's promise to furnish his people with a land of their own, a specific place, Canaan.  To eschew this gift is tantamount to sacrilege, and Jehovah has always taken umbrage to any of his people who even suggest that they might permanently dwell elsewhere or claim some land other than that he is determined to give them.  By expressing a desire to settle anywhere but the Promised Land, the Reubenites and Gadites are on dangerous ground.  It is no wonder that Moses (who is an old man now and talks like one) is furious as he sees a tragic event in Israelite history about to repeat itself.  He is offended and his pride hurt that some of his people won't fall in with his plan and have the nerve to express ideas of their own concerning where they are to live.  He does, though, relent, provided the Reubenites and Gadites help the other Israelites conquer Canaan.

2. The Reubenites and Gadites are attracted to the land in Transjordan because it suits the abundant flocks and herds they possess.  Why should these two tribes of Israel have more livestock than the other ten, especially when the other tribes sported larger populations?  Were they better herdsmen or breeders?

3. The Reubenites and Gadites want to build fortified settlements to protect their families when they are gone fighting on the other side of the Jordan, which they seem to think won't take more than a few months.  Are they being realistic?  Faced with any kind of fighting force, how long could a bunch of women and children hold out even in the most secure of strongholds?  And how long will it take for the Israelites to subdue Canaan?

4. Roughly, the allocation of land east of the River Jordan was thus: the tribe of Reuben held the area east of the northern part of the Dead Sea, north of Moab; Gad held territory to the north of it, between the Jordan and Amon.  Half of the tribe of Manasseh occupied a larger territory north of Gad and east of the Jordan almost as far north as the Sea of Galilee.

5. The Amorites mentioned in the Bible, probably not the same as the Amorites of Mesopotamia, were Canaanites who dwelled in mountainous regions east of the River Jordan.  Two of their kings, Sihon and Og, have been defeated by the Israelites, allowing their territory to be occupied by the Reubenites, Gadites, and Machirites.  (The Amorites, though, do not disappear from the biblical chronicle.)  While the two kings, Og in particular, who is referred to as a giant, are mentioned in extra-biblical folklore, there is no evidence of their existence or of their connection to the Israelites.  That the Transjordan of this time was overwhelmed by any invaders, Israelite or otherwise, is not supported historically or archaeologically.  That the tribes occupying the Transjordan by the beginning of the 1st Millennium BC were descendants of Jacob's sons is purely conjectural and probably fanciful.