Disposition of Conquered Lands

(Deuteronomy 3:12 - 3:29)
"When, at that time, we occupied these lands, I gave to the tribes of Reuben and Gad the territory north of Aroer on the border of the Arnon River gorges, as well as half of the hill country of Gilead along with its towns.  The rest of Gilead and all of Bashan, the former kingdom of Og, I gave to the half-tribe of Manasseh.  (The entire region of Argob in Bashan was known to have been a land inhabited by Rephaim.  Jair, a leader from the tribe of Manasseh, conquered all of the Argob region of Bashan to the border of Geshurite and Maacathite lands.  Thereafter the land was named after him and is to this day called Havvoth Jair.)

"I gave Gilead to the clan of Machir.  But I also gave to the Reubenites and Gadites an area of Gilead extending from the middle of the gorges of the Arnon south to the Jabbok River, the border of Ammon.  They also were given the Jordan River Valley, Arabah, from the Sea of Galilee all the way down to the Dead Sea, with the Jordan forming the western boundary of their territory and the slopes of the Pisgah mountains, the eastern boundary.

"But I commanded you at that time, 'Jehovah your god has given you this land so that you may occupy it.  However, your fighting men, armed for battle, must cross the River Jordan ahead of your fellow Israelites.  Your wives and children and the numerous livestock I know you have may stay behind in the towns I have given you.  When Jehovah securely settles the rest of the Israelites as he has you, and when they have occupied the land across the Jordan I have given them, then each of you may return to the property of his I have given you.'

"And I then assured Joshua, 'You have witnessed how Jehovah your god has dealt with these two kings.  He will deal with the kingdoms where you are going in a similar fashion.  Have no fear of the nations there, for Jehovah your god will fight for you himself.'

"Also at that time, I pleaded with Jehovah, 'O Jehovah, my master, you have only begun to reveal your greatness and power to me, your servant.  Is there any god in heaven or on earth who can perform the mighty deeds and great acts that you do?  Please, allow me to cross the Jordan and view the good land over there, the fine hill country and Lebanon.'  But Jehovah was so angry with me because of you he wouldn't listen to what I had to say.  'That's enough from you!' he declared, 'Don't speak to me about this matter again.   Go up the summit of Mount Nebo and survey the land, west, north, south, and east.  Take it all in with your eyes, for you're not going to cross the Jordan.  But give authority to Joshua, encourage and empower him, for it is he who will lead the people across and make them a possession of the land you now see before you.' --- And so we remained in the valley near Beth Peor."

Notes
1.  Pisgah is used ambiguously.  It simply means peak, but refers here to the mountains east of the Jordan where the Israelites are encamped.  The highest peak there is Mount Nebo, 2600 feet above sea level, and it is Nebo that is obviously meant when Jehovah bids Moses to climb a mountain to view the Promised Land.  Beth Peor is where the Israelites have been long encamped, opposite Jericho.

2. The Geshurites and the Macaathites lived in the desert to the south of the Promised Land.  Machir was a son of Manasseh, grandson of Joseph.  His descendants were given territory in Gilead.  Obviously Machir could not have been alive to have personally conducted its conquest, as some translations assert.  (He would have been way too old -- and we must remember that all but three of the adult men who had participated in the Exodus were now dead.)  Jair was a great grandson of Machir.  He and the 30 cities he ruled (Havvoth Jair) figure in later Hebrew history.

3. The author seems obsessed with making references to the Rephaim with little reason for doing so, save that the Israelite victory over King Og seems more glorious if achieved over a giant and not a normal man.

4. In Numbers the Reubenites and Gadites had to twist Moses' arm and plead with him before he would grant them the lands conquered from Sihon and Og.  Initially, Moses was enraged that they would make such a suggestion, regarding it as treasonous and blasphemous.  Deuteronomy presents a different take on the story; here it is all Moses' idea and there is no reference to his objections.

5. Moses butters up Jehovah and pleads with him to let him cross the River Jordan and set foot on the Promised Land.  Jehovah angrily rejects his plea and even tells him to shut up about it.  What a jerk!  Jehovah certainly sets no example of forgiveness or mercy.  Moses was his most devoted follower, his mouthpiece, his number one fan, his BFF -- how can Jehovah treat him so shabbily?

6. Moses flatteringly proclaims that no other god can do what Jehovah can.  This certainly implies that there are other gods, that Jehovah is not the one and only.  Sometimes Jehovah is portrayed as the omnipotent, omniscient Creator God, but most of the time he is just a national god, whose powers may be superhuman, but far from God-like.  Jehovah is merely one of many gods, but he is touted as the best -- which suggests what a scurvy lot the "gods" must have been.

7. Most of Deuteronomy consists of speeches Moses makes to his people.  In Exodus he is such a poor speaker that he must rely upon his brother Aaron to do his talking for him.  Apparently during those 40 years in the desert Moses was able to hone his oratorical skills.