SERIES F --- WILDERNESS WANDERINGS --- LESSON 11

EAST OF JORDAN

SETTLEMENTS IN GILEAD

From Numbers 32

As time passed the people of Israel arrived in the land of Jazar and Gilead. The people of Reuben and Gad, who had large numbers of sheep, saw how good the land was for their flocks. They approached Moses and Eleazar the priest and the other leaders of the tribes with a request. [As you know,] they said, [we are shepherds and this land is excellent for sheep. Adonai has permitted us to capture this land, with Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Shebam, Nebo and Beon. With your permission we would like to have this land for our inheritance instead of land on the other side of the Jordan River.] But Moses spoke harshly to the people of Reuben and Gad. [Do you expect the other people to go over and fight while you sit here?] he demanded. [Don’t you realize this will discourage the others from going into the land Adonai promised them? Your fathers did the same thing at Kadesh-barnea when I sent them to spy on the land. When they returned from the Valley of Eshcol, they discouraged the people from entering the Promised Land. Adonai was angry with them and swore that all of them twenty years of age and older would not enter the land He had promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, for they had refused to do what He Commanded, Only Caleb and Joshua would enter the land, for they had obeyed Adonai completely, encouraging the people to conquer the land. Because Adonai was angry with our people, He made us wander in the wilderness for forty years until all the people of that generation died. Now here you come as a brood of sinners to provoke even more Adonai’s anger against us. If you turn from Him, He again will force our people to remain in the wilderness and that will bring disaster to our nation.] [No, that’s not what we want,] the people of Reuben and Gad protested. [We only want to build sheepfolds for our flocks and walled cities for our families so they can remain here safely while we who are of military age cross the Jordan River and help our people conquer the land on the other side. We promise that we will not return home until the land has been conquered and the people of Israel have received their inheritance. Then we will return here, for we do not want to share the inheritance on that side of the Jordan River.] [If you do what you say,] Moses answered [and arm your warriors and send them across the Jordan River and keep them there until the land is conquered and Adonai has driven out the enemies, then you may return and possess this land. You will have done your duty and this land east of the Jordan River shall be your inheritance. But if you do not do as you have promised, you will have sinned against Adonai and your sin will come upon you to harm you. Go, build cities for your families and sheepfolds for your flocks; then do what you have promised.] [We will do all that you say,] the people of Gad and Reuben answered. [Those of us set apart for military service will cross the Jordan River to fight for the land. But we will leave our women and children here with our flocks in the cities that we build in Gilead.] Then Moses instructed Eleazar, Joshua and the leaders of the tribes concerning this matter. [If the men set apart for military service in these two tribes cross the Jordan River to fight Adonai’s battles, then you must give them Gilead when the land is conquered,] Moses said. [If they refuse to fight with the other tribes, then they may not possess Gilead but will have to take their inheritance west of the Jordan River.] Once again, the tribes of Reuben and Gad pledged to do what was required of them. [We will do all that Adonai has Commanded,] They promised [and will go with the other tribes into Canaan. However, we will possess our inheritance here in Gilead, east of the Jordan River.] Moses assigned the territory east of the Jordan River to the tribes of Gad, Reuben and half of the tribe of Manasseh, Joseph’s son. This included the land that had once been part of the kingdom of Sihon, king of the Amorites; and the kingdom of OG, king of Bashan, including all the towns and surrounding territories. The people of Gad built the following cities: Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer, Atroth, Shophan, Jaazer, Jogbehah, Beth-nimrah and Beth-haran. These were all fortified cities with sheepfolds. The people of Reuben built the following cities: Heshbon, Elealeh, Kirjathaim, Nebo, Baal-meon and Shibmah. Later they changed some of the names, for they were conquered cities that they rebuilt. The clan of Machir, which was part of the tribe of Manasseh, conquered the Amorites who lived in Gilead and inhabited the land. Moses gave them permission to live there. Another clan in the tribe of Manasseh, the people of Jair, took many of the towns in Gilead. They changed the name of the territory where they lived to Havoth-jair. Still another group captured Kenath and its surrounding villages and named it Nobah, after their leader.

COMMENTARY

LIFE THEY LEFT BEHIND: ANCIENT EGYPTIAN WEAPONS

The ancient Egyptian soldier wore very little by way of armour. The average foot soldier wore only a simple kilt-like skirt, sometimes with bands across his shoulders and chest. Sandals were permitted, but most soldiers fought barefoot. A bull-hide shield, stiffened by a crossbar in the back by which it was held, provided only slight protection for the foot soldier. Some fighting units wore a feather in their hair to identify them, but only the pharaoh wore a sort of war helmet; the {chepresh,} a blue crown. When a foot soldier fought at close range, he used a long-bladed sword about twenty inches in length. A dagger or knife thrust into the waistband of his kilt must have been very useful during hand-to-hand combat. There were three basic kinds of knives:

1 -- a simple straight-bladed one that resembled a modern kitchen knife;
2 -- curved knives; and
3 -- longer curved knives with fairly wide blades called scimitars {SIM-e-tars}.

For fighting at greater distances, the soldier threw spears and javelins. Battle axes came in several varieties. Some were semi-circular blades in wooden handles, held in place by leather lashings. Other axes had long, narrow blades with a straight or rounded razor-sharp edge. A third type looked somewhat like a modern carpenter’s axe. The earliest Egyptian soldiers also fought with boomerangs and clubs. They used maces too, a heavy club with a spiked rounded end. Other soldiers fought as slingers. The stones that flew from their slings were effective and deadly. When the battle was on level ground, chariots were used, often with knives attached to their spinning wheels; the charioteers were considered an elite group. Those with good eyesight became archers. They carried their arrows just behind their shoulder in a leather quiver that hung from a strap across their chests. The weapons were simple and the fatalities high, but the army played a major role in the growth of Egypt’s power and fame.