Deuteronomy 23:4

Deu 23:4 Because they met you not with bread and with water in the way, when ye came forth out of Egypt; and because they hired against thee Balaam the son of Beor of Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse thee.

Ver. 4. Because they met you not.] As God takes notice of the least courtesy showed to his people, even to a cup of cold water, to requite it, so he doth of the least discourtesy, even to a frown or a frump {See Trapp on "Gen 4:6"} to revenge it.

And because they hired, &c.] {See Trapp on "Num 22:3"} {See Trapp on "Num 22:6"}

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Deu 23:4. They met you not with bread and water — That is, meat and drink; as the manner of those times and countries was, with respect to strangers and travellers, which was the more necessary because there were no public-houses of entertainment. Their fault, then, was unmercifulness to strangers and afflicted persons, which was aggravated both by their relation to the Israelites, as being the children of Lot, and by the special kindness of God and of the Israelites to them, in not fighting against them. Because they hired against thee Balaam — As the foregoing passage peculiarly refers to the Ammonites, so this doth to the Moabites, Num 22:5-7.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

23:4 Pethor is now identified with Pitru in Mesopotamia (see study note on Num 22:5-6). • Aram-naharaim (“Aram of the two rivers”) lies between the Euphrates and the Balih Rivers in upper Mesopotamia.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Hereby he condemneth all that further not the children of God in their vocation.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

(4) Because they met you not with bread and with water.—We learn incidentally from this passage how the Moabites and the Ammonites requited the forbearance shown them by the Israelites (Deu_2:9; Deu_2:19; Deu_2:29). No one not acquainted with the details of Israel’s intercourse with these people on their journey could have written thus.

Because they hired against thee Balaam.—See Numbers 22 and Num_31:16, and Numbers 25.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Because they met you not with bread and with water,.... To supply them therewith, either as a gift, which was a piece of humanity to strangers and travellers, or rather to sell unto them, for on no other terms did the Israelites desire their bread and their water:

in the way when ye came forth out of Egypt; not as soon as they came forth from thence, for it was near forty years after; but it was while they were in the way from thence, as they were journeying to the land of Canaan, and so were travellers, and should have had kindness shown them as such; for though they needed not bread and water, God providing both for them, yet this does not excuse the inhumanity of these people: the words are to be understood by way of distribution; this charge here only belongs to the Ammonites, for it appears that the Moabites did give them bread and water for money, Deu 2:28 as what follows belongs peculiarly to the Moabites and not the Ammonites:

and because they hired against thee Balaam the son of Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse thee; this the Moabites did in conjunction with the Midianites, but the Ammonites had no concern in it; see Num 22:7, it was not therefore because the Moabites and Ammonites were born in incest that they were forbidden entrance into the congregation of the Lord; which might have been thought to have been the reason of it, these instances following upon the former, had not these reasons been assigned.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Water: the necessaries of life. This inhumanity is highly resented. --- Son. Hebrew, "of Beor, of Pethor, a city of Mesopotamia, to curse thee." (Haydock) (Numbers xxii. 5.)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

They met you not, as the manner of those times was to wait and provide for strangers and travellers; see Gen 14:17; 18:2,3; 19:1,2; Jdg 19:17-21; which was the more necessary, because in those times and countries there were no such public houses of entertainment, as now there are among us. Their fault then was unmercifulness to strangers and pilgrims, and afflicted persons, which was aggravated both by their relation to the Israelites, as being the children of Lot, and by the special kindness of God and of the Israelites to them, in not fighting against them, as they had just occasion to do, and as they did by others, Deu 2.

Object.

Quest. How doth this agree with Deu 2:28,29, where the Moabites which dwell in Ar are said to have sold them meat and drink?

Answ. 1. It is one thing voluntarily to meet them, and kindly to relieve them with bread and water, which they are here denied to have done, and a quite differing thing to sell them bread and water when they are upon their very borders, and their own interest forced them to do so.

2. It may seem that it was only those Moabites that dwelt in Ar did so, as is said Deu 2:29, and that all the rest of the people neglected or refused to do it; and therefore the sin being so general and national, no wonder if the punishment be so too.

3. These and the following words, both here and Neh 13:1, are to be taken distributively; and this first member of the verse belongs to the Ammonites, who did not

meet them with bread, &c., and the latter part to the Moabites, who, together with the Midianites, but not with the Ammonites, hired Balaam, &c.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

They met you not with bread and water - As the manner of those times was to wait and provide for strangers and travelers, which was the more necessary, because in those times and countries, there were no public houses of entertainment. Their fault then was unmercifulness to strangers and afflicted persons, which was aggravated both by their relation to the Israelites, as being the children of Lot, and by the special kindness of God, and of the Israelites to them, in not fighting against them.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

לא יבא עמוני AN AMONITE [OR MOABITE] SHALL NOT COME [INTO THE ASSEMBLY OF THE LORD] — i.e. he shall not marry an Israelite woman (Yevamot 77b).

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.