Numbers 32:20

Num 32:20. Before the Lord — Before the ark, which was the token of God’s presence. He alludes either to the order of the tribes in their march, whereby Reuben and Gad marched immediately before the ark, or to the manner of their passage over Jordan, wherein the ark went first into Jordan, and stood there while all the tribes marched over Jordan by and before it, and these among the rest, as is expressly noted in these very words, that they passed over before the Lord, Jos 4:13.

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

Upon this declaration Moses absolves them from all guilt, and promises them the desired land for a possession, on condition that they fulfil their promise; but he reminds them again of the sin that they will commit, and will have to atone for, if their promise is not fulfilled, and closes with the admonition to build towns for their families and pens for their flocks, and to do what they have promised. Upon this they promise again (Num 32:25-27), through their spokesman (as the singular ויּאמר in Num 32:25, and the suffix in אדני in Num 32:27, clearly show), that they will fulfil his command. The use of the expression "before Jehovah," in the words, "go armed before Jehovah to war," in Num 32:20 and Num 32:21, may be explained from the fact, that in the war which they waged at the command of their God, the Israelites were the army of Jehovah, with Jehovah in the midst. Hence the ark of the covenant was taken into the war, as the vehicle and substratum of the presence of Jehovah; whereas it remained behind in the camp, when the people wanted to press forward into Canaan of their own accord (Num 14:44). But if this is the meaning of the expression "before Jehovah," we may easily understand why the Reubenites and Gadites do not make use of it in Num 32:17, namely, because they only promise to go equipped "before the children of Israel," i.e., to help their brethren to conquer Canaan. In Num 32:32 they also adopt the expression, after hearing it from the mouth of Moses (Num 32:20).

(Note: This completely sets aside the supposed discrepancy which Knobel adduces in support of his fragmentary hypothesis, viz., that the Elohist writes "before Israel" in Num 32:17 and Num 32:29, when the Jehovist would write "before Jehovah," - a statement which is not even correct; since we find "before Jehovah" in Num 32:29, which Knobel is obliged to erase from the text in order to establish his assertion.)

נקיּים, innocent, "free from guilt before Jehovah and before Israel." By drawing back from participation in the war against the Canaanites, they would not only sin against Jehovah, who had promised Canaan to all Israel, and commanded them to take it, but also against Israel itself, i.e., against the rest of the tribes, as is more fully stated in Num 32:7-15. In Num 32:22, "before Jehovah" signifies according to the judgment of Jehovah, with divine approval. חטּאתכם וּדעוּ, "ye will know your sin," which will overtake (מצא) or smite you, i.e., ye will have to make atonement for them.

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

32:20-24 Moses accepted the terms offered by Reuben and Gad. If they joined their kindred in fighting the Canaanites, they would fulfill their end of the agreement and could then return to their settlements east of the Jordan (32:22). If they failed to keep their promise, it would be a serious sin against God (32:23).

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

Before the Ark of the Lord.

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

Moses said unto them, If ye will do this thing--with sincerity and zeal.

go before the Lord to war--The phrase was used in allusion to the order of march in which the tribes of Reuben and Gad immediately preceded the ark (see on Num. 2:10-31), or to the passage over the Jordan, in which the ark stood in mid-channel, while all the tribes marched by in succession (Jos 3:4), of course including those of Reuben and Gad, so that, literally, they passed over before the Lord and before the rest of Israel (Jos 4:13). Perhaps, however, the phrase is used merely in a general sense to denote their marching on an expedition, the purpose of which was blessed with the presence, and destined to promote the glory, of God. The displeasure which Moses had felt on the first mention of their proposal had disappeared on the strength of their solemn assurances. But a lurking suspicion of their motives seems still to have been lingering in his mind--he continued to speak to them in an admonitory strain; and he concluded by warning them that in case of their failing to redeem their pledge, the judgments of an offended God would assuredly fall upon them. This emphatic caution against such an eventuality throws a strong doubt on the honesty of their first intentions; and yet, whether through the opposing attitude or the strong invectives of Moses they had been brought to a better state of mind, their final reply showed that now all was right.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

(20) if ye will go armed before the Lord . . . —The same verb and the same preposition are here used which are used in Num_32:17. It may be inferred from this expression that the army of the Israelites was regarded as the army of the Lord; and it seems probable that there is a reference to the ark of the Lord as being carried on certain occasions into the war. If the order of march prescribed in the second chapter of this Book was still observed, there may be a reference to the fact that the tribes of Reuben and Gad, which encamped on the south side of the Tabernacle, immediately preceded the ark (see Num_10:18-22), just as those of Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh immediately followed it (Psa_80:2). At the time of the passage of the Jordan, the priests who bare the ark stood still in the river until the whole of the people had passed over “before the ark of the Lord” (Jos_4:5; Jos_4:11); but at the siege of Jericho it appears that the ark was carried in the midst of the host, some of the armed men going before it, and some following after it (Jos_6:9). If this is the true meaning of the word “before the Lord,” it was natural that the Reubenites, or their spokesman, should first use the words “before the children of Israel” in Num_32:17, and should not adopt the expression “before the Lord,” as in Num_32:32, until it had been previously employed by Moses.

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

And will go all of you armed over Jordan before the Lord,.... Moses tries them thoroughly, and is very express in his words, requiring them not only to go armed, or march from the place where they were, towards the land of Canaan, but to go over Jordan, and not some of them only, but all, and that before the Lord; though indeed, when the tribes came to the river Jordan, the ark, which was the symbol of the divine Presence, went before all the tribes into it, and there stayed till they passed over, and then these two tribes and the half tribe of Manasseh passed before the children of Israel, and before the Lord, unto battle, Jos 3:11.

until he hath driven out his enemies before him: the Canaanites, who were the enemies of the Lord, as well as of his people; and because of their sins, in which they showed their enmity to God, the land spewed them out, and he drove them out to make way for his people Israel, and till this was done the tribes of Reuben and Gad were to continue with them.

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

Lord, or the ark, under the guidance and protection of God.

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).

Before the Lord; either,

1. Sincerely and heartily, as in God’s presence. Or rather,

2. Before the ark, which was the token of God’s presence. He alludes either to the order of the tribes in their march, whereby Reuben and Gad marched next and immediately before the ark, as appears from Num 2:10,14,16,17; or to the manner of their passage over Jordan, wherein the ark went first into Jordan, and stood there whilst all the tribes marched over Jordan by and before it, Jos 3; Jos 5, and these amongst the rest, as is expressly noted in these very words, that they passed over before the Lord, Jos 4:13.

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

20. Go armed before the Lord — The ark of the covenant was taken into battle as the symbol and the vehicle of Jehovah’s presence. The expression originated with Moses. This explains why the petitioners used it in Num_32:32 and not in Num_32:17, where they promise to go before Israel.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Before the Lord. Perhaps in a quasi-local sense, as the vanguard of the host before the sacred symbols of the Lord"s presence. (see on Num_10:21, and Jos_6:9) But since the same expression (hwOhy ynepli) is twice used in a much vaguer sense in verse 22, it is more probable,that it only means "in the Lord"s service, or "beneath his eye."

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Before the Lord - Before the ark, which was the token of God's presence. He alludes either to the order of the tribes in their march, whereby Reuben and Gad marched immediately before the ark, or to the manner of their passage over Jordan, wherein the ark went first into Jordan, and stood there while all the tribes marched over Jordan by and before it, and these amongst the rest, as is expressly noted in these very words, that they passed over before the Lord, Josh. iv, 13.

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

The Petition Granted with the Proposed Condition

v. 20. And Moses said unto them, If ye will do this thing, if ye will go armed before the Lord to war,

v. 21. and will go all of you armed over Jordan before the Lord, until He hath driven out His enemies from before Him, the matter was to be performed in good faith, in solemn earnestness, as before the face of Jehovah, with His eyes resting upon them,

v. 22. and the land be subdued before the Lord, then, afterward, ye shall return and be guiltless before the Lord and before Israel, since they would then have fulfilled all the obligations resting upon them as members of the Lord’s people; and this land shall be your possession before the Lord.

v. 23. But if ye will not do so, refusing to fulfill the duty which lay before them so plainly, behold, ye have sinned against the Lord; and be sure your sin will find you out, its punishment would surely strike them.

v. 24. Build you cities for your little ones and folds for your sheep; and do that which hath proceeded out of your mouth, they should keep the promise which they had made of their own free will.

v. 25. And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben spake unto Moses, saying, Thy servants will do as my lord commandeth.

v. 26. Our little ones, our wives, our flocks, and all our cattle shall be there in the cities of Gilead;

v. 27. but thy servants will pass over, every man armed for war, before the Lord to battle, as my lord saith.

v. 28. So concerning them Moses commanded Eleazar, the priest, and Joshua, the son of Nun, and the chief fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel, since Moses knew that he himself would not live to see the accomplishment of the agreement;

v. 29. and Moses said unto them, If the children of Gad and the children of Reuben will pass with you over Jordan, every man armed to battle, before the Lord, who still accompanied the host, and the land shall be subdued before you, then ye shall give them the land of Gilead for a possession, which they were now holding only in a temporary and tentative manner, subject to the fulfillment of their promise;

v. 30. but it they will not pass over with you armed, they shall have possessions among you in the land of Canaan. The text seems to imply that the two tribes would lose their identity in that case, their status as two separate and distinct tribes, their members being distributed among the other tribes of Israel.

v. 31. And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben answered, saying, As the Lord hath said unto thy servants, so will we do, thus declaring their willingness to accept the terms as stated.

v. 32. We will pass over armed before the Lord into the land of Canaan, that the possession of our inheritance on this side of Jordan may be ours, for the possession of it was actually dependent upon their fulfilling the condition.

v. 33. And Moses gave unto them, even to the children of Gad and to the children of Reuben and unto half the tribe of Manasseh, the son of Joseph, this tribe thus being recognized as having equal claims with the other two, the kingdom of Sihon, king of the Amorites, and the kingdom of Og, king of Bashan, the land, with the cities thereof in the coasts (boundaries), even the cities of the country round about, the entire country with its cities and the cultivated land in the neighborhood of the cities.

v. 34. And. the children of Gad built Dibon, and Ataroth, and Aroer,

v. 35. and Atroth, Shophan, and Jaazer, and Jogbehah,

v. 36. and Beth-nimrah, and Beth-haran, fenced cities; and folds, walled corals, for sheep.

v. 37. And the children of Reuben built Heshbon, the city which had been the capital of Sihon, and Elealeh, and Kirjathaim,

v. 38. and Nebo, and Baal-meon, (their names being changed,) and Shibmah; and gave other names unto the cities which they builded. Some of these cities have been located more or less exactly, while the location of others is altogether a matter of conjecture; but they were all in the territory east of the Jordan. y. 39. And the children of Machir, the son of Manasseh, went to Gilead, that is, they had gone there, this fact causing them to be included in this grant, and took it, and dispossessed the Amorite which was in it.

v. 40. And Moses gave Gilead unto Machir, the son of Manasseh; and he dwelt therein.

v. 41. And Jair, the son of Manasseh, went, had gone, and took the small towns thereof, and called them Havoth-jair.

v. 42. And Nobah went, had gone, and took Kenath and the villages thereof, and called it Nobah, after his own name. Cf Deu 3:4-14; 1Ch 2:22-23, where we learn that Jair was the leader in these expeditions, that he himself took twenty-three cities, and that the total number of towns with their suburbs taken in the campaign was sixty. For the people of God the motto holds true: A common warfare and peril, a common triumph and inheritance.

Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

if you arm yourselves

"if you take your weapons"

before Yahweh

This means Yahweh will go with them to battle and enable them to defeat their enemy and take their land. AT: "in the presence of Yahweh" (See: Idiom)

until he has driven out his enemies from before him

"until Yahweh has driven out his enemies from his presence." The pronouns here all refer to Yahweh. Yahweh enabling the Israelites to defeat their enemies is spoken of as if Yahweh were fighting their battles. AT: "until Yahweh has enabled your soldiers to defeat the enemy and force them away from his presence" (See: Metaphor)

the land is subdued before him

Here the word "land" refers to the people who live there. This can be stated in active form. AT: "in his presence the Israelites have subdued the people who live in the land" (See: Metonymy and Active or Passive)

you may return

It is implied that they will return to the east side of the Jordan. AT: "you may return to this land on the east side of the Jordan" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

You will be guiltless toward Yahweh and toward Israel

Possible meanings are 1) "You will have fulfilled your obligation to Yahweh and to Israel" or 2) "There will be nothing for which Yahweh or the people of Israel can blame you."

translationWords

Moses

Yahweh

cast out

possess

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.