Consolidating the gains

“Then we turned and went up the way to Bashan. And Og the king of Bashan came out against us, he and all his people, to battle at Edrei. But the Lord said to me, ‘Do not fear him, for I have given him and all his people and his land into your hand. And you shall do to him as you did to Sihon the king of the Amorites, who lived at Heshbon.’ So the Lord our God gave into our hand Og also, the king of Bashan, and all his people, and we struck him down until he had no survivor left. And we took all his cities at that time—there was not a city that we did not take from them—sixty cities, the whole region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan. All these were cities fortified with high walls, gates, and bars, besides very many unwalled villages. And we devoted them to destruction, as we did to Sihon the king of Heshbon, devoting to destruction every city, men, women, and children. But all the livestock and the spoil of the cities we took as our plunder. So we took the land at that time out of the hand of the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, from the Valley of the Arnon to Mount Hermon (the Sidonians call Hermon Sirion, while the Amorites call it Senir), all the cities of the tableland and all Gilead and all Bashan, as far as Salecah and Edrei, cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan. (For only Og the king of Bashan was left of the remnant of the Rephaim. Behold, his bed was a bed of iron. Is it not in Rabbah of the Ammonites? Nine cubits was its length, and four cubits its breadth, according to the common cubit.) “When we took possession of this land at that time, I gave to the Reubenites and the Gadites the territory beginning at Aroer, which is on the edge of the Valley of the Arnon, and half the hill country of Gilead with its cities. The rest of Gilead, and all Bashan, the kingdom of Og, that is, all the region of Argob, I gave to the half-tribe of Manasseh. (All that portion of Bashan is called the land of Rephaim. Jair the Manassite took all the region of Argob, that is, Bashan, as far as the border of the Geshurites and the Maacathites, and called the villages after his own name, Havvoth-jair, as it is to this day.) To Machir I gave Gilead, and to the Reubenites and the Gadites I gave the territory from Gilead as far as the Valley of the Arnon, with the middle of the valley as a border, as far over as the river Jabbok, the border of the Ammonites; the Arabah also, with the Jordan as the border, from Chinnereth as far as the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, under the slopes of Pisgah on the east. “And I commanded you at that time, saying, ‘The Lord your God has given you this land to possess. All your men of valor shall cross over armed before your brothers, the people of Israel. Only your wives, your little ones, and your livestock (I know that you have much livestock) shall remain in the cities that I have given you, until the Lord gives rest to your brothers, as to you, and they also occupy the land that the Lord your God gives them beyond the Jordan. Then each of you may return to his possession which I have given you.’ And I commanded Joshua at that time, ‘Your eyes have seen all that the Lord your God has done to these two kings. So will the Lord do to all the kingdoms into which you are crossing. You shall not fear them, for it is the Lord your God who fights for you.’ “And I pleaded with the Lord at that time, saying, ‘O Lord God, you have only begun to show your servant your greatness and your mighty hand. For what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do such works and mighty acts as yours? Please let me go over and see the good land beyond the Jordan, that good hill country and Lebanon.’ But the Lord was angry with me because of you and would not listen to me. And the Lord said to me, ‘Enough from you; do not speak to me of this matter again. Go up to the top of Pisgah and lift up your eyes westward and northward and southward and eastward, and look at it with your eyes, for you shall not go over this Jordan. But charge Joshua, and encourage and strengthen him, for he shall go over at the head of this people, and he shall put them in possession of the land that you shall see.’ So we remained in the valley opposite Beth-peor.

Sermon

Overview of this passage

Bashan had been conquered

Israel had taken all the east bank of Jordon

From the Arnon Valley, to the south, to the Mount Hermon, in the north

The area had been sttled by the Reubenites, the Gadites and half of the tribe of Manasseh

Moses then speaks about himself

These great works of the Lord made him long to cross the Jordan himself

But this was not to be.

Joshua would lead Israel into Canaan

The defeat of Og, King of Bashan (Deuteronomy 3:1-11)

Deuteronomy 3:1–11 ESV

As we considered last time with Sihon, the enemy again takes the initiative against Israel

King Og, of Bashan, came out against them, he and all his people

Moses encouraged the Israelites with God’s promise that he had alo given these people into their hand, and give them victory

We take heart from victories and from our experience of the presence and help of God

The territory of Bashan was considerable in size

The cities were fortified with high walls, gates and bars (v5)

The prior victory prepared the people for tacking a stronger foe

Faith tested and proved is embolded to trust God when a more serious challenge is faced

Compare this to 38 years prior when the spies came back and said “the cities are great and fortified up to heaven”

This battle will cause the Israelites to take heart when they come to cross over the Jordon and enter Canaan

Not only were the cities of Bashan strong and fortified, its King was also a formidable figure

He was one of the remnants of the giants

His bed was made of iron, just over four meters (13 foot) long and nearly two metres (6.5 feet) wide.

It was giants such as this that filled the hearts of the spies with fear “And besides, we have seen the sons of the Anakim there”

In all these things we see the goodness of the Lord

Leading people on from strength to strength

preparing them and encouraging them for what lay ahead in Canaan

This is how God deals with us in our lives.

Helping your brothers (v18-22)

Deuteronomy 3:18–22 ESV

“And I commanded you at that time, saying, ‘The Lord your God has given you this land to possess. All your men of valor shall cross over armed before your brothers, the people of Israel. Only your wives, your little ones, and your livestock (I know that you have much livestock) shall remain in the cities that I have given you, until the Lord gives rest to your brothers, as to you, and they also occupy the land that the Lord your God gives them beyond the Jordan. Then each of you may return to his possession which I have given you.’ And I commanded Joshua at that time, ‘Your eyes have seen all that the Lord your God has done to these two kings. So will the Lord do to all the kingdoms into which you are crossing. You shall not fear them, for it is the Lord your God who fights for you.’

The practical importance of the good of the whole nation comes out immediately in this section.

Initially, Moses was very angry when Reuben and Gad approached him about settling in the land they had just conquered

He thought this meant that they were not willing to go over the Jordan and take part in the conquest of Canaan

They however assured him that they would settle their wives and children in the fortified cities east of the Jordan and then cross over to help in the conquest, and that they would not return home until Israel had gained it inheritance (Numbers 32:6-19)

In this passage Moses command them to act as they have said they will

Significantly, Moses calls the nine and a half tribes “your brothers” (v18 & 20)

They are to recognise their kinship with the rest of Israel

They are all the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob

They all belong to the people chosen by God

They were redeemed from out of Egypt and constituted God’s people by covenant.

A covenant initiated by God to which their fathers had given allegiance (Exodus 19:8; 24:1-8)

Their unity is to be a practical matter: they are to act as brothers and stand shoulder to shoulder with the other tribes until the Lord givens rest to them also (v20)

At the same time Moses also spoke to Joshua, for it was he who was to lead Israel into the land

He needed to draw encouragement from all that he had seen

Pointing to what God has done, not once, but twice he can do again and again

Joshua, was one of the two spies who brought back a good report of the land 38 years before, knew the hard rime Moses had sometimes faced as leader

He knew how awkward and rebellious Israel could be

It is not easy to encourage and reassure the one who is going to take your place

Moses did not show any resentment; rather he speaks as a true servant of God

“You shall not fear them, for it is the Lord your God who fights for you (v22)

The sorrow and submission of Moses (v23-29)

Deuteronomy 3:23–29 ESV

“And I pleaded with the Lord at that time, saying, ‘O Lord God, you have only begun to show your servant your greatness and your mighty hand. For what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do such works and mighty acts as yours? Please let me go over and see the good land beyond the Jordan, that good hill country and Lebanon.’ But the Lord was angry with me because of you and would not listen to me. And the Lord said to me, ‘Enough from you; do not speak to me of this matter again. Go up to the top of Pisgah and lift up your eyes westward and northward and southward and eastward, and look at it with your eyes, for you shall not go over this Jordan. But charge Joshua, and encourage and strengthen him, for he shall go over at the head of this people, and he shall put them in possession of the land that you shall see.’ So we remained in the valley opposite Beth-peor.

Prehaps it was speaking to Joshua as he had just done that filled Moses’ heat with a great yearning to go into the land and see the great works which the Lord would then do

Moses felt that they were on the verge of great things, and he longed to see God’s greatness and his mighty hand demonstrated in an even more wonderful way.

So he came to God and pleaded with Him

We can understand just how he felt, but he had to learn to submission to God’s Will

It was a hard lesson, and one we all have to learn

God did not change His mind

His words were conclusive putting an end to further please on Moses’ part

“Enough from you; do not speak to me on this matter again” (v26)

When God’s Will is absolutely clear and we submit to it, it brings a sense of peace and closure into our hearts, even though it might put an end to hopes we have entertained.

Moses was in a special position and God spoke personally and directly to him

Nevertheless, once we are sure that some matter is scriptural and that paricular course of action has to be followed, then we can see that this is God’s will

It is also the case that God’s will appears evident by the ways in which things work out, and there is peace in accepting that

v26, is often interpreted to mean that Moses was not allowed to enter the land because of an example of petulance with Israel that dishonoured God

God could not overlook such a public and serious sin in a man in Moses’ position

However, alternatively it may have referred to God being unwilling to change his mind because of the diobedience of the people 38 years prior, and His declared judgement

v27, Moses was permitted to view the land from from the mountain

This was God’s land and God would bring his people into it

Moses was 120 years old, he had fulfilled the task God had given him to do

Although Moses, had already encouraged Joshua, The Lord tells him to do so again

The future was assured: “He shall go over at the head of this people, and he shall put them in possession of the land that you shall see” (v28)

It is easy for Christian’s to wonder what the future hold

It is easy to become discouraged and wonder where all the leaders have gone

Why they there are not the Godly men and women we knew when we were young

It is better to encourage those who are serving the Lord and those who are taking up positions of responsibility

and remember that the cause is His and that He will certainly bring His own purposes to pass

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Closing Prayer

Doxology

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