Moses on the Move

King Sihon’s Defeat

Numbers 21:21–30 (ESV)

21 Then Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, saying, 22 “Let me pass through your land. We will not turn aside into field or vineyard. We will not drink the water of a well. We will go by the King’s Highway until we have passed through your territory.” 23 But Sihon would not allow Israel to pass through his territory. He gathered all his people together and went out against Israel to the wilderness and came to Jahaz and fought against Israel. 24 And Israel defeated him with the edge of the sword and took possession of his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, as far as to the Ammonites, for the border of the Ammonites was strong. 25 And Israel took all these cities, and Israel settled in all the cities of the Amorites, in Heshbon, and in all its villages. 26 For Heshbon was the city of Sihon the king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab and taken all his land out of his hand, as far as the Arnon. 27 Therefore the ballad singers say, “Come to Heshbon, let it be built; let the city of Sihon be established. 28 For fire came out from Heshbon, flame from the city of Sihon. It devoured Ar of Moab, and swallowed the heights of the Arnon. 29 Woe to you, O Moab! You are undone, O people of Chemosh! He has made his sons fugitives, and his daughters captives, to an Amorite king, Sihon. 30 So we overthrew them; Heshbon, as far as Dibon, perished; and we laid waste as far as Nophah; fire spread as far as Medeba.”

Chemosh

The Lexham Bible Dictionary (Chemosh)

CHEMOSH (כמושׁ, kmwsh).

A Canaanite deity. Worshiped prominently in Moab and Ebla.Chemosh and the Hebrew BibleThe Hebrew Bible connects Chemosh with the Moabites (Num 21:29; 1 Kgs 11:7, 33; 2 Kgs 23:13; Jer 48:7, 13, 46), except for Judges 11:24, where Chemosh is said to be the god of the Amorites. Worship of Chemosh was allowed in Israel under King Solomon, who built high places for Chemosh and Molech (1 Kgs 11:7). These high places were likely among those torn down during Josiah’s reforms in the seventh century BC (2 Kgs 23:13).Chemosh may also be involved in 2 Kgs 3:26–27, which narrates Mesha’s (king of Moab) sacrifice of his eldest son, though the account does not identify which deity was offered the sacrifice. After Mesha’s sacrifice, “great wrath” came upon Israel, such that they departed from Moab and returned to Israel (2 Kgs 3:27).Chemosh the Canaanite DeityThe name Chemosh may stem from the words kamosh or kamashu, meaning “conqueror” or “subduer” as a verbal adjective of this stem (D). As a verb, it can mean “to bend down” or “to bow down.” Chemosh is the national deity of the Moabites. Most of the information available concerning Chemosh is derived from the Mesha Inscription, which dates to the ninth century BC. In this inscription, the beliefs surrounding the deity Chemosh are similar to biblical conceptions about Yahweh:• Mesha credits Chemosh for his victories (line 4; 8–9; 12–13; 18; 19; 33).• When Moab is oppressed by Omri, king of Israel, the reason given for this oppression is Chemosh’s anger (line 5).• Chemosh communicates with Mesha directly, giving him instructions (line 14).People in locations outside of Moab also appear to have worshiped Chemosh. He was likely part of an early Semitic pantheon, as evidenced by his appearance in these different locations:• Kamish is a deity listed on tablets that date to the mid-third millennium BC from Tel Mardikh in ancient Ebla. His appearance in personal names, place-names, and his own temple shows that Chemosh was popular in Ebla.• Chemosh may have been worshiped at Ugarit as a deity with Kammut(u).• Assyrian god lists mention Kammush and equate this deity with Nergal.

Numbers 21:30–22:1 ESV

30 So we overthrew them; Heshbon, as far as Dibon, perished; and we laid waste as far as Nophah; fire spread as far as Medeba.” 31 Thus Israel lived in the land of the Amorites. 32 And Moses sent to spy out Jazer, and they captured its villages and dispossessed the Amorites who were there. 33 Then they turned and went up by the way to Bashan. And Og the king of Bashan came out against them, he and all his people, to battle at Edrei. 34 But the Lord said to Moses, “Do not fear him, for I have given him into your hand, and all his people, and his land. And you shall do to him as you did to Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived at Heshbon.” 35 So they defeated him and his sons and all his people, until he had no survivor left. And they possessed his land. 1 Then the people of Israel set out and camped in the plains of Moab beyond the Jordan at Jericho.

BA´SHAN (fruitful), a district on the east of Jordan. It is sometimes spoken of as the “land of Bashan,” 1 Chron. 5:11, and comp. Num. 21:33; 32:33, and sometimes as “all Bashan.” Deut. 3:10, 13; Josh. 12:5; 13:12, 30. It was taken by the children of Israel after their conquest of the land of Sihon from Arnon to Jabbok. The limits of Bashan are very strictly defined. It extended from the “border of Gilead” on the south to Mount Hermon on the north, Deut. 3:3, 10, 14; Josh. 12:5; 1 Chron. 5:23, and from the Arabah or Jordan valley on the west of Salehah (Sulkhad) and the border of the Geshurites and the Maachathites on the east. Josh. 12:3–5; Deut. 3:10. This important district was bestowed on the half-tribe of Manasseh, Josh. 13:29–31, together with “half Gilead.” This country is now full of interesting ruins, which have lately been explored and from which much light has been thrown upon Bible times. See Porter’s “Giant Cities of Bashan.”

William Smith, Smith’s Bible Dictionary, 1986.

Faithlife Study Bible

Bashan and the Gates of Hell

The region known in the OT as Bashan was located east of the Jordan River (the Transjordan). Specifically, it refers to the upper Transjordan east and northeast of the Sea of Galilee, extending north to and including Mount Hermon. Through the collective efforts of the tribes of Gad, Asher, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, the Israelites conquered this region in the days of Moses and Joshua. The territory then became the tribal inheritance of the half-tribe of Manasseh. (The other half of Manasseh settled west of the Jordan, in Canaan; see Num 32; Josh 19).Before Israel conquered it, Bashan was an Amorite stronghold ruled by two kings, Sihon and Og, both of whom descended from the giant clans known as the Rephaim and Anakim (Deut 2:10–11, 20–21; 3:11–13; Josh 12:4; 13:12; compare Num 13:26–33; Amos 2:9–10). Its two capital cities were Ashtaroth and Edrei (Num 21:33; Deut 1:4; 3:10; Josh 9:10; 12:4; 13:12, 31). The name “Ashtaroth” is the plural form of “Ashtoreth,” a Canaanite goddess more commonly known as Astarte. Israelite idol worship frequently involved “the Baals and Ashtaroth,” which were, among other things, sexual fertility cults. Bashan and its two capital cities also had an ominous reputation in the wider Canaanite world. Mythological and ritual texts from Ugarit describe Ashtaroth and Edrei as the abode of the god mlk (Milku or Molech; KTU 1.108:1–3), a long dead (and deified) king. Molech’s name appears in a series of snake charms associated with Ashtaroth (KTU 1.100:41; 1.107:17); he was also connected to child sacrifice in the OT (1 Kgs 11:7; Lev 20:1–5; 18:21). Furthermore, the plural form of the name mlk (mlkm) means “kings.” As result, the cities of Ashtaroth and Edrei (and, more broadly, all of Bashan) came to be associated with the broader Underworld population of deified ancestors and ancient warrior-kings, such as the Rephaim. Canaanite (Ugaritic) peoples, then, literally believed Bashan to be the gateway to the Underworld—the dwelling place of the dead. More broadly, Akkadian god lists from the Old Babylonian period onward associate a deity named Malik, and its plural, maliku (“beings”; the Igigi and Anunnaki gods), with the Underworld cult of dead ancestors.The Israelites understandably viewed Ashtaroth and Edrei, and thus all of Bashan, as domains of other foreign gods (see Deut 32:8–9). Like the people of Ugarit, however, Israelites considered the Rephaim to be great warriors but identified them as giants. This connection first appears in Gen 6:4, in which the warrior-kings or heroes (gibborim in Hebrew) are related to (and perhaps called) “Nephilim,” a group of giants who could have been spawned by the sons of God (Gen 6:1–4). Elsewhere, the OT connects the Rephaim to the Anakim (Deut 2:11)—descendants of the Nephilim (Num 13:33; compare Deut 2:10–11, 20–21; 3:11–13). According to Jewish theology of the Second Temple period (from books like 1 Enoch), the sons of God (called “watchers”) of Gen 6:1–4 descended to Mount Hermon in Bashan before carrying out the deeds described in Gen 6:1–4. Bashan and Hermon thus had sinister reputations.Even after Israel subdued Bashan and its Amorite giant clans, the people in the region continued to associate it with the worship of fallen gods. Following the death of Solomon and the split of the kingdom (1 Kgs 12:25–31; 2 Kgs 10:29), the wicked Jeroboam set up a cult center for the northern kingdom at the city of Dan, which was very close to the foot of Mount Hermon. However, the Assyrians destroyed the city of Dan in 734 BC and took the northern kingdom of Israel into captivity in 722 BC. During the Hellenistic period, new inhabitants of the region reestablished a new city and cult center a few miles east of the ancient Dan cult center. The location, which had formerly been known as Baal-Gad and Baal-Hermon, was named Paneas (also called Banyas and Banias). The cult center was devoted to the god Pan, the half-man half-goat god of fright (or “panic”). The site features a cave grotto and carved niches for the statues of deities. Beginning in the third century BC, worshipers cast sacrifices into the cave as offerings to Pan.By Jesus’ day, the name of Banias had been changed to Caesarea-Philippi—the location of Peter’s confession (Matt 16:13–20) and, shortly thereafter, the transfiguration. The latter likely occurred somewhere on Mount Hermon. (The Bible does not indicate that the transfiguration took place at Mount Tabor; that tradition did not appear until the fifth century AD.) So when Jesus tells Peter that it is “on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it” (Matt 16:18), He and the disciples are literally standing at the place known in ancient times as the gates of Hades/the Underworld. Jesus is saying, in other words, that He will conquer the forces of darkness associated with the Underworld—and that the power of the Church will overcome them. In Paul’s words, Christ “disarmed the rulers and the authorities, he made a display of them in public, triumphing over them by it” (Col 2:15) and “Ascending on high he led captivity captive; he gave gifts to men” (Eph 4:8). This line from Ephesians 4:8 is made even more powerful with the knowledge that Paul is quoting Psalm 68:18; in Psalm 68 the mountain God ascends and conquers is none other than Mount Bashan (Psa 68:15).

MICHAEL S. HEISER

Molech

The Lexham Bible Dictionary Molech

MOLECH (מלך, mlk). A deity to whom children were sacrificed (Lev 18:21; 20:2–5). Likely of Canaanite origin.

Molech and the Old Testament

First Kings 11:7 describes Molech as the god of the Ammonites. The author may have confused Molech with the Ammonite god Milcom—the two deities are distinguished from one another in 2 Kgs 23:10 and 13. Molech is connected to Topheth (near Jerusalem in the valley of Ben-Hinnom), while Milcom is connected with the sons of Ammon. In Jeremiah 49:1, Milcom is linked with Gad. Worship of Molech was present in Israel under King Solomon (1 Kgs 11:7) and discontinued by the reforms of Josiah in the seventh century BC (2 Kgs 23:13).

Molech and Child Sacrifice in Israel

Sacrifice to Molech—usually involving child sacrifice, especially firstborn males—is prohibited in Lev 20:2–5 (compare Lev 18:21; 20:2–5; 2 Kgs 23:10; Jer 32:35). In Israel, child sacrifice was most prominent in Topheth during Manasseh’s reign (2 Chr 33:6; 2 Kgs 23:10). The kings Ahaz and Manasseh are said to have made their own sons “pass through the fire” (2 Kgs 16:3; 21:6 LEB).

Child sacrifices may have been offered to other deities as well (see Jer 19). Mesha, king of Moab, sacrifices his eldest son as a burnt offering in 2 Kgs 3:26–27. Although the text does not specify to which deity this sacrifice was made, it was likely made to Chemosh.

Etymology

“Molech” is likely connected to the Semitic root mlk, meaning “to rule,” or “to be king.” The vocalization of the name in the Hebrew Bible may be derogatory, as its pronunciation mirrors the Hebrew word for shame, בשׁת (bsht). This pronunciation differs from the pronunciation of the mlk deities attested elsewhere, such as Malik at Ebla and Ugarit.

Eissfeldt proposed that in the Hebrew Bible, “Molech” was a cultic term for child sacrifice, not a deity. It may be read as the noun molk. He argues that Jer 32:35 ought to read: “to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire as a molk—sacrifice,” rather than, “to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire to Molech.” However, Leviticus 20:5 accuses Israel of “playing the harlot” with Molech. This accusation would be unnecessary if Molech was a type of sacrifice rather than an opposing deity.

A deity with the name of the same root can be found in Ugarit and Ebla. In Akkadian literature, the deity mlk is associated with the Underworld deity Nergal—Molech was likely a deity of the Underworld. Texts from Mari reference maliku—beings that receive funerary offerings. These beings are mentioned in Akkadian texts along with the Igigi and Anunnaki, who are connected with the cult of the dead.

Topheth, where the valley of Ben-Hinnom is located, can mean “furnace,” “fireplace,” or “oven.” Isaiah 30:33 associates this location with a “pyre of fire with plenty of wood” (NASB). “Gehenna”, an Aramaic term for hell used in the New Testament, derives from the valley of Ben-Hinnom (Matt 5:29–30). Isaiah 57:9 may also connect Molech with the underworld—“You have journeyed to the king (מלך, mlk) with oil … and made them go down to Sheol” (NASB).

Yahweh and Human Sacrifice

It is likely that some Israelites at various times believed sacrificial dedication of their firstborn sons to be demanded by Yahweh. The biblical text could be read as lending some support to this view, and Exodus 22:29b is often cited in support of this argument. It states: “The firstborn of your sons you shall give to Me” (NASB; compare Exod 13:2; Num 8:17; Mic 6:7). However, Jeremiah 7:31 directly counters this idea; it reads, “They have built the high places of Topheth … to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, which I did not command, and it did not come into My mind” (NASB; compare Jer 9:5; 32:35).

Genesis 22 and the near-offering of Abraham’s son, Isaac, may also relate to this idea. As the events in Genesis 22 take place on the mountain of Moriah, not the valley of Ben-Hinnom, this text is probably not a prohibition against the cult of Molech. It may illustrate that Yahweh is not a deity that requires human sacrifice.

It is unlikely that Yahweh was ever equated with the deity Molech. The cult of Molech was established outside of Jerusalem in the valley of Ben-Hinnom (1 Kgs 11:7), and not within the temple of Jerusalem.