Bratcher, Robert and Hatton, Howard. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. New York: UBS, 2000.
The language is familiar: see verse 24. For Behold see 1.8.
Begin to: for Yahweh’s order, see Revised English Bible, “Begin the conquest, occupy the land.”
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
The fighting began at Jahaz, whose location is unknown. The victory of the Israelites was complete. Again it is stated that it was Yahweh who enabled them to win.
Then Sihon came out: in certain languages it will be necessary to indicate where Sihon came out of; for example, “Then Sihon came out of the town of Heshbon with all his soldiers.”
And the LORD our God gave him over to us may be expressed as “And the LORD [or, Yahweh] our God helped us defeat him.”
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
As noticed before, instead of cities the word “towns” or its equivalent may be more appropriate (so New Revised Standard Version).
Utterly destroyed every city, men, women, and children: some languages may require two different verbs to express the idea of destroying towns and killing people. In some languages we may say “Break down the towns and kill all the people.” In others a figurative expression such as “wipe the towns and people from the face of the earth” may be employed. The Hebrew verb belongs to the vocabulary of what is called “holy war,” in which the total slaughter of the people is portrayed as a religious act. Mayes’ comment is worth recording: “the verb charam is the technical term used for the extermination of the enemy in a holy war as well as for the exclusive reservation of certain things to Yahweh. The common factor is that the things so designated are not available for common use…”—and so have to be destroyed (see 13.16-18). An alternative translation model for this sentence may be “At that time we captured and destroyed every town and killed every man, woman, and child.”
We left none remaining: see New Revised Standard Version “We left not a single survivor,” or “not one person survived.”
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
The two terms spoil and booty are the appropriate words to use of enemy possessions that are seized by victorious troops after a battle. The animals were taken from the fields, and all the valuable articles in the houses were seized. In English the two words in this kind of context are exact synonyms, like “pillage” and “plunder.” Only indicates that this is an exception to the general statement in the previous verse. Whatever could not be carried away was usually destroyed, so that nothing was left.
Cattle or “livestock” (Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version) probably refers to not only cows and bulls (oxen), but sheep and goats (see also Exo 9.2-3). In cultures where cattle are unknown, we may employ a descriptive phrase such as “all domesticated animals.” It will also be helpful to include an illustration of these animals.
We took: some other verb may be more appropriate for taking the cattle; something like “we drove away the cattle” will be better in some languages.
With the booty of the cities may be expressed as “everything else of value in the towns that we captured.”
A possible alternative model is:
• We took all the domesticated animals and everything else of value in the towns we captured.
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
Aroer: for its location see map, page xii.
The valley of the Arnon: see verse 24.
And from the city that is in the valley: New Revised Standard Version places this within parentheses: “(including the town that is in the wadi itself)” (see Good News Translation). The identity of this town has not been established.
Gilead is the northern region of the territory on the east side of the Jordan River. So we may say “all the way north to the region of Gilead.”
A city too high for us: that is, a fortified city (or, town) whose walls were too high and strong for the Israelites to break through. See in 1.28 the fear of the Israelites that those fortified towns could not be conquered.
Gave all into our hands: it was Yahweh who made it possible for the Israelites to defeat King Sihon and his people.
The reading into our hands follows the Samaritan Pentateuch and the Septuagint (alsoVulgate “to us”); the Hebrew has “[gave all] before us,” which Hebrew Old Testament Text Project prefers (an {A} decision). In a translation which is concerned about meaning, there is no great difference between the two, since “before us” simply reinforces all, and the indirect object “us” is understood. So a translator may feel free to follow Revised Standard Version, or New Revised Standard Version “gave everything to us,” or “let us capture every town.”
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
This verse makes clear that the Israelites strictly obeyed Yahweh’s commands and did not invade any region or attack any town unless Yahweh told them to. The translator should notice that the language switches from the first person plural of the previous verses to the second person plural; if such a change will cause difficulty for the readers, the first person plural forms should be maintained (so Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version).
The sons of Ammon: that is, the Ammonites, or “people of Ammon,” or even “the descendants of Ammon” (see verse 19).
All the banks of the river Jabbok: for part of its way the river ran north to south, thus forming the western boundary of the Ammonite territory (see map, page xii). The Israelites did not invade Ammon. Contemporary English Version interprets this to mean “We stayed away from all the Ammonite towns both in the hill country and near the Jabbok river.”
And wherever the LORD our God forbade us: New Revised Standard Version translates “just as the LORD our God had charged,” with a textual note indicating that this follows the Septuagint and the (Jerusalem) Targum; the Hebrew text has “and all,” instead of “just as.” Hebrew Old Testament Text Project prefers the Hebrew and gives the following translation: “and, generally, whatsoever the LORD our God commanded you.” A translator who wishes to follow the Hebrew Old Testament Text Project decision may take Traduction œcuménique de la Bible as a model: “and all the places the LORD our God had forbidden us,” or we may say “or to any other place where the LORD our God had commanded us not to go.”
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
With the beginning of a new section, it is a good idea to introduce Moses again as the speaker, and to summarize briefly what leads up to this in chapter 2; for example, “Moses said to the people of Israel, ‘After killing King Sihon we turned north….’ ”
Then we turned and went up the way to Bashan: the Israelites headed north to the region of Bashan, which is elevated land that lies to the northeast of Lake Galilee. The name Bashan means “fertile land.”
Og … and all his people: the text does not mean that all men, women, and children of Og’s kingdom went to battle with him; rather it means “all his fighting men,” or “all his soldiers.” For a comment on king see 1.4.
Edrei was on the southern boundary of Bashan (see 1.4).
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
Yahweh promises Moses that the same will happen in the fight against Og that happened against Sihon: Yahweh will hand Og and his army over to the Israelites, who will defeat them completely. For the LORD see 1.3, and for Do not fear see 1.21.
I have given him … into your hand: even more strongly than in 2.31, the future event is spoken of as having already taken place. This can be expressed by “I will certainly give….” For the expression given … into your hand, see 2.36.
You shall do to him as you did to Sihon may also be expressed as “Destroy him just as you did Sihon….” However, “and his people” is understood in the command to destroy, so we may translate “Destroy him and his people just as….”
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .