Bible Strands
Deuteronomy 3:8
At that time we took from the two kings of the Amorites the land across the Jordan, from the Arnon Valley as far as Mount Hermon—
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Moses addresses the new generation of Israelites on the plains of Moab, recounting the completed military campaigns against Sihon and Og. He frames the territorial acquisition as a historical fact preceding their entry into the Promised Land.
The words — The text highlights וַ/נִּקַּ֞ח (va./ni.Kach), meaning "and we took," and מִ/יַּ֗ד (mi./Yad), literally "from the hand of," to emphasize direct possession and removal of authority from the two Amorite kings.
The thread — This territorial acquisition is cross-referenced in Joshua 12:2 regarding Sihon’s rule from Aroer, Joshua 13:9 detailing the plateau and valley boundaries, and Numbers 32:33 where Moses allocates Sihon’s kingdom to Reuben and Gad.
Why it lands — The verse demands recognition of divine timing and human agency in establishing historical boundaries. It requires the reader to account for the concrete geography of conquest before receiving the subsequent land promises.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And we took at that time out of the hand of the two kings of the Amorites the land that was on this side Jordan, from the river of Arnon unto mount Hermon;
Cross-references
- Joshua 12:2 Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon. He ruled from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley, along the middle of the valley, up to the Jabbok River (the border of the Ammonites), that is, half of Gilead,
- Joshua 13:9 The area from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley, along with the city in the middle of the valley, the whole plateau of Medeba as far as Dibon,
- Numbers 32:33 So Moses gave to the Gadites, to the Reubenites, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan—the land including its cities and the territory surrounding them.