פירוש על בראשית 15:19

The Kenites. Ten nations are listed here, [yet] He gave to them only [the land] of Seven Nations. The three [whose lands were not given], Edom, Moav, and Ammon which are [referred to here as]: Keini, Knizi, and Kadmoni are destined to be possessed in the future, as it is said: “They will overpower Edom and Moav and the Ammonites will obey them.”

את הקיני, this tribe gets its name from the city in which its members dwelled originally. The name of the city was קין, and the people known as חבר הקיני were descended from Kayin, as per Judges 4,11. Perhaps Kayin himself had built that city. We are told something to that effect in Genesis 4,17. [it is difficult to accept that this city survived the deluge, as it is difficult to accept that identifiable descendants of Kayin survived the deluge. Ed.] It is a fact that such cities as Gilead, or Chavot Yair, and Dan, received their names from their founders, naming them after themselves. (compare Joshua 19,46; Kings I 16,24; Chronicles I 2,55). According to Onkelos, it is clear that he did not accept this meaning of the name קיני, as in Numbers 24,21 he renders the Numbers 24,21 where Bileam prophesied about the Keyni's future as if it were one of the Canaanite tribes.

את הקיני, ואת הקניזי, ואת הקדמוני, “the Kenite, the Kenizite, and the Kadmoni; according to Rashi, these tribes are identical to the Edomites, the Moabites and the Ammonites. The territories of these nations would become part of “greater Israel” at some time in the future, not in the time of Joshua. A scriptural reference to this can be found in Isaiah 11,14. According to our author, this is also hinted at in Numbers 24,21. The reason why the territory of Edom is included is because Amalek, Israel’s (G-d’s) arch enemy, is descended from Edom (Esau). Bileam in the passage referred to in Numbers 24, has called Amalek: “the first of the nations.” Since this was certainly not the original human society to develop into nationhood, and Bileam had been aware of this, Rabbi Chelbo in the name of Rabbi Yochanan, in B’reshit Rabbah 44,23, claimed that originally G-d had already meant to let Israel inherit the territories of ten nations. However, He would not translate the intention of handing them the territories of these last mentioned three nations into reality until the messianic era. Nonetheless, due to aggressive conduct by their inhabitants, they lost some portion of it already during the period when Moses conquered the territories of Sichon and Og.