וַיִּבְנ֣וּ בְנֵי־גָ֔ד אֶת־דִּיבֹ֖ן וְאֶת־עֲטָרֹ֑ת וְאֵ֖ת עֲרֹעֵֽר׃
Bani Gad membangun Dibon, Atarot, dan Aroer,
Rashi
The cities of Aroer are abandoned Jonathan renders this as an expression of destruction. Comp. (Jer. 51:58) “shall be destroyed (עַרְעֵר תִּתְעַרְעַר), and he explained it in reference to the cities of Aram, i. e., Jonathan renders it: Their cities are abandoned, they are destroyed. The Midrash Aggadah (introduction to Lam. Rabbah 10 [with variations], Yalkut Machin) asks in amazement, since Aroer was [part] of Eretz Israel, as it is said (Num. 32:34): “and Aroer.” He is dealing with Damascus and he announces matters concerning Aroer? But, since in Damascus there were streets as numerous as the days of the solar year, and in each one was a pagan deity, which they would worship one day in the year, and the Israelites made them all into one group and worshipped all of them every day, he, therefore, mentioned the downfall of Aroer juxtaposed to Damascus. I explain it, however, according to the simple meaning of the verse, as follows: Since Rezin and Pekah son of Remaliah joined together, and the prophet prophesying about the downfall of Damascus, and saying, “Behold, Damascus shall be removed from [being] a city,” and the cities of Aroer which belonged to Pekah were already abandoned, for the Reubenites and the Gadites had already been exiled, and they were always given to the flocks of sheep, and the sheep of Moab would lie there undisturbed, he continues to say that the kingdom of Pekah shall continue to be gradually terminated, and that Samaria, too, shall be captured in the days of Hoshea, and then (v. 3) And a fortress shall cease from Ephraim and a kingdom from Damascusfor Rezin shall be killed.
Ibn Ezra
Bayith is a place in Moab.8I. E. does not take the high places as in apposition to Bajith and Dibon, because Dibon is mentioned as the name of a town which the Gadites had built (Numb. 32:34), while במה a high place, is only a sanctuary for worship and sacrifice.
Ramban
AND HE BUILDED A CITY, AND CALLED THE NAME OF THE CITY AFTER THE NAME OF HIS SON ENOCH. For at first Cain thought that he would be childless on account of his sin, but after a child was born to him he began to build a city for his son to dwell therein. But because he himself was cursed and his works would not prosper, he called the city “Enoch,” thus proclaiming that he did not build it for himself since he has no city or dwelling place in the land because he was a fugitive and wanderer; rather, the building would be for Enoch, and it is as if Enoch had built it for himself.
Now since it does not say vayiven ir (and he built a city) — [but rather, vayehi boneh ir, which literally means “and he was building a city,”] as it says elsewhere, vayiven (and he builded) Nineveh;446Genesis 10:11. And the children of Gad built Dibon447Numbers 32:34. — it indicates that he was building the city all his days because his works were cursed. Thus he would build a little with effort and toil, and then move and wander off from that place and return there and build a little more, but he would not prosper in his ways.
The descendants of Cain and his works were recorded in Scripture in order to make known that G-d is long-suffering and that He prolonged the time of his punishment,448See Exodus 34:6. This constitutes one of the Thirteen Attributes of G-d. for he begot children and children’s children, and then it relates how He visited the iniquity of the fathers upon the children,449Ibid., Verse 7. and his descendants perished. Our Rabbis say450Koheleth Rabbah 6:3. that Cain lived many years and that he died in the flood. Thus his hoary head did not go down to the grave in peace,451See I Kings 2:6. rather he saw his destruction and all his seed with him.452Genesis 46:6.
It would appear that Cain’s descendants consisted of only six generations453Enoch, Irad, Mehujael, Methusael, Lamech, Jabal and Jubal and Tubal-Cain (three brothers). Scripture does not relate any history beyond the children of Lamech for they all perished in the flood. until the flood, while among the descendants of Seth [the third son of Adam] there were an additional two generations before the flood.454Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech and Noah. [It may be that Cain’s descendants consisted of more than six generations before the flood, but Scripture] had no need to relate anything concerning them. It recorded only the names of those who began the building of cities, the grazing of sheep, the art of music, and the skill of working with metals. Scripture also recorded Lamech’s chastisement of his wives in order to tell us that he did beget children but his sons perished before they begot offspring.
Now since it does not say vayiven ir (and he built a city) — [but rather, vayehi boneh ir, which literally means “and he was building a city,”] as it says elsewhere, vayiven (and he builded) Nineveh;446Genesis 10:11. And the children of Gad built Dibon447Numbers 32:34. — it indicates that he was building the city all his days because his works were cursed. Thus he would build a little with effort and toil, and then move and wander off from that place and return there and build a little more, but he would not prosper in his ways.
The descendants of Cain and his works were recorded in Scripture in order to make known that G-d is long-suffering and that He prolonged the time of his punishment,448See Exodus 34:6. This constitutes one of the Thirteen Attributes of G-d. for he begot children and children’s children, and then it relates how He visited the iniquity of the fathers upon the children,449Ibid., Verse 7. and his descendants perished. Our Rabbis say450Koheleth Rabbah 6:3. that Cain lived many years and that he died in the flood. Thus his hoary head did not go down to the grave in peace,451See I Kings 2:6. rather he saw his destruction and all his seed with him.452Genesis 46:6.
It would appear that Cain’s descendants consisted of only six generations453Enoch, Irad, Mehujael, Methusael, Lamech, Jabal and Jubal and Tubal-Cain (three brothers). Scripture does not relate any history beyond the children of Lamech for they all perished in the flood. until the flood, while among the descendants of Seth [the third son of Adam] there were an additional two generations before the flood.454Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech and Noah. [It may be that Cain’s descendants consisted of more than six generations before the flood, but Scripture] had no need to relate anything concerning them. It recorded only the names of those who began the building of cities, the grazing of sheep, the art of music, and the skill of working with metals. Scripture also recorded Lamech’s chastisement of his wives in order to tell us that he did beget children but his sons perished before they begot offspring.