신명기 2:24의 주석

BEHOLD, I HAVE GIVEN INTO THY HAND SIHON. This statement is the same as the one stated below, Behold, I have begun to deliver up Sihon.²⁴⁹Further, Verse 31. Before that, Moses sent to him [Sihon] messengers out of the wilderness of Kedemoth,²⁵⁰Verse 26. Ramban is thus stating that Verses 26-29 [recording Moses’ proposal for a peaceful passage through Sihon’s land] actually took place before G-d’s command to him to begin the battle against Sihon as stated in Verse 24. but after G-d had commanded him, [Moses, in Verse 24 before us,] begin to possess it, and contend with him in battle he would no longer send him words of peace, saying: ‘Let me pass through thy land.’²⁵¹Verses 26-27. For if Sihon were to hearken to him, Moses would have been transgressing the words of G-d [by not waging war against Sihon as he had been commanded in Verse 24], and if Moses knew in advance that Sihon would not hearken, his message would have been pointless. [Therefore, we must say that Moses’ message to Sihon, as stated in Verses 26-29, was sent before G-d’s command here in Verse 24.] Now, do not think of saying [that Moses’ message of peace] is in accordance with the commandment wherein we have been charged, When thou drawest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it²⁵²Further, 20:10. [and, therefore, you might think that even after G-d told Moses to begin to possess Sihon’s land he was still obligated to send the message of peace, here recorded in Verses 26-29 — that is not the case]. For [in the injunction to call for peace] it is written, And it shall be, if it make thee answer of peace, and open unto thee, then it shall be, that all the people that are found therein shall become tributary unto thee, and shall serve you.²⁵³Ibid., Verse 11. Here, however, if Sihon had hearkened to them, they would not have touched him at all. But the meaning of the expression, and I sent messengers,²⁵⁰Verse 26. Ramban is thus stating that Verses 26-29 [recording Moses’ proposal for a peaceful passage through Sihon’s land] actually took place before G-d’s command to him to begin the battle against Sihon as stated in Verse 24. is that “I had already sent messengers.” Moses, however, introduced the words of G-d [to begin contending with Sihon in battle with the fact that he sent a message of peace] in order to explain for the Eternal thy G-d hardened his spirit²⁵⁴Verse 30. [a hardening of the spirit that took place following Moses’ earlier message when Sihon could have seized the opportunity to make peace], meaning to say that it was all caused by G-d, for so He told me.

והתגר בו, as if the Torah had written והתגרה,”provoke it.”

ראה נתתי בידך את סיחון, “See! I have delivered in your hand Sichon, etc.” Nachmanides writes that this address by Moses is a quote from Moses’ address to the people commencing in verse 31. Here we are merely told that prior to the campaign Moses did send out spies to ascertain the militarily best way of provoking the confrontation. Once G’d mentioned the fact that in this instance Israel was to provoke war, Moses did not send any more spies, etc. The reason was that in the event that Sichon would have proved to be in a conciliatory mood, Moses would have violated G’d’s command to provoke war with Sichon. On the other hand, if Moses knew that the messengers dispatched to ask for permission to traverse the land would be rejected out of hand, why did he bother? We cannot answer that Moses sent these messengers from his own initiative in order to comply with the rule that prior to a war of expansion the opposing side must be given a chance to surrender peacefully, as per Deut. That command certainly did not refer to the 7 Canaanite nations of whom he had been told not to allow a single soul to survive! Moreover, normally, the people of cities captured in a war of expansion, authorised by G’d- would become prisoners of war, slaves, etc, whereas if Sichon had agreed, none of his land would have been touched at all? We must therefore translate the line ואשלח מלאכים in verse 26 as being in the past tense. He introduced the whole story by explaining that G’d’s hand had been involved from the first moment, and that Sichon’s refusal had been engineered by G’d so as to set in motion the scenario that would lead to his destruction, and his people would know that their king himself had been to blame.

החל רש, “commence to take possession;” רש is derived from ירושה, meaning 'inheritance'. According to Jerusalem Talmud Sheviit 6,1 the word החל is derived from חולין, “profane, not sacred.” G’d told Moses that as far as the Israelites were concerned, He had made the land of the Emorites no longer “sacred” i.e. out of bounds to the Jewish people. It was permitted to conquer that land seeing that it belonged to an idolater, Sichon. [I suppose this means “as opposed to the Moabites who had owned most of it at one time and whose territory G’d had declared out of bounds to the Israelites.” Ed.].