Deuteronomy 2:34
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At that time we captured all his cities and devoted to destruction the people of every city, including women and children. We left no survivors.
Commentaries
Excerpts gathered from published commentaries to ground the reading.
Moses, in this chapter, proceeds in the rehearsal of God's providences concerning Israel in their way to Canaan, yet preserves not the record of any thing that happened during their tedious march back to the Red Sea, in which they wore out almost thirty-eight years, but passes that over in silence as a dark time, and makes his narrative to begin again when they faced about towards Canaan (Deu 2:1-3), and drew towards the countries that were inhabited, concerning which God here gives them direction, I. What nations they must not give any disturbance to. 1. Not to the Edomites (Deu 2:4-8). 2. Not to the Moabites (Deu 2:9), of the antiquities of whose country, with that of the Edomites, he gives some account (Deu 2:10-12). And here comes in an account of their passing the river Zered (Deu 2:13-16). 3. Not to the Ammonites, of whose country here is some account given (Deu 2:17-23). II. What nations they should attack and conquer. They must begin with Sihon, king of the Amorites (Deu 2:24, Deu 2:25). And accordingly, 1. They had a fair occasion of quarrelling with him (Deu 2:26-32). 2. God gave them a complete victory over him (Deu 2:33, etc.).
Open source ↗2:34 completely destroyed (Hebrew kharam): The Hebrew term refers to the complete consecration of things or people to the Lord, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering. The underlying rationale was to maintain the Lord’s holiness in the face of pagan idolatry and moral corruption (see also Lev 27:28-29).
Open source ↗Original language
The Hebrew and Greek words behind this passage, with Strong's numbers — from openscriptures (CC BY-SA).
Cross-references
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Now go and attack the Amalekites and devote to destruction all that belongs to them. Do not spare them, but put to death men and women, children and infants, oxen and sheep, camels and donkeys.’”
and when the LORD your God has delivered them over to you to defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. Make no treaty with them and show them no mercy.
We devoted them to destruction, as we had done to Sihon king of Heshbon, utterly destroying the men, women, and children of every city.
And you must not bring any detestable thing into your house, or you, like it, will be set apart for destruction. You are to utterly detest and abhor it, because it is set apart for destruction.
Israel has sinned; they have transgressed My covenant that I commanded them, and they have taken some of what was devoted to destruction. Indeed, they have stolen and lied, and they have put these things with their own possessions.
The Israelites took for themselves all the plunder and livestock of these cities, but they put all the people to the sword until they had completely destroyed them, not sparing anyone who breathed.
The Gibeonites answered, “Your servants were told clearly that the LORD your God had commanded His servant Moses to give you all the land and wipe out all its inhabitants before you. So we greatly feared for our lives because of you, and that is why we have done this.