The Pulpit Commentary — Joshua — Section 272

is said to have "recovered" (v. 28) Hamath xii. 2, instead of "the city that is in itaclf. This "entering in of Ha.moth" com- the midst of the river," we find simply mences o.t the end of the region ea.lied Cmle "the middle ('11n) of the river." Bnt as 2 Syria, according to Robinson, 'Later Biblical Sam. xxiv. 5 stands in our version, the city Reseo.rches,' sec. 12, a.t the north-ea.at end of referred to stood in the middle of the river the Lebanon ro.nge. So Vandevelde and of Gad. This would suggest the idea that Porter. Vandevelde remarks that the ex- the old derivation of Aroer by Wells and pression refers to an "entro.nce formed by others from the word i'V (city) doubled, Nature herseli," namely, the termination with the signification of the double city, of the Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon ranges. is nearer the mark than that of u:aste- The city of Hamath, which gave its name to ness, or desolateness, or nakedness, as of a the territory, is situated on the Orontes, region bare of trees, which has found favour and was known later as Epiphaneia, no of late, and it is not without support in doubt after Antiochus Epiphanes, king of Hebrew forms. A city, moreover, in the Syria. midst of or " on the brink of " a winter Ver. 6.-All the Sldonians. . The word ?:::l torrent would be less likely to be waste or here, as elsewhere, must be taken in a desolate than in other situations. But we restricted sense. A large )?ortion of the are not yet at the end of our difficulties. Sidonian territory was taken, but Sidon The word Nahal, which comes before Gad retained its independence (see Judg. i. 31, in the passage of ·which we are now speak- 32). It is clear, too, that the promise was ing, has the article. Thns the translation, conditional. Had not the Asherites been "river of Gad'' cannot be maintained. willing to tolerate the existence of the And besides, the enumeration of the people Canaanites in their midst, they need not must ha.ve begun at the Arnon, or southern have done so (see J udg. i. 28). border of Israel beyond Jordan. It is pos- Ver. 8.-With whom. Literally, with sible tho.t the text may be corrupt here, him. The construction is defective, but !Is it is in other parts of 2 Samuel, and the meaning is clear enough. To avoid the possibly the meaning may be that the repetition· of the words "the .ha.if-tribe of officers pitched in Aroer, passed through Manasseh," the historian writes 17lll,I mean- Ileuben, and having come within the con- ing thereby the other hali of the tribe. fines of Gad arrived at J a.zer. This a.gain is rendered doubtful by the close connection Ver. 9.-Aroer. Three, or even four, of Aroer and Jazer in eh. xiii. 25. It is cities of this name were known, ll.nd have of course, therefore, possible that the re- been identified by modern travellers under ference in 2 Sam. xxiv. is to the Jabbok, names somewhat similar. 1. Aroer upon not the Amon re.vine. A question of such Arnon, on the north bank of that river, at intricacy can only be settled, if settled the extreme south of the territory of Reu- at wl, by an investigatiou on. the spot. ben (see Dent. ii. 36; iii. 12; iv. 48 ; Josh. The plain. The word here is i'lt"r;i. This, xii. 2; xiii. 9, 16; and probably Jer. xlviii. 19). 2. Aroer in Gad (eh. xiii. 25), described derived from the rootil!-'' signifies level there as "before," i.e., on the way to gro\!.lld, and is applied to' the region north "Rabbe.h." It was no doubt some short of Moab, especia.lly that po.rt of it which distance to the westward of this chief city belonged to Reuben. Flat, and almost un- of the Ammonites (see also Num. xxxii. 34, broken, even by trees, it was particularly where the Gadites are said to have built it). adapted for grazing !11Dd (see o.lso note These two are probably the "cities of Aroer" above, and on ver. 4). Medeba. This iij referred to in Isa. xvil. 2 (but see next note mentioned in Scripture, together with but one, where also 2 Sam. xxiv. 5 will be Dibon, as here in Num. xxi. 30; Isa. xv. discussed). 3. A city in Juda.h (1 Sam, 2. It was on the level gron,rnl before xxx. 28). To one of these cities probably mentioned (see Gesenius, s.v. i1C"I?). Dibon belonged Shammah or Shammoth, the (see Jer. xlviii. 18, 22, called Dimon in Isa., Haro.rite or Ho.rorite (2 Sam. xxiii. 11 ; xv. 9; but Dibon in Isa. xv. 2; sec also he is ea.lied Ho.rodite in ver. 25, and 1 Num. xxxiii. 45, 46). It was one of the Chron. xi. 27), The river Amon (see note cities built by the children of Gad (Nnm. on eh. xii. 2). The city tha.t is in the midst xxxii. 34). It is now called Dbibii.n, o.nd iii of the river. This city (or perho.ps cities) a. short distance north of the Arn on. The has received but little attention from corn. Moabite stone, found o.t Dibon iu 18G8, men to.tors, probably by reason of its bearing mentions the occupation of l\lctleLa by no name. Those who have tried to identify Omri, 11Dd implies thnt Dibon, the priucipru it ho.ve fo.ilerl In Deut. ii. 36, in this city in those pnrts, was nlso suLject to him, passage, o.nrl in 2 Sam. xxiv. 5, it is men- but recoverccl finally by l\leslrn. u_oned in conuection with Aroer. In eh. Ver. 11.-Geshurttes a.nd Ma.acha!hites.  THE BOOK OF JosnuA. [oH. xm. 1-88.