Deuteronomy 3

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TALKS FOR GROWING CHRISTIANS

Moses Reviews Israel’s Conquest of Transjordan

BACKGROUND NOTES



DOCTRINAL POINT(S)

  1. Moses reviewed Israel’s conquest of Transjordan.

  2. Moses reviewed Israel’s distribution of Transjordan.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

  1. Don’t say “please” when God says, “No!”

QUESTIONS

  1. Who was Og?

  2. What do we know about the Children of Israel’s battle experience?

  3. How do we know that God was patient and longsuffering with the Amorites and Canaanites?

  4. How did two and a half tribes end up on the east side of the Jordan River?

ANSWERS

  1. Og, king of Bashan was one of the two kings of the Amorites who were on the east side of the Jordan River. Og was of the remnant of the Rephaim – giant people who lived in that area. The other Transjordan king was Sihon king of Heshbon.

  2. The Children of Israel were battle-hardened warriors before they even entered the Promised Land. They captured 60 cities with high walls as well as a great many unwalled towns before they crossed over the Jordan and conquered Jericho (verses 4-5).

  3. God told Abraham in Genesis 15:16 that his descendants would be enslaved in Egypt for 400 years before they conquered Canaan because the iniquity of the Amorites was not yet complete. God gave the Amorites and Canaanites plenty of time to change their ways, but they would not.

  4. God wanted all twelve tribes to cross over Jordan and dwell on the east side, but the two and a half tribes wanted to live on the east side because the land was good for grazing and raising livestock. They agreed to help the other tribes fight the battles, would return to the east side after the conquest. God allowed this arrangement, so the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh settled in Transjordan. See Numbers 32.

DISCUSS/CONSIDER

  1. How do you balance the basic teaching about God in 1 John 4:8 with the foundational truth about God’s dealing with mankind in Genesis 18:25? Are you convinced of the basic principles that God is love and He always does the right thing?

CHALLENGE

  1. God told Moses that he would see the Promised Land from a distance, but that he could not go into the land because of his disobedience (Numbers 20). Moses pleaded with God, thinking he would change His mind, but God did not. Has God said “No” to you in some area of your life? Are you willing to take “No” for an answer?

KEY VERSES

  • “And at that time we took the land from the hand of the two kings of the Amorites who were on this side of the Jordan, from the River Arnon to Mount Hermon.” Deuteronomy 3:8

  • “The Lord your God has given you this land to possess. All you men of valor shall cross over armed before your brethren, the children of Israel… until the Lord has given rest to your brethren as to you, and they also possess the land which the Lord your God is giving them beyond the Jordan. Then each of you may return to his possession which I have given you.” Deuteronomy 3:18-20

Deuteronomy, Old Testament, TalksRon ReidDEUTERONOMY 3