Numbers 32:1

Now the children of Reuben and the children of Gad had a very great multitude of cattle: and when they saw the land of Jazer, and the land of Gilead, that, behold, the place was a place for cattle;

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

XXXII.

(1) Now the children of Reuben and the children of Gad . . . —These tribes had occupied a contiguous position in their encampments for the space of thirty-eight years (Numbers 2:10; Numbers 2:14), and it was natural that they should desire to be permanently located near each other.

The land of Jazer.—See Numbers 21:32. This district was remarkable for its rich pasture-land.

The land of Gilead.—This land lay north and south of the Jabbok, and even in its present desolation shows traces of its great fertility.

Benson Commentary

Numbers 32:1. The land of Jazer — A city and country of the Amorites. Gilead — A mountainous country, famous for pasturage. These countries were lately taken from the two Amorite princes, Sihon and Og, (Numbers 21:24,) and were, by divine appointment, allowed to be inhabited by the Israelites, as well as the land of Canaan itself.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

32:1-5 Here is a proposal made by the Reubenites and Gadites, that the land lately conquered might be allotted to them. Two things common in the world might lead these tribes to make this choice; the lust of the eye, and the pride of life. There was much amiss in the principle they went upon; they consulted their own private convenience more than the public good. Thus to the present time, many seek their own things more than the things of Jesus Christ; and are led by worldly interests and advantages to take up short of the heavenly Canaan.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Jazer - Compare the marginal reference. This district, although included in the land of Gilead, seems to have had special attractions for the Israelite settlers. All travelers in Gilead, the modern Belka, bear witness to its richness as compared with the country to the west of the Jordan. Its general character is that of an upland pasture, undulating and thickly timbered. In the last respect its northern portions excel its southern; but for fertility of soil the southern province is preferred by the Arabs, in whose lips it has passed into a proverb: "Thou canst not find a country like the Belka."

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

CHAPTER 32

Nu 32:1-42. The Reubenites and Gadites Ask for an Inheritance.

1-5. the land of Jazer, and the land of Gilead—A complete conquest had been made of the country east of the Jordan, comprising "the land of Jazer," which formed the southern district between the Arnon and Jabbok and "the land of Gilead," the middle region between the Jabbok and Jarmouk, or Hieromax, including Bashan, which lay on the north of that river. The whole of this region is now called the Belka. It has always been famous for its rich and extensive pastures, and it is still the favorite resort of the Bedouin shepherds, who frequently contend for securing to their immense flocks the benefit of its luxuriant vegetation. In the camp of ancient Israel, Reuben and Gad were pre-eminently pastoral; and as these two tribes, being placed under the same standard, had frequent opportunities of conversing and arranging about their common concerns, they united in preferring a request that the trans-jordanic region, so well suited to the habits of a pastoral people, might be assigned to them.The Reubenites and Gadites sue for their inheritance on that side Jordan, as being fit for cattle, Numbers 32:1-5. Moses reproves them as discouraging the people, and herein following their fathers’ ill example, Numbers 32:6-15. They promise to leave their children and cattle there, and go armed before their brethren till Canaan should be subdued, Numbers 32:16-19; on which condition they, together with the half-tribe of Manasseh, obtain their desire, Numbers 32:20-42.

Jazer; a city and country taken from the Amorites, Numbers 21:32. Gilead; a mountainous country, famous for pasturage, Jeremiah 1:19 Micah 7:14.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

Now the children of Reuben and the children of Gad had a very great multitude of cattle,.... By which it seems that they had more in proportion than any of the other tribes; by what means it is not easy to say; very probably they were more addicted to the pastoral life, and took more delight in breeding cattle, and were more diligent in taking care of them: however, the reason for this observation presently follows:

and when they saw the land of Jazer, and the land of Gilead; Jazer was in the kingdom of Sihon, and Gilead in the kingdom of Og, which had been both conquered by the Israelites:

that, behold, the place was a place for cattle; where much cattle was fed, there being a great deal of good pasturage for them: Jazer appears to be a well watered country, Jeremiah 48:32, and Gilead and Bashan which joined and belonged to the same country of Og, who was king of Bashan, were famous for good feeding of cattle: hence we read of the bulls of Bashan, and rams of the breed of Bashan, and goats on Mount Gilead that looked plump and sleek; see Micah 7:14.

Geneva Study Bible

Now the children of {a} Reuben and the children of Gad had a very great multitude of cattle: and when they saw the land of Jazer, and the land of {b} Gilead, that, behold, the place was a place for cattle;

(a) Reuben came from Leah, and Gad from Zilpah her handmaid.

(b) Which was named for the heap of stones that Jacob made as a sign of the covenant between him and Laban in Ge 31:47.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

1. the land of Jazer] Jazer always appears, elsewhere, as the name not of a district but of a town (see Numbers 32:3; Numbers 32:35 and notes on Numbers 21:24; Numbers 21:32). It is difficult to see any reason for its special mention here other than the fact that it marked the limit of Gilead on the east (cf. Joshua 13:25).

the land of Gilead] The extent of country covered by the name Gilead varies in different passages. Here, and in Numbers 32:29, the name denotes the land south of the R. Jabbok, as is shewn by the towns enumerated in Numbers 32:3; Numbers 32:34-38; cf. Joshua 13:24 f. The modern name of this tract is ‘the Belka.’ But in Numbers 32:39 f., Joshua 17:1; Joshua 17:5 f. the name Gilead is applied to land north of the Jabbok as far as the R. Jarmuk. Once more, these two tracts are sometimes treated as the two halves of Gilead (cf. Joshua 12:2; Joshua 12:5; Joshua 13:31, Deuteronomy 3:12 f.), so that the name could be used in the widest sense of all the land occupied by Israel on the east of the Jordan (cf. Joshua 22:9; Joshua 22:13). Its borders on the north, east and south would vary from time to time, according as the neighbouring nations were weak or powerful; for example, at least ten of the fourteen towns in Numbers 32:34-38 were at times in possession not of Israel but of Moab. The northern half of Gilead, in the wide sense, is an agricultural territory, its hills covered with forests, and its valleys and plains with orchards, vineyards and cornfields. But the southern half consists of moorland, useless for agriculture but affording rich pasture for flocks. See G. A. Smith, Hist. Geog. ch. xxvii.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 1. - The children of Reuben and the children of Gad. Reuben and Gad had both been camped on the same (southern) side of the tabernacle, but had not apparently been neighbours, since Simeon intervened on the march (see on Numbers 2:10-14). Simeon, however, was at this time enfeebled and disgraced, and was not likely to assert himself in any way. The "great multitude of cattle" belonging to the two tribes probably point to pastoral habits of long standing, since the cattle of the Amorites and Midianites would be equally divided among all. The land of Jazer. Jazer, or Jaazer, probably stood near the northern source of the Wady Hesban, which enters the Jordan not far from its mouth. The "land of Jazer" would seem to mean the Mishor, or plateau, of Heshbon, over which the Israelites had passed on their way to the plains of Moab (see on Deuteronomy 3:10, "all the cities of the Mishor"). The land of Gilead. Gilead as the name of a district only previously occurs in Genesis 37:25. It is used with a considerable latitude of meaning in this and the following books. In its widest sense it stands for the whole territory to the east of Jordan (see on verses 26, 29), including even the rugged, volcanic districts of Bashan (Deuteronomy 34:1; 1 Chronicles 5:16); but more properly it denoted the lands on both sides the Jabbok, from the Wady Hesban on the south, to the Yermuk and lake of Tiberias on the north, now known as the provinces of Belka and Jebel Ajlun. These lands are by no means uniformly flat, as the name "Mount Gilead" testifies, but include mountains and hills covered with fine open forests of oak (cf. 2 Samuel 18:8, 9) as well as rolling downs and treeless plains. The soil is almost everywhere of great fertility, and the water supply, although very scanty in summer, is sufficient if carefully husbanded. Even now these provinces produce great store of grain, and are depastured by vast flocks of sheep. In Roman times, as the innumerable ruins testify, they were filled with a large and opulent population. Indeed there could be no comparison in point of agricultural and pastoral value between these open and fertile lands and the broken, stony country of Southern Palestine. If they ever enjoy again the blessing of a strong government and continuous peace they will again justify the choice of Reuben and Gad. A place for cattle. מָקום (Septuagint, τόπος) is used here in the broader sense of district (cf. Genesis 1:9), and is equivalent to אֶרֶצ in verse 4. Numbers 32:1

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

The Reubenites and Gadites, who had very large flocks and herds, petitioned Moses, Eleazar, and the princes of the congregation, to give them the conquered land of Gilead for a possession, as a land that was peculiarly adapted for flocks, and not to make them pass over the Jordan. מאד עצוּם, "very strong," is an apposition introduced at the close of the sentence to give emphasis to the רב. The land which they wished for, they called the "land of Jazer (see Numbers 21:32), and the land of Gilead." They put Jazer first, probably because this district was especially rich in excellent pasture land. Gilead was the land to the south and north of the Jabbok (see at Deuteronomy 3:10), the modern provinces of Belka in the south between the Jabbok and the Arnon, and Jebel Ajlun to the north of the Jabbok, as far as the Mandhur. Ancient Gilead still shows numerous traces of great fertility even in its present desolation, covered over as it is with hundreds of ruins of old towns and hamlets. Belka is mountainous towards the north, but in the south as far as the Arnon it is for the most part table-land; and in the mountains, as Buckingham says, "we find on every hand a pleasant shade from fine oaks and wild pistachio-trees, whilst the whole landscape has more of a European character. The pasturage in Belka is much better than it is anywhere else throughout the whole of southern Syria, so that the Bedouins say, 'You can find no country like Belka.' The oxen and sheep of this district are considered the very best" (see v. Raumer, Pal. p. 82). The mountains of Gilead on both sides of the Jabbok are covered for the most part with glorious forests of oak. "Jebel Ajlun," says Robinson (Pal. App. 162), "presents the most charming rural scenery that I have seen in Syria. A continued forest of noble trees, chiefly the evergreen oak (Sindin), covers a large part of it, while the ground beneath is covered with luxuriant grass, which we found a foot or more in height, and decked with a rich variety of flowers" (see v. Raumer, ut sup.). This also applies to the ancient Basan, which included the modern plains of Jaulan and Hauran, that were also covered over with ruins of former towns and hamlets. The plain of Hauran, though perfectly treeless, is for all that very fertile, rich in corn, and covered in some places with such luxuriant grass that horses have great difficulty in making their way through it; for which reason it is a favourite resort of the Bedouins (Burckhardt, p. 393). "The whole of Hauran," says Ritter (Erdkunde, xv. pp. 988, 989), "stretches out as a splendid, boundless plain, between Hermon on the west, Jebel Hauran on the east, and Jebel Ajlun to the south; but there is not a single river in which there is water throughout the whole of the summer. It is covered, however, with a large number of villages, every one of which has its cisterns, its ponds, or its birket; and these are filled in the rainy season, and by the winter torrents from the snowy Jebel Hauran. Wherever the soil, which is everywhere black, deep, dark brown, or ochre-coloured, and remarkably fertile, is properly cultivated, and you find illimitable corn-fields, and chiefly golden fields of wheat, which furnish Syria in all directions with its principal food. By far the larger part of this plain, which was a luxuriant garden in the time of the Romans, is now uncultivated, waste, and without inhabitants, and therefore furnishes the Bedouins of the neighbourhood with the desired paradise for themselves and their flocks." On its western slope Jebel Hauran is covered with splendid forests of oak, and rich in meadow land for flocks (Burckhardt, pp. 152, 169, 170, 173, 358; Wetstein, Reiseber. pp. 39ff. and 88). On the nature of the soil of Hauran, see at Deuteronomy 3:4. The plain of Jaulan appears in the distance like the continuation of Hauran (Robinson, App. 162); it has much bush-land in it, but the climate is not so healthy as in Hauran (Seetzen, i. pp. 353, 130, 131). "In general, Hauran, Jaulan, el Botthin, el Belka, and Ejlun, are the paradise of nomads, and in all their wanderings eastwards they find no pasture like it" (Seetzen, i. p. 364). מקום, a locality, or district. מקנה מאום equals מקנה ארץ (Numbers 32:4), a district adapted for grazing.