MARCHES AND COUNTER-MARCHES
Strategy and Apostasy
Yisrael forbidden to attack Moab and Ammon
Owing to Edom’s refusal to let the Yisraelites pass through the country it seemed obvious that they had now to proceed along the eastern shores of the Dead Sea and attempt to penetrate into Canaan by fording the Jordan at a lower part of the river near its mouth. But the territory to the east of the Dead Sea was occupied by the Moabites. Moab, the eponymous ancestor of this tribe, was a son of Lot, Abraham’s nephew. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that YAHWEH gave Mosheh strict orders not to attack these peoples since they were blood relations.
This entailed a further detour towards the east. If they continued like this they would never reach the Promised Land. ‘Forward, then! commanded YAHWEH, allowing no argument. ‘Cross the Wadi Zered!
A little further on YAHWEH ordered: ‘Break camp, set out and cross the Wadi Arnon.’
MOSHEH’ CAMPAIGNS IN TRANSJORDANIA After going round the kingdoms of Edom and Moab (two sister peoples whom Mosheh did not wish to attack) the Yisraelites arrived in Transjordania (left bank of the Jordan). In two rapid campaigns they seized the kingdom of Heshbon the kingdom of Bashan The Yisraelites thus possessed a base from which to make ready for the attack on Canaan (the Promised Land).
Yisrael at last goes over to the offensive
Between the Arnon and the Jabbok, that is in Trans-jordania (to the east of the Dead Sea and the Jordan) stood the powerful Amorite kingdom, governed by Sihon, king of Heshbon. Fortunately he was no relation to the Yisraelites and, better still, he had just dispossessed their Moabite cousins of a large part of their country. There was therefore no reason at all to spare him.
In two rapid campaigns (more easily followed on the map than by a long description, above) Mosheh obtained possession to the east of the Jordan of an immense territory which was to serve as a base for the Yisraelite attack on Canaan. After the rapid conquest of the kingdom of Heshbon, and by seizing the fertile land of Bashan belonging to King Og, the Hebrews found themselves in possession of the area to the east of the Jordan, the region which the Mediterranean geographers of antiquity called Transjordania.
The story of Balak, Balaam and the donkey (Bemidbar 22, 23, 24)
After the lightning-like conquest of northern Transjordania we find the Yisraelites establishing their camp in the plains of Moab at the foot of Mount Pisgah. They were thus near the mouth of the Jordan where the river flows into the Dead Sea, and were separated from the Promised land by the breadth of the river.
It was then that the story about Balaam the soothsayer occurred. Although the writer of Bemidbar did not hesitate to devote three long chapters to it, this little story, from the historical point of view, is unimportant and had no influence on the course of events. But it furnishes curious and very interesting information on the state of mind of oriental peoples at this period.
Balak, king of Moab, was seized with panic by the massing of the Yisraelite forces to the north of his territory. Probably he was beginning to fear the consequences of his refusal to allow Mosheh to traverse his land (Shophtim (Judges) 11:17). Balak assembled the elders of Moab and Midian to examine the situation with them. Before attacking these formidable warriors it was thought that it would be good policy to weaken them by ritual curses.
For the curses to be effective a magician possessing supernatural powers was required in the camp. Balak and his elders knew of one who lived at Pethor on the Euphrates in upper Mesopotamia; his name was Balaam. They decided to send a delegation asking him to come and curse Yisrael before the battle. 2
After much hesitation Balaam saddled his she-donkey and set out for Moab. On three occasions the donkey saw standing before her the malak of YAHWEH, a drawn sword in his hand. But Balaam did not see him. On each occasion the donkey stopped or lay down and Balaam beat her with his stick. Finally YAHWEH opened the mouth of the donkey and she reproached her master for his treatment of her. ‘What have I done to you,’ she asked, ‘Why beat me three times like this?’ At this moment YAHWEH allowed Balaam to see the malak. After they had spoken together Balaam said that he would go back. Finally, the malak allowed him to continue on his way: ‘Go with these men’ he said, ‘but only say what I tell you to say.’ The modern reader who refers to the Scriptural text will find this a good example of the eastern story-telling art.
And so Balaam arrived at the place. Together with several Moabite leaders Balak ceremoniously led him to Bamoth-baal (heights of Baal), a peak from which the Yisraelites’ camp could be seen in the distance. Seven altars were put up and seven bulls and seven rams were sacrificed. But then to the general astonishment it was not curses which fell upon the Yisraelites but words foretelling victory for them and the wonderful destiny awaiting them.
No matter: the Moabites tried somewhere else. Balaam was led to the Field of Spies, towards the summit of Pisgah. Seven altars were built and, as previously, sacrifices were offered to the Moabite gods. Once more Balaam’s lips uttered words full of hope and optimism for Balak’s enemies. ‘Very well! exclaimed Balak, ‘do not curse them. But at least do not bless them!
A further attempt was made on the summit of Mount Peor. This time Balaam exceeded all bounds. It was scarcely surprising that Balak flew into a rage: ‘I brought you to curse my enemies, and you bless them three times over! Be off with you, and go home!
Before leaving, Balaam, still under YAHWEH’s inspiration, made a further prophecy calculated to put fear into the heart of Balak and his allies: ‘A star from Yacob takes the leadership, a scepter arises from Yisrael. It crushes the brows of Moab’ (Bemidbar 24:17). Moab, Balaam had declared, would be crushed and also the sons of Sheth (the Bedouin tribes); Edom would be conquered; the posterity of Amalek would perish; the Kenites were to experience the horrors of slavery; Og’s kingdom would be invaded by the Sea-people who would also crush Asshur; Eber, too, was to perish for ever. It was a terrible ‘prophecy’, probably written after the events in question. In any case, Balaam rose, left and went home.
Balak too went his way: in other words he took good care not to attack the Yisraelites and prudently remained in his tent.
At Peor further apostasy of the people of YAHWEH
While Balak and Balaam continued their fruitless exchanges the Yisraelites were delayed in Trans-jordania, a circumstance which caused serious wavering in their spiritual fidelity. On the perfidious advice of Balaam the Moabites had sent some of their daughters to the Yisraelite camp.
The Yisraelites had settled down on the plains of Moab. As the herdsmen moved from pasture to pasture they made some rather unexpected discoveries in camps scattered over the plain. In these Midianite camps which they visited as neighbours, and also probably out of a certain curiosity, they experienced the attraction of the “sacred” prostitutes. This was an entirely novel “religious” cult to them. They had YAHWEH, of course, the one invisible ABBA, reminding them continually by the lips of Mosheh of the moral and social precept of the Law. But how could these Yisraelites, straight from the wilderness, resist for long the heady attraction of the old Semitic cults? ‘When they reached Baal-peor, the prophet Hosea states angrily, ‘they devoted themselves to shame and became as hateful as the things they loved’ (9:10). Many of the Yisraelite shepherds frequented the Midianite ‘high places’ where, in the presence of the idols or symbols of the Midianite belief, they took part in the ceremonial meals. They bowed down before the idols of these deities, all of them of sexual implication; the ritual action concluded with an orgy.
A wave of debauchery and immorality swept over the Yisraelite camp, despite the Law, the code of the Covenant and the social and set apart Law.
But Mosheh saw the danger. He had to act quickly and energetically. He executed the leaders who had taken part in these abominations, and all the men who had committed themselves to the Baal of Peor. Just then a plague (that is, an epidemic, though it is difficult to identify in the present state of knowledge) took a heavy toll of the camp; the people were in no doubt about it; it was a clear manifestation of YAHWEH’s anger. Mortally afraid, the whole Yisraelite community assembled before the Tent of Meeting, weeping for their sins and imploring forgiveness of their ABBA.
At this moment a further scandal occurred. Zimri, son of Salu, one of the elders of the house of Simeon, introduced into the Yisraelite camp one of the “sacred” Midianite prostitutes, named Cozbi. She was the daughter of Zur, the chief of a Midianite clan. On hearing of this further scandal, Phinehas (the son of Eleazar and therefore Aaron’s grandson) seized a lance, burst into the tent where the guilty couple were and ran both right through the groin. At once the epidemic raging in the camp came to an end, and through Mosheh YAHWEH announced that Phinehas and his descendants should enjoy being kohen for ever and have the right to perform the ritual offering of atonement over Yisrael. Again, we may see in this the influence of the later history of the kohen.
The time had come to leave this rich land as soon as possible. In any case, on account of its small size, the oasis at the foot of Mount Pisgah was suitable only as a temporary halting place. The time had come to cross over the Jordan and set off on the conquest of the Promised Land.
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