1311~1306 Seir to Moab
© Charles Chandler
Synopses Tanakh commentary Synopsis of Esau's life, listing children born in Canaan, then his move to Seir in deference to Jacob, because the land couldn't support their combined livestock. This had to have been after Jacob's return from Mitanni. But it wasn't much after — after the very first meeting with Jacob, Esau returned to his home in Seir (Genesis 32:3). So in , Jacob moved to Shechem, and Esau moved to Seir, with Isaac continuing on in Hebron. Curiously, they had enough respect for the local lord (Seir the Horite) to record his genealogy as well. Events The camp would follow the cloud by day, and the fire by night, where "God" was leading by a distance of three days journey, scouting out the way for them. It sounds like the pharaoh didn't want to be seen with the exiles. Jacob (as Hobab) broke off to go back to Mitanni. Along the way, Horemheb promised him the town of Bethel. Thinking that he was going to be moving to Bethel, Jacob gathered up all of his herds & flocks. Horemheb met with Laban, to explain what was going on, but told him not to say anything to Jacob about it. Irate that Jacob left without a good-bye, and that Rachel had stolen his "household gods," Laban chased after Jacob. At Gilead they set a boundary between them, that neither would cross to do the other harm. This would turn out to set the limits of the Hebrew territory, not Jacob's (which would be only on the West Bank). Gilead would become the home of the Ishmaelites (see Genesis 37:25). Jacob found out that he was to leave his herds & flocks at Succoth for the exiles, so he put up a fight, and only conceded after getting his hip dislocated. Jacob met with Esau, who returned to Seir, while Jacob quartered his lifestock in Shechem, thereafter purchased some land in Shechem, where he built a temple that he named El-Elohe-Israel. Jacob is told to cross the Jordan and possess the land. Jacob built an altar at Shechem. Jacob informed his children (ages 13~6) of inheritances. Levites returning to Moab built an altar on the West Bank. Jacob implored the people to obey the Lord. They defeated the king of Arad, destroying Hormah. They left Seir and headed south, toward the Red Sea, so they could go around Edom. The people complained, so the Lord killed a bunch of them with serpents, and Moses made a bronze serpent, and anybody bitten who looked at it wouldn't die. Then on to Moab. The exiles defeated Sihon & Og, kings in Moab, and occupied their land. Numbers 22-24 seems to be an insertion — Numbers 25:6 picks up where Numbers 21 left off.1 So the insertion has to be dated independently (see 1291). An alliance with Midianites brought another bout of the plague.
References
1. Exell, J. S.; Spence-Jones, H. D. (ed.) (1883): Pulpit Commentary: Vol. 2: Numbers 22. ⇧