פרשת חוקת תש"ל - מלחמת ישראל בסיחון ובעוג

And Israel smote him with the edge of the sword, and possessed his land from the Arnon unto the Jabbok, even unto the children of Ammon; for the border of the children of Ammon was strong.

And Israel smote him with the edge of the sword, and possessed his land from the Arnon unto the Jabbok, even unto the children of Ammon; for the border of the children of Ammon was strong.

כי עז FOR [THE BOUNDARY OF THE CHILDREN OF AMMON] WAS STRONG — And what constituted its strength? The warning of the Holy One, blessed be He, who had said to them (the Israelites), (Deuteronomy 2:19), Harass them not, etc.”.

על כן (more lit., about this) — about this war which Sihon waged against Moab,

ונירם means their sovreignty.

אבד חשבון עד דיבן means: the sovreignty and the subjugation which Moab had over Heshbon is destroyed from thence. Similar also is the meaning of עד דיבן because the Targum of סר “it hath departed” is עד, so that this phrase means to say, sovreignty hath departed from Dibon. The word ניר denotes the sovreignty and yoke which result from a person’s rulership, as, (1 Kings 11:36) “that David Thy servant may always have dominion (ניר) before Me”.

ונשים WE HAVE LAID WASTE — The ש has a Dagesh, for the word denotes waste (שמם). Thus say they who speak in parables: ונשים אותם עד נפח which signifies we have laid them waste as far as Nophah.

And the LORD said unto Moses: ‘Fear him not; for I have delivered him into thy hand, and all his people, and his land; and thou shalt do to him as thou didst unto Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon.’