What does Israel’s recorded journey preserve, and what warning accompanies the command to settle Chanaan?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

The chapter preserves the sequence of camps from Egypt to Moab, with details of the departure, water, and Aaron’s death. It then records the Lord’s commands for entering and dividing Chanaan, warning that inhabitants left there will become adversaries and that Israel will face what he intended for them.

Chapter breakdown

These are Israel’s “mansions,” meaning the places or stages of its journey. The people leave Egypt in troops under Moses and Aaron. Moses writes down the places where they camp, which they change at the Lord’s command. Challoner’s note says that, according to the fathers, these journeys from Egypt to the promised land are figures of the steps by which Christians leave sin and advance from virtue to virtue. The note describes their final goal as the heavenly mansions after this life, to see and enjoy God. This spiritual reading is attributed to the fathers in Challoner’s commentary; it is separate from the journey recorded in Scripture.

Israel leaves Ramesses on the fifteenth day of the first month, the day after the phase, or Passover. The departure is with a mighty hand and in the sight of all the Egyptians. They are burying their firstborn, whom the Lord has killed; he has also taken vengeance on their gods. Israel camps in Soccoth, then moves to Etham at the outermost borders of the wilderness. From there they come opposite Phihahiroth, which faces Beelsephon, and camp before Magdalum. Leaving Phihahiroth, they pass through the midst of the sea into the wilderness. After three days through the desert of Etham they camp in Mara. They then move to Elim, with its twelve fountains of water and seventy palm trees, and camp there.

They leave Elim and pitch their tents by the Red Sea. Leaving the Red Sea, they camp in the desert of Sin. From there they go to Daphca, then camp in Alus. They leave Alus for Raphidim, where the people lack drinking water. From Raphidim they move to the desert of Sinai.

They leave the desert of Sinai for the graves of lust. From the graves of lust they camp in Haseroth. The next stops, in order, are Rethma, Remmomphares, Lebna, Ressa, Ceelatha, and the mountain Sepher. Each is named as the next place reached after leaving the one before it.

From the mountain Sepher they go to Arada, then Maceloth, Thahath, Thare, Methca, Hesmona, and Moseroth. From Moseroth they move to Benejaacan, then mount Gadgad, Jetebatha, Hebrona, and Asiongaber. They next reach the desert of Sin, which the text identifies as Cades.

Leaving Cades, they camp at mount Hor, at the outermost borders of Edom. Aaron the priest goes up mount Hor at the Lord’s command and dies there. It is the fortieth year after Israel left Egypt, on the first day of the fifth month, and Aaron is 123 years old. King Arad the Chanaanite, who lives toward the south, hears that Israel has come to the land of Chanaan.

They leave mount Hor and camp in Salmona, then move to Phunon and Oboth. From Oboth they reach Ijeabarim at the borders of the Moabites. They then camp in Dibongab, Helmondeblathaim, and the mountains of Abarim opposite Nabo. Leaving those mountains, they reach the plains of Moab by the Jordan opposite Jericho. Their camp there extends from Bethsimoth to Ablesatim in the plains of the Moabites.

There the Lord tells Moses to command Israel concerning its entry into Chanaan after crossing the Jordan. They are to destroy all the inhabitants, knock down their pillars, break their statues, and destroy all their high places. They are to cleanse the land and live in it, because the Lord has given it to them as a possession. They must divide it by lot, giving a larger portion to the more numerous and a smaller one to the fewer. Each inheritance must be given as the lot falls, and the possession divided by tribes and families. The chapter records the Lord giving these commands to Moses; it does not narrate Moses delivering them or the people carrying them out.

If they do not kill the land’s inhabitants, those who remain will be like nails in their eyes and spears in their sides, and will be their adversaries in the land where they live. The Lord warns that what he intended to do to those inhabitants he will do to Israel. These are warnings spoken before the entry, not observed results narrated in this chapter.

The story inside

The journey record pauses at mount Hor to give more than the next place name. Israel has come from Cades to Hor at Edom’s outer borders. Aaron goes up at the Lord’s command and dies there. The notice fixes the date: year forty after the departure from Egypt, the first day of the fifth month, at age 123. It then records king Arad hearing of Israel’s arrival, before resuming the camp sequence from Hor through Salmona and the remaining stops to Moab. Aaron’s death is therefore a dated event within the route, not an occasion to invent his feelings, describe a grave, or add the transfer of his office. At Moab the record changes from past travel to the Lord’s instructions and warnings about the land still to be entered.

Lessons worth keeping

1
The place names preserve a sequence, not interchangeable examples. The record includes small details such as three days in Etham’s desert, twelve fountains and seventy palms at Elim, and the lack of drinking water at Raphidim.
2
Aaron’s death has an exact place and date. The chapter names mount Hor at Edom’s border, year forty, the first day of the fifth month, and age 123. It does not supply a further explanation of his death here.
3
The final warning is conditional. If inhabitants remain because Israel does not kill them, the Lord says they will become adversaries, like nails in the eyes and spears in the sides, and the threatened judgment will fall on Israel.

Test your recall

Why does the Lord warn that inhabitants left in the land will become nails in Israel’s eyes and spears in its sides?

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 18095–18110
Numbers Chapter 33 The mansions or journeys of the children of Israel towards the land of promise. 33:1. These are the mansions of the children of Israel, who went out of Egypt by their troops under the conduct of Moses and Aaron, The mansions.... These mansions, or journeys of the children of Israel from Egypt to the land of promise, were figures, according to the fathers, of the steps and degrees by which Christians leaving sin are to advance from virtue to virtue, till they come to the heavenly mansions, after this life, to see and enjoy God. 33:2. Which Moses wrote down according to the places of their encamping, which they changed by the commandment of the Lord.
Lines 18112–18133
33:3. Now the children of Israel departed from Ramesses the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month, the day after the phase, with a mighty hand, in the sight of all the Egyptians, 33:4. Who were burying their firstborn, whom the Lord had slain (upon their gods also he had executed vengeance,) 33:5. And they camped in Soccoth. 33:6. And from Soccoth they came into Etham, which is in the uttermost borders of the wilderness. 33:7. Departing from thence they came over against Phihahiroth, which looketh towards Beelsephon, and they camped before Magdalum. 33:8. And departing from Phihahiroth, they passed through the midst of the sea into the wilderness: and having marched three days through the desert of Etham, they camped in Mara. 33:9. And departing from Mara, they came into Elim, where there were twelve fountains of waters, and seventy palm trees: and there they camped.
Lines 18135–18147
33:10. But departing from thence also, they pitched their tents by the Red Sea. And departing from the Red Sea, 33:11. They camped in the desert of Sin. 33:12. And they removed from thence, and came to Daphca. 33:13. And departing from Daphca, they camped in Alus. 33:14. And departing from Alus, they pitched their tents in Raphidim, where the people wanted water to drink. 33:15. And departing from Raphidim, they camped in the desert of Sinai.
Lines 18149–18164
33:16. But departing also from the desert of Sinai, they came to the graves of lust. 33:17. And departing from the graves of lust, they camped in Haseroth. 33:18. And from Haseroth they came to Rethma. 33:19. And departing from Rethma, they camped in Remmomphares. 33:20. And they departed from thence and came to Lebna. 33:21. Removing from Lebna they camped in Ressa. 33:22. And departing from Ressa, they came to Ceelatha. 33:23. And they removed from thence and camped in the mountain Sepher.
Lines 18166–18192
33:24. Departing from the mountain Sepher, they came to Arada, 33:25. From thence they went and camped in Maceloth. 33:26. And departing from Maceloth, they came to Thahath. 33:27. Removing from Thahath they camped in Thare. 33:28. And they departed from thence, and pitched their tents in Methca. 33:29. And removing from Methca, they camped in Hesmona. 33:30. And departing from Hesmona, they came to Moseroth. 33:31. And removing from Moseroth, they camped in Benejaacan. 33:32. And departing from Benejaacan, they came to mount Gadgad. 33:33. From thence they went and camped in Jetebatha. 33:34. And from Jetebatha they came to Hebrona. 33:35. And departing from Hebrona, they camped in Asiongaber. 33:36. They removed from thence and came into the desert of Sin, which is Cades.
Lines 18194–18205
33:37. And departing from Cades, they camped in mount Hor, in the uttermost borders of the land of Edom. 33:38. And Aaron the priest went up into mount Hor at the commandment of the Lord: and there he died in the fortieth year of the coming forth of the children of Israel out of Egypt, the fifth month, the first day of the month, 33:39. When he was a hundred and twenty-three years old. 33:40. And king Arad the Chanaanite, who dwelt towards the south, heard that the children of Israel were come to the land of Chanaan.
Lines 18207–18228
33:41. And they departed from mount Hor, and camped in Salmona. 33:42. From whence they removed and came to Phunon. 33:43. And departing from Phunon, they camped in Oboth. 33:44. And from Oboth they came to Ijeabarim, which is in the borders of the Moabites. 33:45. And departing from Ijeabarim they pitched their tents in Dibongab. 33:46. From thence they went and camped in Helmondeblathaim. 33:47. And departing from Helmondeblathaim, they came to the mountains of Abarim over against Nabo. 33:48. And departing from the mountains of Abarim, they passed to the plains of Moab, by the Jordan, over against Jericho. 33:49. And there they camped from Bethsimoth even to Ablesatim in the plains of the Moabites,
Lines 18230–18245
33:50. Where the Lord said to Moses: 33:51. Command the children of Israel, and say to them: When you shall have passed over the Jordan, entering into the land of Chanaan, 33:52. Destroy all the inhabitants of that land: Beat down their pillars, and break in pieces their statues, and waste all their high places, 33:53. Cleansing the land, and dwelling in it. For I have given it you for a possession. 33:54. And you shall divide it among you by lot. To the more you shall give a larger part, and to the fewer a lesser. To every one as the lot shall fall, so shall the inheritance be given. The possession shall be divided by the tribes and the families.
Lines 18247–18254
33:55. But if you will not kill the inhabitants of the land: they that remain, shall be unto you as nails in your eyes, and spears in your sides, and they shall be your adversaries in the land of your habitation. 33:56. And whatsoever I had thought to do to them, I will do to you.