Numbers 32:33-42

Numbers 32:33-42

[33] And Moses  gave  unto them, even to the children  of Gad,  and to the children  of Reuben,  and unto half  the tribe  of Manasseh  the son  of Joseph,  the kingdom  of Sihon  king  of the Amorites,  and the kingdom  of Og  king  of Bashan,  the land,  with the cities  thereof in the coasts,  even the cities  of the country  round about.  [34] And the children  of Gad  built  Dibon,  and Ataroth,  and Aroer,  [35] And Atroth, Shophan,  and Jaazer,  and Jogbehah,  [36] And Bethnimrah,  and Bethharan,  fenced  cities:  and folds  for sheep.  [37] And the children  of Reuben  built  Heshbon,  and Elealeh,  and Kirjathaim,  [38] And Nebo,  and Baalmeon,  (their names  and Shibmah:  and gave  other names  unto the cities  which they builded.  [39] And the children  of Machir  the son  of Manasseh  to Gilead,  and took  it, and dispossessed  the Amorite  which was in it. [40] And Moses  gave  Gilead  unto Machir  the son  of Manasseh;  and he dwelt  therein. [41] And Jair  the son  of Manasseh  went  and took  the small towns  thereof, and called  them Havothjair.  [42] And Nobah  went  and took  Kenath,  and the villages  thereof, and called  it Nobah,  after his own name. 

What does Numbers 32:33-42 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

With this agreement behind them the two and one-half tribes proceeded to settle in Transjordan until called upon to cross the Jordan River as part of Israel"s fighting force.
"The eastern territory of Prayer of Manasseh , divided between the clans of Makir and Jair, was essentially identical to the old kingdom of Og. The Makirites took the southern part, that Isaiah , Gilead as far south as the allocation of Reuben and Gad. The Jairites received the region north of Gilead, defined more precisely as Og"s kingdom of Argob. It presumably extended as far north as Mount Hermon and was bordered on the south by the little kingdoms of Maacah and Geshur, just above the Yarmuk ( Deuteronomy 3:13-14). A third entity, Nobah, has no apparent connection with Prayer of Manasseh , but took in Kenath and the surrounding villages ( Numbers 32:42). Kenath (Qanawat) was located about sixty miles due east of the Sea of Galilee, deep in the Hauran Desert." [1]
Though these tribes did fulfill their military obligation ( Joshua 4:12-13; Joshua 4:22), their plan was not a good one. It created a potential problem of disunity in Israel. Furthermore it demonstrated a desire for what looked good physically and materially (cf. Lot) in preference to what God said He would give them that they had not yet seen. Distance from the other tribes produced misunderstanding and disunity later ( Joshua 22). The lack of natural defenses on the north, east, and south of Transjordan made this area especially vulnerable to attack by Israel"s enemies. This area was often the first to experience invasion, and Israel lost control of it several times in her later history (e.g, 2 Kings 15:29).
Whenever the Bible mentions cities of this area allotted to Reuben, especially Heshbon and Mediba, they regularly appear to be under the control of either Moab or Ammon ( Isaiah 15:4; Isaiah 16:8-9; Jeremiah 48:2; Jeremiah 48:45; 1 Chronicles 19:7). Reuben is seldom even mentioned (only in Judges 5:15-16; 2 Kings 10:33; 1 Chronicles 5:6; 1 Chronicles 5:26; 1 Chronicles 12:37; 1 Chronicles 27:16) after the Moabite oppression and never in a way to show that it controlled its allotted land. [2]
Transjordan was part of the land God included in the Abrahamic Covenant. However, God"s purpose for Israel at this time was to drive out the Canaanite tribes that lived primarily west of the Jordan. We may assume that if these tribes had simply followed Moses" leadership God would have done something even better for them than what their own plan provided. This is what God often does in such situations, ample testimony to which we find throughout Scripture.