“Now these are the kings of the land, whom the Children of Israel smote, and
possessed their land beyond the Jordan toward the sunrising, from the valley of
Arnon unto mount Hermon, and all the Arabah eastward: Sihon king of the
Amorites, who dwelt in Heshbon, and ruled from Aroer, which is on the edge of
the valley of Arnon, and the middle of the valley, and half Gilead, even unto the
river Jabbok, the border of the children of Ammon…”
Joshua 12 neatly narrates the Hebrews’ sweeping victories, both on the east and west sides of
the Jordan River. The chapter leads with Moses’ wins; whereas the balance of the verses
conveys Joshua’s victories. Abravanel notes anomalies in the way the wars are recorded. When
it comes to Moses’ campaigns on the east bank, much detail of the newly-acquired territory is
provided. “Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt in Heshbon, and ruled from Aroer, which is on
the edge of the valley…and half Gilead, even unto the river Jabbok…and the Arabah unto the
sea of Chinneroth, eastward, and unto the sea of the Arabah, even the Salt Sea, eastward, the
way to Beth-jeshimoth; and on the south, under the slopes of Pisgah.”
That was only half of Moses’ military feat. Next, verses cover King Og. “And the border of Og
king of Bashan, of the remnant of the Rephaim, who dwelt at Ashtaroth and at Edrei, and ruled
in mount Hermon, and in Salcah, and in all Bashan…” Stylistically, we observe how the above-
mentioned verses give readers plenty of information regarding Moses’ achievements.
At the conclusion of the Moses section, let us call it, Joshua gives a shout out to the grand
prophet. “Moses the servant of the LORD and the Children of Israel smote them; and Moses the
servant of the LORD gave it for a possession unto the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half-
tribe of Manasseh.”
Abravanel compares the Moses section to that of Joshua. He notes, as stated, two differences.
He also offers a rationale for those differences. The Joshua section begins, “And these are the
kings of the land whom Joshua and the Children of Israel smote beyond the Jordan westward,
from Baal-gad in the valley of Lebanon even unto the bare mountain, that goes up to Seir; and
Joshua gave it unto the tribes of Israel for a possession according to their divisions; in the hill-
country, and in the Lowland, and in the Arabah, and in the slopes, and in the wilderness, and in
the South; the Hittite, the Amorite, and the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the
Jebusite.” Following this, the Joshua section offers a skimpy version and coverage of his
victories. “The king of Jericho, one; the king of Ai, which is beside Beth-El, one; the king of
Jerusalem, one; the king of Hebron, one…” In this manner we skim over how Canaan was taken
by Joshua and the Jewish warriors. The section concludes: “the king of Tirzah, one. All the kings
thirty and one.”
Why, Abravanel asks, does the chapter give far greater detail to Moses, concluding with the
prophet’s divvying up those lands to Reuven, Gad, and Menasseh? However, when it comes to
Joshua, the leader gets mentioned prior to the chronology of his wins. And, as stated,
practically zero description of the newly-garnered lands are provided.
Here is Abravanel’s takeaway. Sensitivity to Moses features front and center. Moses defeated
two kings (Sihon and Og) versus Joshua, who took down thirty-one kings. Blatantly, numbers
alone bespeak lopsided legacies. If there would not have been greater detail accorded to
Moses, it would have been a slight to his honor. That’s one possibility.
Here is a second one. Even though Moses conquered only two kings – Sihon and Og – his
victories rate as remarkable as Joshua’s, owing to Moses’ foes’ formidable might. In
comparison, Joshua’s adversaries, although quantitatively greater than Moses’, had not been as
plucky. In sum, Moses’ liberation of the east bank reached parity with Joshua’s on the west
bank.