Deuteronomy 3:12 - Meaning and Application

After showing how the land they were now living in was conquered, Moses now explains how it was divided among the Reubenites, the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh, as recorded earlier in Numbers 32. This is a review of that account. He names the specific parts of the land given to each tribe, especially the share given to half the tribe of Manasseh. That tribe was split in an unusual way: Joseph’s descendants were divided into Ephraim and Manasseh, and Manasseh was divided again, with half living east of the Jordan and half west of it.

The half tribe on the east side of the Jordan was then divided into two large family groups, each with its own land, Jair in Deuteronomy 3:14 and Machir in Deuteronomy 3:15. It may be that Jacob’s earlier prediction about the smallness of that tribe was being fulfilled in these divisions and smaller family shares. Bashan is called the land of the giants because giants had lived there, though Og was the last of them. These giants seem to have lost their land sooner than others. Those who trusted in their own strength and made themselves everyone’s enemy found that everyone became their enemy, and they went down killed to the grave, even though they had once frightened the mighty in the land of the living.

Moses also repeats the condition that came with the land grant, as already agreed in Deuteronomy 3:18-20. They were to send a strong force across the Jordan to lead the way in conquering Canaan, and they were not to return to settle with their families, though they might come back for a time during the winter after a campaign, until they had seen their brothers settled in their own land just as they were now settled in theirs. In this, they were being taught not to care only about their own interests, but also about the interests of others (Philippians 2:4). It does not fit an Israelite to be selfish or to put private gain ahead of the good of the whole people. When we are at rest, we should want to see our brothers at rest too, and be ready to help bring that about. We are not made for ourselves alone, but belong to one another. A good man cannot fully enjoy his family’s comfort unless he also sees peace in Israel (Psalm 128:6).