Tanach (JPS): Numbers: Numbers Chapter 21

This is a passage from the Hebrew Bible (Numbers 21), drawn from the 1917 Jewish Publication Society translation of the Tanach — canonical religious scripture in the ancient Near Eastern narrative tradition. The text chronicles several episodes from the Israelites' wilderness journey toward Canaan: a military victory over the Canaanite king of Arad after a vow to God, the incident of the fiery serpents (divine punishment for complaining, healed by gazing at a bronze serpent on a pole), and a travelogue of campsites across Moab. The latter half records Israel's diplomatic overture to the Amorite king Sihon, his refusal, and his subsequent military defeat, followed by the defeat of Og of Bashan — both presented as divinely sanctioned conquests that transfer territory to Israel. Distinctive features include embedded quotations from older source texts (the "Book of the Wars of the LORD" and a victory taunt-song about Heshbon), which give the passage an archival, composite quality suggesting the compilers drew on pre-existing oral or written traditions. The bronze serpent episode is theologically notable for its conditional, sight-based healing mechanism — an unusual use of a crafted image in a tradition otherwise hostile to such objects. Readers interested in biblical military theology, the literary construction of Israelite origins, or the geography of Transjordan will find this passage substantive.

Tanach (JPS): Numbers: Numbers Chapter 21

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