1:1 This is what 1 Moses said to the assembly of Israel 2 in the Transjordanian 3 wastelands, the arid country opposite 4 Suph, 5 between 6 Paran 7 and Tophel, 8 Laban, 9 Hazeroth, 10 and Di Zahab 11
32:13 He enabled him 24 to travel over the high terrain of the land,
and he ate of the produce of the fields.
He provided honey for him from the cliffs, 25
and olive oil 26 from the hardest of 27 rocks, 28
1 tn Heb “These are the words.”
2 tn Heb “to all Israel.”
3 tn Heb “on the other side of the Jordan.” This would appear to favor authorship by someone living on the west side of the Jordan, that is, in Canaan, whereas the biblical tradition locates Moses on the east side (cf. v. 5). However the Hebrew phrase בְּעֵבֶר הַיּרְדֵּן (bÿ’ever hayyrÿden) is a frozen form meaning “Transjordan,” a name appropriate from any geographical vantage point. To this day, one standing east of the Jordan can describe himself as being in Transjordan.
4 tn The Hebrew term מוֹל (mol) may also mean “in front of” or “near” (cf. NCV, TEV, CEV, NLT).
5 sn This place is otherwise unattested and its location is unknown. Perhaps it is Khirbet Sufah, 4 mi (6 km) SSE of Madaba, Jordan.
6 tn The Hebrew term בֵּין (ben) may suggest “in the area of.”
7 sn Paran is the well-known desert area between Mount Sinai and Kadesh Barnea (cf. Num 10:12; 12:16).
8 sn Tophel refers possibly to et£-T£afîleh, 15 mi (25 km) SE of the Dead Sea, or to Da‚bîlu, another name for Paran. See H. Cazelles, “Tophel (Deut. 1:1),” VT 9 (1959): 412-15.
9 sn Laban. Perhaps this refers to Libnah (Num 33:20).
10 sn Hazeroth. This probably refers to àAin Khadra. See Y. Aharoni, The Land of the Bible, 199-200.
11 sn Di Zahab. Perhaps this refers to Mina al-Dhahab on the eastern Sinai coast.
12 tn Heb “in your tents,” that is, privately.
23 sn Caleb had, with Joshua, brought back to Israel a minority report from Canaan urging a conquest of the land, for he was confident of the
24 tn Heb “the
34 tc The translation follows the LXX in reading the first person pronoun. The MT, followed by many English versions, has a second person masculine singular pronoun, “your.”
35 tn Heb “hardened his spirit” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NIV “made his spirit stubborn.”
36 tn Heb “made his heart obstinate” (so KJV, NASB); NRSV “made his heart defiant.”
37 tn Heb “into your hand.”
45 tn Heb “the
46 tn Heb “which you are crossing over there.”
56 tn Heb “you will destroy their name from under heaven” (cf. KJV); NRSV “blot out their name from under heaven.”
67 tn Heb “give [over] your enemies.”
68 tn Heb “nakedness of a thing”; NLT “any shameful thing.” The expression עֶרְוַת דָּבָר (’ervat davar) refers specifically to sexual organs and, by extension, to any function associated with them. There are some aspects of human life that are so personal and private that they ought not be publicly paraded. Cultically speaking, even God is offended by such impropriety (cf. Gen 9:22-23; Lev 18:6-12, 16-19; 20:11, 17-21). See B. Seevers, NIDOTTE 3:528-30.
78 tn The form of the suffix on this verbal form indicates that the verb is a preterite, not an imperfect. As such it simply states the action factually. Note as well the preterites with vav (ו) consecutive that follow in the verse.
79 tn Heb “he made him suck honey from the rock.”
80 tn Heb “oil,” but this probably refers to olive oil; see note on the word “rock” at the end of this verse.
81 tn Heb “flinty.”
82 sn Olive oil from rock probably suggests olive trees growing on rocky ledges and yet doing so productively. See E. H. Merrill, Deuteronomy (NAC), 415; cf. TEV “their olive trees flourished in stony ground.”