Deuteronomy 3:8-11

3:8 So at that time we took the land of the two Amorite kings in the Transjordan from Wadi Arnon to Mount Hermon ¹  3:9 (the Sidonians ²  call Hermon Sirion ³  and the Amorites call it Senir), ⁴  3:10 all the cities of the plateau, all of Gilead and Bashan as far as Salecah ⁵  and Edrei, ⁶  cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan. 3:11 Only King Og of Bashan was left of the remaining Rephaites. (It is noteworthy ⁷  that his sarcophagus ⁸  was made of iron. ⁹  Does it not, indeed, still remain in Rabbath ¹⁰  of the Ammonites? It is thirteen and a half feet ¹¹  long and six feet ¹²  wide according to standard measure.) ¹³ 

¹ sn Mount Hermon. This is the famous peak at the southern end of the Anti-Lebanon mountain range known today as Jebel es-Sheik.

² sn Sidonians were Phoenician inhabitants of the city of Sidon (now in Lebanon), about 47 mi (75 km) north of Mount Carmel.

³ sn Sirion. This name is attested in the Ugaritic texts as sryn. See UT 495.

⁴ sn Senir. Probably this was actually one of the peaks of Hermon and not the main mountain (Song of Songs 4:8; 1 Chr 5:23). It is mentioned in a royal inscription of Shalmaneser III of Assyria (saniru; see ANET 280).

³ sn Salecah. Today this is known as Salkhad, in Jordan, about 31 mi (50 km) east of the Jordan River in the Hauran Desert.

⁴ sn Edrei. See note on this term in 3:1.

⁴ tn Heb “Behold” (הִנֵּה, hinneh).

⁵ tn The Hebrew term עֶרֶשׂ (’eres), traditionally translated “bed” (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT) is likely a basaltic (volcanic) stone sarcophagus of suitable size to contain the coffin of the giant Rephaite king. Its iron-like color and texture caused it to be described as an iron container. See A. Millard, “King Og’s Iron Bed: Fact or Fancy?” BR 6 (1990): 16-21, 44; cf. also NEB “his sarcophagus of basalt”; TEV, CEV “his coffin.”

⁶ tn Or “of iron-colored basalt.” See note on the word “sarcophagus” earlier in this verse.

⁷ sn Rabbath. This place name (usually occurring as Rabbah; 2 Sam 11:11; 12:27; Jer 49:3) refers to the ancient capital of the Ammonite kingdom, now the modern city of Amman, Jordan. The word means “great [one],” probably because of its political importance. The fact that the sarcophagus “still remain[ed]” there suggests this part of the verse is post-Mosaic, having been added as a matter of explanation for the existence of the artifact and also to verify the claim as to its size.

⁸ tn Heb “nine cubits.” Assuming a length of 18 in (45 cm) for the standard cubit, this would be 13.5 ft (4.1 m) long.

⁹ tn Heb “four cubits.” This would be 6 ft (1.8 m) wide.

¹⁰ tn Heb “by the cubit of man.” This probably refers to the “short” or “regular” cubit of approximately 18 in (45 cm).