Deuteronomy 3:9

3:9 (the Sidonians ¹  call Hermon Sirion ²  and the Amorites call it Senir), ³ 

Deuteronomy 3:11

3:11 Only King Og of Bashan was left of the remaining Rephaites. (It is noteworthy ⁴  that his sarcophagus ⁵  was made of iron. ⁶  Does it not, indeed, still remain in Rabbath ⁷  of the Ammonites? It is thirteen and a half feet ⁸  long and six feet ⁹  wide according to standard measure.) ¹⁰ 

Deuteronomy 3:14

3:14 Jair, son of Manasseh, took all the Argob region as far as the border with the Geshurites ¹¹  and Maacathites ¹²  (namely Bashan) and called it by his name, Havvoth-Jair, ¹³  which it retains to this very day.)

¹ sn Sidonians were Phoenician inhabitants of the city of Sidon (now in Lebanon), about 47 mi (75 km) north of Mount Carmel.

² sn Sirion. This name is attested in the Ugaritic texts as sryn. See UT 495.

³ 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).

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).

⁷ sn Geshurites. Geshur was a city and its surrounding area somewhere northeast of Bashan (cf. Josh 12:5 ; 13:11, 13). One of David’s wives was Maacah, the daughter of Talmai king of Geshur and mother of Absalom (cf. 2 Sam 13:37; 15:8; 1 Chr 3:2).

⁸ sn Maacathites. These were the people of a territory southwest of Mount Hermon on the Jordan River. The name probably has nothing to do with David’s wife from Geshur (see note on “Geshurites” earlier in this verse).

⁹ sn Havvoth-Jair. The Hebrew name means “villages of Jair,” the latter being named after a son (i.e., descendant) of Manasseh who took the area by conquest.