Deuteronomy 3:1

Defeat of King Og of Bashan

3:1 Next we set out on ¹  the route to Bashan, ²  but King Og of Bashan and his whole army ³  came out to meet us in battle at Edrei. ⁴ 

Deuteronomy 3:11

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

[3:1]  ¹ tn Heb “turned and went up.”

[3:1]  ² sn Bashan. This plateau country, famous for its oaks (Isa 2:13) and cattle (Deut 32:14; Amos 4:1), was north of Gilead along the Yarmuk River.

[3:1]  ³ tn Heb “people.”

[3:1]  ⁴ sn Edrei is probably modern Deràa, 60 mi (95 km) south of Damascus (see Num 21:33; Josh 12:4; 13:12, 31; also mentioned in Deut 1:4).

[3:11]  ⁵ tn Heb “Behold” (הִנֵּה, hinneh).

[3:11]  ⁶ 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.”

[3:11]  ⁷ tn Or “of iron-colored basalt.” See note on the word “sarcophagus” earlier in this verse.

[3:11]  ⁸ 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.

[3:11]  ⁹ 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.

[3:11]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “four cubits.” This would be 6 ft (1.8 m) wide.

[3:11]  ¹¹ tn Heb “by the cubit of man.” This probably refers to the “short” or “regular” cubit of approximately 18 in (45 cm).