John Gill Commentary Numbers 21

And [when] King Arad the Canaanite, which dwelt in the
south
Arad seems rather to be the name of a place, city, or country, of which the Canaanite was king, than the name of a man, since we read of the king of Arad, (Joshua 12:14) see also (Judges 1:16) and so the Targums of Onkelos and Jerusalem here render it, the king of Arad; and the Targum of Jonathan says, he changed his seat and reigned in Arad, which might have its name from Arvad, a son of Canaan, (Genesis 10:18) and Jerom says ^F14 , that Arath, the same with Arad, is a city of the Amorites, near the wilderness of Kadesh, and that to this day it is shown, a village four miles from Malatis and twenty from Hebron, in the tribe of Judah; and so Aben Ezra observes, that the ancients say, this is Sihon (the king of the Amorites), and he is called a Canaanite, because all the Amorites are Canaanites; but, according to Jarchi, the Amalekites are meant, as it is said, "the Amalekites dwell in the land of the south": (Numbers 13:29) and so the Targum of Jonathan here,

heard tell that Israel came by the way of the spies :
either after the manner of spies, or rather by the way in which the spies went thirty eight years ago, which was the way of the south, where this Canaanitish king dwelt, see (Numbers 13:17Numbers 13:22Numbers 13:29) , the Septuagint version leaves the word untranslated, taking it for the name of a place, and reads, "by the way of Atharim", so the Samaritan Pentateuch and Arabic version; and did such a place appear to have been hereabout, it would be the most likely sense of the passage; for as the spies were never discovered by the Canaanites, the way they went could not be known by them; nor is it very probable that, if it had been known, it should be so called, since nothing of any consequence to them as yet followed upon it:

then he fought against Israel ;
raised his forces and marched out against them, to oppose their passage, and engaged in a battle with them:

and took some of them prisoners ;
according to the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem, great numbers of them; but Jarchi says, only one single maidservant.

And Israel vowed a vow to the Lord
The Israelites made supplication to the Lord for help against their enemies, and that he would give them victory over them, and made promises to him:

and said, if you will indeed deliver this people into my hand ;
certainly and entirely deliver them, so as that a complete victory shall be obtained over them:

then will I utterly destroy their cities ;
or "anathematize", or devote them to utter destruction ^F15 ; slay man and beast, burn their houses and take their goods, not for a spoil, for their own private use, but reserve them for the service of God;

all which is implied in the vow made, as was done to Jericho, (Joshua 6:21Joshua 6:24) and so it is a vow, as Abendana observes, of what they would do when they came to the land of Canaan.

FOOTNOTES:

• F15: (ytmrxhw) "et anathematisabo", Montanus; "devovebo", Tigurine version.

And the Lord hearkened to the voice of Israel
In their prayers and vows; with acceptance heard, and answered them according to their wish:

and delivered up the Canaanites :
into their hands, gave them victory over them:

and they utterly destroyed them and their cities ;
that is, "anathematized" them, and devoted them to destruction; for as yet they did not actually destroy them, since we read of Arad afterwards, (Joshua 12:14) , but this they did in Joshua's time, when the whole land of Canaan came into their hands; for had they entered the land now, and took and destroyed the cities belonging to Arad, they would doubtless have proceeded, and pursued their conquests, and not have returned into the wilderness again to go round about Edom, in order to enter another way; many think, as Aben Ezra observes on (Numbers 21:1) that this section was written by Joshua, after the land was subdued:

and he called the name of the place Hormah ;
which before was called Zephath, and it seems to have its name from various disasters which happened at this place; as the defeat of the Israelites by the Amalekites, (Numbers 14:45) , and here of the Canaanites by the Israelites, and afterwards of the inhabitants of this place by Judah and Simeon, (Judges 1:17) it had its name from "Cherem", the anathema or destruction it was devoted to.

And they journeyed from Mount Hor
After the battle with the king of Arad, and the defeat of him:

by the way of the Red sea, to compass the land of Edom ;
which lay by it, and from which it had the name of the Red sea, Edom signifying red; and by the way of that the Israelites must go, to go round that country:

and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way ;
because it was going back instead of going forward to Canaan's land, and because of the length of the way; it was a round about way they were going; if they could have been admitted to pass through the country of Edom, the way would have been short; or had they pursued their victory over the Canaanite, they would have gone directly into the land; and this perhaps was what fretted, vexed, and discouraged them, that they were obliged to go back, and take such a circuit, when they had such an opportunity of entering; and they might be distressed also with the badness and the roughness of the way, the borders of Edom being rocky and craggy: it is in the original text, "their soul or breath was short" ^F16 ; they fetched their breath short, being weary and faint with travelling, or through anger, as angry persons do, when in a great passion.

So the people of God travelling through the wilderness of this world are often discouraged, because of the difficulties, trials, and troubles they meet with in the way, from sin, Satan, and the world, and are fretful and impatient; but though they are led about and walk in a round about way, and in a rough way, yet in a right way to the city of their habitation, (Psalms 107:7) .

FOOTNOTES:

• F16:
  F16 (vpn ruqtw) "et abbreviata est anima", Montanus, Munster, Fagius, Vatablus; "decurtata", Piscator.

And the people spoke against God
Who went before them in the pillar of cloud and fire, for leading them in such a way; that is, against Christ, as the apostle has taught us to interpret it, (1 Corinthians 10:9) , and is no inconsiderable proof of the deity of Christ; and so the Targum of Jonathan paraphrases it, ``and the people thought in their heart, and spoke against the Word of the Lord,'' the essential Word and Son of God.

and against Moses ;
his servant, for obeying the orders of the Lord, and leading and guiding the people as he directed him:

why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness ?
ascribing this equally to God and to Moses; using a strange word, as Aben Ezra calls it, being in a great passion, and not considering well what they said; showing great ingratitude for such a mercy, and representing it in a wrong light, as if the intent of bringing them from thence was to slay them in the wilderness:

for [there] is no bread ;
no bread corn, nothing in the wilderness to make bread of; nothing that they called and accounted bread, otherwise they had manna, as is presently owned:

neither [is there] any water ;
any fresh water fit to drink, otherwise they were near the sea; what they had from the rock, lately, perhaps was now spent, and it did not follow them as the other rock had:

and our soul loatheth this light bread ;
the manna; this very light, this exceeding light bread, the radicals of the word ^F17 used being doubled, which increases the signification: if to be understood of light and easy digestion, it was the more to be valued; but perhaps they meant, it had but little substance and virtue in it, and was not filling and satisfying; or rather that it was exceeding vile, mean, and despicable; so they called the bread of heaven, angel's food, this wonderful gift of Providence; in like manner is Christ, the hidden manna, treated, and his Gospel, and the precious truths of it, by unregenerate men and carnal professors, (1 Corinthians 1:23) .

FOOTNOTES:

• F17: (lqlqh) "levissime", V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, Fagius, Vatablus; "vilissimi", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator.