Numbers 34:3

Translations

Modern

Your southern border will extend from the Wilderness of Zin along the border of Edom. On the east, your southern border will run from the end of the Salt Sea,

Traditional

Then your south quarter shall be from the wilderness of Zin along by the coast of Edom, and your south border shall be the outmost coast of the salt sea eastward:

Literal

And your border on the Negev shall be from the Wilderness of Zin along the border of Edom, and your border on the Negev shall extend to the end of the Salt Sea eastward.

Latin

Pars meridiana incipiet a solitudine Sin, quæ est juxta Edom: et habebit terminos contra orientem mare salsissimum.

Original

Hebrew

English

Your southern border will extend from the Wilderness of Zin along the border of Edom. On the east, your southern border will run from the end of the Salt Sea,

Notes

Numbers 34:3–5

Portions of the southern boundary of Canaan were familiar to Israel from earlier experiences in the Wilderness of Zin, located on the northwestern border of Edom (see chapters 13–14). This southern border curved from the southern end of the Dead Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, running east to west.

Numbers 34:1–29

Chapter 34 describes the borders of Canaan. This is where God commanded Israel to settle, following the guidelines in 26:52–56. Since Abraham's call, the promised land of Canaan has been central to the Old Testament story (Genesis 12:1–7). A generation of Hebrews died in the wilderness for not believing what the faithful spies reported (Numbers 13). Yet, God reaffirmed his promise of land (33:53).

Here, God reviews the plan and outlines the promised land's intended boundaries (compare Joshua 13–19; Ezekiel 47–48). Old Testament Israel did not fully capture this territory. It almost did during the time of the kings David and Solomon (see 2 Samuel 24:1–9). But these borders generally describe the region of Canaan as defined by Egyptian texts from 1500–1200 BC. This was when the Hebrews invaded. The region actually occupied by Israel changed from time to time.

Related verses

Genesis 14:3
The latter five came as allies to the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea).
Ezekiel 47:13
This is what the Lord GOD says: “These are the boundaries by which you are to divide the land as an inheritance among the twelve tribes of Israel; Joseph shall receive two portions.
Joshua 15:1–12
Now the allotment for the clans of the tribe of Judah extended to the border of Edom, to the Wilderness of Zin at the extreme southern boundary:
Ezekiel 47:18–23
On the east side the border will run between Hauran and Damascus, along the Jordan between Gilead and the land of Israel, to the Eastern Sea and as far as Tamar. This will be the eastern boundary.
Joshua 3:16
…the flowing water stood still. It backed up as far upstream as Adam, a city in the area of Zarethan, while the water flowing toward the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho.
Exodus 23:31
And I will establish your borders from the Red Sea to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the desert to the Euphrates. For I will deliver the inhabitants into your hand, and you will drive them out before you.
Ezekiel 47:8
And he said to me, “This water flows out to the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah. When it empties into the Dead Sea, the water there becomes fresh.

Parallels

Genesis 15:8–21

Places

Edom: Descendants of Esau; enemy nation southeast of Israel Salt Sea: Another name for the Dead Sea Zin: A desert and wilderness region south of Judah

Glossary

Allotment of the Land Arabah Dead Sea Deuteronomy, Book of Edom, Edomites Kerioth Moses Numbers, Book of Palestine

Topics

Canaanites: Territory of Holy Land: Extent of As at First Divided Zin: A Desert South of Judah

Numbers 34:3

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Original?

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Related verses?

Parallels?