Judges 11:21

21 And Yahweh, the God of Israel, gave Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they defeated them; and Israel occupied all the land of the Amorites inhabiting that land.

Judges 11:21 Meaning and Commentary

Judges 11:21

And the Lord God of Israel delivered Sihon and all his people
into the hand of Israel
So that as Sihon, his people, and his country, fell into the hands of Israel through the victory the Lord gave them over him, they had a divine right to the land now in dispute:

and they smote them:
destroyed him and all his people, as they were ordered to destroy the seven nations of Canaan, of which the Amorites were one, ( Deuteronomy 7:1 ) ,

so Israel possessed all the land of the Amorites, the inhabitants of
that country;
by means of the above victory they came into the lawful and rightful possession of all the land that belonged to the Amorites, who were at that time, and none else, the inhabitants of it; and therefore the Ammonites could have no claim to it, nor was any made till now.

Judges 11:21 In-Context

19 Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, king of Heshbon; and Israel said to him, 'Please let us cross through your land {to our country}.'

20 But Sihon did not trust Israel to cross through his territory, so Sihon gathered all his people and then encamped at Jahaz; and he made war with Israel.

21 And Yahweh, the God of Israel, gave Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they defeated them; and Israel occupied all the land of the Amorites inhabiting that land.

22 They occupied all the territory of the Amorites from [the] Arnon up to the Jabbok, and from the wilderness up to the Jordan.

23 So then Yahweh, the God of Israel, has driven out the Amorites from before his people Israel, and you want to possess it?

Footnotes

• [a]. Hebrew "Amorite"