Numbers 20:18

18 And Edom said, You are not to go through my land, for if you do I will come out against you with the sword.

Numbers 20:18 Meaning and Commentary

Numbers 20:18

And Edom said unto him
The king of Edom replied to Israel, represented by the messengers sent in their name:

thou shall not pass by me;
through my country:

lest I come out against thee with the sword;
or with those that use the sword, as the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan; that is, with an army of soldiers with their drawn swords in their hands, to slay them as enemies.

Numbers 20:18 In-Context

16 And the Lord gave ear to the voice of our cry, and sent an angel and took us out of Egypt: and now we are in Kadesh, a town on the edge of your land;

17 Let us now go through your land: we will not go into field or vine-garden, or take the water of the springs; we will go by the highway, not turning to the right or to the left, till we have gone past the limits of your land.

18 And Edom said, You are not to go through my land, for if you do I will come out against you with the sword.

19 And the children of Israel said to him, We will go up by the highway: and if we or our cattle take of your water, we will give you a price for it: only let us go through on our feet, nothing more.

20 But he said, You are not to go through. And Edom came out against them in his strength, with a great army.