Mínshùjì 20:19

19 Yǐsèliè rén shuō , wǒmen yào zǒu dà dào shàng qù . wǒmen hé shēngchù ruò hē nǐde shuǐ , bì gĕi nǐ jiàzhí . bú qiú biéde , zhǐ qiú nǐ róng wǒmen bùxíng guō qù .

Mínshùjì 20:19 Meaning and Commentary

Numbers 20:19

And the children of Israel said unto him
The messengers sent by the children of Israel made answer to the king of Edom:

we will go by the highway;
we desire no other favour but that of the public road; we propose not to go through any part of the country that is enclosed and cultivated, to do any damage to it:

if I and my cattle drink of thy water, then I will pay for it;
as it was usual, and still is, to buy water in those countries near the Red sea, where it is scarce. We are told ^F4, that at Suess, a city on the extremity of the Red sea, there is no water nearer than six or seven hours journey towards the north east, which is brought from thence on camels; and a small vessel of it is sold for three or four medinas, and a larger vessel for eight or ten, according to the demand for it; a medina is an Egyptian piece of money, worth about three halfpence of our English money:

I will only (without doing anything else) go through on my feet;
as fast as I can, without saying anything to the inhabitants to terrify and distress them, and without doing them any injury. Some render it, I will only go "with my footmen" ^F5; foot soldiers, an army on foot, as Israel were.

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FOOTNOTES:

F4 See a Journal from Cairo to Mount Sinai, p. 10, 11. Ed. 2.
F5 (ylgrb) "cum meo exercitu pedestri"; so some in Fagius & Vatablus.

Mínshùjì 20:19 In-Context

17 Qiú nǐ róng wǒmen cóng nǐde dì jīngguò . wǒmen bú zǒu tiánjiān hé pútaóyuán , yĕ bú hē jǐng lǐ de shuǐ , zhǐ zǒu dà dào ( yuánwén zuò wáng dào ) , bú piān zuǒyòu , zhídào guō le nǐde jìngjiè .

18 Yǐdōng wáng shuō , nǐ bùkĕ cóng wǒde dì jīngguò , miǎndé wǒ daì dāo chū qù gōngjī nǐ .

19 Yǐsèliè rén shuō , wǒmen yào zǒu dà dào shàng qù . wǒmen hé shēngchù ruò hē nǐde shuǐ , bì gĕi nǐ jiàzhí . bú qiú biéde , zhǐ qiú nǐ róng wǒmen bùxíng guō qù .

20 Yǐdōng wáng shuō , nǐmen bùkĕ jīngguò . jiù shuaìlǐng xǔduō rén chūlai , yào yòng qiǎng yìng de shǒu gōngjī Yǐsèliè rén .

21 Zhèyàng , Yǐdōng wáng bú kĕn róng Yǐsèliè rén cóng tāde jìngjiè guō qù . yúshì tāmen zhuǎn qù , líkāi tā .