Exodus 17:10

10 And Joshua did as Moses had said to him to fight with Amalek. And Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up [to] the top of the hill.

Exodus 17:10 Meaning and Commentary

Exodus 17:10

So Joshua did as Moses had said to him
He singled out some proper persons for the battle, and arrayed them with armour, and led them forth out of the camp, and went forth at the head of them:

and fought with Amalek;
upon both armies meeting, a battle ensued:

and Moses, Aaron, and Hur, went up to the top of the hill;
to the top of Mount Sinai or Horeb, not so much to see the battle fought, as to be seen by Joshua and the people of Israel, especially Moses with the rod in his hand lifted up, that they might behold it, and be encouraged through it to hope for and expect victory; and the other two went up with him to assist him in holding up his hands with the rod, as appears by what follows. Aaron, it is well known, was his brother, but who Hur was is not so clear, though no doubt a very eminent and principal man. There was an Hur, the son of Caleb, who descended from Judah in the line of Phares and Hezron, and which Hur was the grandfather of Bezaleel ( 1 Chronicles 2:5 1 Chronicles 2:9 1 Chronicles 2:19 1 Chronicles 2:20 ) , but whether the same with this cannot be said with certainty; it is most likely that he was the husband of Miriam, as Josephus says F23, and so the brother-in-law of Moses and Aaron; though some Jewish writers say F24 that he was their sister's son, the son of Miriam.


FOOTNOTES:

F23 Antiqu. l. 3. c. 2. sect. 4.
F24 Pirke Eliezer, c. 45. Shalshalet Hakabala, fol. 7. 1.

Exodus 17:10 In-Context

8 And Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim.
9 And Moses said to Joshua, "Choose men for us, and go out, fight against Amalek tomorrow. I [will be] standing on the top of the hill, and the staff of God [will be] in my hand."
10 And Joshua did as Moses had said to him to fight with Amalek. And Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up [to] the top of the hill.
11 And when Moses raised his hand, Israel would prevail, but when he rested his hand, Amalek would prevail.
12 But the hands of Moses [were] heavy, and they took a stone and placed it under him, and he sat on it; Aaron and Hur supported his hands, {one on each side}, and his hands [were] steady until {sundown}.
Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.