רב לכם, סוב, “you have been skirting this land enough, now turn around (in a northerly direction) The word רב here is used in the same way as Esau used it in his encounter with Yaakov in Genesis 33,9 when he first wanted to refuse to accept Yaakov’s gift and said to him:יש לי רב אחי “I have lots, my brother;” he meant that he had been repaid sufficiently for any harm Yaakov had caused him in the past.

אל תצר את מואב, “do not harass Moav.” G–d had to warn the Israelites not to harass Amon, Moav and Seir, as they thought that they were legally entitled to inherit the lands of those nations. Seir appears under the heading of Chivvi in numerous places, and it was one of the tribes that G–d had told Avraham in Genesis chapter 15 that his descendants would inherit. This is why the Torah wrote in verse 12 of our chapter that originally the lands occupied at that time were inhabited by a tribe known as Chorim, and that the Edomites, i.e. Seir, had dispossessed the original owners, and did not occupy it legally, so that it was not included in what G–d had spoken about to Avraham in Genesis chapter 15. The ”Chivvi” was not a separate nation among the seventy nations that we read about after G–d destroyed the Tower and mixed up the languages, but a sub-species, such as there were five such among the Midianites, each with a king of their own. Also Ammon and Moav occupied land previously owned by the Re-faim,”(verse 11) so that although the soil was part of what is known to us as “Palestine,” that section was not included in what G–d had promised to Avraham as lands his descendants would inherit in chapter 15. The Moabites themselves had referred to these people as Eymim, i.e. not ethnically part of them. Some of these “names,” were merely acquired names describing how others related to them, i.e. Eymim” are people that inspire Eymah, fear, in those who encounter them. Most of these “nations” were extraordinarily powerful human specimens not only physically but also mentally. This is why they were compared to Anakim, “giants.” G–d did not have to warn the Israelites not to harass the Canaanite tribes who dwelt on their original land, not having engaged in wars of expansion.

והעוים היושבים בחצרים עד עזה, “and the Avvim who dwelled in villages as far south as Gaza.’ Moses now elaborates where the Chivvi is located. The letters ח and ע are used interchangeably. Do you want to know where to find the Chivvim? They dwell in chatzerim, They were so powerful that they did not bother to live in cities surrounded by a security wall, as they relied on their physical prowess to protect them. The land called: eretz refa-im, was identical with the kingdom of the giant Og, (3,13) it had been promised to Avram and by now the time had come to inherit it and to settle there. However, the land of Moav which the latter had taken away from Eymim, who were giants like the Refaim, are not identical with the Refa-im that G–d promised to Avram, seeing that Moabites called them by a different name,; also the land now occupied by the Ammonites who had dispossessed the Zamzumim and were not the same Refaim as the ones who had lived there hundreds of years earlier.

ממדבר קדמות, “from the wilderness of K’demot.” This means that the region in question had been a barren desert before G–d had decided to produce water from the rock Moses had struck. Seeing that most of the territory ruled over by Sichon during Moses’ time used to belong previously to either Moav or Ammon, both nations whose territory was out of bounds for the Israelites, they offered to traverse it peacefully. The territory ruled over by Og, which previously was occupied by the Refaim, was not the subject of such an offer by the Israelites. No peace offering under any conditions other than the population relocating themselves was extended to any of the seven Canaanite tribes. They were also not eligible for conversion to Judaism. A different interpretation of the words: ממדבר קדמות. G–d had explained to Moses that legally speaking, instead of sending Moses and Aaron to warn Pharaoh to release His people, He was entitled on the basis of their record to kill the Egyptians without any warning at all. Nonetheless, He went out of His way to offer them a chance to rehabilitate themselves. (Exodus 8,15) The same was true at Mount Sinai, prior to G–d revealing Himself to the Israelites and giving them His Torah. He knew full well that the Ishmaelites or Edomites when offered the Torah would reject it out of hand; nevertheless, He went through the motions of offering it to them. (Compare Deuteronomy 33,2) Here too, Moses emulated what he had learned from G–d and dispatched messengers to ask for permission to traverse the land of Sichon, offering economic benefits to him such as offering to pay for water, although the Israelites had their own supply of water. According to our sages, Moses actually sent two letters to him. In one letter he offered peaceful relations. In the second letter he warned him that if that offer were to be turned down the Israelites would declare war upon him and his nation. According to Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish, Moses did not waste two letters on Sichon, but in the first section of his letter he offered peaceful relations, whereas in the second half he spelled out that the alternative would be war. He based himself on Psalms 120,7: אני שלום וכי אדבר המה למלחמה, “when I offer peace, they are nonetheless bent on war.” Considering this, G–d told the Israelites that because these people were bent upon war against you I will let you inherit their land in peace, as we know from Psalms 37,11: וענוים יירשו ארץ והתענגו על רוב שלום, “but the lowly shall inherit the land and delight in abundant well-being”.