When the Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev, heard that Israel was coming by the road to Atharim, he attacked them and captured some Israelites. But Israel made a vow to the LORD, saying, "If You will deliver these people into our hands, we will completely destroy their cities." The LORD heard their cry and gave them victory. They destroyed the Canaanites and their towns, and the place was named Hormah, meaning "destruction."
From Mount Hor, the Israelites traveled along the road toward the Red Sea, circling around Edom. But as the days stretched on, the people grew impatient. They complained against God and Moses, saying, "Why did You bring us out of Egypt to die in this wilderness? There's no bread! No water! And we detest this miserable food!"
So the LORD sent venomous snakes among them. The snakes bit the people, and many died. Stricken with fear, the survivors came to Moses and confessed, "We have sinned, for we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take away the snakes." Moses prayed for them, and the LORD said, "Make a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. Whoever is bitten and looks upon it shall live."
Moses obeyed. He made a bronze snake and lifted it high upon a pole. And whenever someone was bitten, if they looked at the bronze serpent, they lived.
From there, the Israelites journeyed onward, camping first at Oboth, then at Iye Abarim, in the wilderness facing Moab, and then in the Zered Valley. They camped near the Arnon River, which marked the border between Moab and the Amorites. The ancient "Book of the Wars of the LORD" even recorded this passage:
"…Waheb in Suphah, the ravines of the Arnon,
and the slopes that reach to Ar,
lying along the border of Moab."
From there, they traveled to Beer, the well where the LORD told Moses, "Gather the people together, and I will give them water." Then Israel sang a joyful song:
"Spring up, O well—sing to it!
The princes dug the well,
the nobles of the people with scepters and staffs."
From the wilderness, they journeyed to Mattanah, then to Nahaliel, on to Bamoth, and finally to the valley in Moab near the top of Pisgah, overlooking the wasteland.
Then Israel sent messengers to Sihon, king of the Amorites, requesting peaceful passage:
"Let us pass through your land. We will not enter your fields or vineyards, nor drink water from your wells. We will stay on the King's Highway until we pass through."
But Sihon refused. He gathered his army and attacked Israel at Jahaz. The LORD gave Israel victory—Sihon and his people were struck down, and Israel took his land from the Arnon River to the Jabbok. They captured all the Amorite cities, including Heshbon, Sihon's capital, and settled in them.
A song was even sung among the people:
"Come to Heshbon! Let it be rebuilt,
the city of Sihon restored.
Fire came out from Heshbon,
a flame from Sihon's city.
It devoured Ar of Moab
and the heights of the Arnon.
Woe to you, Moab!
You are destroyed, people of Chemosh!
Your sons fled and your daughters were taken captive
by Sihon, king of the Amorites.
But we have triumphed over them—
their cities are laid waste to Dibon,
even to Nophah, reaching to Medeba."
Afterward, Moses sent spies to Jazer, and Israel captured it and drove out the Amorites there. Then they turned toward Bashan, where Og, the king of Bashan, marched out with his whole army to fight them at Edrei.
But the LORD said to Moses, "Do not be afraid of him, for I have handed him over to you, along with his people and his land. Do to him what you did to Sihon, king of the Amorites."
Israel fought and utterly destroyed Og, his sons, and his entire army, leaving no survivors. Then they took possession of his land as the LORD had promised.