King living at the time of Egypt and Wilderness
Sihon was the Amorite king of Heshbon who refused to let the Israelites pass through his land and was subsequently defeated by them.
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Sihon, the Amorite king of Heshbon, is mentioned in several passages in the Old Testament, particularly in the books of Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, 1 Kings, Nehemiah, Psalms, and Jeremiah. He ruled over the territory east of the Jordan River, which the Israelites sought to pass through on their way to the Promised Land.
When Moses sent messengers to Sihon requesting permission to pass through his land peacefully, Sihon refused and instead gathered his army to attack the Israelites (Num.21.21-23; Deu.2.26-30). In response, the Israelites fought against Sihon and his army, defeating them and conquering his territory (Num.21.24-25; Deu.2.31-37). The victory over Sihon was seen as a significant milestone in the Israelites' journey to the Promised Land and a demonstration of God's power and faithfulness to His people.
The conquest of Sihon's kingdom, along with that of Og, king of Bashan, allowed the Israelites to settle in the Transjordan region, with the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh receiving their inheritance there (Num.32.33; Jos.13.10, 21, 27). The defeat of Sihon and Og is remembered as a testament to God's deliverance and is celebrated in the Psalms (Psalm Jos.135.11; 136.19).
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Striking down. The whole country on the east of Jordan, from the Arnon to the Jabbok, was possessed by the Amorites, whose king, Sihon, refused to permit the Israelites to pass through his territory, and put his army in array against them. The Israelites went forth against him to battle, and gained a complete victory. The Amorites were defeated; Sihon, his sons, and all his people were smitten with the sword, his walled towns were captured, and the entire country of the Amorites was taken possession of by the Israelites (Num. 21:21-30; Deut. 2:24-37). The country from the Jabbok to Hermon was at this time ruled by Og, the last of the Rephaim. He also tried to prevent the progress of the Israelites, but was utterly routed, and all his cities and territory fell into the hands of the Israelites (comp. Num. 21:33-35; Deut. 3:1-14; Ps. 135: 10-12; 136:17-22). These two victories gave the Israelites possession of the country on the east of Jordan, from the Arnon to the foot of Hermon. The kingdom of Sihon embraced about 1,500 square miles, while that of Og was more than 3,000 square miles.
(warrior) king of the Amorites when Israel arrived on the borders of the promised land. (Numbers 21:21) (B.C. 1451.) Shortly before the time of Israel’s arrival he had dispossessed the Moabites of a splendid territory, driving them south of the natural bulwark of the Amen. Ibid. (Numbers 21:26-29) When the Israelite host appeared, he did not hesitate or temporize like Balak, but at once gathered his people together and attacked them. But the battle was his last. He and all his host were destroyed, and their district from Amen to Jabbok became at once the possession of the conqueror.
rooting out; conclusion
SI'HON (sweeping away), a king of the Amorites who lost his dominions in consequence of his refusal to permit the Hebrews to pass through them on their way from Egypt to Canaan. Sihon himself was slain in battle, his army was routed, Heshbon, his capital, was taken, and his country distributed between Reuben and Gad." Num 21:21-30; Deut 1:4; Deut 2:24-32; Josh 13:15-29.
SI'HON (sweeping away), a king of the Amorites who lost his dominions in consequence of his refusal to permit the Hebrews to pass through them on their way from Egypt to Canaan. Sihon himself was slain in battle, his army was routed, Heshbon, his capital, was taken, and his country distributed between Reuben and Gad." Num 21:21-30; Deut 1:4; Deut 2:24-32; Josh 13:15-29.
Easton (1897), Smith (1863), Hitchcock (1869), Hastings (1898) and Schaff are in the public domain. Parsed text: neuu-org/bible-dictionary-dataset (CC BY 4.0). Headwords and whitespace normalised for this site.
34 verses in 8 books · English text: BSB (change it from the menu at the top) · Strong’s H5511
Then Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, saying,
But Sihon would not let Israel pass through his territory. Instead, he gathered his whole army and went out to confront Israel in the wilderness. When he came to Jahaz, he fought against Israel.
Heshbon was the city of Sihon king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab and taken all his land as far as the Arnon.
That is why the poets say: “Come to Heshbon, let it be rebuilt; let the city of Sihon be restored.
For a fire went out from Heshbon, a blaze from the city of Sihon. It consumed Ar of Moab, the rulers of Arnonʼs heights.
Woe to you, O Moab! You are destroyed, O people of Chemosh! He gave up his sons as refugees, and his daughters into captivity to Sihon king of the Amorites.
But the LORD said to Moses, “Do not fear him, for I have delivered him into your hand, along with all his people and his land. Do to him as you did to Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon.”
So Moses gave to the Gadites, to the Reubenites, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan—the land including its cities and the territory surrounding them.
This was after he had defeated Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon, and then at Edrei had defeated Og king of Bashan, who lived in Ashtaroth.
“Arise, set out, and cross the Arnon Valley. See, I have delivered into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land. Begin to take possession of it and engage him in battle.
So from the Wilderness of Kedemoth I sent messengers with an offer of peace to Sihon king of Heshbon, saying,
But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass through, for the LORD your God had made his spirit stubborn and his heart obstinate, that He might deliver him into your hand, as is the case this day.
Then the LORD said to me, “See, I have begun to deliver Sihon and his land over to you. Now begin to conquer and possess his land.”
So Sihon and his whole army came out for battle against us at Jahaz.
But the LORD said to me, “Do not fear him, for I have delivered him into your hand, along with all his people and his land. Do to him as you did to Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon.”
We devoted them to destruction, as we had done to Sihon king of Heshbon, utterly destroying the men, women, and children of every city.
while they were in the valley across the Jordan facing Beth-peor in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon and was defeated by Moses and the Israelites after they had come out of Egypt.
When you reached this place, Sihon king of Heshbon and Og king of Bashan came out against us in battle, but we defeated them.
And the LORD will do to them as He did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, when He destroyed them along with their land.
For we have heard how the LORD dried up the waters of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites across the Jordan, whom you devoted to destruction.
and all that He did to the two kings of the Amorites beyond the Jordan—Sihon king of Heshbon and Og king of Bashan, who reigned in Ashtaroth.
Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon. He ruled from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley, along the middle of the valley, up to the Jabbok River (the border of the Ammonites), that is, half of Gilead,
He ruled over Mount Hermon, Salecah, all of Bashan up to the border of the Geshurites and Maacathites, and half of Gilead to the border of Sihon king of Heshbon.
and all the cities of Sihon king of the Amorites who reigned in Heshbon, as far as the border of the Ammonites;
all the cities of the plateau and all the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon until Moses killed him and the chiefs of Midian (Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba), the princes of Sihon who lived in the land.
and in the valley, Beth-haram, Beth-nimrah, Succoth, and Zaphon, with the rest of the kingdom of Sihon king of Heshbon (the territory on the east side of the Jordan up to the edge of the Sea of Chinnereth).
And Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon, and said to him, ‘Please let us pass through your land into our own place.’
But Sihon would not trust Israel to pass through his territory. So he gathered all his people, encamped in Jahaz, and fought with Israel.
Then the LORD, the God of Israel, delivered Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, who defeated them. So Israel took possession of all the land of the Amorites who inhabited that country,
Geber son of Uri in the land of Gilead, including the territories of Sihon king of the Amorites and of Og king of Bashan. There was also one governor in the land of Judah.
You gave them kingdoms and peoples and allotted to them every corner of the land. So they took the land of Sihon king of Heshbon and of Og king of Bashan.
Sihon king of the Amorites, Og king of Bashan, and all the kings of Canaan.
Sihon king of the Amorites His loving devotion endures forever.
“Those who flee will stand helpless in Heshbonʼs shadow, because fire has gone forth from Heshbon and a flame from within Sihon. It devours the foreheads of Moab and the skulls of the sons of tumult.
Names, family links and references: STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). Short descriptions were drafted with AI assistance by STEPBible. Family links follow STEPBible’s scholarly decisions where genealogies are ambiguous.