The Israelites faced many challenges—big and small—on their way to the land God had promised them. King Og was one of the bigger ones—literally. He was described in the Bible as “the last of the Rephaites” (Deuteronomy 3:11), who were an ancient race of giants in Canaan. Og’s bed was about 14 feet long and 6 feet wide! But no challenge is too big for our God!
He struck down many nations
and killed mighty kings—
Sihon king of the Amorites,
Og king of Bashan,
and all the kings of Canaan—
and he gave their land as an inheritance,
an inheritance to his people Israel.
Kings tend to want both to maintain the power they have and also to gain power and territory. It’s likely that Sihon and Og and others like them saw the Israelites, who had been wandering the desert for years, as a good target—conquering the Israelites would allow the kings to take the Israelites’ possessions and absorb the people into their kingdoms, gaining a workforce. And it’s possible that the kings believed their own gods would be stronger than this God of Israel and help the kings to quickly defeat the Israelites. It’s also possible that the kings simply didn’t believe that the Israelites would pass through without attempting to take over their lands.
Look up Deuteronomy 2:20–31 and 3:1–11 to find some other reasons the kings might have been on guard against the Israelites.
God, when You tell me I can do something, help me to believe it. I know I can do anything if You are supporting me. Amen.