When I was a kid, every time we threw our ball into our neighbor’s yard (which happened a lot), we had to go over to their front door and ask for permission to go into their backyard.
Why? Because it wasn’t our property. Technically, we were trespassing. And in Texas, trespassing is classified as a Class B Misdemeanor, and is punishable by fines up to $2,000 and 180 days in jail. It’s nothing to joke about.
That’s the same reason Moses sent a delegation to Edom in Numbers 20:14. It wasn’t his land, so to lead two million people across Edom’s metaphorical backyard would have been seen as trespassing. Or an invasion, more likely.
This wasn’t just a one-off activity, either. Numbers 21:21 says that Moses sent messengers to Sihon, and Jephthah later mentions a similar request to the Moabites in Judges 11:17.
It’s worth pointing out that all three of those nations—Edom, Moab, and the Amorites—hated Israel with every fiber of their soul. They also were family. The Edomites were descended from Esau (Genesis 36:1), the Moabites came from one of Lot’s daughters (Genesis 19:37), and the Amorites were descended from Ham (Genesis 10:15-16).
It should come as no surprise then that all three of those requests to cross were flatly denied by all three nations. The last thing they wanted was Israel advancing anywhere, much less across their land.
Edom’s hostility to Israel is the most well-known, primarily because of the feud between Jacob and Esau. Even though the brothers reconciled in Genesis 33, it appears Edom still harbored resentment towards Israel. We find that out by this first interaction in Numbers 20:14-21.
Why, though?
Although the answer isn’t given, my favorite assumption (which are always dangerous) is that Edom is still sore about Jacob stealing the birthright from Esau so many generations earlier. In their eyes, Israel was—and still is—in the wrong. Their posture against Israel is justified to them.
The only problem with that line of reasoning is that God repeatedly states His alliance with Jacob. In fact, Malachi 1:1-5 opens up with God’s declaration that He “loves Jacob” and “hates Esau.”
God doesn’t “hate” Edom because of who they are, as if it’s some kind of reverse-Calvinism. He stands against them because of how they stood against Israel—their brothers.
The book of Obadiah lays out a long list of grievances against Edom, not the least of which is how they stood by and watched Nebuchadnezzar ransack Jerusalem. And even profited off of it by selling Israelites into slavery whenever possible (Obadiah 10-14).
Moses remembered this slight in Numbers 20. In fact, in Deuteronomy 2:1-10, Moses details how they had to go around the land of Edom to get to Canaan. God even has to tell Moses not to provoke Edom because God has given Edom their own possession. Does that sound like a God who “hates” Esau just because?
Edom is one of Israel’s most consistent enemies throughout the Old Testament, but it didn’t have to be that way. They were brothers, after all, and should’ve treated each other with more love and respect than was shown.
Do I treat my brother like that?