Devarim(Deuteronomy 1:1-3:22)

Og

To a large extent the Book of Devarim is a retrospective of events and laws taught in previous sections of the Torah. For this reason the book is called Mishna Torah or Deuteronomy which both mean "repetition of the law."

The book begins by sharing with the readers the time place and context of the work.

These are the words which Moses spoke to all Israel on this side of the Jordan in the wilderness, in the Arabah opposite the Red Sea, between Paran, and Tophel, and Laban, and Hazeroth, and Dizahab. There are eleven days' journey from Horeb by the way of mount Seir to Kadesh-Barnea. And it came to pass in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that Moses spoke to the people of Israel, according to all that the Lord had given him in commandment to them. After he had slain Sihon the king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, who lived at Ashtaroth in Edrei. On this side of the Jordan, in the land of Moab, began Moses to declare this Torah, saying. (Deut. 1:1-5)

The time is the 40th year. The place is the east side of the Jordan. The context is after the battles with Sichon and Og.

Moses begins to explain the Torah only after these battles have been completed. While the time and place seem clear, the significance of these particular battles seems obscure. The reference is to the battles which took place and are described in the Book of Numbers:

And they turned and went up by the way of Bashan; and Og the king of Bashan went out against them, he, and all his people, to the battle at Edrei. And the Lord said to Moses, "Fear him not; for I have delivered him into your hand, and all his people, and his land; and you shall do to him as you did to Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon." So they struck him, and his sons, and all his people, until none was left alive; and they possessed his land. (Numbers 21:33-35)

Moses is told not to be afraid, though it is unclear why here more than any other struggle or task, Moses would be filled with fear. This battle is taken up again in the Book of Deuteronomy:

Then we turned, and went up the way to Bashan; and Og the king of Bashan came out against us, he and all his people, to battle at Edrei. And the Lord said to me, "Fear him not; for I will deliver him, and all his people, and his land, into your hand; and you shall do to him as you did to Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived at Heshbon." So the Lord our God delivered into our hands Og also, the king of Bashan, and all his people; and we struck him until none was left remaining. (Deut. 3:1-3)

Again the theme of fear of Og is mentioned, and the description ends with what sounds like a song:¹

For only Og king of Bashan remained of the remnant of Refaim; behold, his bed was a bed of iron. Is it not in Rabbath of the sons of Ammon? Nine cubits was its length, and four cubits its breadth, according to the cubit of a man. (Deut. 3:11)

We see that the defeat of Og is the context which allows for the beginning of the book, and sets the stage for Moses teaching the Torah to the people. Additionally, we see that the battle with Og, more than other battles, was fraught with fear.

An analysis of Og from the Midrashic perspective will shed more light on this character.

LEGENDARY FIGURE

In Talmudic literature Og is a legendary figure possessing mythic proportions.²

It was taught by Abba Saul (or, as some say, Rabbi Johanan stated): "I was once a grave-digger. On one occasion, when pursuing a deer, I entered the thigh-bone of a corpse, and pursued it for three parasangs but did neither reach the deer nor the end of the thigh-bone. When I returned I was told that it was the thigh-bone of Og, King of Bashan." (Nidah 24b)

The stone which Og, king of Bashan wanted to throw at Israel. This has been handed down by tradition. He said: How large is the camp of Israel? Three parasangs. I will go and uproot a mountain of the size of three parasangs and cast it upon them and kill them. He went and uprooted a mountain of the size of three parasangs and carried it on his head. But the Holy One, blessed be He, sent ants which bored a hole in it, so that it sank around his neck. He tried to pull it off, but his teeth projected on each side, and he could not pull it off. (Brachot 54a)

Moses and Israel came to the borders of Edrei. Moses said unto them [Israel]: "Let us encamp here, and in the morning we will enter the city." As they were about to enter, [it was so dark] that nothing could as yet be seen. Moses lifted up his eyes and beheld Og sitting upon the wall with his feet touching the ground; Moses said [to himself], "I do not know what I see; these people must have built up an additional wall during the night." Whereupon God said to Moses: "Moses, what you see is Og."

Rabbi Johanan said: "The length of his feet was eighteen cubits. Thereupon Moses became frightened, but God said, 'Do not fear, because I will make him fall before you.'"(Midrash Rabbah - Deuteronomy 1:24)

This last source connects Og's incredible size with the fear which arguably possessed Moses. Apparently seeing a man the size of a mountain caused Moses to reconsider the wisdom of the battle.³

SPIRITUAL MERIT OF OG

Rashi⁴ cites a tradition which is found in both Talmud and Midrash which explains Moses's fear in a more spiritual manner. Moses was worried about the relative merit of Og which could potentially tip the scales in a struggle. At face value this concern seems strange, how can the merits of a heathen king be more impressive than those of Moses, the spiritual giant who brought the Torah down from heaven?

The Talmud explains that Og had some spiritual merit as well.

Consider: Sihon and Og were brothers, for a Master stated, "Sihon and Og were the sons of Ahijah the son of Shamhazai" Then why was it that he feared Og while he did not fear Sihon? Rabbi Johanan citing Rabbi Simeon ben Yohai replied: "From the answer that was given to that righteous man you may understand what was in his mind." He thought: "Peradventure the merit of our father Abraham will stand him by, for it is said, And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew." In connection with which Rabbi Johanan explained: "This refers to Og who escaped the fate of the generation of the flood." (Nidah 61a)

Og -- who stands between the people of Israel, and their quest, the Promised Land -- was, according to the Talmud, an acquaintance of Abraham. The passage in the Talmud is referring to the battle between kings when Lot, Abraham's nephew is captured. The merit of Og is for traveling over to Abraham and informing him of the capture of his nephew. This may be discerned in the words where the Torah tells us:

And there came one who had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew; for he lived in the plain of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshkol, and brother of Aner; and these were confederate with Abram. (Genesis 14:13)

There was one person who escaped, an anonymous refugee. Midrashic logic identifies this refugee with Og for we know that Og also escaped and was a refugee of sorts in the aftermath of the battle with Bashan:

For only Og king of Bashan remained of the remnant of Refaim; behold, his bed was a bed of iron. Is it not in Rabbath of the sons of Ammon? Nine cubits was its length, and four cubits its breadth, according to the cubit of a man. (Deut. 3:11)

What was the importance of Og's action? According to the Talmud, he informed Abraham that Lot was captured, and thereby saved Lot's life; therefore Og had merit in his current struggle with Moses.

OG'S MOTIVATION

This identification is expanded upon in the Midrash, where aside from a more compelling identification, a motivation on the part of Og is revealed:

There did not exist in the world a man of might more difficult to overcome than he; as may be inferred from the text, For only Og king of Bashan remained of the remnant of the Rephaim (Deut. 3:11). He had been the only survivor of the strong men whom Amraphel and his colleagues had slain; as may be inferred from the text, And smote the Rephaim in Ashteroth Karnaim (Gen. 14:5). And this man was the refuse among them, like the hard olives that escape being mashed. This may be inferred from the fact that it says, And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew -- now he dwelt by the terebinths of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol, and brother of Aner; and these were confederate with Abram (Gen. 25:13). This man that had escaped was Og, while our own text also describes him as a remnant; for it says, Of the remnant of the Rephaim. It was his intention that Abram should go out and be killed. The Holy One, blessed be He, gave him the reward that his feet had earned him, and he lived all those years, but He collected his debt from him in that he fell by the hand of Abraham's children. Moses, on coming to make war with him, was afraid. He thought: "I am a hundred and twenty years old while he is over five hundred. If it were not that he possessed some merit, he would not have lived all these years. Said the Holy One, blessed be He, to him: Fear him not; for I have delivered Him into Your Hand. (Midrash Rabbah - Numbers 19:32)

Moses sees the ancient Og as certainly possessing spiritual merit. If this were not the case, then his relative longevity would be incomprehensible. Moses assumes that this fearsome giant is spiritually protected due to his dedicated service rendered to Abraham. Why however did Og want Abraham dead? Another Midrash explains the desire behind the deed:

And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram, etc. (Genesis 14:13). Rabbi Simeon ben Lakish said in the name of Bar Kappara: "That was Og; and why was he called Og? Because he came and found Abraham sitting and engaged in the precept of [unleavened] cakes. He did not act from a pious motive, but he said to himself: 'This man Abraham is vindictive: I will apprise him that Lot is captured; then will he go out to battle and be slain, while I will take Sarah.' 'By your life!' said the Holy One, blessed be He, to him, 'you will receive reward for your journey by living a long time in the world. But because you did intend to slay that righteous man, you will see myriads of his descendants and will ultimately fall into the hands of his sons.'" (Midrash Rabbah - Genesis 42:8)

Og receives longevity as a reward for serving Abraham, even though his motivation is twisted. Moses, aware of the greatness of Abraham, fears Og and his merit.

SURPRISING IDENTIFICATION

There is a tradition in Midrash which makes an even more surprising identification. According to the Pirkei D'Rebbi Eliezer, (chapters 16 and 23) Og is none other than Abraham's most trusted servant; Eliezer!⁵ On the one hand this would explain the prodigious strength of Eliezer. When Abraham set out to liberate Lot the Torah tells us:

And there came one who had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew; for he lived in the plain of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshkol, and brother of Aner; and these were confederate with Abram. And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them to Dan. (Genesis 14:13-14)

The Talmud identifies these warriors:

Rab said, "He equipped them by [teaching them] the Torah." Samuel said, "He made them bright with gold [i.e., rewarded them for accompanying him] ... Rabbi Ammi ben Abba said: "Eliezer outweighed them all." Others say, it was Eliezer, for this is [318] the numerical value of his name. (Nidarim 32a)

If Eliezer is Og we can easily understand how one man could equal 318 warriors.

On the other hand, this identification is difficult because Eliezer is generally seen as being one of the righteous individuals who arguably entered Gan Eden without death or pain. To even suggest an association with Og seems demeaning. This objection was voiced by Rabenu Bachye, who suggested that perhaps there was more than one Og king of Bashan. Or perhaps the name is a title and not a given name, analogous to "Pharaoh king of Egypt."⁶

The Yalkut Shimoni, (Chaye Sara section 109), which also accepts this association (of Og and Eliezer), entertains a negative appraisal of Eliezer, who is falsely accused of deflowering Rivka during the trip home. As reward for the false accusation Eliezer is freed and becomes Og. According to an alternative teaching recorded in the Yalkut, after being falsely accused Eliezer enters Gan Eden alive.⁷

SURVIVOR OF THE FLOOD

The passage in the Talmud cited above refers to Og as a survivor of not only the battle but of the flood as well.

Rabbi Johanan explained: "This refers to Og who escaped the fate of the generation of the flood." (Nidah 61a)

This teaching is expanded in a second passage in the Talmud:

The people in the generation of the flood sinned with hot passion, and with hot water they were punished? [If so] how could the Ark travel [at all]? Moreover, how did Og king of Bashan stand? Rather, a miracle was performed, and it [the water] was cooled at the side of the Ark. (Talmud Zevachim 113b)

If one would have contemplated Og's survival from the flood, ostensibly credit would have been due to his impressive height. Yet the Talmud teaches that his height was insufficient, due to the temperature of the waters. The waters were boiling as a Divine quid pro quo as payment for the burning passion within man which led to the destruction. Therefore, one may assume that Og was innocent on that account, otherwise his survival would have been theologically difficult.

Therefore, the tradition that Og desired Sarah, or could be suspected regarding Rivka does not seem to easily fit with the tradition that Og survived the flood, unless Og underwent a negative metamorphosis. On the other hand, if Og was innocent then why was his survival dependant on his standing outside the Ark, why was he not invited inside.

According to the Zohar, Og is one of the souls that Abraham brought close to God. He had a circumcision performed on his body, indicating the ability to control sexual desires.

Og was one of those who clave to Abraham and were circumcised with him. Hence Moses was afraid that he would not be able to overcome the sign which Abraham had impressed upon him. Therefore, God said to him, "Do not fear him," as much as to say, "Do not fear that sign which is upon him, because he has impaired that sign of his, and whoever impairs his sign deserves to be annihilated." Therefore Israel destroyed him entirely, with his sons and all his people, as it is written: And they smote him and his sons and all his people. (Zohar, Numbers 3:184b)⁸

This profile is consistent with an individual who merited surviving the flood which resulted from sexual licentious activity. Perhaps Og desired Sarah but was more moral than his neighboring pagans, for he did not attempt to kill Abraham, he simply plotted, hoping that Abraham's morality would be his downfall. His attitude is not that "all is fair in love and war," rather, if Abraham dies at war, then Sarah becomes a legitimate object for his passion.

OG'S CIRCUMCISION

The acknowledgement that Og was an individual who knew how to control his passion as indicated by circumcision, may explain the importance of this episode stressed at this juncture. Circumcision is arguably an area where Moses is spiritually susceptible. This may be understood both due to the lack of circumcision of his son, and the community who was not circumcised during the years in the desert.

At that time the Lord said to Joshua, "Make sharp knives, and circumcise again the people of Israel a second time." And Joshua made him sharp knives, and circumcised the people of Israel at the hill of Aralot. And this is the cause why Joshua circumcised: All the people who came out of Egypt, who were males, all the men of war, died in the wilderness on the road, after they came out of Egypt. Now all the people who came out were circumcised; but all the people who were born in the wilderness on the road as they came forth out of Egypt, those were not circumcised. For the people of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, till all the people who were men of war, who came out of Egypt, were consumed, because they obeyed not the voice of the Lord; to whom the Lord swore that he would not show them the land, which the Lord swore to their fathers that he would give us, a land that flows with milk and honey. And their children, whom he raised up in their place, them Joshua circumcised; for they were uncircumcised, because they had not circumcised them on the road. And it came to pass, when they had finished circumcising all the people, that they stayed in their places in the camp, till they had recovered. (Joshua 5:2-8)

In order to enter the land the Jews need more merit than the nations standing in their path. If Og indeed is Eliezer, then the merit of his controlling his passion would serve as an obstacle, and therefore we understand Moses's fear. His control though was limited, and did not afford him absolute protection.

It is interesting that the individual in Judaism who is most strongly associated with the idea of controlling passion is Joseph. We recall that when the tribes of Reuben and Gad ask for land on the other side of the Jordan, Moses sends part of the tribe of Menashe to join them. The land of Sichon and Og was divided among them:

And Moses gave to them, to the sons of Gad, and to the sons of Reuben, and to half the tribe of Manasseh the son of Joseph, the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, the land, with its cities in the borders, even the cities of the country around (Numbers 32:33)

Of course Menashe is a descendant of Joseph. Significantly, when the land is divided, the portion of Og is given to Menashe:⁹

And Moses gave inheritance to half the tribe of Manasseh; and this was the possession of half the tribe of Manasseh by their families. And their border was from Mahanaim, all of Bashan, all the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, and all the towns of Jair, which are in Bashan, sixty cities. And half of Gilead, and Ashtaroth, and Edrei, cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan, belonged to the sons of Machir the son of Manasseh, to the one half of the sons of Machir by their families. (Joshua 13:29-31)

Now we can understand the threat of Og, he is a pretender to Torah and stands as a mighty obstacle preventing the Jews from meeting their destiny. The Book of Deuteronomy is the story of the final preparations taken before Moses takes leave and Joshua leads the people. The stature of Moses truly exceeds the ogre Og. Moses defeats Og, and Menashe takes possession of his land as the final chapters of the Torah wait to be written. Now with Og out of the way, Moses can teach the people his final lessons.

NOTES