Two and a Half Tribes

This week we learned about the request of the two and a half tribes to settle on the east side of the Jordan River. They told Moshe that they needed that area for their cattle, as it was excellent land for grazing.

Moshe was very displeased with the request for two main reasons. The first was that the way the request was presented sounded like these two and a half tribes cared more about their cattle than their children. Cattle is another way of saying, their material possessions. Moshe wanted them to understand that the welfare of their children was far more important than material gains.

Moshe’s second concern was that such a request could demoralize the people. He reminded the tribes how badly the morale of the people was damaged by the evil report of the spies.

Moshe’s first response was one of disbelief. He asked, האחיכם יבואו למלחמה ואתם תשבו, “Shall your brothers go to battle, and you will stay here?” He could not conceive of the possibility that these tribes would allow other Jews to fight their battle.

A deal was made that they would fight to help conquer the land, and then they would settle on the other side of the Jordan. Later, in Joshua’s time they were praised for keeping their promise in helping with the numerous battles.