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  • From: Chris Watts <dekruidnootjes AT eircom.net>
  • To: K Randolph <kwrandolph AT gmail.com>
  • Cc: B-Hebrew <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Amalek's attacks before the big battle of Ex 17:8?
  • Date: Thu, 11 Jul 2013 18:36:25 +0100

This question really began because of the use of the word: בדרך twice here, which catches my attention mostly because it does not say, when he met you at Rephidim, now I accept that this is still Rephidim, but I also accept that words are not chosen haphazzardly in scripture, they are very precise and that this phrase: "he met you along the way" might just have been a complimentary addition to the story in that Amalek was already attacking perhaps for a day or two before the battle in Exodus. Deut clearly states that the Amalekites attacked the rear, the tail end, the stragglers, because in exodus the account is clear that Amalek attacked first, and Moshe did not attack immediately for it says: Tomorrow..(we will fight) before organising his counter attack. So I suppose then, not to make too huge a fuss, Amalek must have been nit-picking in guerilla like tactics trying to avoid a full scale onslaught simply to steal and to plunder from civilians as opposed to the "honourable" thing of attacking fighting men on a field, while the Israelites were encamped over a vast distance at Rephidim. And Joshua organised the tactics to sort him out the next day.

Chris Watts
Ireland



On 11 Jul 2013, at 16:56, K Randolph wrote:

Chris:

This is a linguistic answer.

The reason people were lagging was because they were thirsty and tired, so
didn’t have the strength to fight back. In fact, the complaints to Moses
about the lack of water could very well have been made even before all the
stragglers got to the camp.

The language of Deuteronomy doesn’t insist that the attacks of the
Amalekites happened before the main body of people had already reached
Rephidim. The phrase “on the road” includes the time encamped.

Karl W. Randolph.




On Thu, Jul 11, 2013 at 3:57 AM, Chris Watts <dekruidnootjes AT eircom.net>wrote:

To begin with just a brief question, we're all familiar with the
battle in Ex 17:8. But in Deut 25:17 we note that Amalek was picking
the Israelites off at the rear, the weakest, those that were lagging
behind. What I am curious about is this must have been happening
before the major battle where Moshe organised His major assault while
at Rephidim. Is this true? The only snag here is that the
Israelites were complaining about a lack of water, if the Amalekites
were already doing there hit and runs a few miles down the road on
theose that were at the back of the long march then the Israelites
would have told Moshe and they would have complained about this as
well. So this is my question mark, the idea that the Amalekites
continued to haunt the Israelites after that major battle does not,
at this moment, seem plausible.

Chris Watts
Ireland



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