Joshua 11:4

“And they went out, etc.] The several kings and people sent to; these went out from the places they inhabited: they and all their hosts with them; the kings of those several places, with their armies: much people, even as the sand that [is] upon the seashore in multitude; a proverbial expression, to denote an exceeding great number: with horses and chariots very many; being supplied with horses from Egypt, and their chariots were chariots of iron; (see <070403>Judges 4:3); Josephus f22 gives us the number of this great army, and says it consisted of three hundred thousand footmen, ten thousand horse, and thirty thousand chariots; some copies read only twenty thousand; and these chariots were…”

“they went out, . . . as the sand that is upon the sea-shore in multitude--The chiefs of these several tribes were summoned by Jabin, being all probably tributary to the kingdom of Hazor. Their combined forces, according to JOSEPHUS, amounted to three hundred thousand infantry, ten thousand cavalry, and twenty thousand war chariots. with horses and chariots very many--The war chariots were probably like those of Egypt, made of wood, but nailed and tipped with iron. These appear for the first time in the Canaanite war, to aid this last determined struggle against the invaders; and "it was the use of these which seems to have fixed the place of rendezvous by the lake Merom (now Huleh), along…”

“11:4 In the ancient Near East at this time, horses only pulled chariots; cavalry and mounted bowmen did not appear until centuries later. • Israel probably faced chariots for the first time in this battle against the northern coalition, where the land was flatter than in southern Canaan. As the heavy weapons of the battlefield, chariots easily overpowered foot soldiers. Scythes were often attached to the axles, and charioteers drove at opposing infantry to mow them down.”

“as the sand: Gen 22:17, Gen 32:12; Jdg 7:12; Sa1 13:5; Sa2 17:11; Kg1 4:20 Joshua 11:5”