Numbers 13:21

“So they went up and searched the land, etc.] Went up the mountains as they were directed, and passed through the whole land; diligently inquired into everything material belonging to it, according to their instructions, and made their observations on it, and on the inhabitants, and their habitations: from the wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, as men come to Hamath; this wilderness, from whence they went, seems to be the same with the wilderness of Paran, called Zin; perhaps from the multitude of thorns in it; but different from the wilderness of Sin, (<021601>Exodus 16:1), which was nearer Egypt; but this was on the south quarter of the land of Canaan, along by the coast of Edom,…”

“So they . . . searched the land--They advanced from south to north, reconnoitering the whole land. the wilderness of Zin--a long level plain, or deep valley of sand, the monotony of which is relieved by a few tamarisk and rethem trees. Under the names of El Ghor and El Araba, it forms the continuation of the Jordan valley, extending from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Akaba. Rehob--or, Beth-rehob, was a city and district situated, according to some, eastward of Sidon; and, according to others, it is the same as El Hule, an extensive and fertile champaign country, at the foot of Anti-libanus, a few leagues below Paneas. as men come to Hamath--or, "the entering in of Hamath" (Kg2 14:25), now the…”

“The wilderness of Zin was the northeastern portion of the wilderness of Paran. Rehob (“mod.” Khurbeh) was probably the Beth-rehob of Judges 18:28, near Dan-Laish; and apparently to the north of it, since it gave its name to a Syrian kingdom 2 Samuel 8:3. The southern approach to Hamath from the plain of Coele-Syria, lay between those two ranges of Lebanon called Libanus and Antilibanus. A low screen of hills connects the northernmost points of these two ranges; and through this screen the Orontes bursts from the upper Coele-Syrian hollow into the open plain of Hamath. return to 'Top of Page'”

“Zin - In the south of Canaan, differing from the wilderness of Sin, which was nigh unto Egypt. To Hamath - From the south they passed through the whole land to the northern parts of it; Rehob was a city in the north - west part, Hamath, a city in the north - east. Numbers 13:22”

“13:21-24 The spies explored the land, which was unusually fertile in contrast with the Sinai wilderness. 13:21 It was about 275 miles from the wilderness of Zin, located roughly between the wilderness of Paran and the southern frontier of Canaan (see 34:3-5; Josh 15:1-4), to Lebo-hamath (“entrance of Hamath,” either a notable mountain pass or another city near Hamath) in Syria. • The exact location of Rehob is uncertain, but it was probably the same as Old Testament Beth-rehob, situated near a major route to Hamath. The text thus already identifies the approximate borders of the Promised Land (see 1 Kgs 8:65). The phrase “from Dan to Beersheba” (Judg 20:1; 2 Sam 3:10), frequently used to…”

“from the wilderness of Zin: The wilderness of Zin, is different from that called Sin ( Exo 16:1). The latter was near Egypt, but the former was near Kadesh Barnea, not far from the borders of Canaan. It seems to be the valley mentioned by Burckhardt; which, under the names of El Ghor and El Araba, form a continuation of the valley of the Jordan, extending from the Dead sea to the eastern branch of the Red sea. The whole plain presents to the view an appearance of shifting sands, whose surface is broken by innumerable undulations and low hills. A few talk, tamarisk, and rethem trees grow among the sand hills; but the depth of sand precludes all vegetation of herbage. Num 20:1, Num 27:14, Num…”

“Journey of the Spies; Their Return, and Report. - Num 13:21. In accordance with the instructions they had received, the men who had been sent out passed through the land, from the desert of Zin to Rehob, in the neighbourhood of Hamath, i.e., in its entire extent from south to north. The "Desert of Zin" (which occurs not only here, but in Num 20:1; Num 27:14; Num 33:36; Num 34:3-4; Deu 32:51, and Jos 15:1, Jos 15:3) was the name given to the northern edge of the great desert of Paran, viz., the broad ravine of Wady Murreh, which separates the lofty and precipitous northern border of the table-land of the Azazimeh from the southern border of the Rakhma plateau, i.e., of the southernmost…”