Numbers 32:42

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Numbers 32:42 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And Nobah went and took Kenath, and the villages thereof, and called it Nobah, after his own name.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And Nobah went and took Kenath, and the villages thereof, and called it Nobah, after his own name.
Numbers 32:42 — American Standard Version

Context — Numbers 32

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
42And Nobah went and took Kenath, and the villages thereof, and called it Nobah, after his own name.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“And Nobah went and took Kenath, and the villages thereof, etc.] Who this Nobah was is not certain, very probably a descendant of Manasseh; it is said f472 he was among those that were born in Egypt, and died after the death of Moses, and was buried beyond Jordan, as it is said, also did Machir and Jair, so that there were none left but Caleb, and Joshua: and called it Nobah, after his name; but it seems that in later times its ancient name was restored to it; for Jerom f473, says there was a village in Arabia, called Cannatha, which is supposed to be this place; though he also tells us f474, that eight miles from Heshbon; to the south, is shown a desert place called Naba. Pliny f475 places…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Nobah--also a distinguished person connected with the eastern branch of the tribe of Manasseh. Next: Numbers Chapter 33”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Kenath - Now Kenawat, an important site near the southern extremity of the tract el-Lejah, and on the western slopes of the mountains of the Hauran. The name given to it by its conqueror, as in other cases, fell ere long into disuse, and the old name has held its ground to this day. The notices, both Scriptural and traditional, of the conquest of northeastern Gilead and Bashan by the Machirites, plainly intimate that it was effected by a few chiefs of great military prowess, who overran rapidly a far larger district than they could colonize. The father of Jair, however, Segub, was of the tribe of Judah (compare Numbers 27:1, and note; 1 Chronicles 2:21-22), and it is likely that the…”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“Nobah - Who, though not else where named, was doubtless an eminent person of the tribe of Manasseh. 'Tis observable, that these tribes, as they were placed before the other tribes, so they were displaced before them. They were carried captive by the king of Assyria, some years before the other tribes. Such a proportion does providence frequently observe, in balancing prosperity and adversity. Next: Numbers Chapter 33”
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Keil & Delitzsch
C. F. Keil & F. Delitzsch · Commentary on the Old Testament · 19th-century historical commentary
“Nobah, whose family is never referred to, but who probably belonged, like Jair, to one of the families of Machirites, took the town of Kenath and its daughters, i.e., the smaller towns dependent upon it (see Num 21:25), and gave it his own name Nobah. The name has not been preserved, and is not to be sought, as Kurtz supposes, in the village of Nowa (Newe), in Jotan, which is mentioned by Burckhardt (p. 443), and was once a town of half an hour's journey in circumference. For Kenath, which is only mentioned again in Ch1 2:23 as having been taken from the Israelites by Gesur and Aram, is Κάναθα, which Josephus (de bell. Jud. i. 19, 2), and Ptolemy speak of as belonging to Coelesyria, and…”
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Sources and verification