Numbers 21:26 (LSB)

Passage

For Heshbon was the city of Sihon, king of the Amorites. Now it was he who had fought against the former king of Moab and had taken all his land out of his hand, as far as the Arnon.

Nearby Context

Numbers 21:24 Then Israel struck him with the edge of the sword and took possession of his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, as far as the sons of Ammon; for the border of the sons of Ammon was Jazer.

Numbers 21:25 And Israel took all these cities, and Israel lived in all the cities of the Amorites, in Heshbon, and in all her towns.

Numbers 21:26 For Heshbon was the city of Sihon, king of the Amorites. Now it was he who had fought against the former king of Moab and had taken all his land out of his hand, as far as the Arnon.

Numbers 21:27 Therefore those who use proverbs say, “Come to Heshbon! Let it be built! So let the city of Sihon be established.

Numbers 21:28 For a fire went forth from Heshbon, A flame from the town of Sihon; It devoured Ar of Moab, The dominant heights of the Arnon.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "heshbon", "city", "sihon", "king", "amorites", "fought", "against", and "former". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "heshbon" and "city", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 25's "And Israel took all these cities and..." into verse 27's "Therefore those who use proverbs say Come...", so "heshbon" and "city" belong inside that flow. In Numbers context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "heshbon" and "city" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.