Numbers 21:31 (KJV)

Passage

Thus Israel dwelt in the land of the Amorites.

Nearby Context

Numbers 21:29 Woe to thee, Moab! thou art undone, O people of Chemosh: he hath given his sons that escaped, and his daughters, into captivity unto Sihon king of the Amorites.

Numbers 21:30 We have shot at them; Heshbon is perished even unto Dibon, and we have laid them waste even unto Nophah, which reacheth unto Medeba.

Numbers 21:31 Thus Israel dwelt in the land of the Amorites.

Numbers 21:32 And Moses sent to spy out Jaazer, and they took the villages thereof, and drove out the Amorites that were there.

Numbers 21:33 And they turned and went up by the way of Bashan: and Og the king of Bashan went out against them, he, and all his people, to the battle at Edrei.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "thus", "israel", "dwelt", "land", and "amorites". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "thus" and "israel", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 30's "We have shot at them Heshbon is..." into verse 32's "And Moses sent to spy out Jaazer...", so "thus" and "israel" 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 "thus" and "israel" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.