20:22 When they began to shout and praise, the Lord suddenly attacked 1 the Ammonites, Moabites, and men from Mount Seir 2 who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. 20:23 The Ammonites and Moabites attacked the men from Mount Seir 3 and annihilated them. 4 When they had finished off the men 5 of Seir, they attacked and destroyed one another. 6
1 tn Heb “set ambushers against.” This is probably idiomatic here for launching a surprise attack.
2 tn Heb “the sons of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir.”
3 tn Heb “the sons of Ammon and Moab stood against the residents of Mount Seir.”
4 tn Heb “to annihilate and to destroy.”
5 tn Heb “residents.”
6 tn Heb “they helped, each one his fellow, for destruction.” The verb עָזַר (’azar), traditionally understood as the well-attested verb meaning “to help,” is an odd fit in this context. It is possible that it is from a homonymic root, perhaps meaning to “attack.” This root is attested in Ugaritic in a nominal form meaning “young man, warrior, hero.” For a discussion of the proposed root, see HALOT 811 s.v. II עזר.