Deuteronomy 3:11

3:11 Only King Og of Bashan was left of the remaining Rephaites. (It is noteworthy¹ that his sarcophagus² was made of iron.³ Does it not, indeed, still remain in Rabbath⁴ of the Ammonites? It is thirteen and a half feet⁵ long and six feet⁶ wide according to standard measure.)⁷

Deuteronomy 3:13

3:13 The rest of Gilead and all of Bashan, the kingdom of Og, I gave to half the tribe of Manasseh.⁸ (All the region of Argob,⁹ that is, all Bashan, is called the land of Rephaim.

¹tn Heb “Behold” (הִנֵּה, hinneh).

²tn The Hebrew term עֶרֶשׂ (’eres), traditionally translated “bed” (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT) is likely a basaltic (volcanic) stone sarcophagus of suitable size to contain the coffin of the giant Rephaite king. Its iron-like color and texture caused it to be described as an iron container. See A. Millard, “King Og’s Iron Bed: Fact or Fancy?” BR 6 (1990): 16-21, 44; cf. also NEB “his sarcophagus of basalt”; TEV, CEV “his coffin.”

³tn Or “of iron-colored basalt.” See note on the word “sarcophagus” earlier in this verse.

⁴sn Rabbath. This place name (usually occurring as Rabbah; 2 Sam 11:11; 12:27; Jer 49:3) refers to the ancient capital of the Ammonite kingdom, now the modern city of Amman, Jordan. The word means “great [one],” probably because of its political importance. The fact that the sarcophagus “still remain[ed]” there suggests this part of the verse is post-Mosaic, having been added as a matter of explanation for the existence of the artifact and also to verify the claim as to its size.

⁵tn Heb “nine cubits.” Assuming a length of 18 in (45 cm) for the standard cubit, this would be 13.5 ft (4.1 m) long.

⁶tn Heb “four cubits.” This would be 6 ft (1.8 m) wide.

⁷tn Heb “by the cubit of man.” This probably refers to the “short” or “regular” cubit of approximately 18 in (45 cm).

⁸sn Half the tribe of Manasseh. The tribe of Manasseh split into clans, with half opting to settle in Bashan and the other half in Canaan (cf. Num 32:39-42; Josh 17:1-13).

⁹sn Argob. See note on this term in v. 4.