Camp Acacia in Jordan

And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying,“Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” Joshua 2:1a

Acacia tree in the Negev

Throughout the book of Deuteronomy and the first two chapters of Joshua, the Israeli nation is camped to the east of the Jordan river at a place called Shittim. According to one website, this Hebrew word is best translated as The Acacias, probably because there was a grove of acacia trees.

While we may imagine a quaint picture of a few Bedouins resting beneath the shade of a small tree, the reality was probably much different.

Exactly how many people crossed the Jordan into Canaan is not clear. There are a variety of explanations for calculating the total number with quantities ranging from 100,000 to a couple million.

Our desire for a fixed number will always be wanting, as God promised Abraham that his decedents would be as "numerous as the stars of the sky" (Genesis 26:4). But in Numbers 26:51 we have the results of a census taken just prior to entering the promised land. The total of 601,730 does not include every member in the camp but does give us a starting point.

Comparison of camp site area at Tel el-Hammam

According to the UN Refugee camp planning standards, a minimum acceptable range of space is 35 square meters per person. These standards also include several interesting things not explicitly mentioned in scripture, such as fire safety, drainage, latrines, rubbish, food storage, etc.

So doing the math, a population of 601,730 living on 35 square meters of land per person, would cover an area of 21,060,550 square meters or approximately 8.13 square miles. Their camp site would stretch over three miles across and have a ten mile perimeter. By comparison, the Indianapolis downtown covers 6.5 square miles and has a population of 29,000.

Challenges

• Walk three miles, the same distance from one side of camp to the other.
• Walk ten miles, the same distance around the perimeter of camp.
• Use Google Maps to compare eight square miles to your town.
• Decide how many people were in the camp of Israel according to your own research and calculate the comparable size of the camp.
• Research more about the effects of modern refugee camps on the land and environment.

References:

https://www.bible-history.com/geography/ancient-israel/ot/abel_shittim.html
https://sharedveracity.net/2016/10/15/did-an-army-of-600000-israelites-conquer-the-land-of-canaan/
https://emergency.unhcr.org/entry/248797/camp-planning-standards-planned-settlements
http://www.academia.edu/9733189/The_Geography_and_History_of_Tall_el-Hammam

Moses Ascends Mount Nebo

Bible Passage: Deuteronomy 34

Walking Distance: 17.6 miles

Key Questions:

• How often did Moses climb this mountain?
• How far into the Promised Land was Moses able to see?
• Who climbed the mountain with Moses?
• What happened to Moses' body?

 

Lookout Mountain

Photo by Jeff Nesanelis from Flickr

At the end of the Pentateuch, Moses is allowed the opportunity to see the Promised land with his own eyes, but he is not allowed to enter. And so he climbs a nearby hill and despite his age, his excellent eyesight allows him to see miles away.

The first location mentioned are the Plains of Moab. Later in Joshua 2:1, we learn that the Israel camp was located at the Acacia Grove. Other translations give the name of Shittim.

The location that Moses traveled to was Mount Nebo on top of Pisgah. This has often been recognized as the location where the law was written down and given to the people (Deuteronomy 31:9). Starting below sea level, the climb is almost 1000 feet up. The first half is more flat and Moses probably passed through the Israelite camp on his approach to the mountain.

I have not found many clear photos of the view from the top, though one sign describes being able to see Bethlehem and the Mount of Olives. It's interesting to think how different the weather and ecology was nearly 3000 years ago. There is an amazing mosaic on the floor of the ruins depicting animals not usually found in the area today.

Law and Death

John Calvin states in Institutes of Christian Religion the following:

The doctrine of the Law transcending our capacity, a man may indeed look from a distance at the promises held forth, but he cannot derive any benefit from them. The only thing, therefore, remaining for him is, from their excellence to form a better estimate of his own misery, while he considers that the hope of salvation is cut off, and he is threatened with certain death.

This section follows closely on Calvin's description of Moses "promulgating the law" and the consequences of keeping or breaking it. Taken as a whole, the picture of the law giver Moses being denied entry into the promise land is a striking picture of our position before God apart from Christ.

References

• Mount Nebo Memorial of Moses
• Abel-Shittim on Wikipedia
• Sign explaining Mountain Views
• https://www.roadunraveled.com/blog/mount-nebo-petra-jordan/ 
• Institutes of Christian Religion by John Calvin