march would amount to about twenty-two kilometers. That is the distance covered in one day by the caravans with merchandise and by the migrating tribes during a lengthy journey.
From Ḳadeš, Moses (Num., 20: 14) sent messengers to the king of Edom, who were to tell him (Num., 20: 16 f.): “Behold, we are in Ḳadeš, a city in the uttermost of thy border. Let us pass, I pray thee, through thy country We will go by the king’s highway . . . until we have passed thy borders.” When he refused, the messengers said: “We will go by the highway: and if I and my cattle drink of thy water, then I will pay for it” (Num., 20: 19). But the king of Edom would not let them pass and threatened them with violence.—
According to this account, Ḳadeš was a city on the borders of Edom, from which it was easy to reach the royal highway passing through the land of Edom from south to north. This tallies with the vicinity of Petra, which is at the western slope of the Seʻîr range and thus on the western border of Edom. Through Petra leads a convenient transport route from south to north, and by way of the an-Namala pass there is another route to the west and northwest. This pass was and still is connected by means of the ancient transport route with the settlement of Maʻân, situated on the great trade route from southwestern Arabia northward to Phoenicia and Damascus. The connecting road crossed and still crosses near the ruins of al-Basta (seventeen kilometers southeast of Petra; see Musil, op. cit.) the royal highroad leading from the ruins of Ab-al-Lesel near Naḳb aš-Štâr via aṣ-Ṣadaḳa and at-Twâne northward. It was upon this road that the Israelites wished to proceed on their march. (See below, p. 271.)
Leaving Ḳadeš, they encamped near Mount Hor, where Aaron died and was buried, whereupon (Num., 21: 4) they went along the road to the Red Sea (Sea of Reeds) so as to pass around the land of Edom.—
The Sea of Reeds here designates the Gulf of al-ʻAḳaba. The Israelites, being unable to penetrate to the northwest into the Amorite mountains and not having obtained permission from the king of Edom to pass through his country on the royal highroad to the northeast, turned to the south, skirting around the western foot of the range of Seʻîr (Deut., 2: 1) for a long time, until finally (Deut., 2: 4) Jehovah ordered them to proceed in a northerly direction through the land of the sons of Esau dwelling in Seʻîr. Accordingly they passed through the land of the sons of Esau (Deut., 2: 8) along the highroad of ʻAraba, leading from Elath and ʻEṣjôngeber.
The Israelites thus journeyed along the western border of Seʻîr and the northern part of the region of Ḥesma. The whole of the latter region belonged to the Madianites. From Ḥesma they followed the road leading from the harbors of Elath and ʻEṣjôngeber to the north-northeast, ascended the Seʻîr range by Naḳb aš-Štâr, passed over its southwestern corner, and reached at Maʻân the above-mentioned great transport route from southwestern Arabia. Here they branched off (Deut., 2: 8) due north and made their way along the eastern border of Têmân to the wilderness of Moab, whereupon they crossed the brook of Zâred. According to Deuteronomy, 2: 14, it took them thirty-eight years to reach the stream Zâred from Ḳadeš Barneʻa. (See below, p. 272.)
We identify Mount Hor, where Aaron died and was buried, with Mount Hârûn to the south of Petra (see Musil, Umgebungskarte von