ruins of al-Ḥomejma. We must therefore seek Ḳadeš in the neighborhood of Petra. From there could be seen the mountain of the Amorites and the Promised Land, a circumstance which explains why the spies were sent out to report as to the manner in which the Israelites could obtain possession of the latter. (See above, pp. 263—264.)
From Pârân (i. e. Ḳadeš) the warriors departed to conquer the land, against the will of Moses (Num., 14: 44).
According to Numbers, 21: 1, the king of Arad learnt that the Israelites were approaching on the road ha-Atarîm and marched against them. I consider ha-Atarîm to be an incorrect transcription of ha-Amorîm, the road of the Amorites (Deut., 1: 19). The king of Arad allied himself with the Canaanites and Amalekites, defeated the Israelites, and scattered them as far as Ḥorma.
Numbers, 20: 1, records that the Israelites came to the wilderness of Ṣin and encamped at Ḳadeš, where Miriam died.—From this it follows that Ḳadeš must be located on the border of the wildernesses of Pârân and Ṣin. If the headquarters of the Israelites with the sanctuary continued to be at Ḳadeš, the remainder could encamp round about, especially to the west and northwest of Ḳadeš in al-ʻAraba, the northern half of which bordered on the wilderness of Ṣin and perhaps even formed part of it.
Having ascertained that they could not enter the Promised Land in a northwesterly direction because both the Amalekites and the Canaanites were making preparations against them there, the Israelites wished to penetrate north of the Dead Sea. They therefore sent messengers to the king of Edom (Num., 20: 16), asking him to let them march through his land from Ḳadeš, a city on the frontiers of Edom, along the “king’s highway” (Num., 20: 17) or along “the highway” (Num., 20: 19).—From this it may be inferred that Ḳadeš was situated at the junction of important transport routes, or that at least it was possible from there easily to reach the king’s highway which led through the land of Edom northward.
The king’s highway doubtless might have been the name only of that route which passed through the cultivated territory and was convenient, suitable for transit, and artificially constructed. There is only one such road in Seʻîr. It begins at Mount Seʻîr just north of the pass Naḳb aš-Štâr by the ruins of Aba-l-Lesel and leads past the settlements of aṣ-Ṣadaḳa and at-Twâne through the cultivated territory northwards. By the ruins of al-Basṭa two branch roads divide off from it. One leads eastward to the settlement of Maʻân, and the second westward to the ruins of Wâdi Mûsa (Petra), where it joins the road described immediately above (p. 270), which leads to Mount Seʻîr or to the mountain of the Amorites. I identify the road leading from Ab-al-Lesel via aṣ-Ṣadaḳa to at-Twâne with the king’s highway, upon which the Israelites wished to branch off from Ḳadeš. The king of Edom did not permit them to do so, because he was afraid that they might settle in his country. He knew that they were on a warlike expedition and that they were seeking new settlements. Thus, having the hostile Amalekites and Amorites to the northwest, they did not wish to arouse the hostility of the Edomites as well, and consequently they changed their intention and passed round Mount Seʻîr.
Having left Ḳadeš (Num., 20: 22), they reached Mount Hor on the border of Edom, where Aaron died and was buried.—I identify this Mount