by Carl Haag (1820-1915)
The oracle concerning Arabia. In the thickets in Arabia you will lodge, O caravans of Dedanites. 14 To the thirsty bring water, meet the fugitive with bread, O inhabitants of the land of Tema. 15 For they have fled from the swords, from the drawn sword, from the bent bow, and from the press of battle. 16 For thus the Lord said to me, “Within a year, according to the years of a hireling, all the glory of Kedar will come to an end; 17 and the remainder of the archers of the mighty men of the sons of Kedar will be few; for the LORD, the God of Israel, has spoken.”
Commentaries on this passage tend to use a great deal of tentative language — “probably,” “maybe,” and “might” — because the specific historical fulfillment is not certain.
There are two different peoples called Dedan in the Bible.
Genesis 10 is often refered to as the Table of Nations, where the origins of nations after the Flood are listed as descending from Noah’s three sons.
- Dedan, son of Raamah [Gen. 10:7]. This Dedan is from the line of Cush, who was a son of Ham. A people from Africa. Dedan, son of Jokshan [1 Chron. 1:32; cf. Gen. 25:1-3]. This Dedan is from the line of Abraham through his wife Keturah, and is listed among the sons of Jokshan.
The sons of Abraham by Keturah settled in the region that is now northern Arabia, including areas of modern northern Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Because this oracle is addressed to Arabia, most commentators favor the second Dedan — the descendant of Abraham through Keturah — as the one intended here.
In this passage, Tema is also named. Tema was a son of Ishmael, the son of Abraham and Hagar, and it is also the name of an oasis town in northern Arabia [in modern northwestern Saudi Arabia].
Kedar is also a son of Ishmael [Gen. 25:13]. In later Islamic genealogical tradition, Muhammad is considered to be a descendant of Kedar. The 12th-century Jewish philosopher Maimonides (the Rambam), in his Epistle to Yemen (Iggeret Teiman), wrote critically of Muhammad’s lineage and claims, reflecting the polemical context of that period.
There is some disagreement as to the fulfillment of this passage. Some feel that it was fulfilled shortly after it was written. That it is about a small war or attack on a caravan that sought refuge and water at Tema.
Some scholars understand it as having been fulfilled shortly after it was written, describing a localized conflict in which caravans were attacked and sought refuge and water at the oasis of Tema.
Others view it as having a future fulfillment, involving a conflict in northern Arabia. Because Islamic tradition traces its lineage to Kedar, some commentators have interpreted the statement “all the glory of Kedar will come to an end” as pointing to a future collapse of that lineage’s power. Those who hold this view note that no decisive battle is described — the glory of Kedar flees — and compare it to Daniel 8:25, which says of a future figure that he “shall be broken — but by no human hand.”
See Also: The Tents of Kedar