The Amorites who lived in that hill country: the name Amorites stands here as a general term for the inhabitants of the land of Canaan; in Num 14.43, 45 these people are identified as Amalekites and Canaanites. See also 1.4, 7.

Came out against you and chased you as bees do: this figure is used also in Psa 118.12; Isa 7.18. It portrays not only the speed of the attack but also its persistence and fury; once bees start after someone, they do not turn back. Came out against you means “attacked you.” Bees are found in most areas of the world. However, in a culture where bees are unknown, we may say, for example, “flying insects that sting” or “stinging insects that fly.” The stress here is not on the type of insect, but on its speed and viciousness, and also its ability to attack in swarms.

Beat you down in Seir as far as Hormah: the verb means to strike, hit, or beat, and consequently to defeat, destroy, and even kill. The geographical note is oddly stated in Revised Standard Version and will not be understood by readers who cannot identify Seir or Hormah. Seir is Edom, the region occupied by the descendants of Esau, and Hormah is a city southeast of Beersheba. The meaning is that the Amorites chased the Israelites into Edom, and at the town of Hormah they defeated them.

An alternative translation model for the final part of the verse may be:

• They chased your soldiers [or, fighting men] into the land of Edom and defeated them at the city of Hormah.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .