Aroer: for its location see map, page xii.

The valley of the Arnon: see verse 24.

And from the city that is in the valley: New Revised Standard Version places this within parentheses: “(including the town that is in the wadi itself)” (see Good News Translation). The identity of this town has not been established.

Gilead is the northern region of the territory on the east side of the Jordan River. So we may say “all the way north to the region of Gilead.”

A city too high for us: that is, a fortified city (or, town) whose walls were too high and strong for the Israelites to break through. See in 1.28 the fear of the Israelites that those fortified towns could not be conquered.

Gave all into our hands: it was Yahweh who made it possible for the Israelites to defeat King Sihon and his people.

The reading into our hands follows the Samaritan Pentateuch and the Septuagint (alsoVulgate “to us”); the Hebrew has “[gave all] before us,” which Hebrew Old Testament Text Project prefers (an {A} decision). In a translation which is concerned about meaning, there is no great difference between the two, since “before us” simply reinforces all, and the indirect object “us” is understood. So a translator may feel free to follow Revised Standard Version, or New Revised Standard Version “gave everything to us,” or “let us capture every town.”

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 .