South of Moab were the rugged and barren mountains of Seir, the seat of the kingdom of Edom.  In prehistoric days they had been the home of the Horites, whose name may denote that they were of the “white” Amorite race or that they were dwellers in “caves.”  To the Egyptians it was known as “the Red Land,” along with the desert that stretched westward; “Edom” is merely the Hebrew or Canaanitish translation of the Egyptian title.  The title was one which well befitted the red cliffs of Seir.

Through the centre of the mountains a rift extended from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Aqaba.  In geological times it had been the channel of the Jordan; now it is called the Wadi el-Araba.  It was this rift which brought wealth to Edom; through it passed the highroad of commerce which connected Syria with the harbours at the head of the gulf.  The spices of Arabia, the gold of Africa, were unshipped at Elath and Ezion-gaber, and carried from thence on the backs of camels to the nations of the north.  The tolls levied on the merchandise made the kingdom of Edom wealthy, and at the same time an object of envy to its poorer neighbours.  In conquering Edom, David doubtless desired to secure the trade with the Red Sea and the ports through which the trade passed.

Edom was the elder brother of Israel.  The two nations never forgot that they were of one blood and one parentage.  Their languages were the same, as we may gather from the Edomite proper names; indeed, it would seem that the dialect of Edom agreed with Hebrew in those Arabising peculiarities which marked it off from the language of the Canaanites.  Edomites took part in the Israelitish conquest of Palestine, and both Caleb and Othniel were Kenizzites by race.

The Edomite occupation of Seir was long subsequent to the settlement of the Ammonites and Moabites in the regions which bore their names, though it preceded the Israelitish settlement in Canaan.  While Israel was herding its flocks in Egypt, Edom was establishing itself in the mountains of Seir.  Esau, the brother of Jacob, had already gathered around him a body of followers, and had married into the family of a Horite chief.  His descendants, partly by conquest, partly by absorption, planted themselves securely in the country which was henceforth to be called Edom.  Horite and Amalekite Bedawin were alike absorbed into the new-comers, whose position in Edom resembled that of the Israelites in Canaan.

How long the work of conquest and settlement lasted we do not know.  It resulted in the formation of numerous tribes, each under its chieftain, the aluph or “duke” as he was termed.  These “dukes” corresponded with the “princes” of the tribes of Israel.  But whereas the “princes” of the Israelitish tribes did not survive the life in the desert, the “dukes” of Edom give way only to kings.  For this there was a good reason.  The invasion of Canaan and the promulgation of the Mosaic Law changed the whole organisation of the Hebrew