Deuteronomy 17:16

Only Heb. raḳ, see on Deuteronomy 10:15.

he shall not multiply horses, etc.] On the horse in Israel, see Jerusalemi. 324 f. Horses came from N. to S. in W. Asia, probably from Asia Minor. Brought into Egypt by the Hyksos after 1800 b.c. they were never very common there, but the breed was excellent. (W. M. Müller, E.B.-Egypt," § 9.) By 1600 b.c. they were used in Palestine. Solomon seems to have introduced them into Israel; and they and the chariots for which they were first employed became symbolic of the strength of the N. Kingdom (2 Kings 2:12; 2 Kings 13:14). The prophets mention horses nearly always with war and foreign subsidies, in which the people were tempted to trust instead of in God. See Amos 4:10; Hosea 1:7; Hosea 14:3; Isaiah 2:7; Isaiah 31:1; Isaiah 31:3; Ezekiel 17:15, of which the last three passages and probably also (because of the parallel) Hosea 14:3, identify them with Israel's irreligious confidence in an Egyptian alliance. Hence the clause nor cause the people to return to Egypt. This does not mean that individual Hebrews were bartered for Egyptian horses (Steuern.). Like the prophets D is hostile to an Egyptian alliance, of which the clearest token would be subsidies of horses.

the Lord hath said, etc.] Not found in Exod. Numb. -It is probable that as in other cases (cf. on Deuteronomy 1:22; Deuteronomy 10:1-3; Deuteronomy 10:9; Deuteronomy 17:2) the actual words were still read in some part of the narrative of JE, extant at the time when Deut. was composed" (Driver).