Wikipedia's first sentence called it “one of several books referenced in the hebrew bible of which no copies are known to exist”. Today it says “one of the non-canonical books referenced in the bible that have been lost”. The one-line description Wikipedia serves to search engines and AI systems read “Lost book mentioned in Numbers 21:14–15”. It now reads “Lost book mentioned in Numbers 21:13–14”.
Measured, not asserted. Every count, date and revision on this page was taken from Wikipedia's own history and checked against the live article. The words quoted are theirs.
Machine-checked against the full current article on 2026-08-03.
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The opening as it read in 2005
Book of The Wars of The Lord is one of several books referenced in the Hebrew Bible of which no copies are known to exist.1It is mentioned in Numbers 21:14-15.2Verses 13-15: They set out from there and camped alongside the Arnon, which is in the desert extending into Amorite territory. The Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites.3 That is why the Book of the Wars of the LORD says: ". . . Waheb in Suphah and the ravines, the Arnon and the slopes of the ravines that lead to the site of Ar and lie along the border of Moab." Emphasis added.4
This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 17227453.
The opening as it stood in 2010 3 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
The Book of the Wars of the Lord is one of several non-canonical books referenced in the Bible which have now been completely lost .It is mentioned in Numbers 21:14–15 , which reads: "From there they set out and camped on the other side of the Arnon , which is in the desert and bounding the Amorite territory. That is why the Book of the Wars of the Lord says: '... Waheb in Suphah and the ravines of Arnon, and at the stream of the ravines that lead to the dwelling of Ar, which lies along the border of Moab.'" Amongst academics , it is generally thought to be a collection of victory songs or poems , although some readers have suggested it may be a prose military history .It has been suggested by the theologian Joseph Barber Lightfoot that the book was one and the same as the mysterious biblical Book of Jasher .The Book of the Wars of the Lord is cited in the mediaeval Parry, J.Translated by Moses, Samuel. as being a collaborative record written by Moses , Joshua , and the children of Israel .However, there is also much internal evidence that there were other books written.Consider the following verses," after which the author cites as examples of lost books Exodus 17:14 (words written in remembrance of the destruction of Amalek), Exodus 24:7 ( Book of the Covenant ), Numbers 11:26 (recorded ones), Numbers 21:14 ( Book of the Wars of the Lord ), and Numbers 33:2 (Journeys).
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 369378804.
The opening as it stood in 2015
The Book of the Wars of the Lord ( סֵפֶר מִלְחֲמֹת יהוה ) is one of several non-canonical books referenced in the Bible which have now been completely lost . It is mentioned in Numbers 21:14–15 , which reads: "From there they set out and camped on the other side of the Arnon , which is in the desert and bounding the Amorite territory. That is why the Book of the Wars of the LORD says: '... Waheb in Suphah and the ravines of Arnon, and at the stream of the ravines that lead to the dwelling of Ar, which lies along the border of Moab.'" Amongst academics , it is generally thought to be a collection of victory songs or poems , although some readers have suggested it may be a prose military history . David Rosenberg suggests in his The Book of David that it was written in 1100 BCE or thereabouts. It has been suggested by the theologian Joseph Barber Lightfoot that the book was one and the same as the mysterious biblical Book of Jasher . The Book of the Wars of the LORD is cited in the medieval Parry, J. Translated by Moses, Samuel. as being a collaborative record written by Moses , Joshua , and the children of Israel . An interesting reference to an unnamed book is mentioned in Exodus 17:14 , where God commanded Moses to inscribe an Israelite military victory over the Amalekites in the book and recount it later in the hearing of his successor Joshua .The book is not specifically mentioned by name.However, some Torah scholars such as Moses ibn Ezra have suggested this book may refer to Book of the Wars of the Lord . However, there is also much internal evidence that there were other books written. Consider the following verses," after which the author cites as examples of lost books Exodus 17:14 (words written in remembrance of the destruction of Amalek), Exodus 24:7 ( Book of the Covenant ), Numbers 11:26 (recorded ones), Numbers 21:14 ( Book of the Wars of the LORD ), and Numbers 33:2 (Journeys).
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 667448911.
The opening as it stood in 2020 1 passage from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Lost book mentioned in Numbers 21:14–15 For the philosophical opus of the same name by Levi ben Gershom, see Gersonides . The Book of the Wars of the Lord (סֵפֶר מִלְחֲמֹת יהוה) is one of several non-canonical books referenced in the Bible which have now been completely lost . It is mentioned in Numbers 21:14–15 , which reads: "From there they set out and camped on the other side of the Arnon , which is in the desert and bounding the Amorite territory. That is why the Book of the Wars of the LORD says: '... Waheb in Suphah and the ravines of Arnon, and at the stream of the ravines that lead to the dwelling of Ar, which lies along the border of Moab.'" David Rosenberg suggests in his The Book of David that it was written in 1100 BC or thereabouts. Theologian Joseph Barber Lightfoot suggested that it was merely another title for the mysterious biblical Book of Jasher . The Book of the Wars of the Lord is cited in the medieval Book of Jasher as being a collaborative record written by Moses , Joshua , and the children of Israel . A notable reference to an unnamed book is mentioned in Exodus 17:14 , where God commanded Moses to inscribe an Israelite military victory over the Amalekites in the book and recount it later in the hearing of his successor Joshua . The book is not specifically mentioned by name. However, some Torah scholars such as Moses ibn Ezra have suggested this book may refer to the Book of the Wars of the Lord . However, there is also much internal evidence that there were other books written. Consider the following verses," after which the author cites as examples of lost books Exodus 17:14 (words written in remembrance of the destruction of Amalek), Exodus 24:7 ( Book of the Covenant ), Numbers 11:26 (recorded ones), Numbers 21:14 ( Book of the Wars of the LORD ), and Numbers 33:2 (Journeys).
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 937095892.
The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023
Lost book mentioned in Numbers 21:13–14 For the philosophical opus of the same name by Levi ben Gershom, see Gersonides . The Book of the Wars of the Lord ( סֵפֶר מִלְחֲמֹת יהוה ) is one of several non-canonical books referenced in the Bible which have now been completely lost . It is mentioned in Numbers 21:13–14, which reads: From there they set out and camped on the other side of the Arnon , which is in the desert and bounding the Amorite territory. That is why the Book of the Wars of the L ORD says: '... Waheb in Suphah and the ravines of Arnon, and at the stream of the ravines that lead to the dwelling of Ar, which lies along the border of Moab.' — Numbers 21:13–14 David Rosenberg suggests in The Book of David that it was written in 1100 BC or thereabouts. Theologian Joseph Barber Lightfoot suggested that it was merely another title for the mysterious biblical Book of Jasher . The Book of the Wars of the Lord is cited in the medieval Book of Jasher as being a collaborative record written by Moses , Joshua , and the children of Israel . A notable reference to an unnamed book is found in Exodus 17:14, where God commanded Moses to inscribe an Israelite military victory over the Amalekites in a book and recount it later in the hearing of his successor Joshua . The book is not specifically mentioned by name. However, some Torah scholars such as Moses ibn Ezra have suggested this book may refer to the Book of the Wars of the Lord. However, there is also much internal evidence that there were other books written. Consider the following verses," after which the author cites as examples of lost books Exodus 17:14 (words written in remembrance of the destruction of Amalek), Exodus 24:7 ( Book of the Covenant ), Numbers 11:26 (recorded ones), Numbers 21:14 ( Book of the Wars of the L ORD ), and Numbers 33:2 (Journeys).
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1178384691.
The opening as it stood in 2025
Lost book mentioned in Numbers 21:13–14 For the philosophical opus of the same name by Levi ben Gershom, see Gersonides . The Book of the Wars of the L ORD ( Hebrew : ספר מלחמת יהוה , romanized : sêp̄er milḥămōṯ Yahweh ) is one of several non-canonical books referenced in the Bible which have now been completely lost . It is mentioned in Numbers 21:13–14, which reads: From there they set out and camped on the other side of the Arnon , which is in the desert and bounding the Amorite territory. That is why the Book of the Wars of the L ORD says: '... Waheb in Suphah and the ravines of Arnon, and at the stream of the ravines that lead to the dwelling of Ar, which lies along the border of Moab.' — Numbers 21:13–14 David Rosenberg suggests in The Book of David that it was written in 1100 BC or thereabouts. Theologian Joseph Barber Lightfoot suggested that it was merely another title for the mysterious biblical Book of Jasher . The Book of the Wars of the L ORD is cited in the medieval Book of Jasher as being a collaborative record written by Moses , Joshua , and the children of Israel . It was probably a collection of victory songs written about Israel's military conquest of Canaan . A notable reference to an unnamed book is found in Exodus 17:14, where God commanded Moses to inscribe an Israelite military victory over the Amalekites in a book and recount it later in the hearing of his successor Joshua . The book is not specifically mentioned by name. However, some Torah scholars such as Moses ibn Ezra have suggested this book may refer to the Book of the Wars of the L ORD . However, there is also much internal evidence that there were other books written. Consider the following verses," after which the author cites as examples of lost books Exodus 17:14 (words written in remembrance of the destruction of Amalek), Exodus 24:7 ( Book of the Covenant ), Numbers 11:26 (recorded ones), Numbers 21:14 ( Book of the Wars of the L ORD ), and Numbers 33:2 (Journeys).
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1254678382. This is our newest snapshot; the live article may have moved again since.
Today
Wikipedia's first sentence called it “one of several books referenced in the hebrew bible of which no copies are known to exist”. Today it says “one of the non-canonical books referenced in the bible that have been lost”. The one-line description Wikipedia serves to search engines and AI systems read “Lost book mentioned in Numbers 21:14–15”. It now reads “Lost book mentioned in Numbers 21:13–14”. Read the current article and compare.
2005
2010
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2020
Oct '23
2025
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What Wikipedia says this is
Every article opens by defining its subject. This one was redefined since 2005, and today's defining sentence is their current revision.
Then
one of several books referenced in the hebrew bible of which no copies are known to exist
Now
one of the non-canonical books referenced in the bible that have been lost
Struck red text is no longer in the article; dotted amber text was rewritten. Every revision id links to Wikipedia's copy; the text shown is our own saved copy. Data: /data. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA; quoted for the record; not affiliated with Wikipedia.
