20:23 The Ammonites and Moabites attacked the men from Mount Seir38 and annihilated them.39 When they had finished off the men40 of Seir, they attacked and destroyed one another.41
tnHeb “they helped, each one his fellow, for destruction.” The verb עָזַר (’azar), traditionally understood as the well-attested verb meaning “to help,” is an odd fit in this context. It is possible that it is from a homonymic root, perhaps meaning to “attack.” This root is attested in Ugaritic in a nominal form meaning “young man, warrior, hero.” For a discussion of the proposed root, see HALOT811s.v. II עזר.
