כלי יקר — אל תירא אתו כי בידך נתתי אתו

Q — Hashem's reassurance to Moshe before the battle with Og is oddly worded: 'אל תירא אתו' (singular — don't fear *him*), but then the promise spans 'אתו ואת כל עמו' (him and all his nation). Why isn't the reassurance also 'don't fear him and his nation'?

A — Kli Yakar grounds Rashi's drush about Og's merit (informing Avraham of Lot's capture) in textual signal. Moshe never feared armies; with Hashem beside him, no flesh-and-blood army could intimidate. The asymmetry between 'אתו' (alone) in the fear, and 'אתו ואת כל עמו' (with his nation) in the promise, proves it: Moshe wasn't afraid of Og's people — only of *him*. And the only thing about an individual that could make Moshe afraid was an unusual זכות. Hence Hashem's specific reassurance: even *that* merit will not save Og.