This chapter begins the recounting of the orderly distribution of land to the tribes of Israel. Having begun with the tribe of Judah, special attention is then given to the situation surrounding the land within the tribe of Judah that was given to the family of Caleb. God had promised Caleb that he could select his own land because of his whole-hearted faith in following Him when all of Israel except Moses, Joshua, and he had turned their backs on God (14:6-14). Caleb had already conquered three of the cities of Canaan as he moved in to occupy the land God had promised him. In doing so, he chose to give an opportunity for a younger brave warrior to make himself known by taking the city of Kirjath Sepher. He offered the honor of giving in marriage his own daughter to the victor over these great cities. We find that Othniel rose to this challenge and in this process not only won his bride, but showed that he was capable of becoming an effective leader over Israel. The lesson here is timeless. Great challenges can become great opportunities to reveal the true character of each of us. We have seen this already in the life of Caleb. We see it now in the life of Othniel. The challenges that lay before us may be very different, but we need to see them as opportunities for faith and courage to see God work through us as we face life's challenges. Step back and see these battles as the opportunities they are — great opportunities that provide a platform for what God can do. Through courageous faith we can rise up and bring victory unto God's glory. 1 So this was the lot of the tribe of the children of Judah according to their families: The border of Edom at the Wilderness of Zin southward was the extreme southern boundary. 2 And their southern border began at the shore of the Salt Sea, from the bay that faces southward. 3 Then it went out to the southern side of the Ascent of Akrabbim, passed along to Zin, ascended on the south side of Kadesh Barnea, passed along to Hezron, went up to Adar, and went around to Karkaa. 4 From there it passed toward Azmon and went out to the Brook of Egypt; and the border ended at the sea. This shall be your southern border. 5 The east border was the Salt Sea as far as the mouth of the Jordan.
"And Caleb said, 'He who attacks Kirjath Sepher and takes it, to him I will give Achsah my daughter as wife.'" –Joshua 15:16
The Land of Judah
v. 1 lot – The allotment of land assigned to each of the tribes of Israel was determined by lot. Although the casting of the lot appeared random, it was understood that the Lord guided the lot and revealed His will through its answer (Prov. 16:33). Each of the tribes of Israel had their respective lands allotted to them with the use of the lot, hence the word "allotment." Judah – Judah was the first tribe mentioned and typically held a place of preeminence amongst the tribes because the birthright belonged to Judah. A birthright was a place of authority and respect typically accorded the eldest born son in a family. This birthright fell to Judah, who was Israel's fourth born son (Gen. 49:10). The three elder brothers (Reuben, Simeon, and Levi) had been disinherited because of their sins (Gen. 49: 3-7). From Judah would come the royal line of David, as well as Christ. Families – Each of the tribes of Israel were divided into a number of "families." Israel as a whole was thus divided into tribes after each of the sons of Israel, and families after each of the grandsons of Israel. Edom – The nation of Edom was located southeast of Israel and was composed of the descendants of Esau, Israel's twin brother. | v. 2 Salt Sea – This sea refers to the Dead Sea, which is the lowest point on Earth at 417 meters below sea level. It also has the highest salt concentration of any body of water on Earth. It has nine times the salt concentration of the ocean. It marks the southeastern border of the tribe of Judah. v. 3 It went out to – In what follows, the Scriptures give the boundaries of the land of Judah. Many of the places are mentioned elsewhere in Scripture, but we are not able to locate all of them precisely. It is important to note that the boundaries of Judah marked the southernmost region of the nation of Israel. v. 4 Zin, Kadesh Barnea – Meaning "the wilderness of wandering," this refers to the desert area within which the children of Israel wandered during the 40-years of judgment. It marks the southern border of Judah. v. 5 the sea – the Mediterranean Sea, which bordered the tribe of Judah on the west Southern border – The whole area described in verses 1-4 is delineating the southern border of Judah and, consequently, the southernmost border of Israel. |
v. 7 Gilgal – The Israelites camped at Gilgal after crossing the Jordan, just prior to the taking of Jericho. It is here where the Israelites were circumcised and kept the Passover before beginning the conquest of the land. v. 8 Jebusite City – The city of the Jebusites, now known as Jerusalem, was not taken in Joshua's day. The city remained under the control of the Jebusites until David conquered it (2 Sam. 5, 1 Chr. 11). Jerusalem is located on an elevated plain and had large walls surrounding it in antiquity, making it very difficult for anybody to take the city by storm or siege. Although the Jebusite city was counted as a part of Judah's territory, Judah did not actually possess the city for some time. This was true of many parts of the Promised Land. | v. 10 Mount Seir – It was in this region that Esau, Jacob's brother, chose to dwell (Gen. 36:8) and was now inhabited by his descendants, the Edomites. The land of Edom was to the south and east of Judah, but was used here as a turning point, as the author shifts his description from the east to the west. v. 12 Great Sea – the Mediterranean Sea Boundary of the children of Judah – This summary statement points out that the author has now delineated the boundaries of the territory of Judah. |
v. 13 Caleb – As restated in chapter 14, Caleb was one of the two men who had survived from the generation that was cursed to die in the wilderness. The Lord promised Caleb that he would not die in the wilderness and that he would receive an inheritance in the land of promise because he trusted that the Lord would keep His promise to bring the people into the Land. A share among the children of Judah – Caleb is mentioned again because the author wants to point out that Caleb's inheritance is among the people of Judah (Caleb was a descendant of Judah). In this we also see the Lord's faithfulness to keep his promises. Kirjath Arba...Hebron – Sarah, Abraham's wife died here, and this city would eventually serve as David's first capital before his taking of Jerusalem. Arba – Meaning "City of Arba," it was named for a man about whom very little is known except that he was a son of Anak. The sons of Anak are described throughout the Scriptures as "giants." It was the descendants of Anak who instilled fear in the hearts of the Israelites when the spies gave the report (Num. 13:33). Ironically, the Lord gave Caleb, who did not fear the sons of Anak, their lands. v. 14 the three sons – Caleb had his chance to prove his determination against the giants, fighting them and driving them from their land. My daughter – In antiquity it was common for men to promise rewards for feats in battle. One of the most common rewards was one's daughter in marriage (1 Sam. 17:25). Othniel – Othniel would someday serve as a judge of the nation of Israel and would set them free from the oppressive control of Cushan-Rishathaim, king of Mesopotamia. He judged Israel for 40 years. | v. 18–19 Persuaded – In these two verses, we see Caleb's daughter gaining property rights for her husband by asking her father, a very uncommon practice. v. 21 Cities – What follows is a list of the cities that were included in the land of Judah. The first grouping of cities was located in the southern region. v. 28 Beersheba – This was a city in the far south of Judah that was commonly used as an idiom referring to the southernmost portion of Israel. The name Beersheba means "The Well of Oaths." It received its name from two oaths that were made between Abraham and Abimelech, the king of the Philistines, and later Isaac and Abimelech (Gen. 21:25-34, 26:26-33). v. 31 Ziklag – Later David used this city as a place of refuge when hiding from Saul. Achish, the king of the Philistines at the time, allowed him to stay there, as it had fallen under Philistine control. It would ultimately belong to the kings of Israel (1 Sam. 27:6). v. 32 Twenty nine – It is hard to say why this verse indicates that there were 29 cities but lists 40. Different scholars offer a number of explanations. But it is difficult to say what the correct answer is. Most scholars think it was a manuscript error. That is to say, that as the book of Joshua was copied down by one copyist and passed on to another, that someone made a mistake in his copyist work. It also could be that, in this verse, cities and villages were named and the number 29 was only given in reference to the cities while the other 11 places must have been villages. Still others think that one or more editors writing long after the fact may have added some cities. A city...villages – The distinguishing mark of a city was the wall surrounding it for the purpose of fortification against potential enemy invaders. Villages had no such walls. |
v. 36 Fourteen – Here we have the same problem found in verse 32. The author sums the cities of the lowland at 14, but lists 15. This seems to be a copyist error, for the city of Gederothaim is not included in the Septuagint (the Greek version of the Old Testament), and it closely resembles the city of Gederah in name. It may even have been a later name for that city. v. 48 Mountain Country – After listing the cities of the lowlands, the author turns his attention to the cities and villages of the mountainous regions of Judah. | v. 61 Wilderness – The author now turns his attention to the cities of the Judean desert. v. 63 Jebusites – As pointed out earlier, the Israelites were unable to drive the Jebusites from the region of Judah. Therefore the Jebusites inhabited the region of Judah until David defeated them about 400 years later. To this day – Whoever wrote the book of Joshua was clearly writing some time before David drove the Jebusites out. |
Joshua 16 v. 1 Lot – The allotment of land for each tribe was chosen by lot (see note for 15:1). Joseph – Technically, Joseph was not counted as one of the 12 tribes because Israel (Jacob) had adopted his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim in his place (Gen. 48:5). Thus, in the regular counting of the 12 tribes of Israel there is a tribe of Ephraim and a tribe of Manasseh, but no tribe of Joseph. Here the author describes the boundaries of both the tribe of Ephraim and the half tribe of Manasseh (Remember, one half of the tribe of Manasseh chose to take as their inheritance the land to the east of the Jordan before they went into the land of Canaan). (Num. 32) Jordan by Jericho – Here the author marks the easternmost boundary of the land that fell to Joseph's sons. | Bethel – It was here where Israel saw a vision of a ladder extending from heaven and reaching down to the earth with angels ascending and descending on it. He called this place Bethel, which means "the House of God" (see Genesis 28:10-22). v. 2 From Bethel to Luz – The Septuagint (the Greek version of the Old Testament) says "to Bethel, to Luz", rather than "from Bethel to Luz". The Septuagint probably gives the correct rendering since Bethel and Luz were the same place (Genesis 28: 19). The point of saying Luz after Bethel was to remind the reader that Bethel was Luz, for non-Israelites continued to call it by that name. v. 3 Ended – The author gave the rough boundaries of Joseph's allotment and had not yet gotten specific as to which parts belonged to Ephraim and which to Manasseh. He did so shortly hereafter. |
v. 5 Ephraim – Here the author got more specific as he gave the borders of the tribe of Ephraim. East side – the towns that border the territory of Ephraim on the east v. 6 Toward the sea – moving westward toward the Mediterranean Sea Shiloh – It was here that the Tabernacle was set up initially and the people congregated to worship the Lord, making it one of the most well known of all Israelite cities. Eastward – switching directions and heading east again v. 7 Went down... to Jericho – heading back southeast toward the fabled city of Jericho; Jericho did not lie within the borders of Ephraim v. 8 Westward – turning back toward the west | It ended at the sea – The territory of Ephraim ended in the west at the Mediterranean Sea. v. 9 Separate cities – In addition to the general territory allotted, Ephraim received a number of cities scattered throughout the territory of Manasseh as part of its inheritance. v. 10 Did not drive out – Each of the individual tribes was responsible for driving the remaining Canaanites out of their respective regions. Ephraim failed to drive out the Canaanites who dwelt in Gezer. Instead, the Ephraimites made slaves of the Canaanites. This was in direct defiance of the command of the Lord to exterminate all of the inhabitants (Deut. 20:16-18). Forced Laborers – slaves |
