Joshua 14
Joshua 14:1 The Israelites took possession of these portions that the priest Eleazar, Joshua son of Nun, and the family heads of the Israelite tribes gave them in the land of Canaan.
Joshua 14:2 Their inheritance was by lot as Yahveh commanded through Moses for the nine and a half tribes,
Joshua 14:3 because Moses had given the inheritance to the two and a half tribes beyond the Jordan. But he gave no inheritance among them to the Levites.
Joshua 14:4 The descendants of Joseph became two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim. No portion of the land was given to the Levites except cities to live in and pasturelands for their cattle and livestock.
Joshua 14:5 So the Israelites did as Yahveh commanded Moses, and they divided the land.
Joshua 14:6 The descendants of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb, son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, said to him, “You know what Yahveh promised Moses the man of God at Kadesh-Barnea about you and me.
Joshua 14:7 I was forty years old when Moses Yahveh’s slave sent me from Kadesh-Barnea to scout the land, and I brought back an honest report.
Joshua 14:8 My brothers who went with me caused the people to lose heart, but I followed Yahveh, my God, wholly.
Joshua 14:9 On that day, Moses swore to me: ‘The land where you have set foot will be a permanent inheritance for you and your descendants because you have followed Yahveh my God completely.’
Joshua 14:10 “As you see, Yahveh has kept me alive these forty-five years as he promised, since Yahveh spoke this word to Moses while Israel was journeying in the wilderness. Here I am today, eighty-five years old.
Joshua 14:11 I am still as strong today as I was the day Moses sent me out. My strength for battle and daily tasks is now as it was then.
Joshua 14:12 Now give me this hill country Yahveh promised me on that day because you heard then that the Anakim are there, as well as large fortified cities. Maybe Yahveh will be with me, and I will drive them out as Yahveh promised.”
Joshua 14:13 Then Joshua blessed Caleb, son of Jephunneh, and gave him Hebron as an inheritance.
Joshua 14:14 Therefore, Hebron still belongs to Caleb, son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, as an inheritance today because he followed Yahveh, the God of Israel, completely.
Joshua 14:15 Hebron’s name had been Kiriath-arba; Arba was the most extraordinary man among the Anakim. After this, the land had rest from war.
Joshua 14 quotes:
“Joshua 14 introduces the dividing of land west of the Jordan with a summary statement on areas inherited in the land of Canaan (14:1). The phrase “land of Canaan” refers to land west of the Jordan, where the Canaanites live. The narrator repeats the instructions in a concluding summary (19:51). Eleazar, the priest, Joshua, son of Nun, and clan heads (lit. heads of father’s houses) will determine the allotments by casting lots. As the Lord commanded through Moses (14:2, 5), they distribute a tribe’s inheritance by lot, taking into account the names of the ancestors and size of tribe (Num. 26:52-56). The narrator’s introduction stresses that the priest, military leader, and local heads follow instructions from the Lord that came through Moses. The role of heads of clans indicates that tribal inheritances reflect a democratic, representative process. Clans represent the basic social organization of the tribes, the strong and the weak together. Later, a closing summary of the west-bank division of land adds that the ceremony took place in Shiloh at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting (19:51).”
Harris J. Gordon et al. Joshua Judges Ruth. Hendrickson Publishers ; Paternoster Press 2000. p. 82.
“These introductory verses inform the reader how the twelve tribes, descended from the twelve sons of Jacob, are accounted for: Levi was not given any territory (verses 3b,4b; see also 13.14,33), which would reduce the number of tribes with land to eleven. But the descendants of Joseph were divided into two tribes, named for his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim, which made the total number of landed tribes twelve.”
Bratcher Robert G and Barclay Moon Newman. A Handbook on the Book of Joshua. United Bible Societies 1992. p. 191.
Joshua 14 links:
honoring his promise
Maranatha Daily Devotional – October 15, 2015
missions and possibilities
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