1 And all the company of the sons of Israel are assembled `at' Shiloh, and they cause the tent of meeting to tabernacle there, and the land hath been subdued before them.
2 And there are left among the sons of Israel who have not shared their inheritance, seven tribes,
3 and Joshua saith unto the sons of Israel, `Till when are ye remiss to go in to possess the land which He hath given to you, Jehovah, God of your fathers?
4 Give for you three men for a tribe, and I send them, and they rise and go up and down through the land, and describe it according to their inheritance, and come in unto me,
5 and they have divided it into seven portions -- Judah doth stay by its border on the south, and the house of Joseph do stay by their border on the north --
6 and ye describe the land `in' seven portions, and have brought `it' in unto me hither, and I have cast for you a lot here before Jehovah our God;
7 for there is no portion to the Levites in your midst, for the priesthood of Jehovah `is' their inheritance, and Gad, and Reuben, and the half of the tribe of Manasseh received their inheritance beyond the Jordan eastward, which Moses servant of Jehovah gave to them.'
8 And the men rise and go; and Joshua commandeth those who are going to describe the land, saying, `Go, and walk up and down through the land, and describe it, and turn back unto me, and here I cast for you a lot before Jehovah in Shiloh.'
9 And the men go, and pass over through the land, and describe it by cities, in seven portions, on a book, and they come in unto Joshua, unto the camp, `at' Shiloh.
10 And Joshua casteth for them a lot in Shiloh before Jehovah, and there Joshua apportioneth the land to the sons of Israel, according to their divisions.
11 And a lot goeth up `for' the tribe of the sons of Benjamin, for their families; and the border of their lot goeth out between the sons of Judah and the sons of Joseph.
12 And the border is to them at the north side from the Jordan, and the border hath gone up unto the side of Jericho on the north, and gone up through the hill-country westward, and its outgoings have been at the wilderness of Beth-Aven;
13 and the border hath gone over thence to Luz, unto the side of Luz (it `is' Beth-El) southward, and the border hath gone down `to' Atroth-Addar, by the hill that `is' on the south of the lower Beth-Horon;
14 and the border hath been marked out, and hath gone round to the corner of the sea southward, from the hill which `is' at the front of Beth-Horon southward, and its outgoings have been unto Kirjath-Baal (it `is' Kirjath-Jearim), a city of the sons of Judah: this `is' the west quarter.
15 And the south quarter `is' from the end of Kirjath-Jearim, and the border hath gone out westward, and gone out unto the fountain of the waters of Nephtoah;
16 and the border hath come down unto the extremity of the hill which `is' on the front of the valley of the son of Hinnom, which `is' in the valley of the Rephaim northward, and hath gone down the valley of Hinnom unto the side of Jebusi southward, and gone down `to' En-Rogel,
17 and hath been marked out on the north, and gone out to En-Shemesh, and gone out unto Geliloth, which `is' over-against the ascent of Adummim, and gone down `to' the stone of Bohan son of Reuben,
18 and passed over unto the side over-against Arabah northward, and gone down to Arabah;
19 and the border hath passed over unto the side of Beth-Hoglah northward, and the outgoings of the border have been unto the north bay of the salt sea, unto the south extremity of the Jordan; this `is' the south border;
20 and the Jordan doth border it at the east quarter; this `is' the inheritance of the sons of Benjamin, by its borders round about, for their families.
21 And the cities for the tribe of the sons of Benjamin, for their families, have been Jericho, and Beth-Hoglah, and the valley of Keziz,
22 and Beth-Arabah, Zemaraim, and Beth-El,
23 and Avim, and Parah, and Ophrah,
24 and Chephar-Haammonai, and Ophni, and Gaba; twelve cities and their villages.
25 Gibeon, and Ramah, and Beeroth,
26 and Mizpeh, and Chephirah, and Mozah,
27 and Rekem, and Irpeel, and Taralah,
28 and Zelah, Eleph, and Jebusi (it `is' Jerusalem), Gibeath, Kirjath: fourteen cities and their villages. This `is' the inheritance of the sons of Benjamin, for their families.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Joshua 18
Commentary on Joshua 18 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 18
In this chapter we have,
Jos 18:1
In the midst of the story of the dividing of the land comes in this account of the setting up of the tabernacle, which had hitherto continued in its old place in the centre of their camp; but now that three of the four squadrons that used to surround it in the wilderness were broken and diminished, those of Judah, Ephraim, and Reuben, by the removal of those tribes to their respective possessions, and that of Dan only remained entire, it was time to think of removing the tabernacle itself into a city. Many a time the priests and Levites had taken it down, carried it, and set it up again in the wilderness, according to the directions given them (Num. 4:5, etc.); but now they must do it for good and all, not one of the stakes thereof must any more be removed, nor any of the cords thereof broken, Isa. 33:20. Observe,
Jos 18:2-10
Here,
Jos 18:11-28
We have here the lot of the tribe of Benjamin, which Providence cast next to Joseph on the one hand, because Benjamin was own and only brother to Joseph, and was little Benjamin (Ps. 68:27), that needed the protection of great Joseph, and yet had a better protector, for the Lord shall cover him all the day long, Deu. 33:12. And it was next to Judah on the other hand, that this tribe might hereafter unite with Judah in an adherence to the throne of David and the temple at Jerusalem. Here we have,