Joshua 18:1-10. Erection of the Tabernacle at Shiloh 1. _And the whole congregation of the children of Israel_ The descendants of Judah and of Joseph had now taken up their respective inheritances, the one in the south, the other in the north of the country. But "the murmuring," it has been remarked... [ Continue Reading ]
_And Joshua said_ No particulars are given of the solemn and impressive ceremonies which doubtless marked the setting up of the time-honoured monument of the wanderings, and the resumption of the regular sacrifices and other ceremonies, which must have been imperfectly observed during the years of w... [ Continue Reading ]
_Give out from among you_ If the territory was to be distributed, it was necessary that the more distant portions of the country should be surveyed. Joshua therefore directs the tribes to appoint a commission of twenty-one members, three from each tribe, who should undertake the duty and report to h... [ Continue Reading ]
_Judah shall abide_ The division, which had secured by lot their territory to the tribes of Judah and Joseph, was still to be respected.... [ Continue Reading ]
_before the Lord our God_ i.e. before the "Tabernacle of Meeting," where Jehovah manifested His presence to the people, enthroned above the Cherubim of the Ark of the Covenant.... [ Continue Reading ]
_But the Levites_ See above, ch. Joshua 13:33; Numbers 18:20. _the priesthood of the Lord_ Notice the change here as compared with ch. Joshua 13:14. There "the sacrifices of Jehovah" are said to be the portion of Levi, and in Joshua 13:33, "Jehovah, God of Israel" is said to be their portion. Here w... [ Continue Reading ]
_and passed through the land_ How long they were absent we are not told. Josephus tells us it was seven months, _Ant_. v. i. 21. The Rabbis tell us it was seven years. Both suppositions are equally devoid of foundation. _and described it_ Although the survey was connected chiefly with a general est... [ Continue Reading ]
_And Joshua cast lots_ After their return the Hebrew leader proceeded to a formal apportionment of the land by the sacred lot. This mode of assignment, it has been remarked, "places the conquest of Palestine, even in that remote and barbarous age, in a favourable contrast with the arbitrary caprice,... [ Continue Reading ]
Boundaries of the Tribe of Benjamin 11. _between the children of Judah and the children of Joseph_ When the lots were now cast "before the Lord," the lot of Benjamin came forth first, and we have an account of (_a_) the boundaries, and then (_b_) of the cities of this tribe, which, we are here told... [ Continue Reading ]
_And their border on the north side_ The northern boundary of Benjamin mainly coincided with the southern boundary of Ephraim. _from Jordan_ Commencing from the Jordan on the east, their boundary ascended to the mountains west and north-west of Jericho as far as "the wilderness of Beth-aven," i.e.... [ Continue Reading ]
_toward Luz_ See above, ch. Joshua 16:2. The border next went to the south of the ridge of Bethel, and thence descended, in a northwesterly direction, toward Ataroth-adar. _descended_ We understand the appropriateness of this word when we remember that Bethel lay 3000 feet above the level of the Me... [ Continue Reading ]
_And the border was drawn thence_ From the mountain south of Beth-horon the boundary line of Benjamin trended in a southerly direction towards "Kirjath-baal, which is Kirjath-jearim, a city of the children of Judah." _compassed_ On "compass," see above, note on ch. Joshua 15:3. _Kirjath-jearim_ Se... [ Continue Reading ]
_And the south quarter_ This coincides exactly with the northern border of Judah, for which see above, Joshua 15:5-9.... [ Continue Reading ]
The Cities of Benjamin 21. _Now the cities_ The cities here enumerated fall into two groups, (_a) the first_of _twelve_lying on the _east_, (_b) the second_of _fourteen_lying on the _west_. 1. _Jericho_ see note above, Joshua 2:1. 2. _Beth-hoglah_, see note above, Joshua 15:6. 3. _The valley of... [ Continue Reading ]
_Beth-arabah_ See note above, Joshua 15:6. 5. _Zemaraim_is unknown. 6. _Bethel_, see Joshua 18:13.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Avim_ Some have regarded this as identical with Ai, which is also called Aija (Nehemiah 11:31) and Aiath (Isaiah 10:28). 8. _Parah_is unknown. 9. _Ophrah_appears to be mentioned again in 1 Samuel 13:17 in describing the spoilers who issued from the Philistine camp at Michmash. Robinson would identi... [ Continue Reading ]
_Chephar-haammonai_ is quite unknown, so also is ii. _Ophni_; 12. _Gaba_, or _Geba_= "height," "hill," not the _Geba_or _Gibeah_of Saul, is mentioned in 2 Kings 23:8; Zechariah 14:10.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Gibeon_ We have now enumerated the second group of fourteen cities lying on the west of Benjamin. 1. _Gibeon_, see note above, ch. Joshua 9:3; Joshua 2. _Ramah_, not the Ramah of Samuel or _Ramathaim_. In Isaiah 10:28-32, the king of Assyria is described as crossing the ravine at Michmash, and succ... [ Continue Reading ]
_Mizpeh_ Not the same as the Mizpeh of ch. Joshua 15:38, but either (_a_) the modern _Neby Samwîl_, or (_b_) the tower of _Scopus_. Here (_a_) the war against Benjamin was resolved on (Judges 20.); here (_b_) Samuel judged the people (1 Samuel 7:5-15), and (_c_) chose Saul as king (1 Samuel 10:17).... [ Continue Reading ]
_Rekem_unknown. 8. _Irpeel_, Lieut. Conder thinks that this may be recognised in the modern _Râfât_, N. of El Jib, being the same from which the name Rephaim is derived. 9. _Taralah_is unrecognised.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Zelah_ = _Beit Jala_, S. of the plain of Rephaim, is afterwards mentioned as the burial-place of Saul and Jonathan (2 Samuel 21:14). 11. _Eleph_is unknown; 12. _Jebusi, which is Jerusalem_, see note above, Joshua 15:8; Joshua 15:13. _Gibeath_is the _Gibeah of Saul_, now _Tuleil-el-Fûl_, about one h... [ Continue Reading ]