Joshua 18:1-10

The Remaining Land Divided Into Portions Joshua 18:1-10

And the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled together at Shiloh, and set up the tabernacle of the congregation there. And the land was subdued before them.
2 And there remained among the children of Israel seven tribes, which had not yet received their inheritance.
3 And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, How long are ye slack to go to possess the land, which the Lord God of your fathers hath given you?
4 Give out from among you three men for each tribe: and I will send them, and they shall rise, and go through the land, and describe it according to the inheritance of them; and they shall come again to me.
5 And they shall divide it into seven parts: Judah shall abide in their coast on the south, and the house of Joseph shall abide in their coasts on the north.
6 Ye shall therefore describe the land into seven parts, and bring the description hither to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the Lord our God.
7 But the Levites have no part among you; for the priesthood of the Lord is their inheritance: and Gad, and Reuben, and half the tribe of Manasseh, have received their inheritance beyond Jordan on the east, which Moses the servant of the Lord gave them.
8 And the men arose, and went away: and Joshua charged them that went to describe the land, saying, Go and walk through the land, and describe it, and come again to me, that I may here cast lots for you before the Lord in Shiloh.
9 And the men went and passed through the land, and described it by cities into seven parts in a book, and came again to Joshua to the host at Shiloh.
10 And Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the Lord: and there Joshua divided the land unto the children of Israel according to their divisions.

1.

Where was Shiloh? Joshua 18:1

Shiloh was in the midst of the territory assigned to the tribe of Ephraim. It was admirably situated near the geographic center of the land. It lay east of the road which ran along the center of the ridge which formed the backbone of the Promised Land. In Shiloh, the house of God was established; and here it stayed through the three hundred years of the time of the judges. Shiloh was the center of Israel's worship down into the reign of David. Only when David made preparation for the building of the Temple was the site of Israel's worship moved from this place which became hallowed to them through the worship which centered there around the Tabernacle.

2.

How many surveyors were employed? Joshua 18:4

Twenty-one men went out to survey the land which had not yet been assigned to the tribes. Their work consisted not in the taking of accurate measurements of all the borders, but in preparing a list of the towns in the different parts of the land. Probably this included an account of the size and character of these towns, They would have made a notice of the quality and condition of the soil, but it hardly would have been necessary for them to penetrate into every corner of the land and every town which was still inhabited by the Canaanites in order to accomplish their end. Since only seven tribes were involved in receiving this territory, three men were selected from each of these tribes; and the total of twenty-one workers would have been sufficient to accomplish the task in a very short time.

3.

Which tribes had already been settled? Joshua 18:5

Three tribesReuben, Gad, and Manassehhad land east of the Jordan. Judah and the children of JosephEphraim and Manassehwere settled west of the Jordan. Since Levi was to have no land as a possession, only seven tribes remained without a portion of land. These were Benjamin, Simeon, Zebulun, Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and Dan.

4.

Why did Levi receive no inheritance? Joshua 18:7

It was understood that the priesthood of the Lord was the inheritance of Levi. They had no time or need for land in which to plant grains, vines, and trees. They were to give themselves completely to the service of God, teaching the law, protecting the rights of the oppressed, and in general, fulfilling their mission as the Lord's peculiar possession. In return for these services, they were to receive forty-eight cities in which to dwell; and their livelihood was to be provided by the other tribes who gave a tithe of all their income to the Lord for the support of the Levites.

5.

How did the surveyors work? Joshua 18:8-9

The description was not a measurement made in feet and inches. The art of surveying was well known in Egypt in ancient times. The Israelites would have learned this skill while in bondage there, but their description which was written in the book was of a general nature. The men chosen for this purpose were able to perform their tasks without being hindered by the Canaanites. These Canaanites had been crushed, although not exterminated, by the victories which the people of Israel had gained. When the formal record was finished, they brought it back to Joshua in the camp at Shiloh. Joshua then assigned the land as he cast the sacred lot.