Joshua 22:21-34

A Reason Given for the Altar Joshua 22:21-34

21 Then the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh answered, and said unto the heads of the thousands of Israel,
22 The Lord God of gods, the Lord God of gods, he knoweth, and Israel he shall know; if it be in rebellion, or if in transgression against the Lord, (save us not this day,)
23 That we have built us an altar to turn from following the Lord, or if to offer thereon burnt offering or meat offering, or if to offer peace offerings thereon, let the Lord himself require it;
24 And if we have not rather done it for fear of this thing, saying, In time to come your children might speak unto our children, saying, What have ye to do with the Lord God of Israel?
25 For the Lord hath made Jordan a border between us and you, ye children of Reuben and children of Gad; ye have no part in the Lord: so shall your children make our children cease from fearing the Lord.
26 Therefore we said, Let us now prepare to build us an altar, not for burnt offering, nor for sacrifice:
27 But that it may be a witness between us, and you, and our generations after us, that we might do the service of the Lord before him with our burnt offerings, and with our sacrifices, and with our peace offerings; that your children may not say to our children in time to come, Ye have no part in the Lord.
28 Therefore said we, that it shall be, when they should so say to us or to our generations in time to come, that we may say again, Behold the pattern of the altar of the Lord, which our fathers made, not for burnt offerings, nor for sacrifices; but it is a witness between us and you.
29 God forbid that we should rebel against the Lord, and turn this day from following the Lord, to build an altar for burnt offerings, for meat offerings, or for sacrifices, beside the altar of the Lord our God that is before his tabernacle.
30 And when Phinehas the priest, and the princes of the congregation and heads of the thousands of Israel which were with him, heard the words of the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the children of Manasseh spake, it pleased them.
31 And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest said unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the children of Manasseh, This day we perceive that the Lord is among us, because ye have not committed this trespass against the Lord: now ye have delivered the children of Israel out of the hand of the Lord.
32 And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, and the princes, returned from the children of Reuben, and from the children of Gad, out of the land of Gilead, unto the land of Canaan, to the children of Israel, and brought them word again.
33 And the thing pleased the children of Israel; and the children of Israel blessed God, and did not intend to go up against them in battle, to destroy the land wherein the children of Reuben and Gad dwelt.
34 And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad called the altar Ed: for it shall be a witness between us that the Lord is God.

11.

What was the fear of the eastern tribes? Joshua 22:24

The eastern tribes were afraid they would be forgotten by the rest of Israel. Their inheritance was east of the Jordan, and the Jordan River formed a very natural boundary between them and the rest of the people. All of the Israelites were expected to attend the three annual feasts at the Tabernacle. There were other occasions when the whole congregation would gather together, and the eastern tribes were afraid that the western tribes would neglect to send a summons to them.

12.

In what way would an altar be a witness? Joshua 22:27-28

The altar which the eastern tribes erected at the edge of the Jordan was patterned after the brazen altar which stood in front of the Tabernacle. God had instructed the Israelites to make an altar which was five cubits long and five cubits wide. It was also to be three cubits high. Around it was to be a network or a grating. It was to have a ledge on it. Four horns were to be at the four corners of the altar. The altar which the eastern tribes built must have been built according to the instructions given in Exodus 27, and anyone who saw it would know they must have been a part of the nation of Israel or else they would not have had access to these plans. In this way, they identified themselves as being a part of Israel.

13.

Why were the rest of the Israelites pleased with the explanation of the eastern tribes? Joshua 22:30

The western tribes could hardly have had any real desire to wage war against their brethren east of the Jordan, although they were willing to fight them in order to punish those who broke God's laws. They must have been glad when they found they did not have justifiable reasons for starting a civil war. The explanation was plausible. Surely the eastern tribes had no wicked motive in building the altar, and their wanting to be remembered was understandable. All of the leaders of Israel must have heaved a great sigh of relief when they heard the explanation.

14.

What was the meaning of the name given to the altar? Joshua 22:34

The word, ed, means a witness. The eastern tribes called this altar by that name for it was indeed a witness to their being an integral part of Israel. Joshua used this same word when he erected a stone as a memorial of Israel's making a covenant to serve God faithfully, Of his stone, Joshua said, Behold, this stone shall be a witness to us; for it hath heard all the words of the Lord which he spake unto us: it shall be therefore a witness unto you, lest ye deny your God (Joshua 24:27).