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Joshua 16:1
Verse
Context
Ephraim’s Inheritance
1The allotment for the descendants of Joseph extended from the Jordan at Jericho to the waters of Jericho on the east, through the wilderness that goes up from Jericho into the hill country of Bethel. 2It went on from Bethel (that is, Luz) and proceeded to the border of the Archites in Ataroth.
Summary
Commentary
- Adam Clarke
- Keil-Delitzsch
- John Gill
- Matthew Henry
- Tyndale
Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
The children of Joseph - Ephraim and Manasseh, and their descendants. The limits of the tribe of Ephraim extended along the borders of Benjamin and Dan, from Jordan on the east to the Mediterranean on the west.
Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch Old Testament Commentary
Territory of the tribe of Joseph. - Jos 16:1. "And there came out the lot of the children of Joseph from Jordan by Jericho." "The lot came out," viz., from the turn (cf. Jos 19:1, Jos 19:17, Jos 19:24). The expression "came up" is used in the same sense in Jos 18:11. The connection of these two words with the rest of the sentence, "from Jordan by Jericho," may be explained on the supposition that the lot which came out of the urn determined the inheritance that fell to the tribe, so that we might paraphrase the verse in this manner: "There came out the lot to the children of Joseph, namely, the inheritance, which goes out from, or whose boundary commences at, the Jordan by Jericho," i.e., from that part of the Jordan which is opposite to Jericho, and which is still more precisely defined by the additional clause, "by the water of Jericho eastward." The water of Jericho is the present fountain of es Sultan, half an hour to the north-west of Riha, the only large fountain in the neighbourhood of Jericho, whose waters spread over the plain, and form a small brook, which no doubt flows in the rainy season through the Wady Kelt into the Jordan (see Rob. ii. pp. 283-4; Tobler, Topogr. v. Jerus. ii. pp. 558-9). "The wilderness" is in opposition to "the lot," so that the sense is, "namely, the desert going up from Jericho to the mountains to Bethel." According to Jos 18:12, the reference is to the desert of Beth-aven, which was on the east of Bethel, between the Wady Suwar (Tuwar) and Mutyah (see at Jos 7:2). Towards the east this desert terminates with the Jebel Kuruntul (Quarantana) on the north-west of Jericho, where it descends precipitously into the valley of the Jordan, or v. v., where it rises out of the Jordan valley. According to Jos 18:12, the same boundary went up by the shoulder of Jericho towards the north, i.e., along the northern range of mountains by Jericho, which cannot be any other than the "conspicuous double height, or rather group of heights," in front of the mountain of Quarantana, at the eastern foot of which lies the fountain of Ain es Sultan (Rob. ii. p. 284). In all probability, therefore, the boundary ran up towards the north-west, from the Sultan fountain to Ain Duk, and thence in a westerly direction across to Abu Seba (along which road Robinson had a frightful desert on his right hand: Pal. ii. p. 310), and then again towards the north-west to Beitin (Bethel), according to Jos 18:13, along the southern shoulder (or side) of Luz, i.e., Bethel. Jos 16:2 "And it went out from Bethel to Luz." Bethel is distinguished from Luz in this passage, because the reference is not to the town of Bethel, which was called Luz by the Canaanites (vid., Gen 28:19), but to the southern range of mountains belonging to Bethel, from which the boundary ran out to the town of Luz, so that this town, which stood upon the border, was allotted to the tribe of Benjamin (Jos 18:22). From this point the boundary went over "to the territory of the Arkite to Ataroth," We know nothing further about the Arkite than that David's friend Hushai belonged to that family (Sa2 15:32; Sa2 16:16; Ch1 27:33). Ataroth, called Ataroth-Adar in Jos 18:13, was not the present village of Atra, an hour and a half to the south of Jiljilia (Rob. iii. p. 80), as I once supposed, but the ruins of Atra, three-quarters of an hour to the south of Bireh (Beeroth, Rob. ii. p. 314), with which the expression "descended" in Jos 18:13 perfectly harmonizes. Consequently the boundary was first of all drawn in a south-westerly direction from Beitin to Bireh (Jos 18:25), and then southwards to Atrah. Jos 16:3 From this point "it went down westward to the territory of the Japhletites to the territory of lower Beth-horon," or, according to Jos 18:13, "to the mountain (or range) which is on the south by lower Beth-horon." The Japhletite is altogether unknown as the Asherite of this name cannot possibly be thought of (Ch1 7:32-33). Lower Beth-horon is the present Beit-Ur Tachta, a village upon a low ridge. It is separated from Upper Beth-horon, which lies farther east, by a deep wady (see at Jos 10:10, and Rob. iii. p. 59). "And to Gezer," which was probably situated near the village of el Kubab (see at Jos 10:33). "And the goings out thereof are at the sea" (the Mediterranean), probably running towards the north-west, and following the Wady Muzeireh to the north of Japho, which was assigned to the Danites, according to Jos 19:46. Jos 16:4 The territory commencing at the boundary lines mentioned was allotted to Ephraim and Manasseh as their inheritance.
John Gill Bible Commentary
And the lot of the children of Joseph fell,.... Or, "went out" (a); of the pot or urn, this being the next lot that was drawn to that of Judah, the government being Judah's, and the birthright Joseph's, Ch1 5:2; and by his children are here meant the tribe of Ephraim, and the tribe of Manasseh: or the line and border according to the lot went forth from Jordan by Jericho unto the water of Jericho on the east; by which it appears, that this was the southern border of the lot; for the tribe of Benjamin, in which Jericho was, lay between Judah and Ephraim, and the border began at Jordan, where it flowed near Jericho, and proceeded to a water which belonged to that city, and is generally thought to be the waters Elisha healed, Kg2 2:19, to the wilderness that goeth up throughout Mount Bethel; this was the wilderness of Bethaven, Jos 18:12; Jarchi interprets it of the border that went up through Mount Bethel; which is true, and so might the wilderness also, for which the Targum is express; mention is made of a mountain on the east of Bethel, Gen 12:8. (a) "et egressa est", Pagninus, Montanus; "exivit", Piscator.
Matthew Henry Bible Commentary
Though Joseph was one of the younger sons of Jacob, yet he was his eldest by his most just and best beloved wife Rachel, was himself his best beloved son, and had been the greatest ornament and support of his family, kept it from perishing in a time of famine, and had been the shepherd and stone of Israel, and therefore his posterity were very much favoured by the lot. Their portion lay in the very heart of the land of Canaan. It extended from Jordan in the east (Jos 16:1) to the sea, the Mediterranean Sea, in the west, so that it took up the whole breadth of Canaan from side to side; and no question the fruitfulness of the soil answered the blessings both of Jacob and Moses, Gen 49:25, Gen 49:26, and Deu 33:13, etc. The portions allotted to Ephraim and Manasseh are not so particularly described as those of the other tribes; we have only the limits and boundaries of them, not the particular cities in them, as before we had the cities of Judah and afterwards those of the other tribes. For this no reason can be assigned, unless we may suppose that Joshua being himself of the children of Joseph they referred it to him alone to distribute among them the several cities that lay within their lot, and therefore did not bring in the names of their cities to the great council of their princes who sat upon this affair, by which means it came to pass that they were not inserted with the rest in the books.
Tyndale Open Study Notes
16:1–17:18 Joseph had two sons,Manasseh and Ephraim (Gen 41:50-52). Half of Manasseh’s descendants had received their inheritance east of the Jordan River. The tribe of Ephraim and the rest of the tribe of Manasseh now received their allotments. This brought the total number of allotments to twelve and fulfilled the blessing Jacob had pronounced upon Joseph (Gen 49:22-26). Like Judah in the south, Joseph’s tribes exercised leadership from their central position in the north. 16:1 Jericho was assigned to the tribe of Benjamin (18:21).
Joshua 16:1
Ephraim’s Inheritance
1The allotment for the descendants of Joseph extended from the Jordan at Jericho to the waters of Jericho on the east, through the wilderness that goes up from Jericho into the hill country of Bethel. 2It went on from Bethel (that is, Luz) and proceeded to the border of the Archites in Ataroth.
- Scripture
- Sermons
- Commentary
- Adam Clarke
- Keil-Delitzsch
- John Gill
- Matthew Henry
- Tyndale
Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
The children of Joseph - Ephraim and Manasseh, and their descendants. The limits of the tribe of Ephraim extended along the borders of Benjamin and Dan, from Jordan on the east to the Mediterranean on the west.
Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch Old Testament Commentary
Territory of the tribe of Joseph. - Jos 16:1. "And there came out the lot of the children of Joseph from Jordan by Jericho." "The lot came out," viz., from the turn (cf. Jos 19:1, Jos 19:17, Jos 19:24). The expression "came up" is used in the same sense in Jos 18:11. The connection of these two words with the rest of the sentence, "from Jordan by Jericho," may be explained on the supposition that the lot which came out of the urn determined the inheritance that fell to the tribe, so that we might paraphrase the verse in this manner: "There came out the lot to the children of Joseph, namely, the inheritance, which goes out from, or whose boundary commences at, the Jordan by Jericho," i.e., from that part of the Jordan which is opposite to Jericho, and which is still more precisely defined by the additional clause, "by the water of Jericho eastward." The water of Jericho is the present fountain of es Sultan, half an hour to the north-west of Riha, the only large fountain in the neighbourhood of Jericho, whose waters spread over the plain, and form a small brook, which no doubt flows in the rainy season through the Wady Kelt into the Jordan (see Rob. ii. pp. 283-4; Tobler, Topogr. v. Jerus. ii. pp. 558-9). "The wilderness" is in opposition to "the lot," so that the sense is, "namely, the desert going up from Jericho to the mountains to Bethel." According to Jos 18:12, the reference is to the desert of Beth-aven, which was on the east of Bethel, between the Wady Suwar (Tuwar) and Mutyah (see at Jos 7:2). Towards the east this desert terminates with the Jebel Kuruntul (Quarantana) on the north-west of Jericho, where it descends precipitously into the valley of the Jordan, or v. v., where it rises out of the Jordan valley. According to Jos 18:12, the same boundary went up by the shoulder of Jericho towards the north, i.e., along the northern range of mountains by Jericho, which cannot be any other than the "conspicuous double height, or rather group of heights," in front of the mountain of Quarantana, at the eastern foot of which lies the fountain of Ain es Sultan (Rob. ii. p. 284). In all probability, therefore, the boundary ran up towards the north-west, from the Sultan fountain to Ain Duk, and thence in a westerly direction across to Abu Seba (along which road Robinson had a frightful desert on his right hand: Pal. ii. p. 310), and then again towards the north-west to Beitin (Bethel), according to Jos 18:13, along the southern shoulder (or side) of Luz, i.e., Bethel. Jos 16:2 "And it went out from Bethel to Luz." Bethel is distinguished from Luz in this passage, because the reference is not to the town of Bethel, which was called Luz by the Canaanites (vid., Gen 28:19), but to the southern range of mountains belonging to Bethel, from which the boundary ran out to the town of Luz, so that this town, which stood upon the border, was allotted to the tribe of Benjamin (Jos 18:22). From this point the boundary went over "to the territory of the Arkite to Ataroth," We know nothing further about the Arkite than that David's friend Hushai belonged to that family (Sa2 15:32; Sa2 16:16; Ch1 27:33). Ataroth, called Ataroth-Adar in Jos 18:13, was not the present village of Atra, an hour and a half to the south of Jiljilia (Rob. iii. p. 80), as I once supposed, but the ruins of Atra, three-quarters of an hour to the south of Bireh (Beeroth, Rob. ii. p. 314), with which the expression "descended" in Jos 18:13 perfectly harmonizes. Consequently the boundary was first of all drawn in a south-westerly direction from Beitin to Bireh (Jos 18:25), and then southwards to Atrah. Jos 16:3 From this point "it went down westward to the territory of the Japhletites to the territory of lower Beth-horon," or, according to Jos 18:13, "to the mountain (or range) which is on the south by lower Beth-horon." The Japhletite is altogether unknown as the Asherite of this name cannot possibly be thought of (Ch1 7:32-33). Lower Beth-horon is the present Beit-Ur Tachta, a village upon a low ridge. It is separated from Upper Beth-horon, which lies farther east, by a deep wady (see at Jos 10:10, and Rob. iii. p. 59). "And to Gezer," which was probably situated near the village of el Kubab (see at Jos 10:33). "And the goings out thereof are at the sea" (the Mediterranean), probably running towards the north-west, and following the Wady Muzeireh to the north of Japho, which was assigned to the Danites, according to Jos 19:46. Jos 16:4 The territory commencing at the boundary lines mentioned was allotted to Ephraim and Manasseh as their inheritance.
John Gill Bible Commentary
And the lot of the children of Joseph fell,.... Or, "went out" (a); of the pot or urn, this being the next lot that was drawn to that of Judah, the government being Judah's, and the birthright Joseph's, Ch1 5:2; and by his children are here meant the tribe of Ephraim, and the tribe of Manasseh: or the line and border according to the lot went forth from Jordan by Jericho unto the water of Jericho on the east; by which it appears, that this was the southern border of the lot; for the tribe of Benjamin, in which Jericho was, lay between Judah and Ephraim, and the border began at Jordan, where it flowed near Jericho, and proceeded to a water which belonged to that city, and is generally thought to be the waters Elisha healed, Kg2 2:19, to the wilderness that goeth up throughout Mount Bethel; this was the wilderness of Bethaven, Jos 18:12; Jarchi interprets it of the border that went up through Mount Bethel; which is true, and so might the wilderness also, for which the Targum is express; mention is made of a mountain on the east of Bethel, Gen 12:8. (a) "et egressa est", Pagninus, Montanus; "exivit", Piscator.
Matthew Henry Bible Commentary
Though Joseph was one of the younger sons of Jacob, yet he was his eldest by his most just and best beloved wife Rachel, was himself his best beloved son, and had been the greatest ornament and support of his family, kept it from perishing in a time of famine, and had been the shepherd and stone of Israel, and therefore his posterity were very much favoured by the lot. Their portion lay in the very heart of the land of Canaan. It extended from Jordan in the east (Jos 16:1) to the sea, the Mediterranean Sea, in the west, so that it took up the whole breadth of Canaan from side to side; and no question the fruitfulness of the soil answered the blessings both of Jacob and Moses, Gen 49:25, Gen 49:26, and Deu 33:13, etc. The portions allotted to Ephraim and Manasseh are not so particularly described as those of the other tribes; we have only the limits and boundaries of them, not the particular cities in them, as before we had the cities of Judah and afterwards those of the other tribes. For this no reason can be assigned, unless we may suppose that Joshua being himself of the children of Joseph they referred it to him alone to distribute among them the several cities that lay within their lot, and therefore did not bring in the names of their cities to the great council of their princes who sat upon this affair, by which means it came to pass that they were not inserted with the rest in the books.
Tyndale Open Study Notes
16:1–17:18 Joseph had two sons,Manasseh and Ephraim (Gen 41:50-52). Half of Manasseh’s descendants had received their inheritance east of the Jordan River. The tribe of Ephraim and the rest of the tribe of Manasseh now received their allotments. This brought the total number of allotments to twelve and fulfilled the blessing Jacob had pronounced upon Joseph (Gen 49:22-26). Like Judah in the south, Joseph’s tribes exercised leadership from their central position in the north. 16:1 Jericho was assigned to the tribe of Benjamin (18:21).