Joshua 13

KJV · Chapter 13/24

1Now Joshua was old and stricken in years; and the Lord said unto him, Thou art old and stricken in years, and there remaineth yet very much land to be possessed.

2This is the land that yet remaineth: all the borders of the Philistines, and all Geshuri,

3From Sihor, which is before Egypt, even unto the borders of Ekron northward, which is counted to the Canaanite: five lords of the Philistines; the Gazathites, and the Ashdothites, the Eshkalonites, the Gittites, and the Ekronites; also the Avites:

4From the south, all the land of the Canaanites, and Mearah that is beside the Sidonians, unto Aphek, to the borders of the Amorites:

5And the land of the Giblites, and all Lebanon, toward the sunrising, from Baal–gad under mount Hermon unto the entering into Hamath.

6All the inhabitants of the hill country from Lebanon unto Misrephoth–maim, and all the Sidonians, them will I drive out from before the children of Israel: only divide thou it by lot unto the Israelites for an inheritance, as I have commanded thee.

7Now therefore divide this land for an inheritance unto the nine tribes, and the half tribe of Manasseh,

8With whom the Reubenites and the Gadites have received their inheritance, which Moses gave them, beyond Jordan eastward, even as Moses the servant of the Lord gave them;

9From Aroer, that is upon the bank of the river Arnon, and the city that is in the midst of the river, and all the plain of Medeba unto Dibon;

10And all the cities of Sihon king of the Amorites, which reigned in Heshbon, unto the border of the children of Ammon;

11And Gilead, and the border of the Geshurites and Maachathites, and all mount Hermon, and all Bashan unto Salcah;

12All the kingdom of Og in Bashan, which reigned in Ashtaroth and in Edrei, who remained of the remnant of the giants: for these did Moses smite, and cast them out.

13Nevertheless the children of Israel expelled not the Geshurites, nor the Maachathites: but the Geshurites and the Maachathites dwell among the Israelites until this day.

14Only unto the tribe of Levi he gave none inheritance; the sacrifices of the Lord God of Israel made by fire are their inheritance, as he said unto them.

15And Moses gave unto the tribe of the children of Reuben inheritance according to their families.

16And their coast was from Aroer, that is on the bank of the river Arnon, and the city that is in the midst of the river, and all the plain by Medeba;

17Heshbon, and all her cities that are in the plain; Dibon, and Bamoth–baal, and Beth–baal–meon,

18And Jahazah, and Kedemoth, and Mephaath,

19And Kirjathaim, and Sibmah, and Zareth–shahar in the mount of the valley,

20And Beth–peor, and Ashdoth–pisgah, and Beth–jeshimoth,

21And all the cities of the plain, and all the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, which reigned in Heshbon, whom Moses smote with the princes of Midian, Evi, and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, which were dukes of Sihon, dwelling in the country.

22Balaam also the son of Beor, the soothsayer, did the children of Israel slay with the sword among them that were slain by them.

23And the border of the children of Reuben was Jordan, and the border thereof. This was the inheritance of the children of Reuben after their families, the cities and the villages thereof.

24And Moses gave inheritance unto the tribe of Gad, even unto the children of Gad according to their families.

25And their coast was Jazer, and all the cities of Gilead, and half the land of the children of Ammon, unto Aroer that is before Rabbah;

26And from Heshbon unto Ramath–mizpeh, and Betonim; and from Mahanaim unto the border of Debir;

27And in the valley, Beth–aram, and Beth–nimrah, and Succoth, and Zaphon, the rest of the kingdom of Sihon king of Heshbon, Jordan and his border, even unto the edge of the sea of Chinnereth on the other side Jordan eastward.

28This is the inheritance of the children of Gad after their families, the cities, and their villages.

29And Moses gave inheritance unto the half tribe of Manasseh: and this was the possession of the half tribe of the children of Manasseh by their families.

30And their coast was from Mahanaim, all Bashan, all the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, and all the towns of Jair, which are in Bashan, threescore cities:

31And half Gilead, and Ashtaroth, and Edrei, cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan, were pertaining unto the children of Machir the son of Manasseh, even to the one half of the children of Machir by their families.

32These are the countries which Moses did distribute for inheritance in the plains of Moab, on the other side Jordan, by Jericho, eastward.

33But unto the tribe of Levi Moses gave not any inheritance: the Lord God of Israel was their inheritance, as he said unto them.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

God reminds Joshua, now old, that there is still land to be conquered. He details the distribution of the lands east of the Jordan to Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh.

Explanation

Even as Joshua grows old, God does not treat the mission as finished - there is still territory yet to be taken, and yet he instructs that the land be divided by lot as an inheritance, an expression of faith that God would continue completing what he had promised. The tribe of Levi receives no territory because their 'inheritance' is the offerings dedicated to the Lord, reflecting their special role of serving in worship rather than accumulating property like the other tribes. The detailed list of borders, though repetitive at first glance, documented concrete ownership rights, something essential in an agrarian society.

Fun facts

  • Balaam, the prophet who tried to curse Israel in the book of Numbers, is mentioned here as having died in battle against the Midianites, bringing his story to a tragic close.
  • The tribe of Levi being left without fixed territory fulfilled a prophecy of Jacob in Genesis 49:7, who foretold that Levi would be 'scattered' in Israel - though here that scattering becomes a priestly role rather than a curse.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Joshua 13:1Even with Joshua now old, the text admits there was still much land left to conquer, and the division that begins here happens before possession is complete. It is a sign that dividing the land by lot was more about establishing a promise and a right than about describing military control already finished.
  2. Joshua 13:2The list of lands still to be conquered begins with the territories of the Philistines and the region of Geshur, along the coast.
  3. Joshua 13:3The text details the Philistine strip, with its five main cities — Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron — which remained outside Israel’s control.
  4. Joshua 13:4The list continues, including the Canaanite region to the south and Phoenician territories like Mearah, reaching all the way to the Amorite border.
  5. Joshua 13:5Also left out are the territory of the Giblites and the whole region of Lebanon, on the east side, toward the entrance of Hamath.
  6. Joshua 13:6God promises to drive out the inhabitants of these hill regions later, but for now He tells Joshua to simply divide the land by lot among the tribes, including what has not yet been conquered.
  7. Joshua 13:7The practical order is to divide the land among the nine and a half tribes that had not yet received territory.
  8. Joshua 13:8The tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh had already received their share of land even before crossing the Jordan, by Moses’ own decision. The casting of lots that Joshua organizes afterward is only for the remaining tribes, not to reopen what had already been settled.
  9. Joshua 13:9Here begins the description of the portion Reuben and Gad had already received from Moses, east of the Jordan, starting from the region of Aroer.
  10. Joshua 13:10The territory includes all the cities that belonged to Sihon, the Amorite king defeated back in the time of Moses.
  11. Joshua 13:11The area extends to Gilead and Mount Hermon, covering a large part of Bashan.
  12. Joshua 13:12It also includes the former kingdom of Og, the other giant king defeated by Moses before reaching Canaan.
  13. Joshua 13:13One important note: Israel never fully drove out the peoples of Geshur and Maacah, who kept living there even after the conquest.
  14. Joshua 13:14The tribe of Levi does not receive a continuous territory because its role was to care for worship and live off the offerings brought to the Lord by the other tribes, not off farming or raising livestock like the rest. This deliberate lack of land is repeated more than once in the book, as if the text wanted to make very clear that it was no oversight.
  15. Joshua 13:15Here begins the specific description of the territory given to the tribe of Reuben.
  16. Joshua 13:16Reuben’s borders start at Aroer and reach the region of Medeba, covering a large part of the plain.
  17. Joshua 13:17Heshbon and several neighboring cities on the plain fall within Reuben’s territory.
  18. Joshua 13:18More cities are listed within Reuben’s area, forming a detailed map of the territory.
  19. Joshua 13:19The list continues with more cities from the hill country of the valley.
  20. Joshua 13:20Beth-peor and other hillside cities round out Reuben’s list.
  21. Joshua 13:21Reuben’s territory includes the entire former kingdom of Sihon, including the lands of the Midianite chiefs who served under him.
  22. Joshua 13:22Among those killed in the conquest of this region is Balaam, the prophet hired to curse Israel, who ended up dying along with the enemy.
  23. Joshua 13:23The Jordan marks the western boundary of Reuben’s territory, closing out the description of this tribe’s inheritance.
  24. Joshua 13:24From here, the text moves on to detail the territory given to the tribe of Gad.
  25. Joshua 13:25Gad’s territory begins at Jazer and covers half the land of the Ammonites, including the whole region of Gilead.
  26. Joshua 13:26Gad’s borders extend to Ramoth-mizpeh and Mahanaim, reaching the region of Debir.
  27. Joshua 13:27In the valley, Gad’s territory includes several cities left over from Sihon’s former kingdom, reaching as far as the Sea of Galilee.
  28. Joshua 13:28This is the summary of the complete inheritance of the tribe of Gad, with its cities and villages.
  29. Joshua 13:29The text now moves to the half of the tribe of Manasseh that received land east of the Jordan.
  30. Joshua 13:30This territory includes the whole region of Bashan, Og’s former kingdom, with sixty cities known as the towns of Jair.
  31. Joshua 13:31Half of Gilead and the cities of Ashtaroth and Edrei also fall within this portion, given to the family of Machir, a descendant of Manasseh.
  32. Joshua 13:32This is the summary of everything Moses distributed on the east side of the Jordan, even before Joshua took over the leadership.
  33. Joshua 13:33What was already said is repeated here: the tribe of Levi receives no land of its own, because their “inheritance” is to serve God directly.

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