The previous chapter ends with the statement, "The land finally had rest from war". It was after Joshua had made war seven years with and eliminated all those "kings" (11:18).
Deuteronomy 6:10-12 was fulfilled: “The Lord your God will soon bring you into the land he swore to give you when he made a vow to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is a land with large, prosperous cities that you did not build. The houses will be richly stocked with goods you did not produce. You will draw water from cisterns you did not dig, and you will eat from vineyards and olive trees you did not plant. When you have eaten your fill in this land, be careful not to forget the Lord, who rescued you from slavery in the land of Egypt.,"
Now that the primary city-states have been defeated and their so-called "kings" have been killed and before it is divided up by tribe, the full extent of the conquest is enumerated here. Verses 1-6 describe the land east of the Jordan. This land consisted of the territories of the kings whom Moses had conquered (Number 21:21-35) which were to be given to the tribes of Reuben, Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh (Numbers 32:38). These are not part of the Promised Land. Verses 7-24 list the "kings" defeated by Joshua on the west side of the Jordan.
Below are images of Joshua's campaigns and maps of the areas.
Above image from Sermon/Study Guide: Joshua
by Steve Hixon: www.hixonstudies.com/studyguides/joshua_sg00.asp
Above image is from www.messianic-torah-truth-seeker.org/Scriptures/Tenakh/Yehoshua/Yehoshua12.htm
(1) These are the kings east of the Jordan River who had been killed by the Israelites and whose land was taken. Their territory extended from the Arnon Gorge to Mount Hermon and included all the land east of the Jordan Valley.
(2) King *Sihon of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon, was defeated. His kingdom included Aroer, on the edge of the Arnon Gorge, and extended from the middle of the Arnon Gorge to the Jabbok River, which serves as a border for the Ammonites. This territory included the southern half of the territory of Gilead.
- *Sihon: Numbers 21:23-24: But King Sihon refused to let them cross his territory. Instead, he mobilized his entire army and attacked Israel in the wilderness, engaging them in battle at Jahaz. But the Israelites slaughtered them with their swords and occupied their land from the Arnon River to the Jabbok River. They went only as far as the Ammonite border because the boundary of the Ammonites was fortified.
Above image is from http://home.clear.net.nz/pages/jira/ruth.htm
(3) Sihon also controlled the Jordan Valley and regions to the east—from as far north as the Sea of Galilee to as far south as the Dead Sea, including the road to Beth-jeshimoth and southward to the slopes of Pisgah.
(4) King Og of Bashan, the last of the *Rephaites, lived at Ashtaroth and Edrei.
- *Rephaites: Another branch of the Nephilim.
(5) He ruled a territory stretching from Mount Hermon to Salecah in the north and to all of Bashan in the east, and westward to the borders of the kingdoms of Geshur and Maacah. This territory included the northern half of Gilead, as far as the boundary of King Sihon of
Heshbon.
(6) Moses, the servant of the Lord, and the Israelites had destroyed the people of King Sihon and King Og. And Moses gave their land as a
possession to the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.
(7) The following is a list of the kings that Joshua and the Israelite armies defeated on the west side of the Jordan, from Baal-gad
in the valley of Lebanon to Mount Halak, which leads up to Seir. (Joshua gave this land to the tribes of Israel as their possession,
(8) including the hill country, the western foothills, the Jordan Valley, the mountain slopes, the Judean wilderness, and the Negev. The people who lived in this region were the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.) These are the kings Israel defeated
(9) The king of Jericho; The king of Ai, near Bethel
(10) The king of Jerusalem; The king of Hebron
(11) The king of Jarmuth; The king of Lachish
(12) The king of Eglon; The king of Gezer
(13) The king of Debir; The king of Geder
(14) The king of Hormah; The king of Arad
(15) The king of Libnah; The king of Adullam
(16) The king of Makkedah; The king of Bethel
(17) The king of Tappuah; The king of Hepher
(18) The king of Aphek; The king of Lasharon
(19) The king of Madon; The king of Hazor
(20) The king of Shimron-meron; The king of Acshaph
(21) The king of Taanach; The king of Megiddo
(22) The king of Kedesh; The king of Jokneam in Carmel
(23) The king of Dor in the town of Naphoth-dor; The king of
Goyim in Gilgal
(24) The king of Tirzah. In all, thirty-one kings were defeated.
Many of the same names above appear in the Amarna letters, confirming the historicity the book of Joshua.
Above image is from http://www.tinybeetle.us/dbrag/06joshua/main.htm- It's now up to each tribe to possess their allotted territories and conquer any remaining Canaanites in their area. The key word up to now has been "conquer". From this point forward, the key word will be "occupy". But, we will find that they failed to fully occupy the land God gave them!
- Not all battles and not all kings are listed. The land was only 150 miles from north to south, and 50 miles from east to west.
- The Canaanites were more hopelessly divided than any of the surrounding nations. Their mountains contained nearly as many city-states as there were valleys. In the plains, each town represented a separate government and was built on a spot carefully selected for purposes of defense. These city-states were so crowded together that a horseman traveling leisurely could easily pass through two or three of them in one day.
- The chronological order of the Book of Joshua ends at verse 24. When we read a normal book, we expect it just to continue from the beginning to end in the chronological order. Not so, the Bible. It will take you and lead you through the story and then it will come back again and give you further details of the story. Many casual readers of the Bible, as a result, get very confused and give up.
- Why do we have such an exhaustive and seemingly tedious list? It only seems tedious to us because we do not live in the land. For those who really had their inheritance there, these were essential matters that touched every day life, answering the question: “What land belongs to Israel?”
- These descriptions are also important because they make it clear that these things happened in real time, and in real space. These are not fairy tales that begin with “once upon a time,” this is history that begins with specific places and people and rulers.
- It was also a way that Israel could forever remember the great things God had done for them. “Sometimes in the course of human experience it is good to sit down and reflect on what has been conquered by the grace of God.” (Redpath)
- This area that the Arab nations insist is theirs and that Israel is largely willing to concede is in fact the heart of the Promised Land and was the foundation of the Kingdom of God that Joshua had taken in battle.
- Joshua was to divide the land and give it to the people; Joshua was not to own it or personally control it as Israel’s leader. Such a procedure was generally unknown in history up to that time.
- How can a wandering horde of people with no country, a people with no fields for food and no foundries for making weapons, not even a center of civilization have the wherewithal to be an unstoppable conquering force over a substantial region of multiple kingdoms that were entrenched, well defended with sizable standing armies? Answer: it can’t happen except by the hand of the Almighty.
APPLICATION and LESSONS to LEARN:
- When the goal is reached, we can look back at our victories. But, we can't rest on our past victories. May we be able to say, "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith."
- After we stop to give God thanks and reflect on the past, it's time to get back to work for Him.
- When you have achieved a significant victory in life, it is important to take time to give God the credit. He has given us victories in the past and by giving thanks to Him, we keep our focus upon Him and remind ourselves that He will guide us in the future if are willing to do His will.
- Three tribes chose to live on the FRINGE of the Promise land – saved out of Egypt but chose to never enter in and live in the land of Promise. They chose to settle for second best. Years later, they are the first to be invaded and taken captive by the Assyrians. Many Christians are the same way - although saved, they choose to live on the fringes of the world. They are saved but so much of their life is spent still on trying to finds ways to gratify and satisfy the flesh – "Me oriented" life. Many are afraid to really commit their lives to the Lord because they're afraid what He might ask of them - without realizing what He wants to give them. How sad!
- It took seven years of fighting and the victories were won – one battle at a time! The same is true in the Christian life. There are no short cuts to spiritual growth. Our victories in Christ come one battle at a time.
NOTES:
- Unless otherwise noted, the scripture version used is the New Living Translation.
- Sources and References are on line at: http://joshua-biblestudy.blogspot.com/2011/07/joshua-references-and-sources.html
