Sunday, March 18, 2012

Joshua 18

   Five tribes now had been given their inheritance as Joshua, Eleazer and the twelve tribal leaders cast lots at Gilgal. Then, Joshua moved the camp to Shiloh, in the territory of Ephraim, where the Tabernacle remained for more than 300 years until David moved the Ark to Jerusalem (2 Samuel 6). The Tabernacle never got back to this first resting-place. Shiloh was centrally located and was more convenient for all the tribes.

(1) Now that the land was under Israelite control, the entire community of Israel gathered at *Shiloh
and set up the **Tabernacle.

  • *Shiloh:
    • Shiloh means "tranquility", "rest", "peace", "security."
    • This appears to have been a considerable town about fifteen miles from Jerusalem, in the tribe of Ephraim, and nearly in the center of the whole land.
    • The location of the city was important, and until the death of Eli the High Priest, Shiloh was the place
      of pilgrimage for the Children of Israel. Three times a year the faithful traveled to Shiloh to bring their festival offerings.
    • Ancient Shiloh's city gates have been identified in the southern side of Tel Shiloh. The southern approach to the city was on a gradual rise, with easy access. In the other directions were steep, rocky cliffs, making the city easier to defend. On the Southern side of Tel Shiloh is a building of stones from several time periods. Rabbi Ashtori Hafarchi in his book Kaftor V'ferach tells of passing by and seeing a group of Jews
      kneeling and praying by a stone weeping and praying. Upon his inquiring, they answered him that this was the burial place of Eli the High Priest. Some hundred years later, the archeologist Dalman in his writings identified the same spot as Eli's burial location. In 1873, the explorer Wilson suggested the northern plateau of Tel Shiloh as the possible site of the Tabernacle. In aerial photographs it is clear that there is an area north of the Tel that was hewn for some specific purpose. According to Wilson's measurements, the plateau is 77 feet long. Therefore, this location fits that all three requirements for identifying the site as that of the Tabernacle, dimensions, direction
      and naturally defendable.
    • The word "Shiloh" has always been understood in Rabbinic Judaism as referring to the Messiah because of Jacob's blessing of the tribe of Judah "until Shiloh comes" (Genesis 49:10).
    • Shiloh was apparently destroyed by the Philistines about 1050 B.C. when the Ark of the Covenant was captured (1 Samuel 4-5). Later references to Shiloh point to the wickedness and idolatry in the city (Psalm 78:56-60, Jeremiah 7:12-15).
  • **Tabernacle: Hebrew: Tent of Meeting. This was the first mention of the Tent of Meeting since the death of Moses. The very area the tent was erected is visible to this day. The evidence of its presence is obvious, even the holes bored in the rock where the posts of the courtyard perimeter curtain were set can be found.
  • When the people of Israel entered the Promised Land under Joshua, the Tabernacle was located at
    Gilgal (Joshua 4:19). Later it was moved to Shiloh (Joshua 18:1-10).
  • While the Tabernacle remained in Shiloh, it was a place of pilgrimage (1 Samuel 1:3). Samuel was brought to Shiloh and was consecrated to God's service (1 Samuel 1:24).
  • At some point during its long stay at Shiloh, the portable tent seems to have been enclosed within a standing structure that had "doors" (1 Samuel 3:15) a precursor to the Temple.
  • Shiloh was still occupied in Jeremiah's time (Jeremiah 41:5).
  • The Ark of the Covenant was sometimes separated from the Tabernacle or Temple. Josiah ordered it to be returned to the Temple in Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 35:1-6) where it stayed until the time of the Babylonian captivity.
  • 2 Maccabees 2:4-10, written around 100 BC, says that the prophet Jeremiah, "being warned by God" before the Babylonian invasion,
    took the Ark, the Tabernacle and the Altar of Incense, and buried them
    in a cave on Mount Nebo (Jordan), informing those of his followers who
    wished to find the place that it should remain unknown "until the time
    that God should gather His people again together, and receive them unto
    mercy."
  • Judges 18: 31: So Micah’s carved image was worshiped by the tribe of Dan as long as the Tabernacle of God remained at Shiloh.
  • Judges 21:19: Then they thought of the annual festival of the LORD held in Shiloh, south of Lebonah and north of Bethel, along the east side of the road that goes from Bethel to Shechem.
  • 1 Samuel 1:3: Each year Elkanah would travel to Shiloh to worship and sacrifice to the LORD of Heaven’s Armies at the Tabernacle. The priests of the LORD at that time were the two sons of Eli - Hophni and Phinehas.
  • 1 Samuel 1:9: Once after a sacrificial meal at Shiloh, Hannah got up and went to pray. Eli the priest was sitting at his customary place beside the entrance of the Tabernacle.
  • 1 Samuel 1:24: When the child was weaned, Hannah took him to the Tabernacle in Shiloh. They brought along a three-year-old bull for the sacrifice and a basket of flour and some wine.
  • 1 Samuel 3:3: The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was sleeping in the Tabernacle near the Ark of God.
  • 1 Samuel 3:15: Samuel stayed in bed until morning, then got up and opened the doors of the Tabernacle as usual. He was afraid to tell Eli what the LORD had said to him.
  • 1 Samuel 4:4: So they sent men to Shiloh to bring the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, who is enthroned between the cherubim. Hophni and Phinehas, the sons of Eli, were also there with the Ark of the Covenant of God.
  • 1 Samuel 5:1: After the Philistines captured the Ark of God, they took it from the battleground at Ebenezer to the town of Ashdod.
  • 1 Samuel 6:21-7:2: So they sent messengers to the people at Kiriath-jearim and told them, “The Philistines have returned the Ark of the LORD. Come here and get it!” So the men of Kiriath-jearim came to get the Ark of the LORD. They took it to the hillside home of Abinadab and ordained Eleazar, his son, to be in charge of it. The Ark remained in Kiriath-jearim for a long time - twenty years in all. During that time all Israel mourned because it seemed the LORD had abandoned them.
    • The City of Kiriath-jearim was initially inhabited by the Gibeonites who forged a bond of peace with the Israelites so that they would not be eradicated by the Israelites. When the boundaries of the tribes of Israel were set, Kiriath-jearim was on the border of Benjamin, Dan and Judah. When the Ark of God had been captured by the Philistines, the Philistines were struck by the devastating hand of God, causing them to relinquish their hold of the Ark. The Ark was first taken to Beth-shemesh, where too many of the Israelites there treated it casually, looking inside to confirm what was in there. After a substantial portion of Beth-shemesh died, the Ark was shipped northward to the nearest major city, Kiriath-jearim. The name Kiriath Jearim means "city of forests" and was once a city of Baal worship.
  • 1 Chronicles 15:1-3: David now built several buildings for himself in the City of David. He also prepared a place for the Ark of God and set up a special tent for it. Then he commanded, “No one except the Levites may carry the Ark of God. The LORD has chosen them to carry the Ark of the LORD and to serve him forever.” Then David summoned all Israel to Jerusalem to bring the Ark of the LORD to the place he had prepared for it.
  • 1 Chronicles 17:1: When David was settled in his palace, he summoned Nathan the prophet. “Look,” David said, “I am living in a beautiful cedar palace, but the Ark of the LORD’s Covenant is out there under a tent!”
  • 1 Kings 14:1-4: At that time Jeroboam’s son Abijah became very sick. So Jeroboam told his wife, “Disguise yourself so that no one will recognize you as my wife. Then go to the prophet Ahijah at Shiloh - the man who told me I would become king. Take him a gift of ten loaves of bread, some cakes, and a jar of honey, and ask him what will happen to the boy.” So Jeroboam’s wife went to Ahijah’s home at Shiloh. He was an old man now and could no longer see.
    • Jeroboam was the first king of the northern Israelite Kingdom of Israel after the revolt of the ten northern Israelite tribes.
  • Jeremiah 7:12-14: “‘Go now to the place at Shiloh where I once put the Tabernacle that bore my name. See what I did there because of all the wickedness of my people, the Israelites. While you were doing these wicked things, says the LORD, I spoke to you about it repeatedly, but you would not listen. I called out to you, but you refused to answer. So just as I destroyed Shiloh, I will now destroy this Temple that bears my name, this Temple that you trust in for help, this place that I gave to you and your ancestors.
  • Jeremiah 26:6: then I will destroy this Temple as I destroyed Shiloh, the place where the Tabernacle was located. And I will make Jerusalem an object of cursing in every nation on earth.’”
  • Psalm 78:56-60: But they kept testing and rebelling against God Most High. They did not obey his laws. They turned back and were as faithless as their parents. They were as undependable as a crooked bow. They angered God by building shrines to other gods; they made him jealous with their idols. When God heard them, he was very angry, and he completely rejected Israel. Then he abandoned his dwelling at Shiloh, the Tabernacle where he had lived among the people.

(2) But there remained seven tribes who had not yet been allotted their grants of land.

  • We know the two and a half tribes on the eastern side of Jordan had received their inheritance. We, also, know that Ephraim and the other half of the tribe of Manasseh had received their inheritance on the west side  of Jordan, too. Judah received their inheritance, as well. This leaves just seven tribes to still inherit their land.

(3) Then Joshua asked them, “How long are you going to wait before taking possession of the remaining land the LORD, the God of your ancestors, has given to you?

  • They seemed to be content without any inheritance whatever. Most likely they had also become tired of war. Theirs had been a strenuous experience. It was difficult work to go forth and conquer, to occupy new territory and meet the enemies. They must likewise have come into
    possession of many things for their comfort, which were unknown to them in the wilderness; and with the natural and plentiful resources of the land they became self-indulgent and were at ease. They were used to the nomadic life style. Joshua's earnest appeal suggests such a state of the people.
  • It is a tragedy that they did not possess the entire land because the failure to do so ultimately led to what we find in the Book of Judges, their corruption of their worship of God, their failure and thus the punishment of God and their being conquered by the other lands.
  • Joshua's rebuke of the people for not having gone in to possess the land was well deserved. It would have required a drastic change in the life style of the people for them to have done so, and the natural inertia of people prevented this from happening. Besides that, the people would no longer dwell in a single camp, as previously, but each tribe would have to work for its own supplies and protection.
  • It was not a question. It was a scolding. He called them indolent, lazy and relaxed. He was frustrated by their lack of action. He wanted to see to it that the task was completed because he was old (Joshua 13:1).
  • When Israel was looking ahead to that time that they would finally enter Canaan and each tribe, clan and family received a piece of land for its own, they were anxious for it all to happen easily with no obligation to finish conquering it.
  • When we reach the Book of Judges, we learn that they failed to fully possess the land.

(4) Select three men from each tribe, and I will send them out to explore the land and map it out. They will then return to me with a written report of their proposed divisions of their new homeland.

  • In the previous chapter, Joshua had just dealt with a delegation complaining about their inheritance. He may be thinking that he may face this with each and every tribe. Therefore, he will have the tribes who are about to receive the remaining land map out the land which remains.

(5) Let them divide the land into seven sections, excluding Judah’s territory in the south and Joseph’s territory in the north.

(6) And when you record the seven divisions of the land and bring them to me, I will cast sacred lots in the presence of the LORD our God to assign land to each tribe.

  • These 21 men, who went and described the land, were not picking out a piece of land for themselves. They were viewing the whole parcel of land. The seven pieces of land they mapped out, would be put into the jug together, and they would cast lots to see what tribe got which piece of land. The LORD, Himself, would oversee the casting of the lots. It would be fair from every standpoint. They believed that God caused the lots to fall a certain way, so the land would be divided His way.

(7) “The Levites, however, will not receive any allotment of land. Their role as priests of the LORD is their allotment. And the tribes of Gad, Reuben, and the half-tribe of Manasseh won’t receive any more land, for they have already received their grant of land, which Moses, the servant of the LORD, gave them on the east side of the Jordan River.”

  • There is a time gap between Verse 7 and Verse 8. That is because in Verse 8 the "meeting with Joshua broke up" and the survey work had begun for these seven remaining tribes.

(8) As the men started on their way to map out the land, Joshua commanded them, “Go and explore the land and write a description of it. Then return to me, and I will assign the land to the tribes by casting sacred lots here in the presence of the LORD at Shiloh.”

(9) The men did as they were told and mapped the entire territory into seven sections, listing the towns in each section. They made a written record and then returned to Joshua in the camp at Shiloh.

  • This just shows that they carried out, in detail, the commandments of Joshua. They even wrote all of the descriptions down in a book. The location of each plot of land was pinpointed by the towns located in them.

(10) And there at Shiloh, Joshua *cast sacred lots in the presence of the LORD to determine which tribe should have each section.

  • *cast sacred lots:
    • It appears that, the actual casting of the lots was done by Joshua, and the division of the land to the different tribes was not questioned, but accepted.
    • Proverbs 16:33 (NIV): The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD.

(11) The first allotment of land went to the *clans of the tribe of **Benjamin. It lay between the territory assigned to the tribes of Judah and Joseph.

  • *clans: Families (clans) were given cities and associated villages and they existed in a generally recognized area that could roughly be called the territory of Benjamin.
  • **Benjamin:
    • Benjamin was given a narrow strip of land that served as a buffer zone between Judah and Ephraim, the two tribes that would later dominate the land.
    • Its situation, between the leading tribe of the Kingdom of Israel (Ephraim), and the leading tribe of the Kingdom of Judah (Judah), is seemingly prophesied in the Blessing of Moses, where it is described as dwelling between YHWH's shoulders:
      • Deuteronomy 33:12 (NIV): About Benjamin he said: “Let the beloved of the LORD rest secure in him, for he shields him all day long, and the one the LORD loves rests between his shoulders.” The Hebrew expression 'his shoulders' metaphorically means 'his mountain slopes'.
    • Benjamin means "son of my right hand."
    • Benjamin included Jerusalem which was on the border of Benjamin and Judah.
    • It was a long time before Jerusalem was taken from the Jebusites (in David's day).
    • Saul of Tarsus, our great Apostle Paul (Paul means "little"), was a Benjamite. Benjamin was the smallest of the tribes territorially.
    • The site of the future temple would be located in the territory assigned to Benjamin.
    • The tribe of Benjamin received a stretch of land in a depression, or "saddle", which stretched from Bethel south to Jerusalem. It merged with the boundary of Dan to the west, and the Jordan River to the east. It was a well watered land except for on the eastern ridge portion. The land was fertile, located on the central plateau which topped the Western Mountains of central Canaan. The eastern side plunged sharply into the Jordan Valley below. This portion of Benjamin was less hospitable.
    • Despite its small size, only twenty-five miles in length and twelve in width, the tribe of Benjamin enjoyed a very strategic land. The Central Ridge Route, the main artery of north-south traffic through the Western Mountains, ran through Benjamin, as did important east-west routes, connecting Benjamin to the Transjordan in the east, and the coast in the west. Trade and caravans traveled continuously along these
      routes.

    • Map from Teachinghearts.org

(12) The northern boundary of Benjamin’s land began at the Jordan River, went north of the slope of Jericho, then west through the hill country and the wilderness of Beth-aven.

(13) From there the boundary went south to Luz (that is, Bethel) and proceeded down to Ataroth-addar on the hill that lies south of Lower Beth-horon.

(14) The boundary then made a turn and swung south along the western edge of the hill facing Beth-horon, ending at the village of Kiriath-baal (that is, Kiriath-jearim), a town belonging to the tribe of Judah. This was the western boundary.

(15) The southern boundary began at the outskirts of Kiriath-jearim. From that western point it ran to the spring at the waters of Nephtoah,

(16) and down to the base of the mountain beside the valley of Ben-Hinnom, at the northern end of the valley of Rephaim. From there it went down the valley of Hinnom, crossing south of the slope where the Jebusites lived, and continued down to En-rogel.

(17) From En-rogel the boundary proceeded in a northerly direction and came to *En-shemesh and on to Geliloth (which is across from the slopes of Adummim). Then it went down to the Stone of Bohan. (Bohan was Reuben’s son.)

  • *En-shemesh means "The fountain of the sun", a proof of the idolatrous nature of the ancient inhabitants of this land." (Clarke)

(18) From there it passed along the north side of the slope overlooking the Jordan Valley. The border then went down into the valley,

(19) ran past the north slope of Beth-hoglah, and ended at the north bay of the Dead Sea, which is the southern end of the Jordan River. This was the southern boundary.

(20) The eastern boundary was the Jordan River. These were the boundaries of the homeland allocated to the clans of the tribe of Benjamin.

(21-28) These were the towns given to the clans of the tribe of Benjamin. Jericho, Beth-hoglah, Emek-keziz, Beth-arabah, Zemaraim, Bethel, Avvim, Parah, Ophrah, Kephar-ammoni, Ophni, and Geba—twelve towns with their surrounding villages. Also Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth, Mizpah, Kephirah, Mozah, Rekem, Irpeel, Taralah, Zela, Haeleph, Jebus (that is, Jerusalem), Gibeah, and Kiriath—fourteen towns with their surrounding villages. This was the homeland allocated to the clans of the tribe of Benjamin.

Benjamin's territory, as outlined here, took precedence over certain territories already assigned to Ephraim and Judah. Benjamin's lot fell into a steep, mountainous country; many of the cities they received were in high places, indicated by such names as Gibeon (hilly); Gibeath (a hill); Gaba (elevation); Ramah (the height); Mizpeh (watch-tower), etc.

Despite all of Israel's problems over the next half a millennium or so, they still had these tribal
territories. This lasted until after the time of King Solomon. The next king after Solomon caused a
split and two Jewish countries were formed. Those Israelites who were loyal to God moved south
to the new country of "Judah" - 2 Chronicles 11:16: From all the
tribes of Israel, those who sincerely wanted to worship the LORD, the God of Israel, followed the Levites
to Jerusalem, where they could offer sacrifices to the LORD, the God of their ancestors.
There are no "lost 10 tribes!"

APPLICATION and LESSONS to LEARN:

  1. He rebuked them for their procrastination in possessing the land. We are rebuked for failing to possess the spiritual land of blessing that God has given us. We are exhorted to be more victorious in the spiritual battles in this land.
  2. Life's major decisions should be made before the Lord. The Israelites surveyed the land and brought it before the Lord. These decisions would not only affect their position in the land, but much of their future history as well. Do you make your major decisions in life before the Lord? How often have we gone ahead without consulting the Lord?
  3. Joshua asked in verse 3 why some of the tribes were putting off the job of possessing the land. Often we delay doing jobs that seem large, difficult, boring or disagreeable. But, to continue putting them off shows lack of discipline, poor stewardship of time and, sometimes, disobedience to God. Jobs we don't enjoy require concentration, teamwork, twice as much time, lots of encouragement and accountability. Remember this when you are tempted to procrastinate. A good planner will do the hard jobs first instead of putting them off.
  4. The territory God wants for us is sometimes "pre-marked" by God as in the case of the tribes of Judah and Joseph that have already gotten their land. In some cases, God wants us to go survey or "mark out" (i.e., go determine) what is the purpose of our lives for God and then "report back for duty" - this is one of the great challenges of life! We usually don't know God's purpose for the rest our lives. Remember that God can't lead us unless we are willing to "move" and discover what is our "allotted territory".
  5. It is not just the Jews who have an enemy they need to fight and overcome. The Christians are in a spiritual warfare against the devil and his helpers all the time. Jesus has defeated Satan, the same as God has defeated Israel's enemy here. In both cases, they have to fight the battle, even though it is already won. God gave them this land, and would be with them in battle. They just have to have enough faith to act upon it.
  6. For the Christian, the establishment of a sanctuary and center at Shiloh testifies to how God fulfils his promises. God has given his people the blessing of his presence among them. They must respond in obedience by occupying the land and living according to the divine covenant. The fundamental importance of the sanctuary is illustrated by its central position among the tribes (in the central hill country) and by its position in the midst of the allotments of Joshua 13-21. Christians are also called upon to see the worship of God as central to their lives.
  7. Many of the modern complacent churches believe that once a person receives Christ as personal Savior, he can just pull up a pew and just be interested observers. They think that by inheriting salvation they now sit back and enjoy the fruits, waiting only for the day they arrive in heaven. They pray and then go their merry ways. Nothing could be less Scriptural than that proposition. Instead, we are meant to equate our redemption and inheritance to that of Israel’s over Canaan; that’s one of the reasons that the Lord chose to preserve this episode for us. Along with our salvation and inheritance come duties and responsibilities. We have indeed come into a kind of spiritual rest due to our trust in God’s Son, but physically we still live in a hostile unconquered place. God stated over and over to Joshua that He had already accomplished victory over Israel’s Canaanite enemies before the army even went to battle; yet that did not somehow absolve Israel from participating in battle. God was not going to do a 100% supernatural Sodom and Gomorrah type of destruction upon Israel’s enemies; Israel would have to fight for a long time to achieve victory and then to hold on to its gains. The path would be very uneven and dangerous. It’s exactly the same for believers today. Why else would we need the "armor of God?"
  8. There are many of God's people who are living substandard lives because they haven’t taken hold of the promises of God. We must recognize that when the Bible says they had not received their inheritance, what it actually means is that they had failed to drive out the enemy.
  9. We need to keep moving. It’s all too easy to sit and rest, and rest too long.

NOTES:

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