Chapter 15

JOSHUA CHAPTER 15

Land Given to the Tribe of Judah

      • The allotment of land for the tribe of Judah’s descendants according to their clans reached southward to the border of Edom, at its southernmost- all the way to the Wilderness of Zin:

        • HCSB writes, “Judah was the first tribe to receive an inheritance west of the Jordan because of its prominence among the tribes of Israel (see Genesis 49:8-12). The description of Judah’s allotment (Joshua 15:1-12) is more detailed than are those for the other tribes. Verses 13-19 contain an account of Caleb’s success in expelling the Canaanites from the region of Hebron, his inheritance. Verses 20-62 detail the allotments to the various clans of Judah.”

        • Their southern border began at the south bay of the Dead Sea, then it proceeded southward to the ascent of Akrabbim, continuing to Zin. Then, it went up south of Kadesh-barnea to Hezron, then up to Addar where it turned around to Karka. From there it proceeded to Azmon, then to the Brook of Egypt, which it followed until it reached the Mediterranean Sea. This is your southern border.

        • ESV Archaeology Study Bible notes, “Ascent of Akrabbim means ‘scorpion pass’; its precise location is unknown…Azmon has been identified as either Ain Qoseimeh or Ain Muweilih. The Brook of Egypt is the modern Wadi el -Arish, which was the boundary between Egypt and Canaan throughout the second millennium BC.”

        • The eastern border extended along the Dead Sea to the mouth of the Jordan River.

        • The northern boundary began at the bay where the Jordan River empties into the Dead Sea. From there it went up to Beth-hoglah, then proceeded north of Beth-arabah, and up to the stone of Bohan. (Bohan was Reuben’s son.) From that point, it went through the Valley of Achor to Debir. Then, it turned north to Gilgal, which is across from the slopes of Adummim on the south side of the valley. From there, the border continued to the waters at En-shemesh and on to En-rogel, where it ends. From there, the border went up the Valley of Hinnom to the slope of the Jebusites on the south (where the city of Jerusalem is located). Then it went up to the top of the mountain that faces the Valley of Hinnom on the west, at the northern end of the Valley of the Rephaim. From the top of the mountain, the border curved to the spring at the waters of Nephtoah, then to the cities of Mount Ephron, then it curved to Baalah (that is, Kiriath-jearim). The border turned westward from Baalah to Mount Seir, continuing to the slope of Mount Jearim in the north (that is, Chesalon), then went down to Beth-shemesh and on to Timnah. The border then proceeded to the slope of the hill north of Ekron, where it curved to Shikkeron, continued to Mount Baalah, proceeded to Jabneel, and ended at the Mediterranean Sea.

            • NLT Illustrated Study Bible writes, “Although Judah’s northern border is described in great detail, some sections on this border cannot be determined with certainty…This Debir was not the same town as the Debir/Kiriath-sepher of 15:15. This Gilgal was not the same Gilgal where the Israelites earlier established their camp.”

      • The western border was the coastline of the Mediterranean Sea.

        • These are the boundaries of the descendants of Judah according to their clans.

          • NLT Illustrated Study Bible notes, “These were the boundaries of Judah when the settlement process began. Later, the tribes of Simeon and Dan received their allotments from some of Judah’s southern and western territories, and within a few decades the Philistines came from the Greek islands, settling all the southern coastal plain allotted to Judah.”

The Land Given to Caleb

      • Just as the Lord had commanded, Joshua gave Caleb (Jephunneh’s son), the following portion within the territory of Judah:

        • Kiriath-arba, that is, Hebron. Arba was Anak’s father.

        • Caleb drove Anak’s three sons- Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai (descendants of Anak)- out of there.

        • From there, he went to fight against the people living in Debir (formerly known as Kiriath-sepher). Caleb said, “I will give my daughter, Achsah, in marriage to the one who attacks and captures Kiriath-sepher.” Othniel, the son of Caleb’s brother, Kenaz, captured it. So, Caleb gave his daughter, Achsah, to him in marriage.

        • ESV Archaeology Study Bible writes, “Othniel reappears as a judge-deliverer in Judges 3:7-11. This same account is recorded in Judges 1:10-15. The conquest of Debir was part of Joshua’s battle in the Shephelah region (see Joshua 10:36-39). This is another example of the overlapping history of Joshua and Judges.”

        • This passage tends to draw criticism on two counts: 1) Caleb’s offering up of his daughter as a “prize,” and 2) the way some translations are worded makes Othniel appear to be Caleb’s brother, which would render this marriage incestuous and in violation of Leviticus 18:14.

          • 1) “We’re modern women, so we probably recoil at the idea of being a spoil of war. And we should. It’s a stark reminder that women have, at various points in history, been seen as the property of their fathers — prizes to give away, if and when their fathers saw fit. It’s important to note that, while this practice is in the Bible, it doesn’t mean God approved of it.” 2) “Aksah didn’t really have a choice in this matter. If she objected to a marriage with Othniel, we’ll never know. Given the cultural norms of Aksah’s time, that might not have even occurred to her. Arranged marriages were very common. If you had romantic feelings for your spouse, all the better, but that wasn’t necessarily the starting point for most marriages.”

          • Regarding the second, two notable commentaries answer sufficiently:

          • Matthew Poole’s Commentary states, “…it was not Othniel, but Kenaz, who was Caleb’s brother; and besides, the word brother is commonly used for any kinsman; and that Caleb was not properly Othniel’s brother sufficiently appears, because Caleb is constantly called the son of Jephunneh; and Othniel, the son of Kenaz here, and 1 Chronicles 4:13.”

      • When she came to Othniel, she persuaded him to ask her father for a field. As she got off of her donkey, Caleb asked her, “What do you want?” She replied, “Give me a blessing. Since you have given me land in the Negev, give me springs of water also.” So, Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs.

        • NLT Illustrated Study Bible notes, “No water source existed for the town Othniel conquered. Negev means ‘dry land.’ The upper and lower springs were close together but too far from Debir to belong to it naturally, so Acsah asked for the rights to the water.”

        • Guzik adds, “…Caleb’s daughter imitated her father’s boldness in asking for blessing. She did not hesitate to ask her father for some choice springs.”

Judah’s Cities

      • This was the inheritance of the descendants of the tribe of Judah according to their clans:

        • These were the outermost cities of Judah toward the border of Edom in the Negev- a total of 29 cities with their villages:

        • Kabzeel, Eder, Jagur, Kinah, Dimonah, Adadah, Kedesh, Hazor, Ithnan, Ziph, Telem, Bealoth, Hazor-hadattah, Kerioth-hezron (that is, Hazor), Amam, Shema, Moladah, Hazar-gaddah, Heshmon, Beth-pelet, Hazar-shual, Beersheba, Biziothiah, Baalah, Iim, Ezem, Eltodad, Chesil, Hormah, Ziklag, Madmannah, Sansannah, Lebaoth, Shilhim, Ain, and Rimmon.

          • ESV Archaeology Study Bible notes, “The major cities were Beersheba and Ziklag.”

          • The same source adds, “Eder is listed as Arad in the Septuagint, suggesting that the Masoretic Text transposes the ‘d’ and ‘r’. Arad was a major Judahite city, and its absence from this list would be notable.”

        • The following cities were in the western foothills- a total of 14 cities with their villages:

        • Eshtaol, Zorah, Ashnah, Zanoah, En-gannim, Tappuah, Enam, Jarmuth, Adullam, Socoh, Azekah, Shaaraim, Adithaim, Gederah, and Gederothaim

          • The ESV Archaeology Study Bible writes, “These sites are located in the Sorek and Elah Valleys, two of the major valleys separating the Philistines from the Israelites.”

          • For those who noticed the discrepancy in the numbering, the same source adds, “Gederah and Gederothaim are probably the same city. The Septuagint translates them as ‘Gederah and its sheepfolds.’ This would explain why 15 names are mentioned in a list of fourteen cities.”

        • The following 16 cities with their villages were also included:

        • Zenan, Hadashah, Migdal-gad, Dilan, Mizpeh, Jokthe-el, Lachish, Bozkath, Eglon, Cabbon, Lahmam, Chitlish, Gederoth, Beth-dagon, Naamah, and Makkedah.

        • Also included were the following 9 cities with their villages:

        • Libnah, Ether, Ashan, Iphtah, Ashnah, Nezib, Keilah, Achzib, and Mareshah.

        • Judah’s territory also included Ekron with its towns and villages. From Ekron, the border extended west to the sea and included all the cities near Ashdod with their villages; Ashdod, with its towns and villages, Gaza, with its towns and villages as far as the Brook of Egypt and the coast of the Mediterranean Sea.

          • The NLT Illustrated Study Bible says, “The fourth district of the western foothills included most of the territory soon to be occupied by the Philistines- the tribe of Judah held it only briefly.”

        • The following cities in the hill country totaling 11 cities with their villages:

          • NLT Illustrated Study Bible writes, “The hill country was in the central highlands of Judah from Jerusalem in the north to just past Debir in the south. It was divided into five districts.”

        • Shamir, Jattir, Socoh, Dannah, Kiriath-sannah (that is, Debir), Anab, Eshtemoh, Anim, Goshen, Holon, and Giloh.

          • The ESV Archaeology Study Bible notes, “The name Kiriath-sannah only appears in the Masoretic Text; the Septuagint has Kiriath-sepher, which is probably the correct name…Goshen is not the Goshen of the eastern Nile Delta. The Septuagint has the spelling of Gosom.”

        • Also included were the following 9 cities with their villages:

        • Arab, Dumah, Eshan, Janim, Beth-tappuah, Aphekah, Humtah, Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), and Zior.

        • Additionally, the following 10 cities with their villages were included:

        • Maon, Carmel, Ziph, Juttah, Jezreel, Jokdeam, Zanoah, Kain, Gibeah, and Timnah.

          • NLT Illustrated Study Bible notes, “This Jezreel in Judah was not the northern Jezreel. This city was the hometown of Ahinoam, David’s wife and mother of his eldest son, Amnon (2 Samuel 3:2).”

        • Also included were the following 6 cities with their villages:

        • Halhul, Beth-zur, Gedor, Maarath, Beth-anoth, and Eltekon.

        • *** The NLT Illustrated Study Bible notes, “Following this verse [verse 59], the Greek OT [Septuagint] includes another district of 11 cities: Tekoa, Ephrathah (that is, Bethlehem), Phagor, Etam, Kulon, Tatam, Saris, Karem, Gallim, Bether, Manoch- eleven towns with their surrounding villages. The inclusion of this district accounts for Bethlehem; this town’s omission would be surprising. Perhaps an early copyist of the Hebrew text accidentally omitted this twelfth district.”

        • The following 2 cities with their villages were also included:

        • Kiriath-baal (that is, Kiriath-jearim), and Rabbah.

        • The following 6 cities in the wilderness with their villages were also included:

        • Beth-arabah, Middin, Secacah, Nibshan, the City of Salt, and En-gedi.

          • NLT Illustrated Study Bible writes, “The wilderness of Judea included the eastern slopes of the central mountain highlands and extended to the western shore of the Dead Sea; three of its six towns were on or near that shoreline.”

      • However, Judah’s descendants couldn’t drive out the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem. So, the Jebusites live in Jerusalem among the descendants of Judah to this day.

        • NLT Illustrated Study Bible writes, “Even though Jerusalem was assigned to the tribe of Benjamin (18:28), it was not conquered in Joshua’s day. The Jebusites’ continued presence later caused Judah much trouble (Judges 1:21).”

        • HCSB notes, “The tribe of Judah could not completely remove the Jebusites from Jerusalem. This is the first mention of a tribe’s inability to expel the Canaanite inhabitants. Jerusalem remained in Jebusite hands until the time of David (2 Samuel 5:6-7).”

        • Guzik adds, “We can understand why Jerusalem was a city hard to conquer. The fact that it was set on a hill made it easy to defend…Yet, no matter how hard the struggle, with God’s promise, and God’s help, we can triumph – there is really no good excuse for why this city must stay in Canaanite hands until the time of David (2 Samuel 5:6-10).”

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