Advanced Commentary

Texts -- Joshua 17:4-18 (NET)

Context
17:4 They went before Eleazar the priest , Joshua son of Nun , and the leaders and said , “The Lord told Moses to assign us land among our relatives .” So Joshua assigned them land among their uncles , as the Lord had commanded . 17:5 Manasseh was allotted ten shares of land, in addition to the land of Gilead and Bashan east of the Jordan , 17:6 for the daughters of Manasseh were assigned land among his sons . The land of Gilead belonged to the rest of the descendants of Manasseh . 17:7 The border of Manasseh went from Asher to Micmethath which is near Shechem . It then went south toward those who live in Tappuah . 17:8 (The land of Tappuah belonged to Manasseh , but Tappuah , located on the border of Manasseh , belonged to the tribe of Ephraim .) 17:9 The border then descended southward to the Valley of Kanah . Ephraim was assigned cities there among the cities of Manasseh , but the border of Manasseh was north of the valley and ended at the sea . 17:10 Ephraim’s territory was to the south , and Manasseh’s to the north . The sea was Manasseh’s western border and their territory touched Asher on the north and Issachar on the east . 17:11 Within Issachar’s and Asher’s territory Manasseh was assigned Beth Shean , Ibleam , the residents of Dor , En Dor , the residents of Taanach , the residents of Megiddo , the three of Napheth , and the towns surrounding all these cities. 17:12 But the men of Manasseh were unable to conquer these cities ; the Canaanites managed to remain in those areas . 17:13 Whenever the Israelites were strong militarily, they forced the Canaanites to do hard labor , but they never totally conquered them. 17:14 The descendants of Joseph said to Joshua , “Why have you assigned us only one tribal allotment ? After all, we have many people , for until now the Lord has enabled us to increase in number .” 17:15 Joshua replied to them, “Since you have so many people , go up into the forest and clear out a place to live in the land of the Perizzites and Rephaites , for the hill country of Ephraim is too small for you.” 17:16 The descendants of Joseph said , “The whole hill country is inadequate for us, and the Canaanites living down in the valley in Beth Shean and its surrounding towns and in the Valley of Jezreel have chariots with iron-rimmed wheels.” 17:17 Joshua said to the family of Joseph – to both Ephraim and Manasseh : “You have many people and great military strength . You will not have just one tribal allotment . 17:18 The whole hill country will be yours; though it is a forest , you can clear it and it will be entirely yours . You can conquer the Canaanites , though they have chariots with iron-rimmed wheels and are strong .”

Pericope

NET

Bible Dictionary

  • Israel

    [nave] ISRAEL 1. A name given to Jacob, Gen. 32:24-32; 2 Kin. 17:34; Hos. 12:3, 4. 2. A name of the Christ in prophecy, Isa. 49:3. 3. A name given to the descendants of Jacob, a nation. Called also Israelites, and Hebrews, Gen. 4...

  • Joshua

    [nave] JOSHUA 1. Called also Jehoshua, and Jehoshuah, and Oshea. Son of Nun, Num. 13:8; 1 Chr. 7:27. Intimately associated with Moses, Ex. 24:13; 32:17; 33:11. A religious zealot, Num. 11:28. Sent with others to view the promise...

  • Gibeon

    [ebd] hill-city, "one of the royal cities, greater than Ai, and all the men thereof were mighty" (Josh. 10:2). Its inhabitants were Hivites (11:19). It lay within the territory of Benjamin, and became a priest-city (18:25; 21:17)....

  • Canaanites

    [nave] CANAANITES Eleven nations, descended from Canaan, Gen. 10:15-19; Deut. 7:1; 1 Chr. 1:13-16. Territory of, Gen. 10:19; 12:6; 15:18; Ex. 23:31; Num. 13:29; 34:1-12; Josh. 1:4; 5:1; given to the Israelites, Gen. 12:6, 7; 15:18...

  • Manasseh

    [nave] MANASSEH 1. Son of Joseph and Asenath, Gen. 41:50, 51; 46:20; adopted by Jacob on his deathbed, Gen. 48:1, 5-20. Called Manasses, Rev. 7:6. 2. Tribe of. Descendants of Joseph. The two sons of Joseph, Ephraim and Manasseh, ...

  • Ephraim

    [nave] EPHRAIM 1. Second son of Joseph, Gen. 41:52. Adopted by Jacob, Gen. 48:5. Blessed before Manasseh; prophecies concerning, Gen. 48:14-20. Descendants of, Num. 26:35-37; 1 Chr. 7:20-27. Mourns for his sons, 1 Chr. 7:21, 22...

  • Taanach

    [isbe] TAANACH - ta'-nak (ta`anakh, or ta`nakh; the Septuagint Tanach, with many variants): A royal city of the Canaanites, the king of which was slain by Joshua (12:21). It was within the boundaries of the portion of Issachar, but...
    [smith] (sandy), an ancient Canaanitish city whose king is enumerated among the thirty-one kings conquered by Joshua. (Joshua 12:21) It came into the half tribe of Manasseh, (Joshua 17:11; 21:25; 1 Chronicles 7:29) and was bestowe...
    [nave] TAANACH, called also Tanach. A city conquered by Joshua, Josh. 12:21. Allotted to Manasseh, Josh. 17:11; 1 Chr. 7:29. Canaanites not driven from, Josh. 17:12; Judg. 1:27. Assigned to the Levites, Josh. 21:25. The scene of...

  • Greed

    [nave] GREED. Ex. 18:21; Ex. 20:17 Deut. 5:21. Neh. 5:7; Job 20:15; Job 31:24, 25, 28; Psa. 10:3; Psa. 119:36; Prov. 1:19; Prov. 11:24, 26; Prov. 15:27; Prov. 21:25, 26; Prov. 22:16; Prov. 23:4, 5; Prov. 30:8, 9; Eccl. 1:8 vs. 2-8...

  • Cowardice

    [nave] COWARDICE. Lev. 26:36, 37; Deut. 20:8; Deut. 32:30; Josh. 7:5; Josh. 23:10; Judg. 7:3; Job 15:24; Job 18:11; Prov. 28:1; Prov. 29:25; Isa. 51:12, 13; Gal. 6:12; 2 Tim. 4:16 See: Courage. Instances of Adam, in attempting t...

  • BOTANY

    [isbe] BOTANY - bot'-a-ni. 1. General Characteristics of Palestinian Flora: On account of the great diversity in the climatic and topographical conditions Palestine is peculiarly rich in the variety of its flora--the best authority...

  • Asher

    [smith] a place which formed one boundary of the tribe of Manasseh on the south. (Joshua 17:7) Mr. Porter suggests that Teyasir may be the Asher of Manasseh. Handbook , p.348.
    [nave] ASHER 1. Son of Jacob, by Zilpah, Gen. 30:13; 35:26; 49:20; Ex. 1:4; 1 Chr. 2:2. Descendants of, Gen. 46:17; Num. 26:44-47. 2. Tribe of: Census of, by families, Num. 1:40, 41; 26:44-47; 1 Chr. 7:40; 12:36. Station of, in ...

  • Noah

    [nave] NOAH 1. Son of Lamech, Gen. 5:28, 29. Builds an ark and saves his family from the flood, Gen. 6:14-22; 7:8; Matt. 24:38; Luke 17:27; Heb. 11:7; 1 Pet. 3:20. Builds an altar and offers sacrifices, Gen. 8:20, 21. Receives t...

  • MANASSEH (2)

    [isbe] MANASSEH (2) - 1. Son of Joseph: Following the Biblical account of Manasseh (patriarch, tribe, and territory) we find that he was the eider of Joseph's two sons by Asenath, the daughter of Poti-phera, priest of On (Gen 41:51...

  • Ibleam

    [ebd] people-waster, a city assigned to Manasseh (Josh. 17:11), from which the Israelites, however, could not expel the Canaanites (Judg. 1:27). It is also called Bileam (1 Chr. 6:70). It was probably the modern Jelamah, a village...
    [isbe] IBLEAM - ib'-le-am (yibhle`am); A town in the territory of Issachar which was assigned to Manasseh (Josh 17:11). This tribe, however, failed to expel the inhabitants, so the Canaanites continued to dwell in that land (Jdg 1:...
    [smith] (devouring the people), a city of Manasseh, with villages or towns dependent on it. (Judges 1:27) It appears to have been situated in the territory of either Issachar or Asher. (Joshua 17:11) The ascent of Gur was "at Ibleam,...
    [nave] IBLEAM, a city of Manasseh, Josh. 17:11; Judg. 1:27; 2 Kin. 9:27.

  • Iron

    [ebd] Tubal-Cain is the first-mentioned worker in iron (Gen. 4:22). The Egyptians wrought it at Sinai before the Exodus. David prepared it in great abundance for the temple (1 Chr. 22:3: 29:7). The merchants of Dan and Javan broug...
    [nave] IRON 1. First recorded use of, Gen. 4:22. Ore of, Deut. 8:9; Job 28:2. Melted, Ezek. 22:20. Used in the temple, 1 Chr. 22:3; 29:2, 7. Articles made of: Ax, 2 Kin. 6:6; 2 Chr. 18:10; Eccl. 10:10; Isa. 10:34; bedstead, Deu...

  • Michmethah

    [ebd] hiding-place, a town in the northern border of Ephraim and Manasseh, and not far west of Jordan (Josh. 16:6; 17:7).
    [isbe] MICHMETHAH - mik'-me-tha (ha-mikhmethah; Codex Vaticanus Hikasmon; Codex Alexandrinus Machthoth): A place named in defining the territory of Ephraim and Manasseh (Josh 16:6; 17:7). It is said to lie "before," i.e. to the Eas...
    [smith] (hiding-place), a place which formed one of the landmarks of the boundary of the territories of Ephraim and Manasseh on the western side of Jordan. (Joshua 17:7) The position of the place must be somewhere on the east of and ...
    [nave] MICHMETHAH, a city between Ephraim and Manasseh, Josh. 16:6; 17:7.

  • FOREST

    [ebd] Heb. ya'ar, meaning a dense wood, from its luxuriance. Thus all the great primeval forests of Syria (Eccl. 2:6; Isa. 44:14; Jer. 5:6; Micah 5:8). The most extensive was the trans-Jordanic forest of Ephraim (2 Sam. 18:6, 8; J...
    [isbe] FOREST - for'-est: (1) choresh (compare proper name Harosheth), 2 Ch 27:4. In 1 Sam 23:15 ff translated "wood"; in Isa 17:9, "wood"; in Ezek 31:3, "forest-like shade." Applied to any thick growth of vegetation but not necess...

  • Kanah

    [isbe] KANAH - ka'-na (qanah, "reeds"): (1) The name of a "brook," i.e. wady, or "torrent bed," which formed part of the boundary between Ephraim and Manasseh (Josh 16:8; 17:9). The border of Ephraim went out westward from Tappuah ...
    [smith] (a place of reeds). One of the places which formed the landmarks of the boundary of Asher; apparently next to Zidon-rabbah, or "great Zidon." (Joshua 19:28) The river, a stream falling into the Mediterranean, which formed th...
    [nave] KANAH 1. A brook dividing Ephraim from Manasseh, Josh. 16:8; 17:9. 2. A town in Asher, Josh. 19:28.

  • HILL, HILL COUNTRY

    [isbe] HILL, HILL COUNTRY - hil'-kun-tri: The common translation of three Hebrew words: (1) gibh`ah, from root meaning "to be curved," is almost always translated "hill"; it is a pecuIiarly appropriate designation for the very roun...

  • Issachar

    [isbe] ISSACHAR - is'-a-kar (yissa(se)khar; Septuagint, Swete Issachar; Tischendorf, Issachar, so also in the New Testament, Tregelles, and Westcott and Hort, The New Testament in Greek): (1) The 9th son of Jacob, the 5th borne to ...
    [nave] ISSACHAR 1. Son of Jacob, Gen. 30:18; Ex. 1:3; 1 Chr. 2:1. Jacob's prophetic benedictions upon, Gen. 49:14, 15. In the time of David, 1 Chr. 7:2, 5. See Tribe of below. Tribe of Military forces of, taken at Sinai, Num. ...
more

Arts

Resources/Books

Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • I. The conquest of the land chs. 1-12A. Preparations for entering Canaan chs. 1-21. God's charge to Joshua 1:1-92. Joshua's charge to Israel 1:10-183. The spying out of Jericho ch. 2B. Entrance into the land 3:1-5:121. Passag...
  • In one sense verses 1-9 are a preamble to the whole book. They contain the basic principles that were to guide Joshua and Israel so they could obtain all that God had promised their forefathers.1:1 The first word of the book ...
  • The writer referred to Canaan as "the land of the sons of Israel"first here in Scripture (v. 22). The Anakim were the mighty warriors that the 10 spies had feared (Num. 13:28). Israel destroyed most of these."The hardening of...
  • The writer identified 31 kings in the order in which Joshua defeated them."Many of the same names appear in the Amarna letters, thus confirming the historicity of our text."158"The description was not complete. Shechem is not...
  • Chapters 13-24 describe how Joshua divided the land and the results of that division. Many if not all the Israelite tribes did not conquer or control all the land allotted to them (15:63; 16:10; 17:12-13). The record of the a...
  • The writer may have dealt with the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh together since Jacob had given Joseph the second largest blessing after Judah (Gen. 49). Moreover half the tribe of Manasseh had already received its inheritan...
  • After the process of assigning land to the three tribes mentioned above, Israel's attention turned to relocating the tabernacle in a more central location (v. 1). God undoubtedly made the choice of Shiloh (lit. rest; cf. Deut...
  • First the two and one-half tribes east of the Jordan received their land. Then Judah, the primary recipient of Jacob's patriarchal blessing, and Joseph, the recipient of Jacob's patriarchal birthright, received their allotmen...
  • Israel's leaders completed this division of the land at Shiloh, the new location of the tabernacle."The gift of the land brought blessings not only to the nation as a whole and to the individual tribes. It also brought blessi...
  • These verses conclude the account of the division of the land proper (chs. 13-21; cf. 1:2-6; 11:23). They bind the two parts of the second half of the book together. They form a theological conclusion to the entire book up to...
  • The main part of the second half of the Book of Joshua dealing with the division of the land ends with the appointment of the Levitical cities (chs. 13-21). The rest of the book deals with settlement in the land (chs. 22-24)....
  • 1:1 The Book of Judges begins with a conjunction translated "now"or "and."God intended Judges to continue the narrative of Israel's history where the Book of Joshua ended (cf. Josh. 1:1). This verse provides a heading for the...
  • The Book of Samuel covers the period of Israel's history bracketed by Samuel's conception and the end of David's reign. David turned the kingdom over to Solomon in 971 B.C.3David reigned for 40 and one-half years (2 Sam. 2:11...
  • Solomon was powerful enough to conscript laborers to build the Millo and a wall around Jerusalem. The Millo (lit. filling) evidently refers to the terraces on the east side of Mt. Zion (cf. 2 Sam. 5:9). Solomon enlarged these...
  • This is the sixth and last message that Ezekiel received from the Lord the night before the refugees reached the exiles with the message that Jerusalem had fallen (cf. 33:21-22). It too deals with God's plans for Israel in th...
  • The tribe of Dan was to receive the northernmost section of the Promised Land. The order of tribes from north to south, north of the sacred district, was Dan, Asher, Naphtali, Manasseh, Ephraim, Reuben and Judah--seven tribal...
Back to Commentary Page
Display Bible



Universal Search:

NET Only
Exact Search
Commentary
Study Dictionary
Word Study
Lexicon
Study Maps System
Sermon Illustrations
Expository
Arts
Resource
Daily Bible Reading
Training Video
Classic NET Bible
iPhone NET Bible
Mobile Bible
TIP #30: [ALL]
created in 0.05 seconds
powered by
bible.org - YLSA