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Texts -- Numbers 34:1-18 (NET)

Context
The Southern Border of the Land
34:1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses : 34:2 “Give these instructions to the Israelites , and tell them: ‘When you enter Canaan , the land that has been assigned to you as an inheritance , the land of Canaan with its borders , 34:3 your southern border will extend from the wilderness of Zin along the Edomite border , and your southern border will run eastward to the extremity of the Salt Sea , 34:4 and then the border will turn from the south to the Scorpion Ascent , continue to Zin , and then its direction will be from the south to Kadesh Barnea . Then it will go to Hazar Addar and pass over to Azmon . 34:5 There the border will turn from Azmon to the Brook of Egypt , and then its direction is to the sea .
The Western Border of the Land
34:6 “‘And for a western border you will have the Great Sea . This will be your western border .
The Northern Border of the Land
34:7 “‘And this will be your northern border : From the Great Sea you will draw a line to Mount Hor ; 34:8 from Mount Hor you will draw a line to Lebo Hamath , Hamath , and the direction of the border will be to Zedad . 34:9 The border will continue to Ziphron , and its direction will be to Hazar Enan . This will be your northern border .
The Eastern Border of the Land
34:10 “‘For your eastern border you will draw a line from Hazar Enan to Shepham . 34:11 The border will run down from Shepham to Riblah , on the east side of Ain , and the border will descend and reach the eastern side of the Sea of Chinnereth . 34:12 Then the border will continue down the Jordan River and its direction will be to the Salt Sea . This will be your land by its borders that surround it.’” 34:13 Then Moses commanded the Israelites : “This is the land which you will inherit by lot , which the Lord has commanded to be given to the nine and a half tribes , 34:14 because the tribe of the Reubenites by their families , the tribe of the Gadites by their families , and half of the tribe of Manasseh have received their inheritance . 34:15 The two and a half tribes have received their inheritance on this side of the Jordan , east of Jericho , toward the sunrise .”
Appointed Officials
34:16 The Lord said to Moses : 34:17 “These are the names of the men who are to allocate the land to you as an inheritance: Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun . 34:18 You must take one leader from every tribe to assist in allocating the land as an inheritance .

Pericope

NET

Bible Dictionary

  • Sea, The

    [ebd] (Heb. yam), signifies (1) "the gathering together of the waters," the ocean (Gen. 1:10); (2) a river, as the Nile (Isa. 19:5), the Euphrates (Isa. 21:1; Jer. 51:36); (3) the Red Sea (Ex. 14:16, 27; 15:4, etc.); (4) the Medit...

  • RIVER OF EGYPT

    [ebd] (1.) Heb. nahar mitsraim, denotes in Gen. 15:18 the Nile, or its eastern branch (2 Chr. 9:26). (2.) In Num. 34:5 (R.V., "brook of Egypt") the Hebrew word is nahal, denoting a stream flowing rapidly in winter, or in the rainy...
    [smith] The Nile. (Genesis 15:18) [NILE] A desert stream on the border of Egypt, still occasionally flowing in the valley called Wadi-l-?Areesh . The centre of the valley is occupied by the bed of this torrent, which only flows afte...

  • Palestine

    [ebd] originally denoted only the sea-coast of the land of Canaan inhabited by the Philistines (Ex. 15:14; Isa. 14:29, 31; Joel 3:4), and in this sense exclusively the Hebrew name Pelesheth (rendered "Philistia" in Ps. 60:8; 83:7;...

  • PALESTINE, 3

    [isbe] PALESTINE, 3 - IV. Palestine in the Poetic Books of the Old Testament. 1. Book of Job: In Job the scene is distinctively Edomite. Uz (Job 1:1; compare Gen 22:21 the English Revised Version; Jer 25:20; Lam 4:21) and Buz (Job ...

  • NORTH; NORTH COUNTRY

    [isbe] NORTH; NORTH COUNTRY - north, (tsaphon, from tsaphan, "to hide," i.e. "the hidden," "the dark" (Gesenius); borrhas, boreas (Judith 16:4); septentrio (2 Esdras 15:43)): In addition to the many places where "north" occurs mere...

  • Mediterranean Sea

    [isbe] MEDITERRANEAN SEA - med-i-te-ra'-ne-an (he thalassa): To the Hebrews the Mediterranean was the sea, as was natural from their situation. Hence, they speak of it simply as "the sea" (ha-yam), e.g. Gen 49:13; Nu 13:29; 34:5; J...
    [nave] MEDITERRANEAN SEA Mentioned in scripture as the great sea, Num. 34:6, 7; Josh. 1:4; 9:1; 15:12, 47; 23:4; Ezek. 47:10, 15, 20; 48:28; Sea of the Philistines, Ex. 23:31; Sea of Joppa, Ezra 3:7; the hinder sea, Zech. 14:8; the...

  • Maaleh-acrabbim

    [ebd] ascent of the scorpions; i.e., "scorpion-hill", a pass on the south-eastern border of Palestine (Num. 34:4; Josh. 15:3). It is identified with the pass of Sufah, entering Palestine from the great Wady el-Fikreh, south of the...

  • Lot

    [ebd] (Heb. goral, a "pebble"), a small stone used in casting lots (Num. 33:54; Jonah 1:7). The lot was always resorted to by the Hebrews with strictest reference to the interposition of God, and as a method of ascertaining the di...

  • Jericho

    [ebd] place of fragrance, a fenced city in the midst of a vast grove of palm trees, in the plain of Jordan, over against the place where that river was crossed by the Israelites (Josh. 3:16). Its site was near the 'Ain es-Sultan, ...

  • JOSHUA (2)

    [isbe] JOSHUA (2) - || I. FORM AND SIGNIFICANCE OF NAME II. HISTORY OF THE LIFE OF JOSHUA 1. First Appearance 2. The Minister of Moses 3. One of the Spies 4. The Head of the People (1) His First Act--Sending of the Spies (2) Crossi...

  • Hor

    [ebd] mountain. (1.) One of the mountains of the chain of Seir or Edom, on the confines of Idumea (Num. 20:22-29; 33:37). It was one of the stations of the Israelites in the wilderness (33:37), which they reached in the circuitous...
    [smith] (mountain), Mount. The mountain on which Aaron died. (Numbers 20:25,27) It was "on the boundary line," (Numbers 20:23) or "at the edge," ch. (Numbers 33:37) of the land of Edom. It was the halting-place of the people next af...
    [nave] HOR, mountain on which Aaron died, Num. 20:22-29; 21:4; 33:38, 39; 34:7, 8; Deut. 32:50.

  • Hazar-enan

    [ebd] village of fountains, a place on the north-east frontier of Palestine (Num. 34:9, 10). Some have identified it with Ayan ed-Dara in the heart of the central chain of Anti-Libanus. More probably, however, it has been identifi...
    [nave] HAZAR-ENAN, the N.E. boundary point of the promised land, Num. 34:9, 10; Ezek. 47:17; 48:1.

  • HAZER

    [smith] topographically, seems generally employed for the villages of people. As a proper name it appears in the Authorized Version -- In the plural, HAZERIM and HAZEBOTH, for which see below. In the slightly different form of HAZOR...

  • GOING; GOINGS

    [isbe] GOING; GOINGS - go'-ing, go'-ingz: Besides, occasionally, forms of the common words for "go" (see Go), for "going" and "goings," the Hebrew has 'ashshur ('ashur, 'ashur), "step," motsa', totsa'oth, "goings out," "outgoings."...

  • East sea

    [ebd] (Joel 2:20; Ezek. 47:18), the Dead Sea, which lay on the east side of the Holy Land. The Mediterranean, which lay on the west, was hence called the "great sea for the west border" (Num. 34:6).

  • Chinnereth

    [ebd] lyre, the singular form of the word (Deut. 3:17; Josh. 19:35), which is also used in the plural form, Chinneroth, the name of a fenced city which stood near the shore of the lake of Galilee, a little to the south of Tiberias...

  • 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...

  • Canaan

    [ebd] (1.) The fourth son of Ham (Gen. 10:6). His descendants were under a curse in consequence of the transgression of his father (9:22-27). His eldest son, Zidon, was the father of the Sidonians and Phoenicians. He had eleven so...
    [nave] CANAAN 1. Son of Ham, Gen. 9:18, 22, 25-27. Descendants of, Gen. 10:6, 15; 1 Chr. 1:8, 13. 2. Land of (The history of this region is involved in that of the Israelites. The student is therefore referred to Israel, History ...

  • Brook

    [ebd] a torrent. (1.) Applied to small streams, as the Arnon, Jabbok, etc. Isaiah (15:7) speaks of the "book of the willows," probably the Wady-el-Asha. (2.) It is also applied to winter torrents (Job 6:15; Num. 34:5; Josh. 15:4, ...

  • Azmon

    [isbe] AZMON - az'-mon `atsmon; Asemona, "strong": On the Southwest border of Israel (Nu 34:4,5; Josh 15:4). Trumbull identifies it with `Ain el-Qaseimeh, Northwest of Kadesh Barnea (Kad. Baruch., 117, 289 f).
    [smith] (strong), a place named as being on the southern boundary of the Holy Land, apparently near the torrent of Egypt (Wadi el-Arish). (Numbers 34:4,5; Joshua 15:4) It has not yet been identified.
    [nave] AZMON, a place on the S. of Canaan, Num. 34:4, 5; Josh. 15:4.

Resources/Books

Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • This chapter records how Abram, though threatened with major conflict with Lot because of their herdsmen's strife, magnanimously gave his nephew his choice of what land he wanted. Lot took an area that was very fertile, thoug...
  • Abram asked God to strengthen his faith. In response Yahweh promised to give the patriarch innumerable descendants. This led Abram to request some further assurance that God would indeed do what He promised. God graciously ob...
  • To formulate a statement that summarizes the teaching of this book it will be helpful to identify some of the major revelations in Numbers. These constitute the unique values of the book.The first major value of Numbers is th...
  • I. Experiences of the older generation in the wilderness chs. 1-25A. Preparations for entering the Promised Land from the south chs. 1-101. The first census and the organization of the people chs. 1-42. Commands and rituals t...
  • God gave the final laws governing Israel's entrance into the Promised Land (33:50-36:13). However first Moses recorded at God's command this list of places from which the Israelites had set out on their journey from Egypt to ...
  • "The section breaks down into two groups of three laws each, carefully introduced by the clause and Yahweh spoke to Moses' (. . ., 33:50; 34:1, 16; 35:1, 9; cf. 36:6) and surrounded by the phrase on the plains of Moab by the ...
  • This brief section of instructions introduces specific directions concerning the division of the land and its towns that follow in chapters 34-36.The repetition of "all"(v. 52) stresses the importance of completely clearing t...
  • Moses described the border of the land from south (vv. 3-5) to west (v. 6) to north (vv. 7-9) to east (v. 12). This boundary encompassed the territory the people would divide among the nine and one-half tribes. This was not t...
  • 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...
  • 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...
  • God promised Abraham that He would give a particular piece of real estate to his descendants (Gen. 12:7). Later He reiterated this promise and became more specific about its boundaries (Gen. 15:7, 18-21; 17:8; Num. 34:1-12). ...
  • "There are two special areas of attention in this passage: (1) the concern that God's people occupy their full boundaries, and (2) the concern that Gentiles will have an inheritance."57447:13-14 The Lord instructed the future...
  • 7:1 We have already read of two dreams that Nebuchadnezzar had (2:1; 4:5). Now God gave one to Daniel. It too was a vision from God that came to Daniel as he slept."In referring to the experience as a dream' (sing.) Daniel wa...
  • The sailors interrogated Jonah about his reasons for travelling on their ship, but it was his failure to live consistently with his convictions that amazed them.1:7 It appears to have been common among the heathen to cast lot...
  • The first four verses of this poem deal with the north and the last four with the south. The first two verses and the last two speak of salvation, and the middle four speak of judgment. The passage begins and ends with a refe...
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