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Joshua Chapter
Sixteen
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO JOSHUA 16
This
chapter gives us an account of the lot of the children of Joseph
Ephraim
and
the half tribe of Manasseh
one half having settled on the other side Jordan;
and first the borders of the whole lot in general are given
Joshua 16:1; and
then the borders of the tribe of Ephraim in particular
Joshua 16:4; and it
is observed
that this tribe had besides separate cities among the children of
Manasseh
and that there were some Canaanites
particularly in Gezer
not
driven out by the Ephraimites
Joshua 16:9.
Joshua 16:1 The
lot fell to the children of Joseph from the Jordan
by Jericho
to the waters
of Jericho on the east
to the wilderness that goes up from Jericho through the
mountains to Bethel
YLT
1And the lot for the sons of
Joseph goeth out from Jordan [by] Jericho
to the waters of Jericho on the
east
to the wilderness going up from Jericho in the hill-country of Beth-El
And the lot of the children of Joseph fell
.... Or
"went out"F1ויצא "et
egressa est"
Pagninus
Montanus; "exivit"
Piscator. ; of the
pot or urn
this being the next lot that was drawn to that of Judah
the
government being Judah's
and the birthright Joseph's
1 Chronicles 5:2;
and by his children are here meant the tribe of Ephraim
and the tribe of
Manasseh: or the line and border according to the lot went forth
from Jordan by Jericho unto the water of Jericho on the east; by which it
appears
that this was the southern border of the lot; for the tribe of
Benjamin
in which Jericho was
lay between Judah and Ephraim
and the border
began at Jordan
where it flowed near Jericho
and proceeded to a water which
belonged to that city
and is generally thought to be the waters Elisha healed
2 Kings 2:19
to the wilderness that goeth up throughout Mount Bethel; this was the
wilderness of Bethaven
Joshua 18:12;
Jarchi interprets it of the border that went up through Mount Bethel; which is
true
and so might the wilderness also
for which the Targum is express;
mention is made of a mountain on the east of Bethel
Genesis 12:8.
Joshua 16:2 2 then went out from Bethel
to Luz
[a] passed
along to the border of the Archites at Ataroth
YLT
2and hath gone out from
Beth-El to Luz
and passed over unto the border of Archi [to] Ataroth
And goeth out from Bethel to Luz
.... For though these two
places in time became one
yet they were originally distinct. Bethel
at which
Jacob stopped
and who gave it its name
was a field adjacent to the city of
Luz
Genesis 38:11; and
therefore with propriety may be
as they here are
distinguished:
and passeth along unto the borders Archi to Ataroth; or to
Archiataroth; these two words being the name of one and the same place
and to
be joined as they are
in the Greek version
and others; and is the same with
Atarothaddar
Joshua 16:5.
Ataroth was its proper name
but it had these additional epithets to
distinguish it from another Ataroth; see Joshua 16:7; JeromF2De
loc. Heb. fol. 88. G. makes mention of Atharoth by Ramma
in the tribe of
Joseph
and of another in the tribe of Ephraim
now a village at the north of
Sebaste
or Samaria
four miles from it
called Atharus; the former is here
meant.
Joshua 16:3 3 and went down westward to
the boundary of the Japhletites
as far as the boundary of Lower Beth Horon to
Gezer; and it ended at the sea.
YLT
3and gone down westward unto
the border of Japhleti
unto the border of Beth-Horon the lower
and unto
Gezer
and its outgoings have been at the sea.
And goeth down westward to the coast of Japhleti
.... This
place is now unknown
though no doubt well known to the sons of Joseph
when
this lot fell to them
and its border was described:
unto the coast of Bethhoron the nether: so called to
distinguish it from Bethhoron the upper
Joshua 16:5; this
was about twelve miles from Jerusalem; See Gill on Joshua 10:10; and
to Gezer: which was about a day's journey from Bethhoron
as appears from the
passages in the Apocrypha:"39 So Nicanor went out of Jerusalem
and
pitched his tents in Bethhoron
where an host out of Syria met him. 40 But
Judas pitched in Adasa with three thousand men
and there he prayed
saying
...
45 Then they pursued after them a day's journey
from Adasa unto Gazera
sounding an alarm after them with their trumpets.' (1 Maccabees 7)JeromF3De
loc. Heb. fol. 92. A. says in his time it was a village called Gazara
four
miles from Nicopolis
or Emmaus. It is the same with Gadara
as it is sometimes
called by Josephus
who saysF4Antiqu. l. 5. c. 1. sect. 22.
the
tribe of Ephraim took in the land from the river Jordan to Gadara; this was a
royal city; see Joshua 10:33
and the outgoings thereof are at the sea: the
Mediterranean sea.
Joshua 16:4 4 So the children of Joseph
Manasseh and Ephraim
took their inheritance.
YLT
4And the sons of Joseph --
Manasseh and Ephraim -- inherit.
So the children of Joseph
Manasseh and Ephraim
took their
inheritance. As it fell to them by the lot; by Manasseh is meant the half tribe
of Manasseh
one half of that tribe having been settled by Moses on the other
side Jordan; and next follows an account of the borders of the inheritance of
Ephraim in particular
as that of the half tribe of Manasseh is given in Joshua 17:1.
Joshua 16:5 5 The border of the children
of Ephraim
according to their families
was thus: The border of their
inheritance on the east side was Ataroth Addar as far as Upper Beth Horon.
YLT
5And the border of the sons
of Ephraim is by their families; and the border of their inheritance is on the
east
Atroth-Addar unto Beth-Horon the upper;
And the border of the children of Ephraim
according to their
families
was thus
.... Or what follows is the description of
it:
even the border of their inheritance on the east side was
Atarothaddar
unto Bethhoron the upper; the first was on the
south of the inheritance
and the latter on the north
as Masius has placed
them: who has given us a type of this description
by which it appears that
this lot is here described in its breadth from south to north.
Joshua 16:6 6 And the border went out
toward the sea on the north side of Michmethath; then the border went around
eastward to Taanath Shiloh
and passed by it on the east of Janohah.
YLT
6and the border hath gone
out at the sea
to Michmethah on the north
and the border hath gone round
eastward [to] Taanath-Shiloh
and passed over it eastward to Janohah
And the border went out towards the sea
.... The
Mediterranean sea:
to Michmethah on the north side; of the border
the same
on which Bethhoron was
from whence the border proceeded on to this place
of
which we have no other account but in Joshua 17:7; by
which it appears to have been near Shechem
and in sight of it:
and the border went about eastward unto Taanathshiloh; this seems to
be the same JeromF5De loc. Heb. fol. 95. C. calls Thenath in the
tribe of Joseph; and who observes there was in his day a village of this name
ten miles from Neapolis (or Shechem) to the east
as you go down to Jordan:
and passed by it on the east to Janohah: which the
above writerF6Ibid. fol. 92. I. wrongly calls Janon
and says
that
in his time a village of this name was shown in the country of Acrabatena
twelve miles to the east from Neapolis or Shechem; the border passed by Taanath
on the east of it
and went on this place.
Joshua 16:7 7 Then it went down from
Janohah to Ataroth and Naarah
[b] reached to
Jericho
and came out at the Jordan.
YLT
7and gone down from Janohah
[to] Ataroth
and to Naarath
and touched against Jericho
and gone out at the
Jordan.
And it went down from Johanan to Ataroth
.... This is
different from Ataroth before mentioned
Joshua 16:2; there
were several places of this name
as before observed; this seems to be that
which Jerom places four miles from Sebaste or Samaria; see Gill on Joshua 16:2
and to Naarath; JeromF7De loc. Heb. fol. 93. I.
says
that Naarath was in his time called Naorath
a village of the Jews
five
miles from Jericho; and is the village JosephusF8Antiqu. l. 17. c.
15. sect. 1. calls Neara
where was a water
half of which Archelaus turned
and led to the field planted with palm trees
near Jericho; and
according to
the Jewish writersF9Vajikra Rabba
sect. 23. fol. 164. 3.
Shirhashirim Rabba
fol. 9. 3. Echa Rabbati
fol. 50. 4. : there was a place
called Noaran near to Jericho
which seems to be this:
and came to Jericho
and went out at Jordan; where it
ended this way
which was eastward.
Joshua 16:8 8 The border went out from
Tappuah westward to the Brook Kanah
and it ended at the sea. This was
the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Ephraim according to their
families.
YLT
8From Tappuah the border
goeth westward unto the brook of Kanah
and its outgoings have been at the sea:
this [is] the inheritance of the tribe of the sons of Ephraim
for their
families.
The border went out from Tappuah westward
.... Which was
different from the Tappuah in the tribe of Judah
Joshua 15:34; this
was in the tribe of Ephraim on the border of Manasseh
Joshua 17:8
unto the river Kanah; supposed by some to be
the brook Cherith
by which Elijah hid himself
1 Kings 17:3;
though objected to by others; it seems to have had its name from the reeds
which grew in it
or on the banks of it:
and the goings out thereof were at the sea; if the river
Kanah was the brook Cherith
this must be the dead or salt sea: but that is
never called "the sea"
rather the Mediterranean sea is meant
and
consequently Kanah could not be Cherith
which was at too great a distance from
this sea:
this is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of
Ephraim by their families; that is
this is the description of the
border of it; for the cities within are not mentioned
and the descriptions in
general are very obscure.
Joshua 16:9 9 The separate cities for
the children of Ephraim were among the inheritance of the children of
Manasseh
all the cities with their villages.
YLT
9And the separate cities of
the sons of Ephraim [are] in the midst of the inheritance of the sons of
Manasseh
all the cities and their villages;
And the separate cities for the children of Ephraim
.... The tribe
of Ephraim
being much larger than the half tribe of Manasseh
besides the lot
that fell to it
described before by its boundaries
had several particular and
distinct cities given to it: which
were among the
inheritance of the children of Manasseh; some that were upon the
borders of Ephraim
and within the territory of Manasseh
and it may be where
it jetted out in a nook or corner
see Joshua 17:8
all the cities with their villages; not the separate cities
only
but the little towns adjacent to them.
Joshua 16:10 10 And they did not drive out
the Canaanites who dwelt in Gezer; but the Canaanites dwell among the
Ephraimites to this day and have become forced laborers.
YLT
10and they have not
dispossessed the Canaanite who is dwelling in Gezer
and the Canaanite dwelleth
in the midst of Ephraim unto this day
and is to tribute -- a servant.
And they drove not out the Canaanites which dwelt in Gezer
.... Which was
the border of their tribe length ways
and was near the sea
Joshua 16:3; in
this they did not obey the command of God
and either they did not drive them
out
because they could not
God not delivering them up into their hands
because of their sins; or through their slothfulness
or it may be through
covetousness
being willing to make some advantage to themselves by them
being
a trading people
which seems to be intended in the next clause:
but the Canaanites dwelt among the Ephraimites unto this day; which Joshua
the writer of this book
might truly say
and be no objection to it
since the
same is observed after his death
Judges 1:29; and
indeed they continued to dwell there until the times of Solomon
when it was taken
by Pharaoh king of Egypt
and given as a present to his daughter
the wife of
Solomon
1 Kings 9:15; and
though this clause does not furnish out an argument against the writing of this
book by Joshua
yet
from the instance given
it appears it must have been
written before the times of Solomon
and so not by Ezra
as some:
and serve under tribute; so that they were under
their power
and therefore could have driven them out
or slain them
as by the
command of God they should; but they spared them for the sake of the tribute
they received from them
which seems to agree with the character of the
Ephraimites
Hosea 12:8.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)