CHAPTER 17
1. Then came the lot for Menashe, because he was the firstborn of Yosef—to Makhir the firstborn of Menashe, father of Gil’ad, since he had been a man of war, so Gil’ad and Bashan became his.
Firstborn: The Hebrew word also means “firstfruits”, so the same applies to us today as among the first to recognize that we are Israel and not actually Gentiles. We have to take the first steps toward the Kingdom whose vision has been restored to us, and there is no one from the generation immediately before us who has already blazed a trail; we have to do it. Though later his brother Efrayim is called that by both Yaaqov and YHWH; Yosef himself always treated M’nashe as firstborn, for that is what he physically was. Father of Gil’ad: It is very unusual to identify someone by whom his son is. We see Kham called Kanaan’s father in Gen. 9:18, because of Kanaan’s infamy. A tree is known by its fruit. Here it works the opposite way. A man whose children are great is counted as great. The other two tribes east of the Yarden who were most interested in the comfort of their cattle needed someone like this to protect them and keep enemies away. So YHWH gave Makhir this land, since he could be what they needed. But he still had to drive out some very strong nations to get it. Bashan is the Golan Heights, and Gil’ad is across the Yarmuq River (in Jordan today). This is very valuable land—still disputed today—and the inhabitants were intent on staying put. They would fight tooth and nail to keep it. Y’hoshua had to give it to someone who would see its worth. He was given this land because he was willing to fight. This is not even a whole tribe, but a sub-tribe or clan. Makhir himself was long dead, but Y’hoshua trusted them to follow in their father’s footsteps and defend it now, and not trade it away, sell it, abandon it, or compromise with it. If we are not willing to fight for something, we do not really want it badly enough. If we are not willing to sacrifice or suffer hardship for it, we should leave it alone; if we are not passionate for it, we do not deserve it. There are times we may have to fight to keep a job or a relationship. It is a rare person who will not give up and say, “It’s not worth all that” when trouble comes in regard to it. The only men in Israel that are called “man of war” (a title given to YHWH in Ex. 15:3) are Makhir (here) and David (1 Chron. 28:3), another man who was willing to pay the full price for what he knew needed to be done for the benefit of all of Israel. (1 Chron. 21:24) David realized that what cost him nothing would be worth nothing to him. The key is to define what is worth fighting for. How important is a given possession to you? Would you fight for it if it was threatened? Of course, some things are worth fighting for, but not at the expense of our lives, if the would-be robber turns a gun on us. We have to count the cost, as Y’shua said. Is this something worth risking my life or my family over? Know yourself: “the unexamined life is not worth living”, as Socrates said. Am I strong enough for this fight? Are we fighting for some things that really have no profit—like some doctrines that were added by men—just because we want to be right—or perceived as right? That turns out to not really be worth fighting for. But some things are, and here YHWH honors those who are willing to fight for this Land by granting it to them. YHWH does speak in Yeshayahu (Isa.) 45:13 of returning His captives “for no price or reward”, but the very next verse shows that there will be a reward for His people. It is a question of motivation. If we act righteously for the sake of reward, there will be none, but if we do it because it is the right thing to do and is what needs to be done, there will be an unexpected reward. (Compare Luke 14:8-11.) We have to identify our motives. Is the Kingdom worth laying down our lives for, even if we do not receive a reward, just because it is the highest road? Is YHWH worth it, even if He keeps raising the standard and expecting more of us as we advance in what He has give us? The more treasure He gives us, the more return He anticipates on His investment. Y’shua says to count the cost of being His disciple. (Luke 14:25ff) He says to determine in advance if we have what it takes to build a tower before we begin, or we will be mocked for not being able to finish. Be sure you can finish what you start. Don’t fight a battle you know you can’t win. Even before that, we have to consider whether the Kingdom will benefit from our building this tower or fighting this war. In ancient Israel, usually if someone wanted to build a tower it was for the sake of being better able to watch over his flocks and see predators or thieves coming long before they arrived. Paul echoes this in 1 Tim. 3:1-10, giving us a list of what it will cost to be an overseer of YHWH’s flock. If we put our resources somewhere else, we will not have enough left to build the tower or fight the battle. If we are about our own business, we will not be able to acquire the skills for what He wants done. Y’shua says if we do not “hate” the rivals, our natural loves (our closest relatives and even our own life)—which simply means we give priority to them—we cannot be His student. That is the cost we have to count. The Kingdom is a pearl of great price, a hidden treasure that we have to sell everything else to be able to “afford”. (Mat. 13:44-46) And this ties us back in to Makhir, for his name means “price”, from a root word meaning “to sell”. He was the one willing to sell all he had; he was willing to pay the price, so he inherited. The Kingdom belongs to the one willing to sell all he has so he can buy what is more valuable. Are you?
2. And there was a lot for the rest of the descendants of Menashe, for their families—for the sons of Avi-ezer, for the sons of Kheleq, for the sons of Asri’el, for the sons of Sh’khem, for the sons of Khefer, and for the sons of Shmida; these were the male descendants of Menashe, the son of Yosef, by their clans.
Male: or, remembered—which is an interesting twist specifically in relation to Menashe, whose name means “causing to forget”! (The reason behind why he was named this is in Gen.41:51.)
3. But Ts’lafchad, the son of Khefer, the son of Gil’ad, the son of Makhir, the son of Menashe, had no sons, but only daughters, and these are the names of his daughters: Makhlah, Noah, Khoglah, Milkah, and Tirtzah.
This tells us that Khefer was not a direct son of Menashe, but the third generation after him. In Numbers 26:29ff it appears that all of the others mentioned in verse 2 are actually sons of Gil’ad. Khefer may have been an ancestor of the prophet Yonah.
4. So they approached the presence of El’azar the priest and Y’hoshua the son of Nun and the leaders, to say, “YHWH ordered Moshe to give us inherited property among our brothers.” So he gave them, at the word of YHWH, inherited property among their father’s brothers.
5. So ten regions fell to Menashe, let alone that from the land of Gil’ad and Bashan, which were on the Yarden’s other side,
6. because the daughters of Menashe had inherited property among his sons, while the land of Gil’ad belonged to the rest of the sons of Menashe.
Apparently Khefer, mentioned in verse 2, fell under Makhir’s inheritance, so that the number of heirs west of the Yarden could come to ten, since six sons and five daughters are actually mentioned here aside from Makhir.
7. And Menashe’s territory was from Asher to Mikhmathah, which is on the face of Sh’khem.
Asher: apparently a town east of Sh’khem on the Yarden River rather than the tribal lands of Asher, which also border on Menashe’s, but on the north.
8. Then the border went southward toward the inhabitants of Eyn-Tappuakh [spring of the apple]. The land of Tappuakh belonged to Menashe, but Tappuakh, up to the border of Menashe, belonged to the sons of Efrayim.
Southward: literally, toward the right hand.
9. Then the border went down to the Qanah River-valley. South of the brook, these cities belonged to Efrayim among the cities of Menashe, and the territory of Menashe was northward from the river-valley, and its issuings-out were at the sea.
10. Southward it was Efrayim’s and northward it was Menashe’s, and the sea became its boundary, and they reached as far as Asher on the north and Issakhar on the east.
11. Now Menashe had within Issakhar and Asher Beth-She’an and its dependencies, Yivleam and its dependencies, the inhabitants of Dor amd its dependencies, the inhabitants of Eyn-Dor and its dependencies, the inhabitants of Taanakh and its dependencies, the inhabitants of Megiddo and its dependencies —the regions are three.
Dependencies: literally, daughters. Regions: or, heights.
12. But the descendants of Menashe had not been able to dispossess these cities, and the Kanaanite was determined to remain in that area.
13. What did take place is that when the descendants of Israel had a firmer hold, they set the Kanaanites to forced labor, but they did not truly dispossess them.
Like Efrayim and Yehudah, they let the Kanaanite have their way to some extent—a picture of compromising with the flesh, trying to allow the animal nature to serve us rather than driving it out altogether. This keeps us from fully inheiting the Kingdom. “Kanaanite” also means a merchant—the wrong kind of “seller” to be in the Land where the pearl of great price lies, for it is a rival to Makhir. (See note on v. 1.)
14. Then the descendants of Yosef told Y’hoshua, “Why have you given me inherited property of one lot and one measured [portion] when I am a great people insofar as YHWH has blessed me thus far?”
Great: emphasizing its size. Verse 5 said there were actually over ten lots, but since they were all attached to one another, they were counted as one piece of land.
15. So Y’hoshua said to them, “If you are [such] a great people, then go up for yourself into the forest and cut [it] down for yourself there in the land of the Prizzites and the R’fa’im, since the hill-country of Efrayim is too confining for you.”
Cut it down: or carve out, from the same word as create or constitute in Gen. 1:1. I.e., make more land for yourself.
16. But the descendants of Yosef said, “The hill-country will not be found [adequate] for us, and every Kanaanite who lives on the lowland belonging to those of Beyth-She’an and its daughters and belonging to those of the Yezre’el Valley [has] a chariot of iron!”
For them, every solution constitutes another problem! They really just recognize that in order to cut the forest down, they will no longer be able to escape the notice of the Kanaanites, they let it slip out that they really are fearful of what looks too big for them. The enemy has chariots, and they do not even have horses; how can this ever work? They are counting the cost, but are selling themselves—and YHWH—short. No one alive then would say Y’hoshua couldn’t do the job. But that was the problem. They were trying to get him to do the work that was now their responsibility, since it was their land. But we do exactly the same thing with our “Y’hoshua”. The lie of Christianity is that “Jesus will fight every battle for us.” Yet He said we would do greater things than He. Y’shua made a way for us to win the battles. He set us up with all the supplies we need in order to fight them. But if we do not want to fight, what can He do but send us back to Egypt—or even the wilderness. The Hebrew word for “wilderness” means “place of [the] Word”. But if we did not respond to His Word the first time, why should He expect us to do so the second time? Do we expect to find something different there this time? He will not change it; stop going back to it, and get on with stepping up to the challenge of fighting for the whole community.
17. But Y’hoshua spoke to the House of Yosef—to Efrayim and to Menashe—to say, “You are a great people and you [do] have great strength; you will not have [just] one lot,
A great people: Thus Yaaqov’s prophecy regarding Menashe (Gen. 48:19) was beginning to come to pass.
18. “because the hill-country will become yours since it is a forest, and you can cut it down, so its outer extremities can be yours, because you can dispossess the Kanaanite, though it has iron chariots and though it has a firm hold.”
There was actually already plenty of room for many people there; the problem was that the specifics of their inheritance listed in v. 11 were fortified cities. It seems that they are actually saying not that they need more room so much as that they deserve more reward because they are the ones fighting the hardest battles alone. The major cities of the Land had been conquered by all of Israel together as one army. But now that the lots have been given out, each tribe will be responsible to conquer the rest of the cities in their own territories, and Yosef’s lot fell where some of the hardest armies to fight still remain. Other tribes may already be farming their land, but this tribe still has to fight every day. This is the part that is hardest to take, and they feel they deserve more than those who are not really doing anything. This is not a communistic idea, but Moshe’s best student agrees with them. They have accomplished something worthy of a reward. There are many promises in the prophets that all the tribes will inherit land again, but we will get what we are willing to pay the price for. Do some say this is unfair? Y’hoshua would apparently tell them to take that up with those who have fought against iron chariots, and could come take more land from you if they wanted to. This is true equity and justice: Why should the lazy or cowards receive the same as what the industrious get? When Y’shua said to lay up treasure in Heaven where moth and rust cannot affect it, he was not talking about the afterlife, but about heavenly things—the things YHWH is actually involved with. And these are physical things. We need to be involved here and now. A boxer would not go into a fight thinking about what he wants to do after the fight, or the fight would be over very quickly! We are not meant to focus on the day when we are resurrected with glorified bodies that no longer have to fight; we need to fight for what is real, not for an invisible, unattainable fantasy. If you are living to go to Heaven, you are already dead. This world is YHWH’s creation, and over and over He judged it to be appropriate. It is not an evil place. We are the ones who have brought evil into it. This is where we have to fight the fight. We are not just here to witness a skirmish. The House of Yosef is not one that stands on the sidelines waiting to see who is winning before deciding whom to side with. They retain a sense of honor, unlike modern Western society which has all but forgotten what it is. When we find out what is worth fighting for and then actually do fight, it defines who we really are. When there is a battle in front of us, we learn what we really believe in, or whether we are only playing a game. Not that we should always be looking for a fight; that would only define us as foolish. If the Kanaanites had decided they would move elsewhere after all, Yosef would probably have offered to help them pack and lend them donkeys to carry their belongings away! They would not say, “No, you need to stay here, because we want to fight you!” But neither do they run from a worthwhile fight. When counting the cost, we might even learn that would be better off without some things we thought we could not afford to lose. We need to choose our battles wisely, but if it is worth fighting for, do so!
CHAPTER 18
1. Then the whole congregation of the descendants of Israel gathered [at] Shiloh and set the Tent of Appointment in place there when the Land had been brought into subservience before them.
Now Shiloh, rather than Gilgal, became “headquarters”. Not much is made of the fact that they left Gilgal, though many important events would yet take place there. Congregation: based on the root word, witness. Only when all of Israel is concentrated like this can YHWH’s presence among us be appreciated and experienced in its fullness. Tent of Appointment: This is the first time it is mentioned in Y’hoshua, though it was probably set up at Gilgal, since they encamped there for so long. Recall that it was built of materials plundered from Egypt so that YHWH might dwell in the midst—the very heart—of Israel. Set in place: literally, made to dwell, with a sense of permanence, as a different word is in used in Hebrew for merely staying somewhere overnight or short-term. Archaeology has revealed the fact that although the same Tent of Appointment continued to be used, the wooden pieces that supported the outer curtain, which were so convenient for frequent setup and take-down, were probably replaced by a permanent wall, for a stone wall that was exactly the dimensions given for the outer courtyard has been found at Shiloh. Indeed, the Tabernacle would remain here for some 400 years, until David moved it to the Threshing Floor of Arauna just north of Yerushalayim. Shiloh is in the heart of Efrayim’s territory, and its name means “rest” or “at ease”. Brought into subservience: This was the condition for which Reuven and Gad had been told to wait before they could settle onto their land outside the Holy Land proper, so they had thus fulfilled their debt and were free to go live there. (See note on v. 7.) It was not possible to have such a permanent site the major players had been set in place, and indeed they had, for the most part, subjugated the land, for those Kanaanites who remained were, for the present, fearful of the Israelites and did not dare to attack them. But the word for “brought into subservience” has a double meaning, for it can also mean “disregarded”. They had partially subdued the land, but did not consider the rest of it to be so important. After all, the large tribes were settled, the borders were secured, and the rest of the tribes had a safe and roomy place to camp. But there were still things that disgusted YHWH throughout the Land that He wanted clean. Unlike Ts’lafkhad’s daughters, the other tribes had not thought it worth the trouble to press for their own inheritance:
2. Yet there remained some among the descendants of Israel seven tribes which had not been assigned their share of [the] inheritance.
Seven: the number of completion. Though they were twelve (actually thirteen) tribes in all, the kingdom was not complete and YHWH could not fully dwell within their midst until everything that defiled the land was removed. None of Israel had its full inheritance until these tribes did what the larger, stronger, and more ambitious ones had done. Again today, Israel is dependent on those who have done nothing thus far rising up to do their part. Until they take the initiative to take their place, Israel is still lacking.
3. So Y’hoshua said to the descendants of Israel, “How long will you show yourselves [to be] slack about going in to take possession of the Land that YHWH, Elohim of your ancestors, has given you?
I.e., at what point will you stop relaxing, get up, and finish taking the Land? How long do you think you can get away with not doing what you know you need to do? Another way to translate this is, “How long will you keep failing to go in…?” This puts it in a different light. It is not, “When will you get around to going?” Rather, it is as if failure to go is the thing they are actively participating in! They have made no effort to take their inheritance, seeming to be unconcerned about it. Kalev and Yosef have made claims to certain areas, then were given more to conquer. Were these tribes afraid to ask because those who did ask were given the most difficult areas to conquer—those with giants or chariots of iron? They know that asking comes with a price, because they will need to get busy fighting. Or were they just shy, not wanting to bother Y’hoshua, or gun-shy because of how Moshe had responded to the tribes who asked for land east of the Yarden? Whatever the case, he expected them to at least take some initiative. It became so bad that he had to shame them, because if we are not asking for it and seeking it—whatever “it” might be—we are not likely to ever receive it. If you do not apply for a job and go for the interview, you will never get that job. Just because you ask does not mean you will get it, because there is a difference between asking and truly seeking. Are you one of those who just wants a paycheck, or do you really want this job in particular? When it comes to Israel, do we just want YHWH’s blessing, or even just to please YHWH? Or do we really want to be part of Israel? If so, how much are we willing to do to make it a reality? There is something we are meant to have; how long will we continue doing nothing about it? How long until we actually start walking in that direction? Yes, they are at a place of “rest” (Shiloh), but there is sometimes a fine line between resting and being slack. They have mistaken a refreshing pause for tranquility, just as Christianity has used trust in YHWH as an excuse to be lazy and neglect the Torah. Having a map does not mean we have arrived at our goal. It is not enough to be a knowledgeable observer; we must also join the work. Seeing it done and doing our part are two entirely different things. They have indeed been witnesses of what YHWH did for the tribes that have already done their duty, and to be sure they have helped them accomplish this, but they have not fought the necessary battles to enter into their own inheritance. Part of Israel still has foreigners living in it, which means the settled tribes still have pagan neighbors. This is another reason they need to take their own land, beside the fact that they were still living on the land that belonged to Efrayim, essentially as freeloaders. Those who have blazed the trail cannot support the whole nation forever. As a foreshadowing of Christianity, these tribes are trusting in the work of Y’hoshua, but not doing their own works. Y’hoshua therefore says what Paul would later say: “You should all be teachers by now!” It is noteworthy that there are seven congregations in the book of Revelation to which Y’shua gives the command to overcome. It may be that these tribes are the ancestors of those who today are still Christian, thinking they have already received a possession, rather than taking their full and proper place as Israel. Those who do not work do not get paid. Resting on what Y’shua has done is only part of the story; he also told us to do what he did.
4. “Provide from [among] yourselves three men per tribe, and I will send them, and they will get up and walk throughout the Land and map it out according to the mouth of their possessions, then come to me.
The mouth: i.e., how much each tribe needs. Map it out: literally, describe it in writing. They were embarrassing Y’hoshua now. He even had to tell them to be sure to come back after they took their survey! Otherwise they might have seen a Philistine city and decided to become Philistines instead! It is amazing how often we need to give instructions in such detail as if to children who have to be told each step, who would forget to turn off the water when told to take a bath or who need a list of every body part they must remember to wash! And how many people, once they admit they need help, are still not willing to take the advice of those who have successfully completed the task? Yet that is where wisdom lies. Y’hoshua was told by YHWH to “cause them to inherit the Land”. He probably could not believe this, because he assumed they would be as eager to inherit the Land as Yehudah and Yosef were, but the rest are sitting on their thumbs. Y’hoshua needs them to do their job so he can fulfill his obligation, because it is what YHWH wants, and that is who he works for. But someone in the middle of an assembly line who decides he does not feel well enough to keep working both causes those ahead of him to become severely backed up and those who come after him to be completely fruitless; before long, production stops completely. Those who are causing the delay need to be “encouraged” to do their job or find another. Some people only need a gentle nudge, others a slap, but most people need a push of one kind or another, so do not be afraid to push one another to step up to the task and move forward. Some may run away when they see battle or hard work, but this only weeds out those who won’t stay to finish the job anyway, saving us from having to waste time investing in them.
5. “Then they will divide it out into seven portions. Yehudah will stay within its boundary southward, and Yosef will stay within its boundary northward.
Yehudah and Yosef are the only tribes that have inherited land and become fully established thus far. They have received the lion’s share of the territory because they fought first and hardest. They deserve it. They have very special positions in Israel as the royal tribe and the tribe that received the double portion of the firstborn. But they will not do all the work for the rest of Israel. They have demonstrated what it takes to do the job, and given the rest proof that it can be done, so that they can take heart. It is interesting, in light of where we are in the return today, that Yehudah alone was not enough for YHWH to set up His dwelling place among Israel. At least Yosef is also needed before the tabernacle is set up. But until every tribe does its part, the Kingdom cannot fully come. When these two tribes take their place, it reminds everyone else that they have a job to do. There are (at least) two aspects to the statement that Yehudah and Yosef “will stay”: first, no one else has a right to eye their territory, because they will not get any of it (though some of Yehudah’s would indeed be apportioned to Shim’on for a different reason). They set the boundaries for the other tribes. But second, these tribes would stay put while the remaining seven went to conquer the rest, for it was their turn to shoulder the responsibility. It was not enough to be knowledgeable observers or attached to those who were warriors; they had to become mature themselves and spread the burden out among as many as possible. Those who have advanced much further are in a holding pattern until the rest follow their example. Many come to our community and rave about how beautiful it is that someone is actually taking this step, but very quickly say, “But I can’t do that; it’s hard!” Many think it will be easier when the Kingdom begins, but the Kingdom will come when we bring it, and it will surprise many people when they see how much sweat and tears it requires. We cannot all go back to our Land yet, but we have to make an effort. We can only take it so far at this stage, but we have to be all the way up to the edge waiting for the door to open so that we can take it another step further as soon as we can. Sometimes when we only look at our piece of the puzzle, it is easy to say we there is nothing more we can do, until someone who has a better perspective on the whole picture, who can see what needs to be done, comes along and points out that we only “can’t” go further because it would take us outside our comfort zone or change our priorities. But it can be done.
6. “Then you must draw out the Land in seven portions, and bring it to me here, and I will pour out lots for it here in the presence of YHWH our Elohim,
This shows tremendous wisdom, for none of the “teams” of three would know which area would be apportioned to their tribe. Each “surveying team” would independently draw out what appeared to be equitable boundaries based on natural borders, the land’s value for grazing, natural resources, etc. They would make sure each section had advantages, whether that meant in size of area or intensity of resources, because they might be choosing this part for themselves, and they might turn out to be choosing it for their brothers. In other words, they would not do to others what they would find discomforting to themselves (as both Hillel and Y’shua said summarized a large part of the Torah). All seven pieces had to be agreeable to each group; if any of them thought they got the raw end of the deal, they would have no one to blame but themselves. When they came to a consensus of what was suitable, he would maintain the ultimate authority to determine which tribes received which portion. Drawing out the survey would not guarantee that this was the share they would receive. He might take into consideration which parts each of them liked, but YHWH would have the final say in which piece each got. But writing down what they saw would help them form a connection to the Land. They might not find much motivation in fighting for the land of Kanaan, but if they were fighting for the land of Nafthali or the land of Asher—that was a different thing altogether!
7. “since there is no portion for the Levites in your midst, because YHWH’s priestly office is their inheritance. Also, Gad, Re’uven, and half of the tribe of Menashe have accepted their inheritance across the Yarden eastward, which Moshe the servant of YHWH gave them.”
Since: The priests, who interpreted the lots for YHWH, would be objective since they could not benefit from the outcome, whatever it might be. Accepted: or simply, received, confirming that these tribes were now indeed released to go back to their families and possessions that awaited them in the land they had asked for.
8. So the men got up and started going, and Y’hoshua directed the men who were going to map out the Land, saying, “Go, walk back and forth throughout the Land, draw it out, and come back to me, and I will cast a lot for you in YHWH’s presence here at Shiloh.”
Recalling his own experience, Y’hoshua knows that when they see what remains of the Land, they will fall in love with it. This is why each Israelite should visit the Land. Looking at it, seeing how it speaks to us and what our place there is will help our hearts and souls become attached to it. We may not get the part we find most appealing, but we will at least see the need to have some part of it. What we have a stake in is what we find to be worth fighting for. Sometimes we need to be shown that we do “have a dog in this fight”, because not long ago we did not know we had a connection to this Land or this heritage. In our day when writing is so common, we fail to see what the ancients sensed—that “writing is magic”. As late as the Talmudic era, many scribes became wealthy even from writing curses for people who could not write. Those who feared being caught killing an enemy or crippling a rival would have them write a curse against them. They saw it as giving them an added advantage. But writing always carries more power than merely saying or thinking something. And what we write down stays with us much longer than if we merely hear it. We may think we can trust our memories, but especially if there is a list of more than one item, just compare how much you can say about a subject you have just encountered with what you can still recall two months later. We need other mnemonic aids if we cannot make a written note. If one says, “I love you”, he can later deny it, but if he puts it in writing, it becomes more binding, because the object of his affection can refer back to it. Having to put something in writing makes us rethink whether it is really important, and our thoughts may not be fully formulated until we put them on paper, because this helps us see if they really fit together logically. What they write down will also help Y’hoshua understand where they are “coming from”, and show him where they need added information or motivation. These tribes have not been brave enough to go further, so they do not know what is there, and are fearing the unknown. But when they try it, know the details intimately, and understand what is there, they will embrace it! It is this way with the Torah. Christians have been told that there are giants in that Land; that it cannot be taken. “Here be dragons”, as the maps made by the Phoenicians to discourage further exploration by the Greeks and Romans once said. But if we read it, we find that it is actually not too hard when we have a community to help us live it out. But if we have only mapped out the territory, it is not yet our own. Only when we carry out what it says have we actually taken more land. Seeing what others (including Y’shua) have done is meant to spark a desire in us, but intentions are not enough until we actually walk it out ourselves. So take this step, so we can all take the next.
9. So the men went and traversed the Land and mapped it out by cities into seven shares on a document, and they came to Y’hoshua at the Shiloh camp.
10. And Y’hoshua cast lots for them in the presence of YHWH at Shiloh, and there Y’hoshua apportioned out the Land to the descendants of Israel according to their allotments:
Again, casting lots is shown to be an upright way to make decisions, acceptable to YHWH.
11. When the lot came up for the tribe of Binyamin for their clans, the territory of their lot came out between Yehudah and the sons of Yosef,
The fact that Binyamin’s property touches both Yehudah and Yosef reflects Binyamin’s history as both the only full brother of Yosef but also the one for whom Yehudah swore to keep safe when he had to be taken from his father to Egypt. But it is also prophetic, for those two tribes would later be the main players in the two houses of Israel. Not only did the first king of united Israel come from the tribe of Binyamin. Paul, who was very instrumental in bringing the first harvest of the lost sheep of the House of Israel back to their heritage, was from this tribe. (Rom. 11:1; Filippians 3:5) It also appears likely that those Torah-observant “Jews” who have come to believe that Y’shua is the Messiah are from this tribe, for they form a link between Orthodox Jews and those who are coming out of Christianity and entering back into Torah without throwing Y’shua out with the bathwater. Only those who hold fast to both requirements can build an acceptable bridge between these two estranged segments of YHWH’s people. Such will also be an irritant to those on both extremes, just as the tribe of Binyamin was often a trouble-maker among the tribes of Israel.
12. and their border for the north side started from the Yarden, then the border went up to the northern “shoulder” of Y’rikho and ascended westward into the mountain-range, and it went out to the wilderness of Beyth-Aven.
Shoulder: or slope.
13. Then the border crossed from there to Luz, toward the shoulder of Luz, which is south of Beyth-Aven, then the border went down to Ataroth-Addar, onto the hill that is south of the lowest [part of] Beyth-Horon.
14. Then the border angles around southward for its western edge from the hill that faces Beyth-Horon on the south, and goes out to Qiryath-Ba’al (that is, Qiryath-Ye’arim), a city of the descendants of Yehudah; this is its western limit.
15. And the southern side was from the end of Qiryath-Ye’arim, then the border went out westward, then went out to the spring of the waters of Neftoakh,
16. then the border went down to the end of the mountain that faces the Valley of the Sons of Hinnom toward the southern shoulder of the Yevusite, then went down [to] Eyn-Rogel.
Here the border slices straight through present-day Yerushalayim. The Temple sat on Binyamin’s land, partly as a warning to Yehudah to remember that, though they ended up being responsible for the Temple, it was not theirs exclusively. The “center wall of partition” which was actually a physical entity called the soreg, which kept Gentiles from entering the holiest areas, was thus illegal although understandable after the events described in 1 Maccabees, because it effectively kept the other tribes of Israel out too after they started to return to Torah. And even Shlomo had from the start expressed the intent that this be a “house of prayer for all peoples”. And it is the study of the Temple that is prescribed for the House of Israel as our means of fully turning back from our idolatry. (Y’hezq’el 43:7-12)
17. Then it angled northward and went out to Eyn-Shemesh, then went out to G’liloth, which is right in front of Maaleh Adummim, then went down the stone of Bohan, the son of Re’uven,
18. and crossed over to the slope of the escarpment of the Rift Valley, then descended into the Rift Valley.
The Rift Valley: or transitional land; Heb., Aravah.
19. Then the border crossed over to the northern shoulder of Beyth-Khoglah, and the border went out to the northern tongue of the Salt Sea at the southern end of the Yarden; this was its southern boundary,
Tongue: possibly a bay that had a different shape at that time than it does today, having not yet filled up as far. There is a peninsula that juts from the eastern shore that is called the “tongue”, but it is too far south to fit this specification.
20. then the Yarden borders it on the eastern side. This was the inheritance of the descendants of Binyamin, by its boundaries on every side, for its clans.
21. Now the cities that came to belong to the tribe of the descendants of Binyamin for their clans [were] Y’rikho, Beyth-Hoglath [Home of a Partridge], Emeq-Q’tzitz [Valley of Cutting Off],
Y’rikho: Yet it was not to be rebuilt! But the name denotes the whole oasis, which extends a few miles from where the actual walled settlement had been, so there would be plenty of other sites on which to situate a new city.
22. Beyth-haAravah [House of the Transitional Land], Tz’marayim [Pair of Fleeces], and Beyth-El [House of Elohim],
23. ’Awwim [the Twisted Ruins], Parah [the Heifer], Ofrah [the Fawn],
’Awwim: Possibly another name for Ay, as it means the same and is mentioned in conjunction with nearby Beyth-El.
24. Kfar-haAmmonai [Town of the Ammonites], Ofni [the Moldy One], and Gaba [Cup-shaped Hill]—twelve cities with their enclosed settlements;
25. Giv’on [the Great Hill], Ramah [Lofty Place], Be’eroth [Multiple Wells],
26. haMitzpeh [the Watchtower], haKfirah [the Lioness], haMotzah [Draining Out],
Motzah, west of Yerushalayim, was, as its name can connote, the “source” for the long willow-branches later used to build a “sukkah” over the Temple altar during the feast of Sukkoth. It is still a well-watered place compared to the surrounding territory.
27. Reqem [Variegated Colors], Yirp’el [Elohim will Heal], Thar’alah [Staggering],
28. Tzelah [Rib], heElef [the Thousand], and the Y’vusite (which is the hill of Yerushalaim), Giv’at, and Qiryath—fourteen cities and their enclosed settlements. This is the inheritance of the descendants of Binyamin for their clans.
CHAPTER 19
1. Then the second lot came out for Shim’on—to the tribe of the descendants of Shim’on for their clans—and their inheritance was within the inheritance of the descendants of Yehudah.
Shim’on’s name comes from the very familiar word shema’, a multi-layered word meaning to hear, listen, pay attention, and obey. The –on suffix magnifies the meaning, so his name means “really listening” or “paying close attention”. Shim’on’s existence was owed to YHWH “really hearing” Leah’s requests (Gen. 29:33). And as we come to understand Shim’on’s lot, there is something for us to hear as well. Shim’on’s tribe did not receive a separate landmass, and the background to why is in Gen. 34:25ff. Shim’on and Levi had avenged their sister Dinah’s honor by killing all the men of the city of the man who violated her the third day after they had all been circumcised. On his deathbed, when Yaaqov was blessing his sons, he said of them, “Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce, and their overflowing fury, for it was cruel [excessive]! I will split them up within the land of Yaaqov; I will scatter them among the tribes of Israel.” (49:7) Since Levi and Shim’on “overflowed”—i.e., went beyond their boundaries, YHWH gave neither of them boundaries of their own. And indeed Levi was scattered throughout all of Israel, as we will see in chapter 21. When these brothers were together, they caused trouble. Yet YHWH knew how to deal with them; He gave them a different focus. Levi’s name reflects the fact that he was “joined” to YHWH in a special way, since He gave him this name. (29:34) Levi had a purpose for their proclivity to knives and had no squeamishness about blood; He attached them directly to His House (where He could watch them closely!) and put them in charge of the slaughtering of offerings brought to YHWH. Yehudah, who had proved selfless by taking responsibility for Binyamin at a dangerous time (Gen. 43:8) was now given charge of guarding Shim’on. Shim’on had to stay within Yehudah’s boundaries. What causes us to overstep our boundaries? Our emotions? Lusts? Connections with certain other people? How can these liabilities take on a different focus and become assets to all of Israel?
2. And in their inherited property they had Be’er-sheva’ [well of the oath] (or Sheva’ [oath]), and Moladah [birth-race],
Sheva’ is a shortened version of the name for Be’er-sheva’. Otherwise the cities do not total 13 (as per v. 6), but 14.
3. Khatzar-Shual [“Foxville”], Balah [old and worn out], and ‘Atzem [a bone],
4. Eltolad [Elohim of a generation], B’thul [El shatters], and Khormah [devoted place],
5. Tsiqlag [winding], Beyth-haMarkavoth [home of the chariots], and Khatzar-Susah [mare-village],
6. Beyth-L’ba’oth [home of lionesses], and Sharukhen [favor let loose]—13 cities and their enclosed settlements.
7. Then Ayin [eye or spring], Rimmon [pomegranate], ‘Ether [abundant], and ‘Ashan [smoke]—4 cities with their enclosed settlements--
Enclosed settlements: or simply villages, but the term suggests being walled in, and is based on a word for a trumpet, possibly because everyone living there would respond to the same trumpet’s signals.
8. and all the enclosed settlements that surrounded these cities as far as Baalath-Be’er [mistress of the well] and Ra’math-haNegev [female unicorn of the southern desert]. This is the inherited property of the branch of the descendants of Shim’on for their clans.
9. Out of the descendants of Yehudah’s share [came] the inheritance of the descendants of Shim’on, since the share of the descendants of Yehudah turned out to be too much for them, so the descendants of Shim’on received an inheritance within their inherited property.
YHWH also used Shim’on’s proclivity to violence—the fact that he did not mind killing people—to help Yehudah defend borders that were too big for it alone to handle. Today we have a very similar situation, in which the whole Land has been given to Yehudah, but they are not able to occupy it all, and enemies still dwell within. They need more of the tribes to whom the Land has been deeded to properly defend it. In many ways, our inheritance does rest within Yehudah’s. Our King, is from the tribe of Yehudah. But as returning Israel, we are already partaking of an inheritance that has been within Yehudah alone for many centuries. That tribe preserved many things that we never knew had anything to do with us. To some extent, Yehudah has maintained an unbroken line of Torah practice ever since the days of Y’hoshua. In an electrical line, we can see that, although a broken wire can be re-spliced, there is much more likelihood of corrosion, corruption, and static than in one that remains unbroken. Our line was broken; Yehudah has had “signal boosters” in place in every generation to keep sending the message onward. Sometimes they have taken some unnecessary detours from the shortest distance between two points, but their line is still the cleanest available in this regard. And it has preserved the records of more ancient practices that are even purer than the remnants of Torah keeping that we see today. When we read “Remember the Sabbath to keep it set apart”(Ex. 20:8ff), for example, we might wonder how to do so. The Scriptural text does not tell us the specifics, especially in English. Yehudah has preserved both the “how-to” as well as the Hebrew language that tells us exactly what is meant here by both “Sabbath” (ceasing) and “remember” and which types of “work” are allowed on the Sabbath and which are not. They do not show the whole spectrum of Israelite life; they are often limited to one era (that of the Second Temple) and the viewpoint of the “winners who wrote the historybooks”—the successors to the Pharisees. It is as if they “pickled” those examples so that we could partake of them later. While that does change the flavor and smell somewhat, we must appreciate the fact that we would have very little to go on otherwise. Before entering into many Torah practices, we have found it very valuable to first check how Yehudah does it, while we still do seek the “fresh” form of what they have preserved in “pickled” form. Yehudah has kept the Sabbath on the right day while we had veered off course in this regard. As long as Yehudah’s traditions strengthen the Torah and in no way diminish or contradict it, then their inheritance is ours as well. But there is an even bigger picture—the concept that Shim’on, a man, could have an inheritance in Yehudah, his brother, for it helps us understand that we all have our inheritance in one another. This helps define who we are. The Torah is not for you or me, but for us, not only because our covenant with YHWH is a national one, but because to fulfill it, we need one another. Yosef’s inheritance is in Yissakhar, and Reuven’s is in Asher. An individual keeping the Sabbath is not part of the covenant, but a nation keeping it is; to truly keep the Sabbath, we all need for each other to keep it. There is a Rabbinical teaching that if every Jew would just once keep the Sabbath at the same time, the Messiah would come. This is unlikely, because it probably would require every Israelite of every tribe to do so. We all need to uphold the covenant so that Israel can repay what we have robbed YHWH of for all these years. I need for you to observe the festivals of YHWH, and you need me to do so, though we will not all do it in the same way. Walking in Torah is not necessarily religion, but a lifestyle. Some approach it as religion (ritual that focuses on the unseen realm), and if they are within the boundaries of the Torah, that is acceptable. Whether we see it as religion or a lifestyle, the Torah defines what is what. Torah will probably educate most of us out of religion, for it focuses us on protecting our brothers, whom we can see, and aims for us to bring the unseen realm to bear on what we can see, so that we really accomplish change where it is most needed. Religion is often about tomorrow, but in the Temple, almost nothing from today carries over to tomorrow; it is burned up. It is not about ensuring something down the road. It is not about the invisible, but what is right in front of us. But walking in Torah is what matters. We are not yet ready to agree on the details. But if we really want the world to get along and for YHWH to like this place and involve Himself in it again, we are dependent on one another keeping the Torah. Nowadays one can rarely repair a car without a manual, but there are some manuals that are much better than others. There are many “self-help” systems in the world, but the Torah is not just a better way, but the best. We need every Israelite to stop violating the Sabbath—not necessarily all going to the extent of not walking more than a certain distance, but according to the Torah’s standard: to not do customary work, as for an employer. It is not religion; it is just that if we govern our relationships with Him and with one another by what He says, things will work in this world. It is not religion; do these things and your mind will be on the things we need to concentrate on, and we will mellow out and find much to appreciate about one another. Each one will do his part in a unique way, but we need everyone to do his part—to work six days and rest on one. Whether we use cash or a check, the bill is still paid, though we should not really think of Torah as a duty, but a privilege. Is it really too hard to stop working one day in seven (and not just any of the seven, but the particular day He rests)? Is it really a burden to have a feast when He wants to have a party with us? But we cannot force anyone to do them, or they will not be done rightly. What we are actually studying in the book of Y’hoshua is boundaries. But the how-to’s are not the actual boundaries, but just the building materials. Put a wall where only a cordon is needed, making it stiff and religious, we only give people something to rebel against. We do not all need to do it in the same way, but we all need to enter into rest. Some of my boundaries rest within you, and I need you to do these things. The boundaries of Israel, more than the Mediterranean, the Yarden River, the desert, or the mountains, are found in the Torah. Yet notice here how the boundary is not always a river. Sometimes it is a desert or a canyon; sometimes it is straight, and sometimes it winds around. Sometimes it is only a rope—or a line drawn on a piece of paper. They do not all shock us when we cross over them. We may not see them at all until we start looking for them, though they were there all the time. And even then, they do not appear the same to everyone. Where some see them as a wall, others see them as a river, which invites us to ride along with the flow. For some keeping the Sabbath will mean nothing more than a simple sentence that says to stop working; others will have many more involved rituals. While we are in another’s house, we need to respect his rules. But regardless of how we perceive it, we all need to recognize the boundary. To be within Yehudah’s boundaries, we do not have to stop being Shim’on and become Yehudah. Even those most eager to have the other tribes come back still feel that they have to require us to convert. But that is not Torah, but religion. This is just another example of how guarding the boundaries is too big a job for Yehudah alone. Yehudah needs others who can hear what they cannot hear, in order to get the whole picture of what Torah is really saying. Once all of us recognize that Torah is the boundary, what will come next? We will never know as long as we cling to a merely religious understanding rather than being concerned about the boundaries. The Creator says this is what He wants us to do, and when we do it, all of creation can be realigned for us. YHWH is so infinite that we cannot really relate to Him until He gives us actions to carry out that show us who He is in a way that comes right to the point. When we do not pay attention, how can we blame the prophets for being harsh? The offerings He prescribes are not about killing animals, but about dealing decisively with things in ourselves. It sometimes takes such an extreme act of violence to really be done with them once and for all. That is not religion, but being freed to be fully alive again. He added many rituals just because we were looking across the boundaries too often and wanting to be like others who were religious, so He decided to communicate Himself along those lines. But we are not meant to be religious, but Torah people. YHWH is less upset if we bring no offering than if we bring an offering but have the wrong attitudes. It is almost as if He did a favor by removing the Temple, so that we would focus on becoming the kind of people He wants to have in His home. He prefers to dwell among us in a tent more than a building anyway. The Temple was not usually a part of everyday life for most Israelites; it was a place to visit three times a year. Why should it be rebuilt if we are not ready to occupy it? But Torah is really about how we treat our neighbors, for any father wants his children to treat one another rightly. And all the brothers have to be back home before the Father really has peace. Possibly the greatest inheritance Yehudah alone has preserved is the Hebraic perspective—how to think the way the writers of Scripture and the Messiah himself thought, the logic they used rather than what we have today, which has much Greek thought mixed in. To be sure, many Jews have bought into this as well, and we must beware the leaven of the P’rushim (read “Rabbis” today) and Tz’doqim, so we must be learned and study out each aspect, but we must appreciate how far Yehudah surpasses most men alive today. We do not need their permission to return to the covenant, for the King, who is also from Yehudah, has already granted that. While we do not inhabit their cities (for we have another job to do), we have the same boundaries as they, as prescribed by the Torah.
10. And the third lot came up for the descendants of Z’vulun for their clans, and the territory of their inheritance went as far as Sarid [survivor].
Sarid: not far from present-day Natzereth in the western Galil.
11. Then their border went up toward the west and Mar’alah [quivering] and touched on Dabbasheth [camel-hump], then reached toward the river which is on the face of Yoqneam [the people chant a dirge].
This river was probably the Qishon, which runs parallel to Mt. Karmel on the northeast.
12. And it turned back eastward from Sarid toward the rising of the sun onto the limit of the flanks of [Mt.] Thavor, then it goes out to haDabrath [the word] then up [to] Yafia [outshining].
Dabrath became a Levitical city on the western foot of Mt. Thavor, a prominent mountain between the Yizre’el Valley and the Galil.
13. Then from there it crosses on the east from the sunrise to Githah [winepress], Hefer [dug out], Ithah-Qatzin [at a decisive time], and goes out to Rimmon and was drawn to the Neah [shaking].
14. Then the border circles around it north from Khannathon [most-favored], and its issuings-forth are at the Valley of Yiftakh-El [Elohim opens],
15. along with Qattath [small], Nahalal [watering-site], Shimron [watchpost], Yid’alah [thanks to Eloah], and Beyth-Lekhem [house of bread]—12 cities [in all] with their enclosed settlements.
16. This is the inherited property of the descendants of Z’vulun for their clans—these cities with their enclosed settlements.
17. And the fourth lot came out for Yissakhar—for the descendants of Yissakhar by their clans.
18. And their territory was at Yizre’el [Elohim will sow], K’sulloth [flanks], and Shunem [double resting place],
19. Khafarayim [pair of pits], Shi’on [greatly ravaged], and Anakharath [snoring],
20. haRabbith [the multitude], Qishyon [stubborn], and Abetz [I will make it gleam],
21. Remeth [throwing down], Eyn-gannim [spring of the enclosed gardens], Eyn Khaddah [spring of alertness], and Beyth Patzetz [house of dispersion].
22. Then the border touches Thavor, Shakhatziomah [strutting with pride], and Beyth Shemesh [house of the sun], and the issuings-out of their border was at the Yarden—16 cities with their enclosed settlements.
23. This is the inherited property of the descendants of Yissakhar for their clans—the cities with their enclosed settlements.
24. And the fifth lot came out for the branch of the descendants of Asher for their clans.
25. And their boundary-line was Khelqath [smooth], Khali [weakening ornament], Beten [hollow], and Akhshaf [I will be bewitched],
26. Alammelekh [king’s oak], Am’ad [enduring people], Mish’al [entreaty]; then it touches [Mt.] Karmel on the west, then reaches to Shihor-livnath [darkening of the whiteness].
On the west: or, at the sea. Shihor-livnath is a riverbed south of Dor.
27. Then it turns back toward the rising of the sun (Beyth-Dagon [house of the great fish]) and reaches Z’vulun and the Valley of Yifthakh-El on the north of Beyth haEmeq [house of the valley], Nei’el [moved about by Elohim], then goes out to Kavul [binding] on the left,
28. then Hevron [closest ally], Rekhov [wide-open space], Khammon [hot spring], and Qanah [cane reed] as far as greater Tzidon [great hunter].
29. Then the border turns back at Ramah and as far as the fortified city of Tzur [rock]. Then the border turns back at Khosah [refuge], and its issuings-out are at the sea from Khevel [measuring-line] to Akhziv [deceit].
30. Also Ummah [agreement], Afeq [restraint], and Rekhov [wide-open]—22 cities with their enclosed settlements.
31. This is the inherited property of the branch of the descendants of Asher for their clans—these cities with their enclosed settlements.
32. For the descendants of Nafthali the sixth lot came out—for the descendants of Nafthali for their clans.
33. And their border came to be from Khelef [exchange], from Elon [the oak] at Tzaananim [removals], and Adami haNeqev [my ground that is concave], Yavne’el [El causes to be built], as far as Laqum [barricade], and its issuings-out was the Yarden.
34. Then the border turns back westward [at] Aznoth-Thavor [the ears of Mt. Tabor], and goes out from there to Khuqoq [decreed], and touches Z’vulun on the south, Asher on the west, and Yehudah [praise], with the Yarden at the sunrise [side].
35. And the fortified cities are the Tzidim [sides], Tzer [flint], and Khammath [hot spring], Raqath [shore], and Kinnereth [harp],
Kinnereth: on the lake by the same name, also called the Sea of Galilee.
36. Adamah [the ground], haRamah [the height], and Hatzor [castle court],
37. Qedesh [set-apart], Edrei [excellent pasture], and Eyn-Hatzor [spring of the castle],
38. Yir’on [great fear], Migdal-El [tower of the mighty one], Kharem [devoted], Beyth-‘Anath [house of response], and Beyth-Shemesh [house of the sun]—19 cities with their enclosed settlements.
39. This is the inherited property of the branch of the descendants of Nafthali for their clans—the cities with their enclosed settlements.
40. The seventh lot came out for the tribe of the descendants of Dan for their families.
41. And the boundary of their inheritance came to be Tzor’ah [hornet], Eshta’ol [inquiry], and Ir-Shemesh [city of the sun],
Tzor’ah would be Shimshon (Samson)’s hometown. That his hometown was on the boundary may suggest why he was so easily tempted to look outside his people to have his needs met, such as loving Filistine women.
42. Shaalabbin [place of foxes], Ayalon [great deer], and Yithlah [it hangs],
43. Eylon [mighty terebinth], Timnathah [assignment], and ‘Eqron [uprooted],
Eqron was one of the five main cities of the Filistines.
44. Eltheqeh [may El spit you out], Gibthon [great mound], and Baalath [mistress],
45. Y’hud [praised], B’ney-Beraq [sons of lightning], and Gath-rimmon [pomegranate press],
46. Mey haYarqon [waters of the greenery], haRaqqon [very thin], with the border against Yafo [beautiful].
Yafo, an important harbor for millennia, is now just south of Tel Aviv (which is in Menashe’s territory). Note that no total number of cities is given for Dan as for the other tribes. There is a reason it is left open-ended:
47. And the territory of the descendants of Dan ran out for them, so the descendants of Dan went up and fought with Leshem [precious stone] and captured it, and attacked it with the mouth of the sword, took possession of it, and inhabited it, and instead of Leshem, they called it Dan, according to the name of Dan, their ancestor.
They did fight for their inheritance, but kept on fighting and added to their inheritance. We, who have not yet received our whole inheritance, can be content with what YHWH has provided thus far, but should not be satisfied until we reach the fullness of what He intends for us, which is Torah-observance in His Land, in His presence, with Y’shua physically reigning there as our King. The glass is still half-empty, though He has given us so much, for there are many areas we have yet to move into both in Torah-observance and in placing our Father’s Name on more territory. The earth is not yet full of the knowledge of His Name. But we cannot reach satisfaction without first being content—that is, free from fear and worry about things YHWH has made and therefore is in control of, since we can trust Him to keep them away if we are not entertaining them. Dan’s practice of naming places after their ancestor continued even after the tribes were dispersed. Their settlements in exile (Denmark, the Don River, the Danube/Donau, and other places whose names stem from “Dan”) have been easier to trace for this reason. Leshem had also been known as La’ish (“crushing lion”).
48. This is the inherited property of the branch of the descendants of Dan for their clans—these cities with their enclosed settlements.
49. When they finished dividing the land for inheritance by her borders, the descendants of Israel gave inherited property among them to Y’hoshua the son of Nun.
After everyone else has received their inheritance, the ruler receives his. This is a foreshadowing of the land granted to the prince, Y’shua, during the Messianic Kingdom in Y’hezq’el 48:21. He is not already sitting in His inheritance, though He has gone on ahead, for He cannot receive it in its fullness until we move fully into ours.
50. Upon YHWH’s word, they gave him the city that he had asked for—Timnath-Serakh [portion of the sun] in the mountains of Efrayim, and he rebuilt the city and lived in it.
The name of Y’hoshua’s city (“the sun’s portion”) also correlates with Y’shua’s being called the sun of righteousness (a different term for the sun) in Mal’akhi 4:2 and a city being called “the city of the sun” (an inverted form of the same root word as Serakh) in Egypt during the Messianic kingdom (Yeshayahu 19:17ff) We are told that the New Yerushalayim that is completed after the Kingdom will have no need of the sun since the Lamb (Y’shua as per Yochanan 1:29, 36) will give it light, walking in the authority of YHWH. (Rev. 21:23) Y’hoshua chose the place that foreshadowed this light so the kingdom in his own day could be enlightened while under his authority.
51. These are the inherited properties that El’azar the priest, Y’hoshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers of the branches of the descendants of Israel let flow out by lot in Shiloh, in the presence of YHWH at the opening to the Tent of Appointment; thus they finished apportioning out the Land.
CHAPTER 20
1. Then YHWH spoke to Y’hoshua, saying,
2. “Speak to the descendants of Israel, saying, ‘Appoint asylum-cities for yourselves as I told you through the hand of Moshe,
3. “‘so that a manslayer who strikes someone down by mistake, unwittingly, may escape there, and they will be a refuge for you from the one who avenges blood.
Avenges: literally, redeems or ransoms. His other duty is indeed to redeem land that his kinsman loses to the family. But his right—indeed, his duty--is to avenge the blood of certain relatives. This is not a time to “forgive and forget”, for forgiveness requires repentance (Luke 17:3), and a price must be paid for spilt human blood. The law since Noakh is that someone must pay for a lost life (Gen. 9:6), especially innocent blood (Deut. 19:1-14; 22:8). While we should not remain angry or bitter, we must certainly not forget, or no one will learn an important lesson. The honor of the one whose life was cut short is important, though this factor is often forgotten today. The system must also be kept functioning properly. The only way to ransom the blood of the slain is for the killer to die. It is not optional for the designated kinsman to try to avenge his blood; even if he is delicate, he must rise to his responsibility, or an alternate kinsman must stand in for him. The fact that it was an accident has no bearing on his responsibility to satisfy this penalty if he possibly can. If he catches you before you get to one of these cities, he will kill you and be guiltless, so if you accidentally kill someone, you need to run. The parameters for how brutally the killer is put to death lie within the heart of the avenger. One would hope he would take you to court rather than killing you immediately, for if you were found not guilty, the court’s decision would take precedence. But if you were found guilty, you would also be stoned by the community—not a painless death either. It has to be somewhat graphic and disgraceful to drive the point home. But this is not meant to occur; it is meant to be a deterrent. What we are after is to never need this kind of thing, for even if you could stand such punishment, your wife—or mother—might also have to see the execution. Such situations arise because we act without thinking, and are not careful about how our actions will affect other people. Before I shoot squirrels I need to consider whether they might be neighbors in an adjoining yard. Chawwah got excited about eating a special fruit, but in the process she marred Adam’s relationship with YHWH, so there was a painful price to be paid. If the avenger is diligent about this duty, the rest of Israel will learn to think before we act—or even speak, considering how it will affect those close to us. If we obtain knowledge (Prov. 1-2), we can avoid doing anything unwittingly.
4. “‘When he flees to one of these cities, he must wait at the entrance to the gate of the city and state his case in the hearing of the elders of that city, so they may receive him to themselves in the city and give him a place, and he will live with them.
Receive: literally remove or withdraw (from the world outside, where he is “fair game” for any avenger who catches up with him before he is inside the city). He does not come there to escape justice; rather, these cities exist to assure justice (mishpat—proper judgment), which is the foundation of everything positive. Remove justice, and no matter how nice everything else may seem, the situation becomes a negative one. The Torah leaves much room for individual freedom, individual ownership of property, and self-expression as seen in musicians, dancers, and artisans. But these all must take a back seat to the nation as a whole when it comes to judgment; Israel collectively takes precedence over the individual.
5. “‘And though the avenger of blood pursues him, they must not deliver the manslayer into his hand, because he caused his fellow to be struck down unwittingly and did not hate him prior to that.
Prior to that: A parallel passage rules that any premeditated slaying is counted as murder. (Deut. 19:11-14) Even in a sudden flare-up of temper, if one wields up an instrument which is likely to cause death, the case must still be judged. (Num. 35:16-25) In Jewish tradition, one’s left eye represents judgment and his right eye represents mercy. Judges must have both eyes open, but once it is determined that a killing was intentional, there is no place for pity. (Exodus 21:12-13) There must be no emotional baggage when justice is to be done. This takes training since we have become very emotion-oriented. The passage goes on to say, “Do not remove your neighbor’s landmark, which those in the first times have established as a boundary for your inheritance.” (Compare Mat. 5:18-19) That these two commands are side by side is not coincidental, for this instruction is the ancient boundary YHWH has set up, and we must not try to do things our own way; even for the sake of a neighbor, we may not show mercy in such a case. The only time we ever do something wrong should be when it is accidental. There is no provision for forgiveness if a sin was intentional. This is not cold and barbaric, because blood defiles the Land where YHWH dwells, and He will not have defilement in His home. One cannot buy his way out of it; only true justice keeps the Land from being defiled.
6. “‘And he must stay there until he has stood before the gathering [of witnesses] for sentencing—until the death of the one who has been high priest in those days. At that time the manslayer may return and enter his city and [come back] to his home within the city from which he fled.’”
Stay there: If he ever leaves the city, the avenger of blood can kill him without guilt because he should have remained in the place of protection. (Num. 35:26-29) Though he is not a criminal, he is basically under house arrest. Though he is not guilty, and therefore does not pay with his life, he is not innocent either, because he has taken part in bloodshed. As Qayin found out (Gen. 4:10-11; compare Ex. 22:2-3; Deut. 21:1-9), spilt blood cries out to YHWH and must be answered. Because there has been a loss of life, there must be a consequence so that justice can be served; life cannot just go one as usual, because someone (his family) has been very cheated. Though the killing was unintentional, one loses his freedom, because even accidents have repercussions; they have changed one’s standing in the eyes of the family who lost this loved one—possibly even the breadwinner--and if they saw the killer every day, feuds would be likely to develop between their two families. YHWH cuts this cycle by removing the source of what could become a festering hatred from their midst. But the Torah is about taking responsibility and fixing what one broke or paying for what you lost, even though it was unintentional. But the more important purpose of this command is what it represents for us. The term for “asylum” (shelter or refuge; Heb. miqlat) in verses 2-3 is based on the root word qalat, which means physically injured, deformed, maimed—i.e., “handicapped” or “lacking in body parts”. (In Lev. 22:23 it speaks of having a limb that is too short.) At first glance, it is hard to see how this relates to a place of refuge. But actually it fits very well with this scenario, because one has robbed another family of a member, and now he must be removed from his own tribe, leaving them without someone to fill his role. He must now live in a city full of those who are strangers to him, because certain death awaits if he returns home. He is attached to a new city where everyone is seeking replacements for their missing “body parts”. They have homes, but cannot live there. They belong to another city, but cannot live there. They are from somewhere else, yet this must be their home for what may be the rest of their lives. Their hope is that they can stay alive until what is restraining them dies—even if it is the most noble, most beautifully-clothed of men, the high priest. Yeshayahu 28 helps us identify who they represent. Verse 5 tells us that in the Kingdom, after His judgment is carried out, YHWH will be a crown of glory for the “remnant of His people”. Those who are “left over”. Yirmeyahu 23:3 says He will gather “the remnant of His flock” out of many nations, just as these “left over” people have come out of many different cities to form a new community. Mikha 4:7 says it is the “lame” or “limping” that He will make His remnant, and though they are not “big shots”, He will make the outcasts into a strong nation. The body needs to be put back together.
7. So they set aside Qedesh in the Galil (in the mountains of Nafthali), Sh’khem in the mountains of Efrayim, and Qiryath-Arba (that is, Hevron) in the mountains of Yehudah,
Set aside: or dedicated, set apart, from the same root word as Qedesh.
8. and across the Yarden, eastward from Y’rikho, they assigned Betzer in the uninhabited land on the plateau out of the tribe of Re’uven, and Ramoth-Gil’ad out of the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan out of the tribe of Menashe.
These cities are all on high ground, not only because it is harder for the avenger to attack if the offender is higher than he, but also so there is a genuine contest to determine who will win the race. YHWH set it up so that the outcome is not obvious, leaving Him room to have mercy or to withhold it, depending on whom He wishes to favor in each case. It could be that in this case, the killing was unintentional, but the killer may have gotten away with another crime previously community. that he kept hidden from men, but which YHWH wants punished. (The advantage to his having to run immediately to the city of refuge is that he has no time to cover up the evidence.) In Exodus 21, Moshe equates an accidental death with the victim being delivered into the killer’s hand by Elohim himself. He made that “mistake” take place. Yet still he must submit to these rules. If he arrives safely, it means YHWH has had mercy on him in this case. Where the Torah is not more specific, YHWH leaves room for judges to use wisdom and apply justice or mercy according to the need of the particular person or community. There are some cities of refuge that are actually outside the Land of Israel proper. These are the additional cities commanded in Deut. 19:8 and Numbers 35:9-15. This reiterates that we can begin to take up these practices now while we are still in exile. As we wait to go home again, we are even now to be forming communities that will become cities when we return. The six cities were pretty evenly-spaced throughout the Land so that there would be one within reach of any part of the Land. But they tend to be on the outskirts of the territory. This is because the closer one lives to the heart of the Land, the more responsible he is expected to be because of interacting more intensely with the rest of Israel, and is therefore less likely to need the asylum-city.
9. These were the cities designated for all the descendants of Israel and for the guest who stays [temporarily] among them so that anyone who kills a person inadvertently might not die by the hand of the avenger of blood until he has stood before the gathering [of witnesses].
The guest: This protection is afforded not only to Israelites, but for strangers among them if they are willing to submit to the judgment it involves. All of these are Levitical cities, so the elders there are more knowledgeable in Torah, and have allegiance to no other man, being answerable directly to YHWH, since their provision comes from Him. They are therefore the most objective judges of one’s guilt or innocence, for they are not kin to the one who was killed, as they would be in a local court. The priesthood is responsible for judgment (Deut. 17:9-12; 21:5). The Levites are meant to know Torah best, so ideally they will not twist it. They have no personal stake in the outcome, for they do not own land, so they are not concerned with who inherits what and are less likely to take bribes. But the irony is that the one they are judging is in a sense eager for their own kinsman, the high priest, to die so that he can go home. When the city is emptied out, all of their laborers will be gone and they themselves will be the ones left on their own with no help. What made these cities pump? Justice, because these were the men who studied the law. So YHWH puts the careless in a place where they can really come to understand proper judgment—which we probably did not have if our axehead fell off (Deut. 19:5), because we did not take the time to check its condition so the accident could be avoided. We, like these misfits, know we have a home but are not in it. We came from somewhere else, and belong there, but something we cannot control is keeping us with others who are missing their families. Why? Because our ancestors committed grievous acts of selfishness, and until the right foundation is again laid, this keeps us refugees. We did not commit the crime; we inherited it. We did not take up idolatry, yet still we unwittingly worshipped idols, so we cannot simply say it was not our fault. YHWH keeps us here in hopes that we learn proper judgment. Most people today are afraid to judge, yet this is exactly what we need most so that when we can return home, we will have better judgment than anyone else—because we have been in a place where everyone has been paying the price for poor judgment. Are we learning?
CHAPTER 21
1. Then the heads of the fathers of the Levites approached El’azar the priest and Y’hoshua the son of Nun and the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the descendants of Israel,
Recall that the Levites are those YHWH took in place of the firstborn of Israel, they were named by YHWH Himself to be “attached” to Him and thus are His personal property, not numbered among the rest of the tribes of Israel (Num. 1:47), and include the priests, the teachers of the Torah, the caretakers of the poor, the widow, and the fatherless, guardians of the storehouses, and thus the most respected in all of Israel. The high priest here is listed first, indicating that he is of highest importance among the leaders of Israel. He could receive answers directly from YHWH.
2. and they spoke to them in Shiloh, in the land of Kanaan, saying, “YHWH commanded by the hands of Moshe to give us cities to inhabit along with their open land for our animals.”
What’s wrong with this picture? The right people are going through the right channels at the right time to do the right thing! This is completely unheard of! But they followed the example of Kalev, who did this at the beginning of the conquest (14:6); now that the cities have been taken and the Land has been divided among the tribes, they are right in season. Here we see the proper order of appeal in Israel in play. No one is whining or complaining that it is not fair that everyone else in Israel has received their inheritance and they have not, or that they have been victimized. No one is asking for more or offering less. No one is trying to cut a deal or build a popular consensus to get people on their side. No one is angrily “talking smack” about anyone else. They do not just move in on their own, saying, “We have a right to this and we’re just going to pick whatever cities we want!” There are no individual Levites staking claims or trying to move in ahead of the rest. This is so different from anything we are used to—because they are actually in order! No one is creating any of the chaos that so many people seem to thrive on. Kalev had made sure chaos would be avoided by coming at the right time. All the way back in Genesis 1, we see chaos and destruction, but it was overcome with order when YHWH spoke the word. It is a scientific principle that order always deteriorates into chaos, but when the disorder gets to a certain intensity, things resolve into orderliness again. Here, no one is feeding the chaos by trying to push his own agenda; instead, things are flowing the way they are intended to. They send the right people at the right time to present their case to the proper authorities. The fathers are the most basic and natural leaders, who have paid the price of authority by raising their families properly. But they did not all come, nor did they send random Levites, but only the “heads” representing them all—those whom the tribe know are the most effective leaders. The ones whose words really mattered. And they came to those with the authority to hear their case and the power to do something about it. No one went around painting insulting graffiti about anyone else, and they did not go to the troublemakers for help. They did not protest or circulate a petition. The right people presented themselves in an orderly fashion to the right people, and showed the proper respect. (Why do people expect to be respected by authorities to who they show no respect?) They still called the land Kanaan, because not all was done yet that needed to be done. But they went to the place where YHWH’s Dwelling Place was set up, and they did everything out in the open, without any covert meetings or back-door deals. No one was looking to get an upper hand. They made no big speeches, nor did they only bring one part of their case and leave the rest for later. They did not even ask for anything per se. They stated their case as completely yet simply as possible. They do not even cloak their request in religion by talking about how much better they could serve YHWH once they had their cities. There is no embellishment, no argument, no pros and cons. No apologies are offered, nor are any needed. They showed all their cards, being honest about what they were really after. The more we hide or pretend, the more we only add to the chaos. They make no demands, but just state a fact: “This is what YHWH said.” They said what they knew to be true, since it was written: Each tribe had indeed been commanded to give to the Levites in proportion to the inheritance they would receive. (Num. 35:1-3) One who is deserving, knowledgeable of the Word of YHWH, and goes through the right channels should receive a just ruling. But still they awaited a ruling. Here is the hard part: What if they did everything right, but Y’hoshua had still said, “No”? The weapon of the rebellious is to cause trouble and protest until they get what they want. They had to be willing to hear, “This is not the proper time”, if there had been a valid reason for this. There was not, but if we are to remain in the right order, we have to be prepared to fully accept any response we get, without returning to chaos. Some people do things in the proper order, but change their tune completely if the answer is “no”. We cannot follow the Bible alone, because it is subject to interpretation. We need to go through the authorities it establishes for us; otherwise we are skipping some steps and the order falls apart. The Levites knew they needed Y’hoshua to get through this, so they did things the right way. So what was the outcome?
3. So the descendants of Israel gave the descendants of Levi these cities and their open land out of their own inheritance, as YHWH had commanded.
They got down to the bare facts and look how it worked out. They were indeed given what they asked for. It is not always this simple, but by now they had all had enough of war, bloodshed, and chaos. They wanted a peaceful solution. This was a rare, short time in our history when we were actually in the right order. At any other time, we would expect someone to have an objection—“That’s bigoted! That’s racist!” Some people live just to add to the chaos, and some even make their living doing so! We need to get hold of what took place here. Today in returning Israel, we need to find out who the right people are, because everyone seems to think he has a say or a right to his own opinion, and this, too, only adds to the chaos. And things are not much better in Yehudah. Though they are easy to admire from a distance, when we look closely enough there are many varieties of Jew, many of whom despise one another, because there are no “heads of the fathers” today. So what needs to be said? And who should be speaking to whom? Determining this is a tall order. What can we do about this situation? The short answer is, look for where the chaos is close at hand, and bring some order to it. If we do not know what we are after, we should start by being honest with ourselves. Strip away all pretense, and make sure we put it all on the table. Speak where we should, but where we would not be adding anything positive, do not speak. Put in order anything we can. There is a time to speak up and a time to remain quiet. But if we are going to enter into anything, as large as this or as small as a local community or even a family or partnership, part of our understanding must be that sometimes we will not get the answer we want, or not right away. We might first need to hear, “Calm down and think. Step back and look at it from this perspective. Come with me and you’ll see it differently.” Or we may hear, “Get up and get busy!” instead. It can take any number of forms, but chaos is the opposite of harmony and shalom (completeness—and this is what it is all about). Y’hoshua could have told them they would get Levitical cities in heaven instead, but what would they do there? Raise heavenly livestock? They had real children and real spouses to house now, so they needed real cities. This is the most primeval of lessons: Wherever anything is incomplete, we need to identify the where the chaos is, deal with it, and we will find peace. Not always overnight, but find the source of the problem and work on it, and continue to lay out the simple, profound truth. Notice that they did not just send one tribal head, but a plurality. When enough people care enough to overcome the chaos, Meanwhile, find where order is lacking, and you have identified the target: Bring order right there, make your contribution to the whole, even if the time for the fullness has not yet come. If we try and fail, we may have to wait until we have been through more cycles of ebb and flow, but then solving a seemingly-unrelated problem will have an unexpected effect on this one further down the line, when other things have been set in order and we are better prepared to preserve the gains than even Israel was at this stage—for it did fall apart after Y’hoshua died. But when people like Manoakh and his wife got back into order on the scale in which they had the choice (Judges 13), YHWH brought deliverance and restored order yet again. Part of this was that the messenger YHWH sent simply did what he was sent to do, then left. He did not add any complicating factors. If we quit making things murkier with the excuses of religion and just walk in YHWH’s simple instructions (“love your neighbor as yourself”), we can eliminate the chaos within our sphere of authority or influence, and trust YHWH to bring wider repercussions that solve puzzles bigger than we are equipped to handle.
4. And the lot came out for the familes of the Q’hathites, so the by lot there came to be thirteen cities from the tribe of Yehudah, from the tribe of Shim’on, and from the tribe of Binyamin for the sons of Aharon, from [among] the Levites.
Aharon was the grandson of Q’hath. Notice that his tribe was stationed near Yerushalayim even though there were still over 400 years before the sanctuary would be there.
5. And the rest of the descendants of Q’hath had, by lot, ten cities from the clans of the tribes of Efrayim and from the tribe of Dan and from half the tribe of Menashe.
Not all of the Q’hathites were priests. It seems very unfair that the descendants of Amram (Aharon’s father) should have more cities than all three of his brothers put together.(Ex. 6:18) But the highest standards for purity and service were placed on the family of Aharon, and thus they were rewarded with more by YHWH. Remembenr that YHWH has mercy on those on whom He chooses to have mercy (Ex. 33:19), and there had already been rebellion from other Q’hathites over the higher privilege afforded to Aharon and Moshe (Num. 16). He knew what each deserved.
6. Then by lot, thirteen cities from the families of the tribe of Issakhar, from the tribe of Asher, and from the tribe of Nafthali, and from half of the tribe of Menashe in Bashan [were] for the descendants of Gershon.
7. The descendants of Merari had twelve cities out of the tribe of Re’uven, out of the tribe of Gad, and out of the tribe of Z’vulun.
The tribe of Z’vulun is not contiguous with these other two tribes, but is surrounded by the tribal lands that gave cities to Gershon and Q’hath. It could be that, as Shim’on and Levi were too dangerous when paired together, the Merarites (whose name is rooted in a word meaning “bitterness”) might spend too much time commiserating if all together.
8. And the descendants of Israel gave these cities and their open land to the Levites by lot, as YHWH had ordered through the hand of Moshe.
The hand of Moshe: not the mouth, though that is used as a similar idiom elsewhere. He had indeed written down the Torah so there would be no question later about precisely what he had said after he was no longer around. The hand is also a symbol of authority. Moshe was given authority by YHWH, and he retained it because of his faithfulness in using it for YHWH’s purposes, not his own. Y’shua, too, could have used the power given to Him by YHWH to serve his own purposes, and was tempted to. (Mat. 4:3-7) But He chose to do the right ting and use it only for the sake of the Kingdom. You, too, are given strengths, whether physical, mental, or financial, for a purpose, and that purpose is always the Kingdom. He has invested in us, and the return cannot be used as we please; we owe Him dividends on any “profits” we gain thereby. YHWH We live in a day when it is commonly believed that Moshe’s writings no longer have authority, yet it is Moshe’s very authority that gives us us, like these Levites, our place in the Kingdom! If we do away with the Torah, we have no claim to an inheritance!
9. Now [what] they provided from the tribe of the descendants of Yehudah and from the tribe of the descendants of Shim’on [were] these cities, which are specified by name,
10. and they came to belong to the sons of Aharon, [which are] part of the clans of the Q’hathites, from the descendants of Levi, since the first lot came to be for them:
11. That is, they gave them the town of Arba, the father of the Anaqim (that is, Hevron), in the mountains of Yehudah, with its open lands all around it.
12. But the fields [belonging to] the city and its enclosed settlements they gave to Kalev the son of Y’funeh as the possession he had seized.
He had already been promised this territory, so they had to clarify that it was the “suburbs” that were to be his, and this included the agricultural land that he needed; the city itself was too special, being the burial place of the patriarchs, to give to any but those closest to YHWH. He was a big man to give up something he had fought for, but he also had the foresight to see that this was a very important city, so he put himself in the position to be able to walk away from it by taking more than one city. (See chapter 15.) Open land: or common land, since it includes the city itself. (Num. 35:3-5) The total area of each was a square 4,000 by 4,000 cubits, with the inner 2,000 by 2,000 being the walled city. It is reminiscent of a four-cornered garment surrounded by four more corners—reminders to keep the Torah like the tzitziyoth that hang thereon. (Num. 15:38-39) The first five times we see the word “keep” (hedge about, guard, protect, observe, or attend to—Hebrew, shomer) it forms a path for us. In Gen. 2:15, Adam is told to “tend” the Garden. Because of unrepentance for his sin, was was driven out—the same word which forms the root for “open land” here. Thus this land around the city was like a buffer of protection for those seeking asylum in six of these cities. It most likely had a hedge of thorns at the extremity in addition to the city wall, as an added way of designating the safe zone. The Garden was “guarded” by kh’ruvim with flaming swords.(Gen. 3:24) In Gen. 4:9, Qayin then asks if he is indeed his brother’s “keeper” (as if he were like a shepherd to him). The next two instances of shomer are in Gen. 17:9-10, when Avram is told to “keep”, “observe” or “guard” YHWH’s covenant, which at this stage involved circumcising his sons at the right time. We can follow this “path” back to the Garden. We have taken on the covenant; now our main focus is to be our brothers’ keepers, loving our fellows as ourselves, rather than being driven out further like Qayin because he did not accept this duty. We inherit the common land because of what we drive out of it—pagan ways, wrong interpretations of Scripture, wrong definitions of loving one another, and most of all, self-interest. One cannot guard a city alone. We must become attached to one another and guard it together. How? The answer is in the other things we are told to guard: YHWH’s appointments (Ex. 12:17ff), the Sabbath (Ex. 31:14), and our borders—that is, not making covenants with those outside who could be a snare to us and the whole community. (Ex. 34:12) In Gen. 21:29 shomer is used in the sense of fencing in an animal that has been known to gore. Our common ground is given as a place to confine the animal within us—our selfish interests and fleshly lusts—and to bring under control anything that does not conform to Torah. Guarding one another is not comfortable; the comfort of like-mindedness is what we should instead seek. (Filippians. 2:1ff)
13. Thus they provided the descendants of Aharon with Hevron and its open lands as an asylum-city [for] the [man]slayer, then Livnah with its open lands,
Hevron was built by giants, so would be especially defensible, having walls larger than any other city. This may be why David would choose it as his first capital when king only of Yehudah. (2 Shmu’el 2:11) It is also the city with the highest elevation in the Land—a very strategic location.
14. Yathir with its open lands, Esthemoa with its open lands,
15. Holon with its open lands, D’vir with its open lands,
16. Ayin with its open lands, Yuttah with its open lands, and with its open lands—nine cities from within these two tribes.
17. And out of the tribe of Binyamin, Giv’on with its open lands, Geva’ with its open lands,
Thus the Giv’onites became the servants not just of Israel in general (9:21-27), but of the Levites in particular.
18. Anathoth with its open lands, and ‘Almon with its open lands—four cities.
19. The cities of the descendants of Aharon, the priests, were thirteen in all, along with their open lands.
20. As for the clans of the descendants of Q’hath—the Levites who were left of the descendants of Q’hath—when the cities of their lot from the tribe of Efrayim became theirs,
21. they provided for them as an asylum-city [for] the [man]slayer Sh’khem with its open lands in the mountains of Efrayim, then Gezer with its open lands,
Sh’khem is another very important city which already had a long history of connections with Israel. Y’hoshua had had all the tribes recite the blessings and curses inherent in the Torah here. Yaaqov himself had pitched his tent just outside it. Ironically, Levi had helped kill all the male inhabitants after his sister was raped by the king’s son. Now it was to be a city of refuge administered by Levi’s sons! But that it is now a city dedicated to justice is a reparation for an injustice done here as well. Yosef was sent here by his father to find his brothers, who were supposed tro be pasturing his sheep there, and it was the last place in the Land where he had been a free man; this may be why it is here that he was brought back to be buried.
22. Qibtzayim with its open lands, and Beyth-horon with its open lands—four cities.
23. And from out of the tribe of Dan, Elteqe with its open lands, Gibthon with its open lands,
24. Ayalon with its open lands, and Gath-rimmon with its open lands—four cities.
25. And from the half of the tribe of Menashe, Taanakh with its open lands and Gath-rimmon with its open lands—two cities.
Gath-rimmon was on the border of these two tribes, and therefore was apparently divided between them, much like modern Kansas City, which is in both Kansas and Missouri.
26. The cities for the clans of the remaining descendants of Q’hath, along with their open lands, were ten in all.
27. As for the descendants of Gershon, from among the clans of the Levites, from the half tribe of Menashe they provided for them as a city of refuge [for] the [man]slayer Golan in Bashan with its open lands, then Be’eshtrah with its open lands—two cities.
Though their tribal land is largest, no more was required of the Menashites than of any of the other tribes, because they were the ones willing to fight for the Land and did not need to be reprimanded about not doing so, like seven other tribes.
28. And from the tribe of Issakhar, Qishon with its open land, Dabrath with its open land,
29. Yarmuth with its open land, and Eyn Gannim with its open land—four cities.
30. And from the tribe of Asher, Mish’al with its open land, ‘Avdon with its open land,
31. Khelqath with its open land, and R’hov with its open land—four cities.
32. And from the tribe of Nafthali, as a city of refuge [for] the [man]slayer, Qedesh in the Galil with its open land, then Hamoth Do’r with its open land, and Qartawn with its open land—three cities.
33. The cities of the Gershonites for their clans, along with their open lands, were thirteen cities in all.
34. Then to the clans of the descendants of Merari—the remaining Levites—from the tribe of Z’vulun, Yoqneam with its open land, Qarthah with its open land,
35. Dimnah with its open land, and Nahalal with its open land—four cities.
36. And from the tribe of Re’uven, Betzer with its open land, Yahatzah with its open land,
37. Qedemah with its open land, and Mefaath with its open land—four cities.
Verses 36 and 37 are present in the early translations, supported by most codices, and are supported by verses 7, 40, and 41, but were left out of the Rabbinic Bible by Yaaqov ben Chasim (a Masoretic text used by many today) in 1525, for no apparent reason. (Green, who refers the reader to Keil’s Commentary on Joshua, p. 457).
38. And from the tribe of Gad, as a city of refuge [for] the [man]slayer, Ramoth in Gil’ad with its open land, then Makhanayim with its open land,
Makhanayim was another place important in the life of Yaaqov.
39. Heshbon with its open land, and Yaazer with its open land—four cities in all.
40. The cities for the descendants of Merari for their clans—those remaining of the clans of the Levites—their lot came to be twelve cities in all.
41. The Levite cities within the possession seized by the descendants of Israel, with their open lands, were forty-eight in all.
Though they had “no inherited possession”, the Levites had more cities than any other tribe except Yehudah! But they had no borders as such, and the size of each of these cities was strictly defined. (See note on v. 3.) There was room for shelter, crops, and livestock, but no other industry. Those responsible for judging and teaching YHWH’s people and bringing Him pleasure live within much tighter boundaries, because they are about the Kingdom. They are entrusted with more—the Kingdom is theirs--so more is expected of them. (Luk. 12:47-48) They will have more trouble than others if they do not live up to their duties, so they are given few distractions. And this is to be the calling of any for whom YHWH is our inheritance, for the establishment of His Kingdom is our priority in this day. David later set up 24 courses of priests (1 Chron. 24:10) on which basis Israel was divided into 24 districts. Each of them sent two representatives to officiate at the Temple during the weeks of the year. The first division of the priests would serve the first week of the year which would be both in the first month and seventh month since both begin a new year, Tishrei on the Civil Calendar and Nisan on the religious calendar. During the Festivals, the priests from all 24 districts would go to Jerusalem to help with the festival activities. From this verse we could surmise that there might have been two Levitical cities in each district, and they would have taken turns sending representatives to Yerushalayim to serve for two weeks. But it is more likely that the second set of 24 districts were based either on population or tribal affiliation.
42. Each of these cities included their open lands all around them; this was the case for all these cities.
The different families of the Levites were not stationed among the tribes that had camped closest to each of them in the wilderness, for they might have become closer to those clans and thus been less objective when called to mediate in disputes between them.
43. Thus YHWH gave to Israel the whole Land that He had sworn to their ancestors to give [them], and they took possession of it and settled in it.
44. And YHWH gave them rest from every side according to all that He had sworn to their ancestors, and a man did not stand in their presence of any of their enemies; YHWH handed all of their enemies over to them.
45. Not a word of all the pleasant promise that YHWH had spoken to the House of Israel fell short; it all came about.
But note that the final piece had to be in place before His word was fully upheld. Not until the Levites had their cities was the Land considered “rightly divided”.
CHAPTER 22
1. At that time Y’hoshua called for the Re’uvenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Menashe,
2. and told them, “You have [been faithful to] guard all that Moshe ordered you to guard: you have obeyed my voice—[in] all that I commanded you.
Moshe had given the general instruction for them to fight (Num. 32:1-28), but it was Y’hoshua who would tell them the particulars of whom to fight, and when and where. They would not choose their own battles. They did not obey only Moshe (also a picture of the Torah), but the authority over them who gave them the specifics. He heralds this as a great thing they did: they put themselves in the position the Torah would have them in, and also followed the commands of their leader.
3. “You have not abandoned your brothers these many days until this day, but have guarded the orders of YHWH your Elohim—what [He gave you] to guard.
Guard (Heb., shamar): set a watch, protect; literally, build a hedge around or enclosed by surrounding—a complete guarding, not just from the front, while the back and sides unguarded. Sheepfolds were built this way—usually into the side of a hill, with walls or brambles all around, but the shepherd himself acted as the door. These tribes were shepherds, and serious ones; that is why they wanted that land in particular. So they could identify with this language. “What He gave you to guard” is one word in Hebrew (mishmereth), and it means the actual thing which is to be guarded, the act of doing the guarding, or even the one who is doing the guarding. So in Hebrew there is no distinction between the guardian and the guarded. It implies that to properly surround what is to be watched over, one must become what he is guarding. It sounds like zen, but the Torah supports it. That may be one of the treasures Avraham gave to his sons whom he sent eastward. A shepherd probably knows his sheep or goats better than his own family, because he spends more time with them. He knows their idiosyncrasies and preferences. To guard something you need to identify with it. To be willing to leave their families and herds behind and commit to those they were fighting for, they had to see themselves as part of them—as all being part of the same Israel. What we identify with, we guard much more effectively. When you can see yourself in your children, you tend to be more willing to defend them than someone else’s children, but one who has children of his own is more likely to guard someone else’s children than someone who has no children, because he can identify with the other children’s parents. Why would we want to take care of something we could not identify with? It is easier to guard the Torah if we can see ourselves in it, and this tells us how. So much of the Torah is about considering other people’s position and their rights. They have accomplished their mission, but what was it? What were the orders they were guarding? To help their brothers take their land. They saw themselves as belonging east of the Yarden, and Moshe said that was okay as long as they identified with the rest of Israel, which was on the west side. They had to love their neighbors (which in Hebrew means “those of the same flock, who eat from the same pasture”) as themselves. What they built a hedge around was their relatives from the other tribes. Their responsibility was not just to their own wives and livestock, but to any part of Israel that was still at war. This verse equates guarding what YHWH gave us to guard with not abandoning our brothers—doing whatever needed to be done to make sure they, too, received what they needed. The arena in which we guard YHWH’s commands is almost always guarding not the command so much as the people that the command is about. And as King Shlomoh found his wisdom in applying the Torah to other situations than it was directly written about (e.g., using the command about dividing a bull that gored another’s between the owner and the victim to a dispute over who a baby belonged to), we can carry this principle far beyond land or even commandments. It works in all of life. Whatever task we are faced with is much easier to carry out if we see ourselves as part of what needs to be done. If we do not connect with the task, we will not care if the job is done right, and if we are detached from our work, others will immediately be able to tell. It is the difference between merely reading words on a page and speaking as an expert who knows his topic so well that he does not need to rely on his speaker’s notes. People’s work used to be so much a part of their lives that when surnames were invented, most were chosen based on the person’s profession, which is why names like “Smith” or “Cooper” (barrel-maker) are so common. Whether conquering Kanaan or teaching children or cutting grass, if we involve ourselves in a task rather than complaining about it, we will take better care of it. Abandoned: loosened, permitted, or left behind. Thus the opposite of keeping YHWH’s charge is leaving our brothers behind and failing to care for them. They proved to be their brothers’ keepers, neither opening the fence to let them out or tearing it down. To loosen the Torah—to say it is no longer binding on us—would be to abandon our brothers. Hedging one another in is not comfortable wither for the one doing it or the one being hedged in. But if we were not bound together, we would inevitably be bound by something else, for we are always within some boundaries. We cannot guard one another from a distance or hold one another accountable very well when not dwelling in community. By the time the ninth plague came on Egypt, all Israel, which was formerly scattered throughout the land, had been gathered, and for this reason they had light when the Egyptians experienced depressing darkness which separated them from one another. If we are not expecting one another to walk according to Torah, we are not guarding them well. That does not mean “boiling” the young in the “milk” of Torah, but expecting them to stay inside the gate at least. Otherwise we would be guilty of using unequal measures from one tribe to another. Paul slid into this to some extent as the other tribes began to return, and was corrected for it. Y’shua said that if our brother sins, we need to hang with him until he either repents or runs away. His disciples recognized that it took a large measure of faith to rebuke our brothers who are in sin, for we tend to think they will no longer like us if we point out where they need to get back on track.
4. “And now YHWH your Elohim has granted rest to your brothers, as He had promised them, so now turn and go to your tents in the land of your inherited property which Moshe, the servant of YHWH, gave you across the Yarden.
They “watched out” for one another (another way to translate shamar), and for this they got to go home. They got what YHWH said they would have. This was outside of the “promised land”, but was promised to them because they had requested it since it was nice land for raising animals. They saw themselves as part of their neighbors, and their neighbors as part of themselves. By guarding their brothers, they were protecting themselves as well. He was saying, “You are inseparable; you get yours when they get theirs.” If they had not stuck with the task, they would not have been sent back, but would probably have ended up at war with the rest of the tribes. They could not have rest until their brothers did, and though we, like these tribes, may be the first to enter the fight, we cannot fully enter into our inheritance until all of Israel is back in the “sheepfold” of Torah. There is no individual inheritance for Israelites; Israel inherits the Land corporately. So by assuring our brothers’ place we assure our own. So at least help them enter their rest for that reason—though your motive will undoubtedly change once you take up that challenge. Tents: On the literal level, though they had already built houses, they were herdsmen, and would live in the field as their flocks and herds moved around to fresh pastures. Thus they would be less likely to forget the lifestyle of the soldier and the nomad, for this is the context which is most conducive to remaining united with our brothers. Until we reach our final rest, we too must not settle down or become set in our ways, for we still have more changes to make and must keep moving on, so we have to keep a temporary attitude. And there is a prophecy that at least at one point in our return, YHWH will again have us live in tents. (Hoshea 12:9), and at Sukkoth we rehearse this even now.
5. “Just be very watchful to carry out the orders and the instruction that Moshe, the servant of YHWH, gave you [as commands]—to love YHWH your Elohim, to walk in His ways, to keep His commandments, and to stick close to Him and serve Him with all your heart and with all your passion!”
Even after we have received our rest, it does not mean we can rest on our laurels. We must be all the more watchful lest we lose the ground that has been taken.
6. Then Y’hoshua blessed them and sent them off, and they went to their tents.
7. Now to the half-branch of Menashe, Moshe had designated [land] in Bashan, while to [its other] half, Y’hoshua had designated [land] with their brothers across the Yarden to the west, so since Y’hoshua had sent them to their tents, he blessed them also,
8. and spoke to them to say, “Go back to your tents with [the] many treasures [you have accumulated]—very many livestock, both silver and gold, bronze and iron, as well as very much clothing. Share what you plundered from your enemies with your brothers.”
Because they did the right thing, they were rewarded by being permitted to take even more back home with them.
9. So the sons of Re’uven, the sons of Gad, and the half-tribe of Menashe turned back and went from the descendants of Israel at Shiloh, which is in the land of Kanaan, to go to the land of Gil’ad, the land of their inheritance, in which their property is, upon the word of YHWH through the hand of Moshe.
10. And when they arrived at the turnings of the Yarden which is in the land of Kanaan, the sons of Re’uven, the sons of Gad, and the half-tribe of Mensahe built an altar there on the Yarden—a large altar, a spectacle to behold.
Turnings: possibly the place the waters “turned” back to let the nation cross over. A spectacle: or, conspicuous. Since it was patterned after the one at the Tabernacle (v. 28), they undoubtedly used the bronze that had just been given to them (v. 8) and the iron to make tools with which to build it.
11. And the descendants of Israel heard [it] said, “Look! The descendants of Re’uven, the descendants of Gad, and the half-tribe of Menashe have built an altar on the edge of the land of Kanaan, toward the turnings of the Yarden, across from the descendants of Israel.
Across from: Or possibly, where they crossed.
12. When the descendants of Israel heard, then the whole congregation of the descendants of Israel were assembled at Shiloh to go up against them for battle.
They had not abandoned their brothers (v. 3), and now their brothers proved not to abandon them. Though they came to them with a confrontation, they were only holding them accountable—the opposite of “loosening” them.
13. But the descendants of Israel sent to the descendants of Re’uven, the descendants of Gad, and the half-tribe of Menashe in the land of Gil’ad, Pin’has the son of El’azar the priest
14. and ten leaders with him—one leader each, belonging to a father’s household, for all of the tribes of Israel, each also [being] head of his ancestral household [as representatives] for the thousands of Israel.
This was a religious matter, so Y’hoshua did not have to be involved; his job was already done, and he sent the high priest to deal with it. Pin’has was not only the high priest-designate, but also a man who had proven zealous for YHWH and not hesitant to go to any measure to preserve the purity of YHWH’s sanctuary and altar. (Num. 25:7ff)
15. When they came to the descendants of Re’uven, the descendants of Gad, and the half-tribe of Menashe in the land of Gil’ad, they spoke with them, saying,
16. “This is what the whole congregation of YHWH says: ‘What is this treacherous act by which you have betrayed the Elohim of Israel, to turn back today from [following] after YHWH, when you built an altar for yourselves in revolt against YHWH?
They do not present this as YHWH’s “inspired” word, but His people are united in their action. Though they know they will have to fight them if they are indeed leading Israel astray, still they wisely send a delegation to make sure this is really what is going on.
17. “‘Is the crookedness of Peor--for which to this day we are [still] not purified (though there was a blow on the congregation of YHWH)--too small for us
This is the very situation that Pin’has had put a stop to, and the incident at which YHWH recognized him as a man after His own heart, and now he is facing another situation that appears similar to him. Still not purified: They felt that all the punishments that had come in the intervening time had still not atoned for the severity of that slap in YHWH’s face. Or they may have just felt that if this was being done, Israel had obviously still not learned our lesson, even though “all the men who followed Ba’al of Peor” had been destroyed at that time. (Deut. 4:3)
18. “‘that you would turn back today from [following] after YHWH? And what may take place [if] you rebel against YHWH today [is that] tomorrow He will be full of wrath toward the whole congregation of Israel!
Though they tried to separate themselves from these apparent rebels, they recognized that they could not remain at rest if their brothers were doing the wrong thing, because all of Israel has to pay the price if the whole is not in line.
19. “‘But if in fact the land of your inheritance is defiled, cross over for yourselves to the Land of YHWH’s possession, where the dwelling place of YHWH remains, and be given a holding among us! But do not be rebellious toward YHWH or revolt against us by building for yourselves an altar besides the altar of YHWH our Elohim!
They appeared to be worshipping a foreign deity. The common belief that a deity was always connected with a particular locale might have influenced many people to try to placate the local deities if there was a problem with their crops, etc. The other tribes make a very selfless offer: “If the land where you live is the problem and you simply cannot follow YHWH over there, then we will share our space and make room for you. Just do not make YHWH angry! We have experienced that and we do not want any part of Israel to be destroyed!” But having all of Israel live on the west side of the Yarden was the original plan anyway, so everyone had more space than was originally promised; dimishing their share of the inheritance if it was the only way their brothers would be able to remain united with them in serving YHWH alone would not have been unfair to anyone.
20. “‘Didn’t Akhan the son of Zerakh indeed act treacherously in regard to what was devoted to destrucion, and there came wrath upon the whole congregation of Israel? And he was not the only man to perish in his guilt.’”
They recognized that if any part of Israel sinned, all of them were liable to be the recipients of YHWH’s wrath, as 36 innocent men had died for that one man’s sin They recalled earlier recorded precedents that addressed what they thought was going on. They took the proper approach, but turned out to have had a wrong assumption:
21. Then the descendants of Re’uven, the descendants of Gad, and the half-tribe of Menashe answered and told the heads of the thousands of Israel,
22. “YHWH is the El of Elohim; the El of Elohim is YHWH! He knows and Israel must be aware. If [we did this] in rebellion or in treachery against YHWH, [then] do not spare us this day.
23. “[If we] built an altar for ourselves to turn back from [following] after YHWH or to make an ascending offering or grain tribute go up on it or carry out slaughterings of peace-offerings, YHWH Himself will demand [an accounting for] it!
24. “But we [swear that we] have done this out of anxious concern for a reason, saying, ‘Tomorrow your children may say to our children, “What do you have to do with YHWH, the Elohim of Israel?
25. “‘“Because YHWH has put a border between us and you, O sons of Re’uven and sons of Gad—the Yarden! You have no share in YHWH!” And your children would [thus] cause our children to stop fearing YHWH.’
This shows evidence of how they considered land-features like rivers to be natural borders and that they were respected as such. Notice that they do not include Menashe, because they were placed there as shepherds over the other two tribes there, and had not voluntarily taken that land. Having the other half of the tribe within Israel proper would make it less likely to be dissociated from the rest of Israel, since the whole tribe would not be divided from them.
26. “So we said, ‘Let us prepare ourselves to build the altar’—not for ascending-offering and not for slaughter,
27. “but rather it is a witness between us and you and our generations after us to work out the service of YHWH in His presence by our ascending-offerings, our slaughterings, and our peace-offerings, so that tomorrow your children will not tell our children, ‘You have no share in YHWH!’
A problem more significant than that of the altar being built was the fact that they were even living across the river, because they had asked for it for the sake of their wealth—though they did have”much cattle” to deal with somehow, and this did provide a buffer between Israel proper and other nations. But the altar was on the west side of the Yarden (v. 10), and thus was as much for the sake of those on that side of the Yarden as for those who were moving back to the other side. If their brothers were to say, “You are no longer our brothers”, they would have something to point to in order to remind them that they were indeed connected.
28. “And we said, ‘So it shall be [that] when they may say to us and to our generations tomorrow, we can say, “Consider the similarity to the altar of YHWH which our ancestors made—not for ascending offering and not for slaughter; rather, it is a witness between us and you.”’
Similarity to: or pattern, construction, or model of. David made Shlomo a model so he would build the Temple the way he had seen it in a vision, and Y’hezq’el was told to let the House of Israel measure this type of “pattern” of the Temple (43:10) since we have not seen the real one in nearly 3,000 years, yet we need to know how it functions in order to return.
29. “It would be a sacrilege for us to rebel against YHWH and turn away from [following] after YHWH to build an altar for ascending-offering, grain-tribute, or slaughter besides the altar of YHWH our Elohim that is in front of His dwelling-place!”
They already knew it would be rebellion to change the pattern that YHWH had given in the Torah simply to fit their situation. They knew they could not build a whole new sanctuary (as Yarav’am tried to do later). They had no illusion that they could draw near in ways not prescribed by YHWH, whether in regard to location or manner. Today, however, this is done all the time by people who think they are therefore pleasing YHWH! They say He knows their heart, but what is in the heart comes out in our words and actions (Prov. 23:7; Mat. 12:34), and we can judge one’s heart by its fruit, since it often deceives even its owner. (Yirmeyahu 17:9). They are even illegal altars by which returning Israel, let alone the Church, tries to draw near. The place of worship is the Tent of the Assembly; individuals cannot change the rules.
30. When Pin’has the priest, the leaders of the congregation, and the heads of the thousands of Israel who were with him heard the words that the descendants of Re’uven, the descendants of Gad, and the descendants of Menashe had spoken, it was appropriate in their eyes.
31. So Pin’has the son of El’azar the priest told the descendants of Re’uven, the descendants of Gad, and the descendants of Menashe, “Today we recognize that YHWH is among us, because you have not betrayed YHWH with this treacherous act. That being the case, you have recovered the descendants of Israel from the hand of YHWH.
Recovered: not only was all Israel proven to be free from any cause for wrath; these people who in all fairness inquired about their brothers’ motive, rather than killing first and asking questions later, spared themselves from spilling innocent blood and thus being liable to His wrath. It should also prevent sin in later generations.
32. Then Pin’has the son of El’azar the priest and the leaders returned from [being] with the descendants of Re’uven and the descendants of Gad, [coming] out of the land of Gil’ad to the descendants of Israel in the land of Kanaan, and brought word back to them,
33. and the word was pleasing in the eyes of the descendants of Israel, so the descendants of Israel blessed Elohim and no longer talked about going up against them into battle to ruin the land in which the descendants of Re’uven and the descendants of Gad were dwelling.
34. Thus the descendants of Re’uven and the descendants of Gad proclaimed in regard to the altar that it was a witness between us that YHWH is the Elohim.
They did not want to forget what they were part of and whom they had fought for on the other side. It should have been clear that it was not for slaughter and offering, if only they had looked close enough to see that it had no burn marks from offerings made; it had not been dedicated. But they assumed the worst. They were accused and condemned without a trial, although building an altar as a witness is permissible according to Torah, for there had been many other altars built for the sake of witness by the patriarchs and Moshe himself. (Gen. 12:8; 13:18; 26:25; 33:20; 35:7; Ex. 17:15) YHWH did not command this altar, and they did not say He did. But for some things we should not have to wait for a voice from heaven. It was to guard their identification with and responsibility to those on the other side. It was actually the right thing to do. It was so brilliant a response that the others could not imagine it was really true, so they made themselves adversaries to those who had just fought for them. YHWH shut them up for it too. It was also wise to consider those who came after them. If we make ourselves adversaries, we are asking for an adversarial response. If we cooperate, others will be there for us tomorrow when we need them. This works on any level, whether we are talking about the Torah, our families, or on a job site. When two different parties both lay claim to the same thing, either they must compromise or both make sacrifices. Not that we should automatically give in, but if we put ourselves in a position to work with one another, it is no longer my problem or yours, but ours. If we want the best for my children, why would we not want the best for their children too? To see from the other’s point of view requires identifying with him. This is important in any relationship, especially a marriage. YHWH said early on that this is to be the primary relationship, even replacing our earlier prioritization of our parents, to the point of “becoming one flesh”. If someone cannot identify with his own flesh, something is very wrong with his mind. Obeying the Torah makes us look so wise, yet it is the most basic, foundational truth that anyone with experience would discover if he looked not just at the words but the space between them. If we apply it to whatever situation we are in, it clarifies what is worth protecting. If we find that this job, this command, or this relationship is not really worth protecting after all, we are free to stop identifying with it. But if it is, what kind of “altar” can we build to remind us of connections or responsibilities that our present busyness might make us forget, because they are not right in front of us?
CHAPTER 23
1. Now many days after YHWH had given Israel rest from all their enemies from every side and Y’hoshua had grown old, he entered into the days, so what took place was that
They have been in the Land for approximately 30 years including the time of conquest. But “many days after” has a prophetic sense as well. It is speaking of the “latter days”. This word for “after” is an anomaly to the Greek-oriented mind. It means both “behind” and “later”, which we tend to think of as ahead of us. But if we think of time as a spiral rather than a straight line, it makes sense that “what has been is what will be”, as Shlomo said in Qoheleth. A circle is continuous, with a wedge even cut into whatever it is constructed of so that the beginning and the end overlap, occupying the same space, rather than starting up again after it stops. As on a circular race track, as a car passes you, it is already coming up behind you again, for there are many laps. Most prophecies in Hebrew are given in the “perfect” tense, which we tend to think of as past, but this indicates the certainty of what YHWH promises, for it is stated as if it were already accomplished, for it has taken place once; when Y’hoshua was old, YHWH established the Kingdom. Rest is only promised if we walk before YHWH in accordance with His Torah, loving our neighbors as ourselves. Contrary to Christian doctrine, His promises are not free; we have no right to claim His rest if we are not walking in His covenant. If we try to collect our “pay” without fulfilling our side of the contract, we are simply thieves. And do not ask for rest when it is time to ask for discipline and strength to do the work. It is detrimental to think the Kingdom will come suddenly by magic; we cannot be slack about our part in bringing it about, even if everyone else is, because someone has to start somewhere. Do not wait for the rest to start. But once we get the first spark going, we can enter into that part of the rest. The term for rest here means to settle down (used of Noakh’s ark in Gen. 8:4) and remain quiet (used of YHWH’s resting on the first Sabbath in Ex. 20:11). The Sabbath is a time of settledness that YHWH ordained, and is a picture of the Kingdom. Ararat, the mountain on which the ark rested, means “curse reversed”, and this is part of YHWH’s promise in regard to the Kingdom. After David finished reconquering the Land and enemies round about, Shlomo had this same type of rest. (1 Kings 5:2ff) We are told that there was neither adversary nor evil experience at that time. The word for adversary is satan—giving Yochanan the authority to tell us that haSatan will be bound during the Kingdom. (Rev. 20:2-3) But these enemies were their close neighbors; we must not imagine that we can have a broader peace until we make peace among Israelites. Sometimes we have to start by fighting fellow Israelites—those who do not uphold the Torah--as the Maccabees did. They killed off the traitors first, for true peace cannot come through compromise. It must be built on truth. Once we all have the Kingdom as our priority, we can have peace with one another.
2. Y’hoshua called for all Israel—for its elders, its heads, its judges, and its record-keeping officers—and told them, “I have grown old; I have entered into the days,
Sometimes we have to tell the truth: “I’m old!” They are going to have to deal with the fact that he can no longer carry the weight. They can look to him as an example, but they have to pick up the mantle and take over the responsibility.
3. “and you have seen all that YHWH your Elohim did to all these nations because of your presence, because YHWH your Elohim was the one fighting for you.
I.e., “I have not seen anything you have not also witnessed. Maybe I had a different vantage point, and maybe you wish you had been paying better attention, because now you have to do something about what you have seen. But this is not some far-off, unattainable heavenly goal. It is right in front of you, and you are where you need to be to get it done.” They have seen the way YHWH operates when there is a trustworthy, obedient leader, and the people actually follow him—there is victory after victory.
4. “Look, I have caused these remaining nations to fall to you as an inheritance [to flow down to] your branches—from the Yarden, with all the nations that I have cut off, and the Great Sea, the place the sun goes [down].
They all fought, but he can rightly say, “Remember that if I had not been here, you would not have gotten as far.” There are still more laps to run around the “race track”. Now we are nearing the last lap, but this is the most dangerous, with the rubber wearing thin on the tires and the gasoline running low. If we do not make it this time, we will not arrive at the finish line. Branches: or tribes. There are many parallels here to Yeshayahu 2:2-3, in which the nations remaining during the Kingdom flow up to Yerushalayim, and from there goes forth the Torah. By tradition, the Garden of Eden is directly above Yerushalayim, but it is like a reflection in a pond, with the Tree of Life “hanging down”, so that the life in the trunk would “flow down to the branches” as seen here, paralleling the Torah going forth from Yerushalayim to all the tribes.
5. “And YHWH your Elohim Himself will drive them out from your presence and will dispossess them from before you, and you will take possession of their Land, as YHWH your Elohim had promised you.
6. “So be very firm about guarding and carrying out all that is written in the document of Moshe’s instruction, to avoid turning from it [to the] right or [the] left,
Be very firm: literally, keep a firm grip. Right or left: It is easy to understand not deviating to the left (doing what is blatantly wrong), but he says do not deviate to the right either. The Torah is a system of balance, and either extreme gets you out of balance. But how can one go too far to the right from Moshe’s teachings? If we build a religion around it,, and stop being human—making it all about the spiritual. By adding religion, we naturally think we are improving things, but we are actually violating Torah, because now we have made it invisible. How can we build a wall around something intangible? The next verse tells us one way we might do this:
7. “so as not to enter into these remaining nations—those that are with you. And neither bring to remembrance the names of their elohim, nor swear by them, nor serve them, nor bow yourselves down to them,
Enter into: i.e., go in among, be counted among, become part of. It was our ancestors who preferred to be friendly to their “neighbors” more than they wanted to follow YHWH. But this is also an idiom for marrying them, or simply having sexual relations with them, as the Moavites tempted our ancestors to do. Bring to remembrance: can simply mean to mention. Many of the names substituted for YHWH’s actually come from the names of the local deities in the places to which Israel has been exiled. We must divest ourselves of these false substitute names for YHWH. They are one way by which His Name is brought to nothing—which is forbidden even in the Ten Commandments. (Ex. 20:7) But we might assume that the reason he says not to bow to their elohim is because we should bow only to YHWH. But where does Torah tell us to do so? Moshe was told to take off his sandals, but not to bow down. There are a few times specific people are told to prostrate themselves (flat on their faces) before YHWH, but very often we are told in no uncertain terms that we must not bow down before foreign deities. Was this something only pagans did that Hebrews did not do, originally? This in itself would not make it a pagan practice, because pagans all go to the bathroom too. People prostrate to the works of their own hands. (Yeshayahu 2:8) But there are also many Scriptures about people bowing down to a man, whether Yaaqov (Gen. 27:29), a favored priest (1 Shmuel 2:36), King Shlomoh (Psalm 72:11), a captor (Yeshayahu 10:4), and to Israelites in the latter days (Yeshayahu 45:14). It is a way of expressing surrender, admitting defeat, or saying to another, “You have won. I cannot overcome you. I need something only you can give.” It sounds like a great religious concept to say to YHWH, “You are stronger; I am your servant.” So why does He so rarely command anything like this? Maybe He would prefer for us to see ourselves as strong because of Him and His commands, rather than conquered by Him. Torah may not be something to prove how weak we are, but rather how strong we can be if we fight beside Him. We are strong WITH Him. YHWH calls Himself “YHWH Tzva’oth”—the General of Armies. A general does not want those standing with him to surrender. If he is reviewing his troops, he wants them at attention. They would get in big trouble if they had their knees bent! Verse 6 told us to be strong and firm—the opposite of bending our knees and confessing our weakness. There are occasional seasons for this, but it has become common to “bless” YHWH (barukh—which means “bend the knee to”), such as before meals. It is one thing to acknowledge that He is the one who provided our bread, but the actual command is to thank Him after we have eaten, and not even for the bread, but for the land which allowed it to grow. We are not even in His Land, though He has given us beneficial lands elsewhere. But the only commands to “bless YHWH” are in the psalms, and by the time of David, how do we know that customs from other lands had not crept into Israelite worship styles? At best it is one of many ways to worship Him, but has become unbalanced in our emphasis on this one. There is another term for bowing (kafaf) which we see used in Mikha 6:6, where the prophet gets to the heart of the matter: “With what shall I come before YHWH, and bow myself before the High Elohim?” This term actually works in English also, where we have another word spelled “bow” and it means the same thing as the root of this word: it means to curve and elongate oneself like a bow (as in “bow and arrow”). That is the more common meaning. Only about four times is it used for bowing one’s body, but where it is used this way, it means to bend over at the waist rather than at the knee. This way, one is still ready for action, rather than surrender. Mikha goes on to ask if YHWH wants us to worship Him with sacrifices and offerings, but then tells us what YHWH really wants. He says, “He has shown you what is right [strongly reminiscent of Y’hoshua’s words in verse 3, “you have seen”]. What does YHWH require but that you do justice, love mercy (kindness), and walk humbly WITH your Elohim.” (6:8) Walking with Him is very different from bowing toward Him. He is not after drama—rivers of oil or our grand productions—but that we walk in true humility (anah in Hebrew, which means to be grounded, to see things as they really are, to be realistic about ourselves—which may be that we are indeed strong because He has made us strong). He is less concerned with our bending our knees toward Him than with our taking steps either toward Him or, better yet, with Him, going where He is going, and He surrenders to no one. How far should we carry this radical idea? Study it further and find out. He does not forbid bowing toward Him, but He certainly forbids us surrendering to anything foreign to His Torah.
8. “because you must stick closely with YHWH your Elohim, as you have done up till this day,
Stick closely to: or pursue “hard on the heels of”, catch up with, and stay with; none of these is possible if we are going after other objects of worship.
9. “since YHWH has dispossessed from your presence great and vast nations, and as for you, not a man has remained standing in your presence up till this day.
10. “One man of you will put a thousand to flight, because YHWH your Elohim is the one who Himself wages war for you.
He is quoting Torah here. This is based on a similar promise to Moshe (Lev. 26:8), so he knows he can promise it too.
11. “So be very much on your guard about your appetites, being committed to YHWH your Elohim,
Be committed to: or simply, love. But the latter gives us the wrong focus, the way we think of love. There is no way we can be sure we will be emotionally fond of someone tomorrow—even YHWH. Our emotions are too changeable. But He does not require that. He equates love with being diligent to be on guard. This is a high-end guarding, not just sort of keeping your eye on something. What? Your appetites, literally your life-force or your very breath—what you pant after. Building a “big-time” wall is how we make sure we love Him. It is something you do. It matters much less how you feel about it; it would be better to do it while grumbling about it than to wish for it and do nothing to achieve the goal. It is not just a matter of the heart. If we say, “He knows I love Him”, but continue to act contrary to His commands, we are liars. (Yoch. 14:24; 1 Yochanan 2:4) He knows our hearts the same way everyone else does—through our actions. If we had to choose one or the other, it would be better to take the actions, for the heart will follow when they become habitual. Show Him love in the way He wants to be loved. Not eating a pork chop demonstrates love for Him better than going to church on Sunday, which is a convenient way some human being dreamed up. This is not a religion. What is it a commitment to? Per verses 6 and 7, it is a serious commitment to guarding all the instructions that Moshe wrote down. Build a wall around that. These are essentially Y’hoshua’s dying words. This is what he has learned and wants to make sure Israel has clear: it is not so much about surrendering to YHWH as standing with Him. He goes back to the basics—not even the prophets as such, because if you do this, none of them will have a job, and theirs was a terrible job that none of the prophets really wanted. It is easy to see why, in the days of the Pharisees’ extreme religiousness, the Tzadoqim (Sadducees) stuck to the Torah alone, like today’s Karaites. They said, “If it is not in the Torah, we don’t really care.” At that time, this was pure wisdom. The idea is not to build a religion, but to use the Torah’s principles to live our lives. Make sure to do this, whether you are at a syngagoue, on the job, at a concert, or wherever you are. In chapter 2 we see two spies continuing to represent Y’hoshua while in a whorehouse, and a great deliverance came because of it. How we have over-moralized it based on Victorian thought! Just do what Moshe wrote. So what are the main principles we find in Torah? One is honor—not just personal honor, but honoring those who are over you; there is a great reward for honoring one’s parents. Another is honesty—especially with self. Equity in our treatment of others, and equality of justice (honoring neither rich nor poor in a court setting). Accountability —for we must answer for how we treat our neighbors. And finally, understanding—because who can build a wall around what he cannot describe or explain? At root, it is treating people the way you want to be treated. Torah is both the textbook on how we can live with and put up with one another and a way to protect ourselves from falling prey to foreign deities—or, since we do not worship little statues today, foreign concepts (things outside the wall of Torah, like “every man for himself”, “look out for yourself first and foremost”, justice based on one’s ability to pay or to conjure up sympathy; all of these are forms of selfishness). 1 Kings 18 gives us a great example of how foreign deities are served: their devotees begged, jumped, danced, did acrobatics, and fell back on the “old-time religion”—the custom of cutting themselves until they were bled out, making them all the easier for Eliyahu to kill when it was allover. That is what selfishness does: it only hurts you. It leaves you without a wall of defense. Baal, the god of lightning, could not produce fire; YHWH could, but the point here is that part of theirreligion was to hurt themselves. That is a concept foreign to Torah. It is not about self-flagellation or how great a price one is willing to pay with his body or his health. Even Y’shua wanted to find a way around the cross if it were possible. There are occasionally extreme times that call for drastic measures, but this is not what Torah is about. “Suffering with the Christ” until one is bloodied is shown here to be really a form of Baal worship! Maybe we do not go to that extreme, but even the concept that serving YHWH has to hurt—that great things will result if we do horrible things to ourselves--is foreign to Him. Torah is about living, celebrating, seeing, knowing, and resting—each in its season. It is about balance between the right and left. We are meant to be a stable people, not teetering between two opinions, as Eliyahu said, until it is all one big mixture and we can no longer pick out which part came from Baal worship and which part was YHWH’s idea. What we call that now is Christianity. Baal was a storm-deity, but the Torah (though it does not promise that there will be no storms) teaches us how not to rock the boat, especially when there are storms at sea—how to stay balanced so that we do not sink. There will always be those who do not care about Torah who will hurt us, or people who do not appreciate your kindness who will “stab you in the back”. We should never assume that the wall of Torah will keep others from hurting you, but it can keep you from hurting yourself and give you a foundation for getting past the wounds others inflict on you. Its principles are the does of realism that everyone needs. They do not focus on the clouds or the world to come. If we cannot be kind to another in South Carolina, we have no business being in His Land. Why do we think we would act any differently there? Don’t think of the walls as keeping something bad out; we are all already selfish and have both a right hand and a left; we are just as capable as anyone of doing evil, and always will be, or we would not be human. That is more realism. We should see them as keeping us from hurting someone else, because the enemy more often than not comes from within. When we hurt someone else, what goes around will always come around, and we have no wall of protection. If we actually think about others, we are less likely to hurt them! Torah contains the answer. If we think about how we would feel if our ox was gored by someone else’s, we will take steps to keep our ox from getting out. And that applies on so many levels. The walls are to keep something in—to provide a check on our attitudes so we can keep them from affecting others, to control ourselves and keep what is latent in us from running wild.
12. “because if you turn away at all and stick closely with what is left of these nations who remain among you and intermarry with them or enter in with them or they with you,
13. “know for sure that YHWH your Elohim will not continue to dispossess these nations from before you, and they will become a snare and a trap for you, something that pierces your sides and barbs in your eyes until you vanish off this valuable Land that YHWH your Elohim has given you.
They are responsible for what they have seen, and should not have to be taught again. If they do not already know this, they will be responsible for the consequences. It is much better to take the responsibility now, because it will cost ten times as much later. This warning does not just apply to the Land of Israel, but to any ground YHWH gives us—anywhere He allows us to overcome. We must preserve our gains. If we refuse to make His enemies our own, He will not treat them as our enemies either, and will abandon us to our own wishes so we learn the lesson the hard way.
14. “Here I myself am going today in the way of the whole earth, and you know with all your heart and with all your soul that not one word has failed of any of the excellent things that YHWH your Elohim has said about you; all of it has come about for you. Not one word of it has failed!
Y’hoshua left no successor because Israel has been delivered to its Land. He will not take them any further. It is now up to them to rise to the challenge of “packing their own lunch”, for Y’hoshua will no longer be there to spoon-feed them. They should no longer need another babysitter, but when there is a strong leader at the top, the followers tend to become atrophied. Do not expect Him to deliver you in the way you imagined. The way to overcome fear is to remember what YHWH has done for Israel—and even in your own life. Remember the times you know it was He who was aiding you, because you could not have arrived on the other side of the flood any other way. We have a job to do, and there is no time for worry, doubt, or despair.
15. “But it will turn out that, just as every pleasant thing that YHWH has promised you has come upon you, likewise YHWH will bring upon you every disagreeable word until He causes you to be annihilated from upon this fine Land that YHWH your Elohim has given you
16. “when you cross the boundaries of the covenant of YHWH your Elohim which He commanded you, having gone off and served other elohim and bowed yourselves down to them. Then YHWH’s nostrils will be kindled on you, and you will quickly disappear from upon the fine Land that He has given you.
This does not always mean finding golden calves to bow down to. There are plenty of things within the realm of His blessings that can get us sidetracked enough. Not one word will fail, for better or for worse. This is meant to scare them. Like Moshe, Y’hoshua knows the walls will not stay up long. Once he is gone, he knows they will not stick with the principles, so he knows they will see the YHWH’s other side as well. They will feel like they have it made, and will become careless about the wall. There is no “if” to this outcome. You have seen how generous YHWH can be, but if you go “out of bounds”, you will see how much trouble He can bring to you also. But Moshe pointed out that despite what befalls the nation as a whole, each individual will still be given a way to choose life Here are the blessings, here are the curses (Lev. 26); nothing has changed although the Land has been taken. And this book is about you as well; you just come around later on the same “race track”. So keep the Land hedged about and guarded from whatever is not the Kingdom.
CHAPTER 24
1. Then Y’hoshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Sh’khem, and called for the elders of Israel, as well as its heads, its judges, and its recording-officers, and they presented themselves before the Elohim.
Sh’khem is the place between the mountain of blessing and the mountain of curses, so they would be reminded vividly of the time they had all called out both sides of the promises to one another years before this. This is one reason Y’hoshua assembled them here rather than at Shiloh, where the Tabernacle now sat.
2. Then Y’hoshua said to all the people, “This is what YHWH, the Elohim of Israel, says: ‘Ages ago your ancestors lived across the River—Therakh, the father of Avraham and the father of Nakhor--and they served other elohim.
Unlike his usual pattern of quoting Moshe, or even “Thus says YHWH, as Moshe told you”, this time Y’hoshua speaks directly for YHWH. Y’hoshua has been a charismatic warlord, but now he is placing the emphasis on YHWH, whose kingdom is to be administered by the priesthood, not by men of war. Though “all Scripture is inspired by YHWH and is profitable…”, we can only call it “YHWH’s Word” when we have a direct quote from Him, as we do here. Many of the other parts are accurate historical accounts, people’s wise advice or opinions, or even authoritative commands for those under their jurisdiction at the time. But here we have YHWH’s own viewpoint about the things He has done. He is reminding Israel of where they had come from. Those “on the other side of the [Euphrates] River”, from whom they had descended, were pagans! Because their ancestors—and therefore ours—were idolaters, there was latent idol-worship in them—and in us (especially those from the Northern Kingdom, whose idolatry has been much more recent). At this point the idolatry lay dormant, hidden, and inactive, and the faith of Avraham that is also latent within each of his descendants had the upper hand. But either is always a possibility for us, and today the latter is again finally beginning to outweigh the former, but do not imagine the paganism is no longer there. Even Moshe did not emphasize this inclination, but it is another dose of realism that Y’hoshua includes in his “swan song”. We have to know what we are capable of in order to choose which one we will allow to rise up in us. We need to feed the covenant and starve out the paganism.
3. “‘So I took your ancestor—Avraham—from across the River, and had him walk through the whole Land of Kanaan, and caused his seed to increase, and gave him Yitzhaq,
This whole journey and the whole process of taking this Land started when YHWH took Avraham away from his idolatrous roots and made him different from his whole family—that is, made him a Hebrew (“one who crosses over”). If he had not responded, he would have received only what his fathers had, and their sins would have continued to affect him. But because he submitted to this, left behind his former inheritance and acquired new souls, he broke that cycle. Like Avraham, our immediate ancestors were idolaters, but he chose the older covenant—the one with Shem, his righteous ancestor further back, and we must do the same. We have an advantage he did not have. We have the Scripture to verify what is YHWH’s voice; He just had to learn to recognize the voice he had first heard, after none of his father’s idols ever spoke to him when he called on them—or, as tradition says, smashed them to pieces! YHWH from then on saw him as always having been Avraham. In the same way, once we enter His covenant, we are Israel, and it is as if we had always been on that same path. What came before us on the same road now applies to us as well.
4. “‘and to Yitzhaq I gave Yaaqov and Esau, and I gave Esau the mountains of Seir to take possession of, while Yaaqov and his sons went down to Egypt.
YHWH divided Avraham from his family, and kept dividing things out within his family as well. He sent these twinbs in totally different directions. We, too, must learn how to “rightly divide the truth”, learning what words really mean and separating traditional practices from their current usage and put them back into their original context. The man of the field who serves his own belly is given the inheritance first. The righteous son had many trials and much hard labor before receiving his part, but he received that which was closest to the Father’s heart.
5. “‘And I sent Moshe and Aharon and struck Egypt at its core the way I did, and afterward I brought you out.
He skips from Yaaqov to Moshe so quickly! He skipped a huge part of our history! What about the sons of Yaaqov—the tribal fathers who gave an identity to each one who was standing here? He does not even mention the name “Israel”! He says to remember who you are—the divided descendants of pagans—but does not want them to linger on what took place in the intervening period between then and now, because he saw it as most important to focus on what is going on right now.
6. “‘When I brought your ancestors out from Egypt, you entered into the sea. Then the Egyptians chased after your ancestors with chariots and warhorses [into the] Reed Sea.
It seems backwards to say He brought them out, then to say He brought their ancestors out. But in the sense described in the note on verse 3, when we come out of whatever we are serving, YHWH also delivers our fathers; we represent them, and their line is redeemed. (Compare Psalm 22:29-30) But we cannot honor our parents by staying in bondage when YHWH is calling us out, even if our parents remain in bondage and want us to stay there with them. What brings them the most honor is having their children do what is right, even if they themselves choose not to take that same step.
7. “‘When they cried out to YHWH, He put concealing darkness between you and the Egyptians and caused the sea to come over him and cover him up, and your eyes saw what I did in Egypt. When you had remained in the wilderness many days,
8. “‘then I brought you into the land of the Emorite[s] who lived across the Yarden. When they fought with you, I handed them over to you and dispossessed their land, and was causing them to be annihilated from your presence.
Again he skims over most of the experiences these people had grown up with or what their parents had told them about. Remember, he is speaking directly for YHWH. Maybe this is how YHWH sees our history, while we focus too much on the less-important things. He does not want them to get bogged down in that again, but rather focus on the here and now. YHWH is not talking about the trouble the people caused, but about what He did. He took Avraham out, He divided Esau and Yaaqov, He raised up Moshe, delivered us, and brought us to where we are now. It’s about Him, as the next several verses reiterate:
9. “‘Then Balaq the son of Tzippor, the king of Moav, rose up and made war on Israel, and sent for and summoned Bilaam the son of Beor to weaken you.
10. “‘But I was not willing to listen to Bilaam, and he blessed you greatly, and I rescued you out of his hand.
11. “‘Then you crossed the Yarden and came to Y’rikho, and the owners of Y’rikho—the Emorite, the Prizzite, the Kanaanite, the Khittite, the Girgashite, the Khiwite, an dthe Y’vusite—made war against you, but I handed them over to you.
12. “‘Now I had sent the hornet ahead of you, and driven them out from before you—both Emorite kings—not by your sword and not by your bow.
13. “‘And I have given you a Land for which you had not grown weary with labor, and cities that you had not build, and you have settled into them. You are eating of vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant.’
14. “So now, stand in dreadful awe of YHWH, and serve Him with integrity and faithfulness, and turn away from elohim that your ancestors served across the River and in Egypt, and work [for] YHWH.
The penchant for worshipping anything besides YHWH could rise up in them at any time, and even without physical idols we can be serving false elohim like security, emotion, or the most ancient of all, fertility—and self. How do we put them away? By putting all our energy into serving Him. From verses 3 through 13, we see a lot of verbs attributed to YHWH. He wants us to recognize how active He has been in Israel. It is not just our history or our doing; He has been the critical factor. We had a hand in it, but we are what we are only because He wanted us to get there. He fought our battles because we fought His. Part of the history lesson is that He has brought us this far to serve Him. So this begs the question: How does He want to be served? He says “with integrity and faithfulness”, or “in perfection and truth”. The Hebrew terms are tamim and emet. Tamim means “perfect”, but this word is used of Yaaqov, and we know he was far from perfect. The sense is of being “mature” or “fully grown” or “complete”. Part of maturity is being balanced, since babies have no balance until they learn to walk, and even as toddlers they “toddle”. So it means no longer handling things in a childish way, but serving Him “like a grown-up”. It means being grounded in reality, no longer needing fairy tales and myths to motivate us. It means seeing things as they really are. The truth is, He really did bring us to the Land after all. The fact is that not everyone He said that to got there, because they made their own choices and we lost those who did not choose life. But that does not matter, because we are not looking at the facts but at the truth: we are where He said we would be. And “truth” is the meaning of that second term, emet. It is not invisible things that we hope are true, but certifiable truth that we can test—not just matters of faith, but things we can know because we have experienced them or can confirm them. That is what Y’hoshua is telling us to deal with, not the things that are out of reach and that we therefore cannot really take responsibility for. Focus on the Kingdom that is rather than the Kingdom to come. You are here, he says, but you still have not arrived. YHWH did what He said He would do, though not in the way you would have expected. Emet is from the root word aman, which we know through the well-known word, “amen”. It means something that is established or foundational. So what you say “amen” to, you are saying that you stand on and that this is what establishes you. This should make us careful about saying “amen”! Be realistic in your expectations and the part you will play in them. What it is really all about is YHWH and what He has done. Respond in balance, maturity, and faithfulness to what He has done for us. Do not mix in the myths and superstitions about other peoples and their deities. Don’t add in your personal hopes. Yes, reality is sometimes hard to face, so we feel a need to believe it is going to be better in some other dimension. We create religions to make it all better. We might wish to live forever, but if we put words in YHWH’s mouth to say that when we die we will still be alive, rather than listening to what He says is most important, all we end up with is a new religion. We miss those who have died, because that is the worst loss one can experience. They leave an emptiness that no one else can ever completely fill, so we add that to our religion. But does YHWH promise that we will see them again? If we are not doing well on earth, we can “make Him say” that heaven is important and earth is not—but who can prove that? Y’hoshua is saying, “This is about a real Land with real problems, real houses, and real jobs.” Right now, this is the Kingdom for us—the kind that those in the Land of Israel have to deal with now. We may be thinking of the grand prophetic reasons to be in the Land, but they have to go to work tomorrow. They needed to hear it called “the Land flowing with milk and honey” to put them in the frame of mind to want it, but it is not a Garden of Eden in which no one has to work. The reality is that now they are there, and they have to do what it takes to keep it. The Torah is not about tomorrow or yesterday, but about the reality that is in front of our face right now. It is sad that religion has so brainwashed us to depend on myth and superstition that when we have to face reality, we lose hope. Hope has its place in the balance of things. What we can envision is indeed more likely to come to pass, but do not make that your focus. The reality is that there are people right in front of you who need your mercy, your knowledge, your help, your sound judgment, or your companionship right now. Remembering where we came from can be valuable; Y’hoshua does so right here. But don’t stay there. Look to the ancient paths, but that cannot be where we stop. Be realistic and get back to the business at hand, or it just becomes an academic exercise and therefore a fiction. Even the most respectable religions are just fantasy rather than maturity and balance. Looking back and remembering is so important that YHWH put it in His calendar—one day per year. Otherwise, be engaged with the present. It can be a land of milk and honey if you fight off the giants and make it that. Hope that motivates is worth having, but do not hope for what you are not willing to work for. Hope without action is useless. Hope for the right things. Imagine, but with a purpose, rather than making our whole lives about where we will go after we die. If you make a dream come true, then it is real, but just believing will not make it occur. The hope that your children can live in a better world than you did is a valid hope, because you can do something about that. But still you have to start with the reality that is here right now, not what we once had or might one day have. World peace might be unrealistic, but peace in your household today is worth hoping for, because it can be achieved. If you miss your grandmother, do something worthy of her memory. Honor her with your life. See her again by treating people the way she treated them. But also remember her weaknesses and avoid repeating her mistakes. Hope does not get a building built; sweat and labor does.
15. “But if it is displeasing in your eyes to serve YHWH, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve as subjects, whether [it is] the elohim that your ancestors served on the other side of the River, or the elohim of the Emorites, in whose land you are dwelling. But I myself and my household will serve YHWH!
Displeasing: or simply, evil. It sounds preposterous at fisrt glance that anyone would consider it “evil” to serve YHWH. But because Y’shua’s words have been misread and taking either too far or out of context, the Torah flies directly in the face of most of the prevailing definitions of today. Consider Deut. 7. Many would find the concept simply of killing one’s enemies to be evil. And killing even their babies? Such a “hate crime”! Destroying their property? Disrespecting their philosophies? Not compromising with those of other faiths? Such bigotry! An eye for an eye? How barbaric! Surrendering self? “Self-actualization” is considered the highest goal. So the idea is not so far-fetched after all. His standards are very high: giving lower priority to self and even to our families than to His plans. Today this would sound like a cult. It was no different then; Y’hoshua anticipated this, so he said that if they could not give the highest priority to YHWH and His people, they might as well go serve something else and be honest about it. He is realistic. He knows that even though they play games for years, people will ultimately do what they want; while we are all responsible for one another, he knows you cannot make someone else do the right thing. Each one has to choose. He discourages them from being here, because what is at the end of this road is not what we expected: it is personal responsibility and discipline. He wants them to get their minds out of tomorrow and paradise, and deal with where they really are. So he says, “If it is too hard for you, get out of our way and go do something else; just do not slow us down. Serve the fantasy if you must. If you think life is about self instead of YHWH, go serve that, but do not pretend you are committed to this if you are not. But if you are about YHWH and His Torah, you are in the right place.” If they are smart, they will choose life. Choose to be grown up, and the Torah will be pure instruction minus the religion. Y’hezq’el (Ezekiel) echoes this: If you want to go on profaning His name by serving other philosophies, you are free to do so, but you must leave His presence. Note that there is no option to not be servants. We were a nation of slaves, and were delivered by another; this obligates us to Him if we are to be honorable. They had to be under someone, and the choices were either YHWH or the masters their ancestors had been connected to—spiritual rulers which were set in place over different lands to prevent total anarchy among men. These would be the default underrulers under whose jurisdiction their children would fall—or, they could be joined directly to the Creator and bypass the “middlemen”, being one step less removed from the Garden of Eden.
16. Then the people replied and said, “A profane, wounding thing it would be to abandon YHWH and serve other elohim!
When Y’shua also gave His students the opening to leave like so many others were when He scandalized them, they, too, gave the only reasonable answer: “Where else can we go? You alone have the words of eternal life!” (Yochanan 6:63ff)
17. “Because YHWH our Elohim is the one who has brought us and our ancestors up out of the land of Egypt, out of the slave-quarters, and who has done in our sight these great signs and has watched over us on thje whole journey on which we have walked and among all the peoples through whose midst we have passed.
18. “And YHWH has driven out all the peoples—even the Emorites—who dwelt in the Land before us. We, too, will serve YHWH, because He is our Elohim!”
19. But Y’hoshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve as YHWH’s subjects, because He is an Elohim in a category of His own, a jealous Elohim; He will not endure your rebellions or your missings of the mark.
I.e., you do not quite understand the stakes; you are not ready for this. It’s not as easy as you think; I don’t think you have what it takes to swallow this. Don’t be too quick! He is using reverse psychology in an effort to prod them to rise to the challenge, like a sports coach who says, “You’re gonna lose this game because you’re a bunch of losers” until the team is angry enough to say, “Just you watch! I’ll show you!”
20. “If you abandon YHWH and serve foreign elohim, He will turn back and cause you injury and finish you off after He had treated you well.”
I.e., this is not a game. Just because He has provided you with many benefits, don’t think you have something so special with YHWH that you can turn and do things your own way. Don’t think you can define how YHWH thinks and put your words in His mouth. Don’t assume He will be nice to you tomorrow because He was nice to you yesterday—when you were doing the right thing. It depends on how you treat each other. Take care of one another and He will take care of you. If you don’t care about one another, don’t expect Him to care about you either. This does not fit our religion, which says, “He loves me; He wouldn’t kill me!” But if you turn your back on Him, He will make it hurt. A lot of people have lost their lives for what these people now have; you have to protect this Land and make sure your children are who they are supposed to be, or they will lose this place. It is not Disneyland. Mickey Mouse has been slaughtered on the altar of truth. Donald Duck is shaking in his boots, because he knows he is next. It is not about letting hope die, but be sure it is a realistic, productive hope that we are putting our energy into.
21. But the people told Y’hoshua, “No, because we will serve YHWH!”
22. So Y’hoshua told the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves because you have chosen YHWH for yourselves as the one to serve.” And they said, “Witnesses [we are].”
Against yourselves: or, in/among yourselves. Our word must be kept (Num. 30:2), even vows made hastily when we were in trouble (Psalm 66:13) or at an emotionally-intense time like this one, so we must always guard what we say.
23. “So now, turn away from the foreign elohim that are among you, and incline your hearts to YHWH, the Elohim of Israel.”
24. And the people said to Y’hoshua, “We will serve YHWH our Elohim, and we will listen to His voice.”
25. So Y’hoshua cut a covenant for the people on that day, and appointed for it a prescribed boundary and court procedure at Sh’khem.
26. When Y’hoshua had written these words on the document of the Torah of Elohim, he took a large stone and set it up there under the oak that was within YHWH’s set-apart place.
27. And Y’hoshua said to all the people, “Look here! This stone will be among us [to serve] as a witness, because it has heard all of YHWH’s sayings that He has spoken with us, and it will be among you as a witness lest you act deceitfully, [disappointing and failing] your Elohim.”
I.e., I have spent my whole life serving you, but if you do not keep walking forward with me, you will end up as one of those we must run over in the process of keeping the Land pure. YHWH puts markers on truth to make sure we do not miss them, and gives us signs to confirm what we would not be sure of otherwise, because, much to our shame, we still need such signs. He gives us pointers to highlight what is most important, and if we know Torah well, we will be able to interpret them. The most grown-up truth is “YHWH gets His way or you pay”. This is much more basic and grounded than such playground concepts as, “Think like I do, or you’re going to hell!” YHWH’s way is much simpler: “Be nice to one another!” All religion is noise, smoke, and mirrors that obscure His simple principles: “You get what you pay for” (justice), choosing to help someone whenever you can (mercy), balance, being in season, paying attention to what is around us and responding to it rather than to something we have never seen, no one else has, and no one can prove. These are the high, elevated, simple, lowly basics. This is what Y’hoshua has learned and wants to leave with them, so they will not have to learn the hard way: live in today. YHWH is not worried about rivers of oil or tons of sacrificial animals, as much as your being just, kind, and merciful. Take care of one another. Knowing the Torah puts us in the position to prove what is true. It holds the secret to life. Strip away the religion and go back to what is actually written in it, and it is the most valuable thing in the universe. Sometimes the reality is not pleasant: you cannot really trust people, and they are still selfish at root, no matter how much you try to teach them. But YHWH will not put up with people biting the hand that feeds them or betraying the one who has trusted them—not for long. If you are on His side, He will stomp on those who oppose you. King Shlomoh said that in the final analysis, wisdom comes down to eating, drinking, and being merry—in the right context, not at someone else’s expense, but it is better for others if you smile rather than beating yourself down all of the time. Share the merriment. Consider the people around you. Kindness is one of the greatest lacks in the universe. It is so rare that those who actually practice it are seen as heroic! Yet it is the essence of YHWH. After all, what does He need with us, except someone to be kind toward? Try it! Look for any open door to help someone else. As we learn to live with one another, true community can form.
28. Then Y’hoshua sent the people away, each to his inherited property.
29. And it was after these things that Y’hoshua the son of Nun, the servant of YHWH, died, the son of a hundred and ten years.
Y’hoshua’s life was as long as his ancestor Yosef’s, but ten years shorter than that of Moshe, giving Y’shua authority to say “a student is not above his master.” (Mat. 10:24; Luqa 6:40)
30. And they buried him within the boundaries of his inheritance in Timnath-Serakh [portion of the sun], which is in the mountains of Efrayim, north of the mountain of Gaash [shaking].
31. And Israel served YHWH all the days of Y’hoshua and all the days of the elders who prolonged the days of Y’hoshua, and who were familiar with all the acts of YHWH, which He had accomplished for Israel.
Prolonged the days: i.e., outlived him, but extended his remembrance by virtue of their association with him in the memories of all Israel.
32. And the bones of Yosef, which the descendants of Israel had brought up out of Egypt, they [had] buried in Sh’khem in the smooth part of the field that Yaaqov had bought from the sons of Khamor, the father of Sh’khem, for 100 coins, and they came to belong to the descendants of Yosef as an inherited possession.
Verses 29 through 33 were probably appended by Pin’has to bring closure to what he thought were “loose ends” Y’hoshua had not finished writing about. They are not necessarily in chronological order. I.e., they had probably not waited until this time to bury Yosef, though his body was probably carried away with its enitie stone sarcophagus, if a group of eleven sarcophagi with another one missing that have been found at Sukkoth in Egypt were indeed those of the twelve patriarchs. (Only Yosef’s was taken back to the Land from what we can find in Scripture.) And Y’hoshua, an Efrayimite, was the descendant of Yosef, whose remains were yet another witness to Israel of YHWH’s faithfulness and thus further motivation to continue serving Him.
33. Then El’azar the son of Aharon died, and they buried him on the hill of Pin’has his son, which he had given him in the mountains of Efrayim.
The cities given to the Q’hathites within Efrayim are listed in 21:20-26, but El’azar should have inherited land in either Yehudah, Shim’on, or Binyamin. (21:4) Since Sh’khem was one of the cities of refuge, it could be that since manslayers were to live there until the high priest died, the high priest would have had a burial plot near this city, which was within Efrayim’s territory. Now indeed any manslayers who had already needed to run here for refuge were free to go back home. Pin’has himself would now be the high priest. The story continues in the Book of Judges...
THE BOOK OF
Y'hoshua
(Joshua)
INTRODUCTION: Y’hoshua’s name means “YHWH saves.” He was renamed as such by Moshe, being born as Hoshea (which merely means “salvation” in the abstract sense) the son of Nun. He had been Moshe’s constant companion ever since Moshe ascended Mt. Sinai to receive the Torah from YHWH. He was thus trained very thoroughly and knew Moshe’s mind well enough to carry on his mission with the same spirit. He is the namesake as well of the Messiah, who will lead Israel back into our Land again after all Israel is reunited. In many ways he foreshadows the One who bore his name, which we will spell Yahshua here, both to highlight YHWH’s Name within his, and to make the distinction in identities clearer. By learning about the former, we will gain many insights about the latter’s mission.
