CHAP. V. Of the Division of the Land of Canaan, and the Levitical 1. The Israel ites distin to twelve As in the book of Joshua we have an account given us of the conquest of Canaan by the Israelites, so in the same we have also given us an account of the division of the guished insaid country among the Israelites. For the better under- tribes. standing of which division, it seems requisite to observe here, that the Israelites (so called, as being the descendants of Jacob, otherwise named by God himself Israel) were distinguished into twelve tribes, according to the number of the immediate sons of Israel, who are therefore styled the twelve Patriarchs, as being the heads of the said tribes, Acts vii. 9. The names tribes. Now the names of the twelve Patriarchs, according to 2. the order of their birth, were these: Reuben, Simeon, of the Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebu- twelve lun, Joseph, and Benjamin. Of these Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun, were born to Israel by his wife Leah; Joseph and Benjamin, by his wife Rachel; Dan and Naphtali, by Bilhah, Rachel's maid; and Gad and Asher, by Zilpah, Leah's maid. And it is remarkable, that this last order (not that of their nativity or birth) is observed by Moses, in naming the Patriarchs, that went down with Jacob into Egypt, Exod. i. 2—4. 3. The twelve tribes, which the Of these twelve tribes, it pleased God to choose that of Levi to minister about holy things, and to wait at his altar, and therefore to ordain, that this tribe should live or be among maintained of the things of the temple, and should be par- land of Istakers with the altar; and so be freed from the common rael was divided, how concerns of life. Hereupon in the division of the land of to be recCanaan, as also of the country beyond Jordan, though koned up. PART II. the whole was divided into twelve parts, according to the number of the tribes, yet not one of these twelve parts was allotted to the tribe of Levi. But the two branches of the posterity of Joseph, viz. Ephraim and Manasseh, were reckoned as two distinct tribes, and so had distinct divisions allotted them. Whence the twelve tribes, in a geographical sense, or among whom the land of Canaan and the country beyond Jordan were divided, are to be reckoned up thus, according to their geographical order or situation, beginning from the south of the land of Canaan, viz. the tribe of Judah, Simeon, Dan, Benjamin, Ephraim, Manasseh, (namely, one half of it,) Issachar, Zebulun, Asher, Naphtali, (these lay all west of Jordan; and to the east of that river, besides the other half of the tribe of Manasseh, lay the two remaining tribes of) Gad and Reuben. Of each of these I shall speak, in the order wherein they have been here reckoned up. 4. Of the tribe To begin then with the tribe of Judah, the most conof Judah. siderable, as upon other accounts, so especially because our blessed Lord was descended of it. And it is not to be thought, that it was merely casual, that, in the division of the land of Canaan, regard was primarily had to this tribe; and that accordingly, in the sacred history, the lot which fell to this tribe is first taken notice of, namely, Josh. xv. 5. Its southern border. In this chapter we are told, ver. 1. that the lot of the tribe of Judah was next to the border of Edom, i. e. in the southern part of the land of Canaan. And then from ver. 2. to ver. 12. we have the bounds of this tribe specified as to the four quarters of the world. We learn, ver. 2-4. that the south border thereof was from the shore of the Salt sea, and more particularly from the bay of it that looks southward, i. e. from the south part of the Salt sea, or Asphaltite lake, which is narrowed into the shape of a bay. This was the east end of the south border, which from hence stretched itself westward, passing along to Zin, (mentioned in the journeys of the Israelites, and there seems to be otherwise called Kadesh,) and thence going up on the south side to (the other Kadesh near the wilderness of Pa- CHAP. V. ran, and for distinction sake called) Kadesh-barnea, and so coming unto the river of Egypt, (lying, as has been already observed, near Gaza on the west side,) and so running along with the course of that river to the Mediterranean sea. Such was the south coast of the tribe of Judah. 6. Its east coast or border was the length of the Salt sea, from its southern point to its northern, even unto the end border. of Jordan, i. e. unto the north part of the Salt sea, where Jordan falls into it. Compare Josh. xviii. 19. Its north ern. The border in the north quarter was from the bay of the 7. Salt sea, which is at the uttermost part of the river Jordan, ern border (that is, where Jordan empties itself into the Salt sea; and and westso this north border was in short from the north bay or end of the Salt sea.) Hence it ran westward by the valley of Achor, and by Enrogel, and so by the valley of the son of Hinnom, to the south side of Jerusalem, thence to the top of the mountain that lies before the valley of Hinnom westward, which is at the end of the valley of Giants northward. Thence the border was drawn to Kirjath-jearim, and so passed along unto the side of mount Jearim, and went down to Bethshemesh, and passed on to Timnah; and so to the side of Ekron northward, and the goings out or end of this north border westward were at the Mediterranean sea. And this same Great sea (the name whereby in Scripture is denoted the Mediterranean sea) was the west border of this tribe. 8. tion of the meon. In Josh. xix. 1-9. we read that the lot came forth for the tribe of Simeon, and that its inheritance was within The situathe inheritance of the children of Judah, or out of the por- tribe of Sition at first allotted to the children of Judah. For the part of the children of Judah was too much for them. Therefore the children of Simeon had their inheritance within the inheritance of them. Accordingly the same cities, which we find ch. xv. ver. 26-32. allotted at first to the tribe of Judah, are afterwards, ch. xix. ver. 2-8. assigned to the tribe of Simeon. And, forasmuch as these cities appear from chap. xv. ver. 21. to be some of the uttermost cities of PART II. the tribe of the children of Judah, toward the coast of Edom southward; hence it is not without good reason, that the tribe of Simeon is placed in the south part of the tribe of Judah, after such a manner as may be better apprehended by looking on the map belonging to this chapter, than described by words. 9. The situa tion of the tribe of Dan. 10. tion of the In like manner, because by comparing Josh. xv. 33, &c. with xix. 41, &c. it appears, that some other of the cities at first allotted to the tribe of Judah were afterwards assigned to the tribe of Dan; hence it is rationally supposed, that the inheritance of the tribe of Dan was within the inheritance of the tribe of Judah; and consequently it is, I think with universal agreement, placed by geographers in the western part of the portion at first allotted to the children of Judah. As to the more particular situation thereof, there is not so universal an agreement; some making it to take up at the north-west part of the portion at first allotted to the tribe of Judah, and so to join on to the tribe of Benjamin or Ephraim; others supposing some part of the tribe of Judah to come in between those of Dan and Benjamin, or Ephraim. To the north, at least to the north-east, of the tribe of The situa- Judah was situated the tribe of Benjamin; as is evident from comparing Josh. xviii. 15-19. with xv. 5—9. For Benjamin. the same border, which is assigned in this last place for the tribe of north border of Judah, is in the former place assigned for the south border of Benjamin. Whence it follows, that these two tribes must be contiguous one to the other, Judah lying to the south, and Benjamin to the north. That Jordan was the border of this tribe on the east side, we are expressly told Josh. xviii. 20. And we read in the same chapter, ver. 12-14. that the border on the north side was from Jordan to the side of Jericho, on the north side thereof, and went up through the mountains westward, and the goings out thereof were at the wilderness of Beth-aven. Hence seems to be reckoned the west border, when it is said, ver. 13, 14. that the border went over from thence towards Bethel, to the side of Bethel southward, and thence descended near the hill that lies on the south side of the ne- CHAP. V. ther Beth-horon; and was drawn thence, and compassed the corner of the west southward, from the hill that lies before Beth-horon southward; and the goings out thereof were at Kirjath-jearim, a city of the children of Judah. This was the west quarter. 11. It is not to be omitted, that there are some who make A difficulty the tribe of Benjamin to extend from the river Jordan east- cleared. ward to the Mediterranean sea westward. And this opinion seems to be entirely grounded on the Hebrew expression used in the beginning of the fourteenth verse: where, according to a literal translation, it is said of the west border, that it compassed the corner of the sea southward. But it is evident enough from what is said in other places of Scripture, that the tribe of Benjamin did not reach to the sea westward. And indeed it is, I think, plainly enough intimated in ver. 12. of this very chapter, that the Hebrew word signifying the sea is not to be in this description understood literally, but figuratively, so as to import the west, on which side the sea (i. e. the Great or Mediterranean sea) lay. Hence the word in our English translation is rendered ver. 12. as importing, not the sea, but the west; and so it would, I conceive, have been best rendered in the fourteenth verse also. And the plain meaning of the expression there used, viz. compassed the corner of the west, seems to be this, that the west border did there make an angle or corner, as may be seen in the map. 12. Of the tribe of and half tribe of Ma west of To the north of the tribe of Benjamin was situated the lot that fell to the children of Joseph; as is clear from Josh. xviii. 11. where it is said, that the coast of the lot of Ephraim, Benjamin came forth between the children of Judah and the children of Joseph. Since therefore the children of Judah nasseh, lay to the south of the children of Benjamin, it follows, Jordan. that the children of Joseph lay to the north of them. It is also evident from Josh. xvi. 1-3. that the lot of the children of Joseph reached from Jordan eastward to the Mediterranean sea westward; and from comparing chap. |