Joshua18

The children of Israel assembled at Shiloh, where the tabernacle was set up, though seven tribes still lacked their inheritance. Joshua rebuked their idleness and commanded them to send men to survey the remaining land, divide it into seven parts, and record it. After the survey, Joshua cast lots before the LORD in Shiloh, and the inheritance for the tribe of Benjamin was determined, with its borders and cities meticulously described.
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The Tabernacle Set Up at Shiloh

1
And the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled together at Shiloh, and set up the tabernacle of the congregation there. And the land was subdued before them. ​
2
And there remained among the children of Israel seven tribes, which had not yet received their inheritance. ​

Joshua Rebukes the Seven Tribes

3
And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, How long are ye slack to go to possess the land, which the LORD God of your fathers hath given you? ​
4
Give out from among you three men for each tribe: and I will send them, and they shall rise, and go through the land, and describe it according to the inheritance of them; and they shall come again to me. ​
5
And they shall divide it into seven parts: Judah shall abide in their coast on the south, and the house of Joseph shall abide in their coasts on the north. ​
6
Ye shall therefore describe the land into seven parts, and bring the description hither to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the LORD our God. ​
7
But the Levites have no part among you; for the priesthood of the LORD is their inheritance: and Gad, and Reuben, and half the tribe of Manasseh, have received their inheritance beyond Jordan on the east, which Moses the servant of the LORD gave them. ​
8
And the men arose, and went away: and Joshua charged them that went to describe the land, saying, Go and walk through the land, and describe it, and come again to me, that I may here cast lots for you before the LORD in Shiloh.
9
And the men went and passed through the land, and described it by cities into seven parts in a book, and came again to Joshua to the host at Shiloh. ​
10
And Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD: and there Joshua divided the land unto the children of Israel according to their divisions. ​

The Inheritance of Benjamin

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And the lot of the tribe of the children of Benjamin came up according to their families: and the coast of their lot came forth between the children of Judah and the children of Joseph. ​
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And their border on the north side was from Jordan; and the border went up to the side of Jericho on the north side, and went up through the mountains westward; and the goings out thereof were at the wilderness of Bethaven.
13
And the border went over from thence toward Luz, to the side of Luz, which is Bethel, southward; and the border descended to Atarothadar, near the hill that lieth on the south side of the nether Bethhoron.
14
And the border was drawn thence, and compassed the corner of the sea southward, from the hill that lieth before Bethhoron southward; and the goings out thereof were at Kirjathbaal, which is Kirjathjearim, a city of the children of Judah: this was the west quarter.
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And the south quarter was from the end of Kirjathjearim, and the border went out on the west, and went out to the well of waters of Nephtoah:
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And the border came down to the end of the mountain that lieth before the valley of the son of Hinnom, and which is in the valley of the giants on the north, and descended to the valley of Hinnom, to the side of Jebusi on the south, and descended to Enrogel, ​
17
And was drawn from the north, and went forth to Enshemesh, and went forth toward Geliloth, which is over against the going up of Adummim, and descended to the stone of Bohan the son of Reuben,
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And passed along toward the side over against Arabah northward, and went down unto Arabah:
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And the border passed along to the side of Bethhoglah northward: and the outgoings of the border were at the north bay of the salt sea at the south end of Jordan: this was the south coast.
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And Jordan was the border of it on the east side. This was the inheritance of the children of Benjamin, by the coasts thereof round about, according to their families.

Cities of Benjamin

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Now the cities of the tribe of the children of Benjamin according to their families were Jericho, and Bethhoglah, and the valley of Keziz,
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And Betharabah, and Zemaraim, and Bethel, ​
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And Avim, and Parah, and Ophrah,
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And Chepharhaammonai, and Ophni, and Gaba; twelve cities with their villages:
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Gibeon, and Ramah, and Beeroth,
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And Mizpeh, and Chephirah, and Mozah,
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And Rekem, and Irpeel, and Taralah,
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And Zelah, Eleph, and Jebusi, which is Jerusalem, Gibeath, and Kirjath; fourteen cities with their villages. This is the inheritance of the children of Benjamin according to their families. ​

Study Notes for Joshua 18

Verse 1

Shiloh became the central sanctuary for Israel during the period of the judges (1 Sam 1:3). Setting up the Tabernacle here signaled that the central phase of settlement had begun, providing Israel with a unified religious center, even while conquest remained incomplete.

Verse 2

Only the tribes of Judah, Ephraim, and the half-tribe of Manasseh had fully received their territorial allotment. The remaining seven tribes had yet to claim their inheritance, despite the land being 'subdued' (V. 1).

Verse 3

Joshua challenges the 'slackness' (lethargy or hesitation) of the tribes. They had won the major battles but were failing to act on God’s promise by physically possessing and settling the land, perhaps due to fear or weariness.

Verse 4

This innovative approach commanded a detailed, written survey of the territory. This ensured a fair, systematic division based on observable data, complementing the divine guidance provided by the lot (V. 6).

Verse 5

The remaining land was divided into seven portions corresponding to the seven remaining tribes. Judah and Joseph (Ephraim/Manasseh) were already settled and provided fixed boundaries for the new divisions.

Verse 6

The lot was an accepted method in ancient Israel for discerning God’s will regarding division or decision-making (Proverbs 16:33). The survey provided the map, and the lot determined the assignment.

Verse 7

The Levites were consecrated to the priesthood and received no tribal territory, subsisting instead on tithes and scattered cities (Joshua 21). The Transjordanian tribes had already received their inheritance from Moses.

Verse 9

Recording the land description 'in a book' emphasizes the orderly, administrative seriousness of the settlement process, moving Israel from military conquest toward civil establishment.

Verse 10

The division took place 'before the LORD' at Shiloh, ensuring that the distribution was ratified and sanctioned by God at the place of worship, confirming the covenantal nature of the land grant.

Verse 11

The tribe of Benjamin received a strategically vital, though geographically small, territory situated between the powerful tribes of Judah to the south and Ephraim (part of Joseph) to the north.

Verse 16

This description mentions the Valley of Hinnom (later Gehenna) and outlines the area around 'Jebusi' (Jerusalem). This indicates that the original city of Jerusalem lay directly on the crucial border between Benjamin and Judah.

Verse 22

Bethel ('House of God') was one of the most significant sites in Israel’s history, associated with Abraham and Jacob (Gen 12, 28). Its inclusion in Benjamin’s territory highlights the region’s importance.

Verse 28

The listing of Jebusi, which is Jerusalem, confirms its assignment to Benjamin. However, the Benjamites failed to dispossess the Jebusites (Judg 1:21), requiring King David to conquer it centuries later.

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