Joshua 15:20

Turning northward, and looking that way from the west to the east: and went forth to Enshemesh; or the fountain of the sun, see Joshua 15:7; and went forth toward Geliloth; called Gilgal, Joshua 15:7; which [is] over against the going up to Adummim; a place between Jerusalem and Jericho, see Joshua 15:7; and descended to the stone of Bohan the son of Reuben; see Joshua 15:6. Joshua 18:18 Ver. 18. And passed along toward the side over against Arabah northward,.... The same with Betharabah, Joshua 15:6; and so it is called here in the Greek version: and went down unto Arabah; the same as before, and included it, for it is mentioned among the cities of this tribe, Joshua 18:22. Joshua 18:19 Ver. 19. And the border passed along to the side of Bethhoglah northward,.... Inclining somewhat toward the north, but not leaving the city to the north, for it is included in the lot of Benjamin, Joshua 18:21; of which place see Joshua 15:6; and the outgoings of the border were at the north bay of the salt sea; here ended the southern border of Benjamin, even at the bay or creek of the salt sea, which looked northward, as the southern border of Judah began at that bay of it, which looked southward, Joshua 15:2; at the south end of Jordan; where it fell into the salt sea: this [was] the south coast; as before described. Joshua 18:20 Ver. 20. And Jordan was the border of it on the east side,....

Joshua 15:1 INTRODUCTION TO JOSHUA 15 In this chapter are related the boundaries of the lot of the tribe of Judah, Joshua 15:1; and the assignment of Hebron to Caleb, from whence he drove out the giants, and of Debir, which was taken by Othniel his brother, to whom, on that account, he gave his daughter in marriage, who made a further request to her father, which was granted, Joshua 15:13; and then follows an account of the several cities by name, which fell to the tribe of Judah, Joshua 15:20. Ver. 1. This then was the lot of the tribe of the children of Judah by their families,....

15:20-63 Here is a list of the cities of Judah. But we do not here find Bethlehem, afterwards the city of David, and ennobled by the birth of our Lord Jesus in it. That city, which, at the best, was but little among the thousands of Judah, Mic 5:2, except that it was thus honoured, was now so little as not to be accounted one of the cities.

This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Judah, according to their families. The general description of which is given in the preceding part of the chapter, as the particular cities belonging to it are enumerated in the following part; the account of the gift of Hebron to Caleb, and the taking of Debir by Othniel, with the request of Achsah, and the grant of it, are inserted between them, and stand as it were in a parenthesis.

20–32. Cities of Judah in the South 20 . This is the inheritance ] “The speech of Achsah to her father was the best reason for the slight notice of this desert tract in later times, and is the best introduction to the real territory of Judah, on which we now enter. ‘Give me a blessing, for thou hast given me a south land; give me also springs of water .’ The wells of Beersheba were enough for the Patriarchs, the Amalekites, and the Kenites, but they were not enough for the daughter of Judah and the house of the mighty Caleb.” Stanley’s Sinai and Palestine , p. 161. The territory of Judah, in average length about 45 miles and in average breadth about 50, was from a very early period divided into four main regions—(i) the South; (ii) the Lowland; (iii) the Mountain; (iv) the Wilderness. ( α ) The South was the undulating pasture country which intervened between the hills, the proper possession of the tribe, and the desert country which marks the lower part of Palestine. ( β ) The Lowland , or, to give it its proper name, the Shephelah , was a broad strip of land lying between the central mountains and the Mediterranean Sea.

From the edge of the sandy tract which fringes the immediate shore it stretched up to the bases of the hills of Judah—the garden and granary of the tribe—and formed the lower part of the maritime plain which extended along the whole seaboard of Palestine from “the river of Egypt” to Sidon. ( γ ) The Mountain , or “the Hill Country,” though not the richest, was at once the largest and the most important of the four. “Beginning a few miles below Hebron, where it attains its highest level, it stretches eastward to the Dead Sea and westward to the Shephelah , and forms an elevated district or plateau, which, though thrown into considerable undulations, yet preserves a general level in both directions.” ( δ ) The Wilderness, Midbah , which here, and here only, is synonymous with Arâbah , represents the sunken district adjoining the Dead Sea. See Mr. Grove’s article in Smith’s Bibl. Dict .

18, 19. as she came unto him—that is, when about to remove from her father's to her husband's house. She suddenly alighted from her travelling equipage—a mark of respect to her father, and a sign of making some request. She had urged Othniel to broach the matter, but he not wishing to do what appeared like evincing a grasping disposition, she resolved herself to speak out. Taking advantage of the parting scene when a parent's heart was likely to be tender, she begged (as her marriage portion consisted of a field which, having a southern exposure, was comparatively an arid and barren waste) he would add the adjoining one, which abounded in excellent springs. The request being reasonable, it was granted; and the story conveys this important lesson in religion, that if earthly parents are ready to bestow on their children that which is good, much more will our heavenly Father give every necessary blessing to them who ask Him.

A south land - This term ("negeb") which is often equivalent to a proper name Joshua 15:21 , importing the well-defined district which formed the south of the promised land ( Numbers 13:17 note), seems here used in its more general sense Psalm 126:4 , for a dry or barren land. The rendering of this passage adopted by Septuagint, several versions, and Commentators, etc., "thou hast given me into a south land," i. e. "hast given me in marriage into a south land" is forced; the construction of the verb "to give," with two accusatives, is natural and common to many languages. Springs of water - The Hebrew words מים גלה gûllâh mayı̂m are found only here and in the parallel passage, Judges 1:15. Hence, some take it as a proper name, "Gulloth-maim," which like Beth-horon Joshua 16:3, Joshua 16:5, was applied to two distinct but adjoining places - distinguished as "the upper" and "the lower." The tract in question was no doubt a mountain slope which had springs both on its higher and lower ground; possibly the modern "Kurmul".