Joshua 19:2

19:1-9 The men of Judah did not oppose taking away the cities within their border, when convinced that they had more than was right. If a true believer has obtained an unintended and improper advantage in any thing, he will give it up without murmuring. Love seeketh not her own, and doth not behave unseemly; it will induce those in whom it richly dwells, to part with their own to supply what is lacking to their brethren.

And they had in their inheritance Beersheba and Sheba,.... Or, Beersheba, that is, Sheba; for so the particle "vau" is sometimes used (z), and must be so used here; or otherwise, instead of thirteen, it will appear that there are fourteen cities, contrary to the account of them, Joshua 19:6 ; so Kimchi and Ben Melech make them one city. And it may be observed, that in the enumeration of the cities of Simeon, 1 Chronicles 4:28 ; Sheba is left out, and only Beersheba is mentioned; which, was a well known place in, the farthest border of the land of Israel southward, and the reason of its name is manifest, Genesis 21:31 ; See Gill on Joshua 15:28 , and Moladah; another of the cities of Judah, Joshua 15:26. (z) Vid. Noldium, p. 280. No. 1200.

2 . And they had in their inheritance ] First Group . 1. Beersheba , see note ch. Joshua 15:28 ; or Shema , so ch. Joshua 15:26 : comp. 1 Chronicles 4:28 with Genesis 26:33 ; Genesis 2. Moladah = el-Milh , see ch. Joshua 15:26 , about four English miles from Tel Arad , eighteen from Hebron, and nine or ten due east of Beersheba;

Beer-sheba, Sheba , or, or Sheba, i.e. otherwise called; for that Beer-sheba and Sheba were one and the same city is manifest, both from Joshua 19:6 , where all the cities are reckoned to be but thirteen ; and from 1 Chronicles 4:28 , where Simeon’s cities are enumerated, and Sheba omitted as superfluous.

CHAPTER 19 Jos 19:1-9. The Lot of Simeon. 1. the second lot came forth to Simeon—The next lot that was drawn at Shiloh, gave the tribe of Simeon his inheritance within the territory, which had been assigned to that of Judah. The knowledge of Canaan possessed by the Israelites, when the division of the land commenced, was but very general, being derived from the rapid sweep they had made over it during the course of conquest; and it was on the ground of that rough survey alone that the distribution proceeded, by which Judah received an inheritance. Time showed that this territory was too large (Jos 19:9), either for their numbers, however great, to occupy and their arms to defend, or too large in proportion to the allotments of the other tribes. Justice therefore required (what kind and brotherly feeling readily dictated) a modification of their possession; and a part of it was appropriated to Simeon. By thus establishing it within the original domain of another tribe, the prophecy of Jacob in regard to Simeon was fulfilled (Ge 49:7); for from its boundaries being not traced, there is reason to conclude that its people were divided and dispersed among those of Judah; and though one group of its cities named (Jos 19:2-6), gives the idea of a compact district, as it is usually represented by map makers, the other group (Jos 19:7, 8) were situated, two in the south, and two elsewhere, with tracts of the country around them.

The inheritance of Simeon was taken out of the portion of Judah, which proved on experience to be larger than the numbers of that tribe required. The Simeonite territory is described by its towns, of which fourteen were in the Negeb, and four others Joshua 19:7 partly in the Negeb and partly in "the valley." On the narrow confines here assigned to Simeon, and its insignificant position altogether among the Twelve tribes, see Deuteronomy 33:6 note.

Verse 2. - Beersheba . A locality well known in Scripture, from Genesis 21:31 onwards. And Sheba. Some would translate here, or Sheba (see below). No doubt the city, of which nothing further is known, derived its name from Beer-sheba, "the well of the oath," close by. It is true that some little difficulty is caused by the omission of this city in 1 Chronicles 4:28 , by the identification of Shehah with Beer-sheba in Genesis 26:33 , and by the fact that in ver. 6 we are told that there were thirteen cities in this catalogue, whereas there are fourteen. On the other hand, Keil has remarked that in Joshua 15:32 the number of names does not correspond to the whole number of cities given; and we have a Shema, probably a mistake for Sheba, in Joshua 15:26 , mentioned before Moladah among the cities of Judah. And, lastly, we have very few instances in Scripture of the disjunctive use of ו , though it seems impossible to deny that it is used in this sense in 1 Kings 18:27 . Joshua 19:2

Beersheba: see at Joshua 15:28 . Sheba is wanting in the Chronicles, but has no doubt been omitted through a copyist's error, as Shema answers to it in Joshua 15:26 , where it stands before Moladah just as Sheba does here. - On the names in Joshua 19:3-6 , see the exposition of Joshua 15:28-32 . - The sum total given in Joshua 19:6 , viz., thirteen towns, does not tally, as there are fourteen names. On these differences, see the remarks on Joshua 15:32 .

10. Naphtali Judah is first, having the first lot; and he dwelt in the south part of the land, Joshua 15:1, etc.; and next to him Simeon, because his inheritance was within the inheritance of the children of Judah, Joshua 19:1. Benjamin was third; he had his inheritance by Judah, between the children of Judah and the children of Joseph, Joshua 18:11. Dan was the fourth; his lot fell westward of that of Benjamin, in the country of the Philistines, as may be seen in Joshua 19:40, Joshua 19:41, etc. Fifth, Manasseh; and sixth, by him, his brother Ephraim, whose inheritances were behind that of Benjamin, Joshua 16:7. Next to these dwelt, seventh, Zebulun; and eighth, Issachar; concerning whose lots see Joshua 19:10-17. Ninth, Asher; and tenth, Naphtali; see Joshua 19:24, Joshua 19:32, etc. And as in encamping about the tabernacle they were arranged according to their fraternal relationship, (see Numbers 2)., so they were in the division and inheriting of the promised land. Judah and Simeon, both sons of Leah, dwelt abreast of each other. Benjamin, son of Rachel, and Dan, son of Rachel's maid, dwelt next abreast. Manasseh and Ephraim, both sons of Joseph, son of Rachel, had the next place abreast. Zebulun and Issachar, who dwelt next together, were both sons of Leah; and the last pair were Asher, of Leah's maid, and Naphtali, of Rachel's maid.

22. So Joshua took both Eleazar and the senate, and with them the heads of the tribes, and distributed the land to the nine tribes, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh, appointing the dimensions to be according to the largeness of each tribe. So when he had cast lots, Judah had assigned him by lot the upper part of Judea, reaching as far as Jerusalem, and its breadth extended to the Lake of Sodom. Now in the lot of this tribe there were the cities of Askelon and Gaza. The lot of Simeon, which was the second, included that part of Idumea which bordered upon Egypt and Arabia. As to the Benjamites, their lot fell so, that its length reached from the river Jordan to the sea, but in breadth it was bounded by Jerusalem and Bethel; and this lot was the narrowest of all, by reason of the goodness of the land, for it included Jericho and the city of Jerusalem. The tribe of Ephraim had by lot the land that extended in length from the river Jordan to Gezer; but in breadth as far as from Bethel, till it ended at the Great Plain. The half-tribe of Manasseh had the land from Jordan to the city of Dora; but its breadth was at Bethsham, which is now called Scythopolis. And after these was Issachar, which had its limits in length, Mount Carmel and the river, but its limit in breadth was Mount Tabor. The tribe of Zebulon's lot included the land which lay as far as the Lake of Genesareth, and that which belonged to Carmel and the sea