Joshua 19:51

19:17-51 Joshua waited till all the tribes were settled, before he asked any provision for himself. He was content to be unfixed, till he saw them all placed, and herein is an example to all in public places, to prefer the common welfare before private advantage. Those who labour most to do good to others, seek an inheritance in the Canaan above: but it will be soon enough to enter thereon, when they have done all the service to their brethren of which they are capable. Nor can any thing more effectually assure them of their title to it, than endeavouring to bring others to desire, to seek, and to obtain it. Our Lord Jesus came and dwelt on earth, not in pomp but poverty, providing rest for man, yet himself not having where to lay his head; for Christ pleased not himself. Nor would he enter upon his inheritance, till by his obedience to death he secured the eternal inheritance for all his people; nor will he account his own glory completed, till every ransomed sinner is put in possession of his heavenly rest.

These are the inheritances which Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun,.... The one the high priest, and the other the chief governor of the nation: and the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel; the princes appointed for this service, whose names are given Numbers 34:18; the inheritances before described in the preceding chapters by their boundaries and cities, these the said persons divided for an inheritance by lot in Shiloh; and so has particular reference to the seven lots drawn there for seven of the tribes, by which their inheritances were assigned to them: and this was done before the Lord, at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation; see Joshua 18:1, so they made an end of dividing the country; though it was not as yet wholly subdued.

Joshua 19:51 . These are the inheritances, &c. — Upon the whole of this division of the land, it deserves our remarking, that the lot fell to the several tribes just as Jacob and Moses had foretold. And this division served to keep up the distinction of tribes, which was to continue till the coming of the Messiah. And we may observe further, that God had expressly named, some years before, as we find by Numbers 34:17-29 , the very persons who should divide the land unto the children of Israel, and expressly described the bounds how far every way the land reached which was to be divided by them.

These are the inheritances, which Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel, divided for an inheritance by lot in Shiloh before the LORD, at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. So they made an end of dividing the country.

Nothing is said of any express command of God respecting the inheritance of Joshua. But as such special portion appears to have been promised to Caleb at the time when he and Joshua alone out of the twelve spies remained faithful Joshua 14:6-9 , it is probable that a like promise was made to Joshua. The name of the place is also written Timnath-heres Judges 2:9 , by a transposition of the letters. The rabbinical explanation that the name Timnath-heres (i. e. "portion of the sun") was given because a representation of the sun was affixed to the tomb in memory of Joshua's command to the sun to stand still, appears to be an afterthought. The name Timnath-serah ("portion that remains") was perhaps conferred on the spot in consequence of its being allotted to Joshua, the last allotment made in the whole distribution of his conquests. The site has been conjectured to be "Tibneh," a village about five miles north-west of Lydda (or, by Conder, Kerr Hares, nine miles south of Nablous).

Verse 51. - At the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. The lots were drawn under Divine sanction. The ruler of the State and the ruler of the Church combined in this sacred act, hallowed by all the rites of religion, and confirmed by the presence and approbation of the heads or representatives of all the tribes. Accordingly, as has been said above, we hear of no murmurings or disputings afterwards. However much the Israelites may have quarrelled among themselves, there is not a hint of dissatisfaction with the final distribution of territory. Three points may be noticed here - 1. The authenticity of the narrative is confirmed by these evidences of the internal agreement of its parts. 2. We learn the value of mutual consultation, of open and fair dealing, from this narrative. The parcelling out of the inheritance of Israel under God's command was carried out in such a manner as to preclude the slightest suspicion of partiality. 3. The duty of hallowing all important actions with the sanctions of religion, of uniting prayer and a public recognition of God's authority with every event of moment, whether in the life of the individual or of the body politic, finds an illustration here.

An age which, like the present, is disposed to relegate to the closet all recognition of God's authority, which rushes into wars without God's blessing, celebrates national or local ceremonials without acknowledging Him, contracts matrimony without publicly seeking His blessing, receives children from Him without caring to dedicate them formally to His service, can hardly plead that it is acting in the spirit of the Divine Scriptures. A well known writer in our age declares that we have "forgotten God." Though the external and formal recognition of Him may be consistent with much forgetfulness in the heart, yet the absence of such recognition is not likely to make us remember Him, nor can it be pleaded as proof that we do so. Joshua 19:51

[Reformed Biblical] There were divers other cities of that name. ## Ver. 28. Which is Jerusalem: so it seems this city did properly and primarily belong to Benjamin, although the tribe of Judah had also an interest in it, either because some part of it was allotted to them, or because the Benjamites gave them a share in it, for the assistance which either they had received or did expect from that potent tribe, for the getting or defending of that very important place. See Poole "Joshua 15:63" . It is more than probable that all the cities belonging to this tribe are not here named, because Anathoth and Almon are omitted here, but expressed #Joshua 21:18 . ## JOSHUA CHAPTER 19 The second lot falls to Simeon; his borders among the tribe of Judah, whose inheritance was too great for them, #Joshua 19:1-9 . The third lot falls to Zebulun, #Joshua 19:10-16 . The fourth to Issachar, #Joshua 19:17-23 . The fifth to Asher, #Joshua 19:24-31 . The sixth to ## Naphtali, #Joshua 19:32-39 . The seventh to Dan, #Joshua 19:40-48 . The children of Israel give an inheritance to Joshua, #Joshua 19:49,50 . The division of the land finished, #Joshua 19:51 . Ver. 1.

Compare the entrance of the high priest into the holy of holies on the day of atonement, Leviticus 16:2 , Leviticus 16:13 . For special appearances of this glory in the tabernacle, see Numbers 14:10 ; Numbers 16:19 , Numbers 16:42 . The tabernacle, after it had accompanied the Israelites in their wanderings in the wilderness, was most probably first set up in the holy land at Gilgal Joshua 4:19; Joshua 5:10; Joshua 9:6; Joshua 10:6, Joshua 10:43. But before the death of Joshua, it was erected at Shiloh Joshua 18:1; Joshua 19:51. Here it remained as the national sanctuary throughout the time of the Judges Jos 18:8; Joshua 21:2; Joshua 22:19; Judges 18:31; Judges 21:19; 1 Samuel 1:3; 1 Samuel 4:3. But its external construction was at this time somewhat changed, and doors, strictly so called, had taken the place of the entrance curtain 1 Samuel 3:15 : hence, it seems to have been sometimes called the temple 1 Samuel 1:9; 1 Samuel 3:3, the name by which the structure of Solomon was afterward commonly known. After the time of Eli it was removed to Nob in the canton of Benjamin, not far from Jerusalem 1 Samuel 21:1-9. From thence, in the time of David, it was removed to Gibeon 1 Chronicles 16:39; 1 Chronicles 21:29; 2 Chronicles 1:3; 1 Kings 3:4; 1 Kings 9:2. It was brought from Gibeon to Jerusalem by Solomon 1 Kings 8:4. After this, it disappears from the narrative of Scripture.