The Territory Assigned to Judah

¹The families of the tribe of Judah received a part of the land described as follows: The land reached south to the southernmost point of the wilderness of Zin, at the border of Edom.

²This southern border ran from the south end of the Dead Sea,

³went southward from the Akrabbim Pass and on to Zin. It ran south of Kadesh Barnea, past Hezron and up to Addar, turned toward Karka,

⁴went on to Azmon, and followed the stream on the border of Egypt to the Mediterranean Sea, where the border ended. That was the southern border of Judah.

⁵The eastern border was the Dead Sea, all the way up to the inlet where the Jordan empties into it. The northern border began there,

⁶extended up to Beth Hoglah, and went north of the ridge overlooking the Jordan Valley. Then it went up to the Stone of Bohan (Bohan was a son of Reuben),

⁷from Trouble Valley up to Debir, and then turned north toward Gilgal, which faces Adummim Pass on the south side of the valley. It then went on to the springs of Enshemesh, out to Enrogel,

⁸and up through Hinnom Valley on the south side of the hill where the Jebusite city of Jerusalem was located. The border then proceeded up to the top of the hill on the west side of Hinnom Valley, at the northern end of Rephaim Valley.

⁹From there it went to the Springs of Nephtoah and out to the cities near Mount Ephron. There it turned toward Baalah (or Kiriath Jearim),

¹⁰where it circled west of Baalah toward the hill country of Edom, went on the north side of Mount Jearim (or Chesalon), down to Beth Shemesh, and on past Timnah.

¹¹The border then went out to the hill north of Ekron, turned toward Shikkeron, past Mount Baalah, and on to Jamnia. It ended at the Mediterranean Sea,

¹²which formed the western border. Within these borders lived the people of the families of Judah.

Caleb Conquers Hebron and Debir

¹³As the Lord commanded Joshua, part of the territory of Judah was given to Caleb son of Jephunneh, from the tribe of Judah. He received Hebron, the city belonging to Arba, father of Anak.

¹⁴Caleb drove the descendants of Anak out of the city—the clans of Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai.

¹⁵From there he went to attack the people living in Debir. (This city used to be called Kiriath Sepher.)

¹⁶Caleb said, “I will give my daughter Achsah in marriage to the man who succeeds in capturing Kiriath Sepher.”

¹⁷Othniel, the son of Caleb's brother Kenaz, captured the city, so Caleb gave him his daughter Achsah in marriage.

¹⁸On the wedding day Othniel urged her to ask her father for a field. She got down from her donkey, and Caleb asked her what she wanted.

¹⁹She answered, “I want some water holes. The land you have given me is in the dry country.” So Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs.

The Cities of Judah

²⁰This is the land that the families of the tribe of Judah received as their possession.

²¹The cities farthest south that belonged to them, those that were near the border of Edom, were Kabzeel, Eder, Jagur,

²²Kinah, Dimonah, Adadah,

²³Kedesh, Hazor, Ithnan,

²⁴Ziph, Telem, Bealoth,

²⁵Hazor Hadattah, Kerioth Hezron (or Hazor),

²⁶Amam, Shema, Moladah,

²⁷Hazar Gaddah, Heshmon, Bethpelet,

²⁸Hazar Shual, Beersheba, Biziothiah,

²⁹Baalah, Iim, Ezem,

³⁰Eltolad, Chesil, Hormah,

³¹Ziklag, Madmannah, Sansannah,

³²Lebaoth, Shilhim, Ain, and Rimmon: twenty-nine cities in all, along with the towns around them.

³³The cities in the foothills were Eshtaol, Zorah, Ashnah,

³⁴Zanoah, Engannim, Tappuah, Enam,

³⁵Jarmuth, Adullam, Socoh, Azekah,

³⁶Shaaraim, Adithaim, Gederah, and Gederothaim: fourteen cities, along with the towns around them.

³⁷There were also Zenan, Hadashah, Migdalgad,

³⁸Dilean, Mizpah, Joktheel,

³⁹Lachish, Bozkath, Eglon,

⁴⁰Cabbon, Lahmam, Chitlish,

⁴¹Gederoth, Bethdagon, Naamah, and Makkedah: sixteen cities, along with the towns around them.

⁴²There were also Libnah, Ether, Ashan,

⁴³Iphtah, Ashnah, Nezib,

⁴⁴Keilah, Achzib, and Mareshah: nine cities, along with the towns around them.

⁴⁵There was Ekron with its towns and villages,

⁴⁶and all the cities and towns near Ashdod, from Ekron to the Mediterranean Sea.

⁴⁷There were Ashdod and Gaza, with their towns and villages, reaching to the stream on the border of Egypt and the coast of the Mediterranean Sea.

⁴⁸In the hill country there were Shamir, Jattir, Socoh,

⁴⁹Dannah, Kiriath Sepher (or Debir),

⁵⁰Anab, Eshtemoa, Anim,

⁵¹Goshen, Holon, and Giloh: eleven cities, along with the towns around them.

⁵²There were Arab, Dumah, Eshan,

⁵³Janim, Beth Tappuah, Aphekah,

⁵⁴Humtah, Hebron, and Zior: nine cities, along with the towns around them.

⁵⁵There were Maon, Carmel, Ziph, Juttah,

⁵⁶Jezreel, Jokdeam, Zanoah,

⁵⁷Kain, Gibeah, and Timnah: ten cities, along with the towns around them.

⁵⁸There were Halhul, Bethzur, Gedor,

⁵⁹Maarath, Bethanoth, and Eltekon: six cities, along with the towns around them.

⁶⁰There were Kiriath Baal (or Kiriath Jearim) and Rabbah: two cities, along with the towns around them.

⁶¹In the desert there were Beth Arabah, Middin, Secacah,

⁶²Nibshan, Salt City, and Engedi: six cities, along with the towns around them.

⁶³But the people of Judah were not able to drive out the Jebusites, who lived in Jerusalem. The Jebusites still live there with the people of Judah.

The Territory Assigned to Ephraim and West Manasseh

¹The southern boundary of the land assigned to the descendants of Joseph started from the Jordan near Jericho, at a point east of the springs of Jericho, and went into the desert. It went from Jericho up into the hill country as far as Bethel.

²From Bethel it went to Luz, passing on to Ataroth Addar, where the Archites lived.

³It then went west to the area of the Japhletites, as far as the area of Lower Beth Horon. It went on from there to Gezer and ended at the Mediterranean Sea.

⁴The descendants of Joseph, the tribes of Ephraim and West Manasseh, received this land as their possession.

Ephraim

⁵This was the territory of the Ephraimite families: their border ran from Ataroth Addar eastward to Upper Beth Horon,

⁶and from there to the Mediterranean Sea. Michmethath was on their north. East of there the border bent toward Taanath Shiloh and went past it on the east to Janoah.

⁷Then it went down from Janoah to Ataroth and Naarah, reaching Jericho and ending at the Jordan.

⁸The border went west from Tappuah to the stream Kanah and ended at the Mediterranean Sea. This was the land given to the families of the tribe of Ephraim as their possession,

⁹along with some towns and villages that were within the borders of Manasseh, but given to the Ephraimites.

¹⁰But they did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer, so the Canaanites have lived among the Ephraimites to this day, but they have been forced to work as slaves.

West Manasseh

¹A part of the land west of the Jordan was assigned to some of the families descended from Joseph's older son Manasseh. Machir, the father of Gilead, was Manasseh's oldest son and a military hero, so Gilead and Bashan, east of the Jordan, were assigned to him.

²Land west of the Jordan was assigned to the rest of the families of Manasseh: Abiezer, Helek, Asriel, Shechem, Hepher, and Shemida. These were male descendants of Manasseh son of Joseph, and they were heads of families.

³Zelophehad, son of Hepher, son of Gilead, son of Machir, son of Manasseh, did not have any sons, but only daughters. Their names were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.

⁴They went to Eleazar the priest and to Joshua son of Nun and to the leaders, and said, “The Lord commanded Moses to give us, as well as our male relatives, a part of the land to possess.” So, as the Lord had commanded, they were given land along with their male relatives.

⁵This is why Manasseh received ten shares in addition to Gilead and Bashan on the east side of the Jordan,

⁶since his female descendants as well as his male descendants were assigned land. The land of Gilead was assigned to the rest of the descendants of Manasseh.

⁷The territory of Manasseh reached from Asher to Michmethath, east of Shechem. The border then went south to include the people of Entappuah.

⁸The land around Tappuah belonged to Manasseh, but the town of Tappuah, on the border, belonged to the descendants of Ephraim.

⁹The border then went down to the stream Kanah. The cities south of the stream belonged to Ephraim, even though they were in the territory of Manasseh. The border of Manasseh proceeded along the north side of the stream and ended at the Mediterranean Sea.

¹⁰Ephraim was to the south, and Manasseh was to the north, with the Mediterranean Sea as their western border. Asher was to the northwest, and Issachar to the northeast.

¹¹Within the territories of Issachar and Asher, Manasseh possessed Beth Shan and Ibleam, along with their surrounding towns, as well as Dor (the one on the coast), Endor, Taanach, Megiddo, and their surrounding towns.

¹²The people of Manasseh, however, were not able to drive out the people living in those cities, so the Canaanites continued to live there.

¹³Even when the Israelites became stronger, they did not drive out all the Canaanites, but they did force them to work for them.

Ephraim and West Manasseh Request More Land

¹⁴The descendants of Joseph said to Joshua, “Why have you given us only one part of the land to possess as our own? There are very many of us because the Lord has blessed us.”

¹⁵Joshua answered, “If there are so many of you and the hill country of Ephraim is too small for you, then go into the forests and clear ground for yourselves in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim.”

¹⁶They replied, “The hill country is not big enough for us, but the Canaanites in the plains have iron chariots, both those who live in Beth Shan and its surrounding towns and those who live in Jezreel Valley.”

¹⁷Joshua said to the tribes of Ephraim and West Manasseh, “There are indeed many of you, and you are very powerful. You shall have more than one share.

¹⁸The hill country will be yours. Even though it is a forest, you will clear it and take possession of it from one end to the other. As for the Canaanites, you will drive them out, even though they do have iron chariots and are a strong people.”

The Division of the Rest of the Land

¹After they had conquered the land, the entire community of Israel assembled at Shiloh and set up the Tent of the Lord's presence.

²There were still seven tribes of the people of Israel who had not yet been assigned their share of the land.

³So Joshua said to the people of Israel, “How long are you going to wait before you go in and take the land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has given you?

⁴Let me have three men from each tribe. I will send them out over the whole country to map out the territory that they would like to have as their possession. Then they are to come back to me.

⁵The land will be divided among them in seven parts; Judah will stay in its territory in the south, and Joseph in its territory in the north.

⁶Write down a description of these seven divisions and bring it to me. Then I will draw lots to consult the Lord our God for you.

⁷The Levites, however, will not receive a share of the land with the rest of you, because their share is to serve as the Lord's priests. And of course, the tribes of Gad, Reuben, and East Manasseh have already received their land east of the Jordan, which Moses, the Lord's servant, gave to them.”

⁸The men went on their way to map out the land after Joshua had given them these instructions: “Go all over the land and map it out, and come back to me. And then here in Shiloh I will consult the Lord for you by drawing lots.”

⁹So the men went all over the land and set down in writing how they divided it into seven parts, making a list of the towns. Then they went back to Joshua in the camp at Shiloh.

¹⁰Joshua drew lots to consult the Lord for them, and assigned each of the remaining tribes of Israel a certain part of the land.

The Territory Assigned to Benjamin

¹¹The territory belonging to the families of the tribe of Benjamin was the first to be assigned. Their land lay between the tribes of Judah and Joseph.

¹²On the north their border began at the Jordan and then went up the slope north of Jericho and westward through the hill country as far as the desert of Bethaven.

¹³The border then went to the slope on the south side of Luz (also called Bethel), then down to Ataroth Addar, on the mountain south of Lower Beth Horon.

¹⁴The border then went in another direction, turning south from the western side of this mountain and going to Kiriath Baal (or Kiriath Jearim), which belongs to the tribe of Judah. This was the western border.

¹⁵The southern border started on the edge of Kiriath Jearim and went to the Springs of Nephtoah.

¹⁶It then went down to the foot of the mountain that overlooks Hinnom Valley, at the north end of Rephaim Valley. It then went south through Hinnom Valley, south of the Jebusite ridge, toward Enrogel.

¹⁷It then turned north to Enshemesh and then on to Geliloth, opposite Adummim Pass. The border then went down to the Stone of Bohan (Bohan was a son of Reuben)

¹⁸and passed north of the ridge overlooking the Jordan Valley. It then went down into the valley,

¹⁹passing north of the ridge of Beth Hoglah, and ended at the northern inlet on the Dead Sea, where the Jordan River empties into it. This was the southern border.

²⁰The Jordan was the eastern border. These were the borders of the land which the families of the tribe of Benjamin received as their possession.

²¹The cities belonging to the families of the tribe of Benjamin were Jericho, Beth Hoglah, Emek Keziz,

²²Beth Arabah, Zemaraim, Bethel,

²³Avvim, Parah, Ophrah,

²⁴Chepharammoni, Ophni, and Geba: twelve cities, along with the towns around them.

²⁵There were also Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth,

²⁶Mizpah, Chephirah, Mozah,

²⁷Rekem, Irpeel, Taralah,

²⁸Zela, Haeleph, Jebus (or Jerusalem), Gibeah, and Kiriath Jearim: fourteen cities, along with the towns around them. This is the land which the families of the tribe of Benjamin received as their possession.

A Prayer for Help

¹From the depths of my despair I call to you, Lord.

²Hear my cry, O Lord; listen to my call for help!

³If you kept a record of our sins, who could escape being condemned?

⁴But you forgive us, so that we should stand in awe of you.

⁵I wait eagerly for the Lord's help, and in his word I trust.

⁶I wait for the Lord more eagerly than sentries wait for the dawn— than sentries wait for the dawn.

⁷Israel, trust in the Lord, because his love is constant and he is always willing to save.

⁸He will save his people Israel from all their sins.