Jos 16:1 | MHM | STEP | Joshua 16:1 – The Lot of Joseph This section describes the land given to the descendants of Joseph. Joseph was not the oldest son of Jacob, but he was the oldest by Rachel, Jacob's favorite wife. Joseph was also Jacob’s favorite son and helped save his family during the famine (Genesis 41:56-57). Because of this, Joseph’s children received a special blessing. Their land was in the center of Canaan, stretching from the Jordan River in the east ( v. 1 ) all the way to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. This area was very fertile, just as Jacob and Moses had blessed it to be (Genesis 49:25-26; Deuteronomy 33:13-17 ). Unlike the other tribes, the Bible does not list the names of the cities given to Ephraim and Manasseh. Instead, only the borders are described. This might be because Joshua himself was from Joseph’s family, so the people trusted him to divide the cities fairly. That could be why the cities’ names were not listed like they were for other tribes.

b Gen.49.25 Gen.49.26 Deut.33.13-Deut.33.17

‏ Joshua 16:1

Joshua 16:1 – The Lot of Joseph

This section describes the land given to the descendants of Joseph. Joseph was not the oldest son of Jacob, but he was the oldest by Rachel, Jacob's favorite wife. Joseph was also Jacob’s favorite son and helped save his family during the famine (Genesis 41:56-57). Because of this, Joseph’s children received a special blessing. Their land was in the center of Canaan, stretching from the Jordan River in the east (v. 1 ^a) all the way to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. This area was very fertile, just as Jacob and Moses had blessed it to be (Genesis 49:25-26; Deuteronomy 33:13-17 ^b). Unlike the other tribes, the Bible does not list the names of the cities given to Ephraim and Manasseh. Instead, only the borders are described. This might be because Joshua himself was from Joseph’s family, so the people trusted him to divide the cities fairly. That could be why the cities’ names were not listed like they were for other tribes.