Jos 13:1-7 | TNotes | STEP | Summary for Josh 13:8-21:45: 13:1–21:45 As he had promised, God brought Israel into the land. Joshua next turned his attention to the allotment of the land to Israel’s tribes. • The tribal allotments gave geographical reality to the Israelites’ covenant with God and expressed the fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Because God owned the land, the apportionment to the tribes was a gift. God gave them the land to dwell in and directed its distribution. • In these lists of tribal allotments, the author describes some borders in such detail that they can be plotted on a map while others were far less well defined. Summary for Josh 13:1-7: 13:1-7 Israel did not conquer the entire land of Canaan while Joshua was alive. The unconquered areas, lying mostly in the valleys and plains, were the most populous regions. Several generations passed before Israel became strong enough to absorb or subjugate these regions and their peoples.

a13:1–21:45►

b13:1-7►

c13:2►

dDeut 2:23►

eAmos 9:7►

fJosh 12:5►

g13:3►

hDeut 2:23►

i13:4-6a►

jIsa 23:11►

kObad 1:20►

lActs 11:19►

m13:6b-7►

‏ Joshua 13:1-7

Summary for Josh 13:8-21:45: 13:1–21:45 ^a As he had promised, God brought Israel into the land. Joshua next turned his attention to the allotment of the land to Israel’s tribes.

• The tribal allotments gave geographical reality to the Israelites’ covenant with God and expressed the fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Because God owned the land, the apportionment to the tribes was a gift. God gave them the land to dwell in and directed its distribution.

• In these lists of tribal allotments, the author describes some borders in such detail that they can be plotted on a map while others were far less well defined.
Summary for Josh 13:1-7: 13:1-7 ^b Israel did not conquer the entire land of Canaan while Joshua was alive. The unconquered areas, lying mostly in the valleys and plains, were the most populous regions. Several generations passed before Israel became strong enough to absorb or subjugate these regions and their peoples.
13:2 ^c The Philistines were one of several groups in the great migration of the Sea Peoples from the Aegean region within a few decades after Israel’s entry into Canaan. They settled along the southwestern Mediterranean coast, west and southwest of Judah. They came from Caphtor or Crete (Deut 2:23 ^d; Amos 9:7 ^e).

• These Geshurites were people from a southern territory, not the northern Geshurites (cp. Josh 12:5 ^f).
13:3 ^g The stream of Shihor probably marked the traditional boundary between Canaan and Egypt, bisecting the northern Sinai Peninsula.

• The Philistine territory included five main cities: Gaza, Ashdod, and Ashkelon were on the Mediterranean coast, and Gath and Ekron were a few miles inland.

• The Philistines displaced the Avvites (Deut 2:23 ^h).
Summary for Josh 13:4-6: 13:4-6a ⁱ The Sidonians (that is, Phoenicians; see Isa 23:11 ^j; Obad 1:20 ^k; Acts 11:19 ^l) lived in the north along the coast, from north of Mount Carmel to above Gebal (Byblos). They also apparently occupied the Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon mountain ranges. Sidon was the dominant Phoenician city when Israel entered Canaan.
Summary for Josh 13:6-7: 13:6b-7 ^m The lands just listed had not yet been conquered, but God directed Joshua to show his faith by allotting them to the tribes against the future, when they would be taken.