Josué 16

Josué 16

Meyer - Joshua 16:4 And the children of Joseph took their inheritance. What a wonderful wealth of blessing these children of Joseph came into! There were the precious things of heaven, the dew, and the deep that couched beneath; the precious fruits of the sun and of the growth of the moons; the metals of the ancient mountains and the everlasting hills; the precious things of the earth, and the fulness thereof, and, above all, the good will of Him that dwelt in the bush (Deuteronomy 33:13–16). Surely they were blessed with all manner of blessings — more than they had asked or thought! The rich gifts of God’s grace! An inheritance which could not have been won by their prowess or arms, but was the free gift of God’s love — to be taken and enjoyed! These things happened to them as types; the spiritual counterparts of all are ours in Christ. He is precious — nay, priceless: his promises are exceeding great and precious. The blood by which we were redeemed is precious, has meanings not yet explored; the very trial of our faith is precious as the gold taken from the everlasting hills. How much preciousness there is for us who believe! (1 Peter 2:7, R.V.). But we are poor, and wretched, and miserable, and blind, and naked, because we have not taken our inheritance. We need to do more than ask for it. He that asketh should not rest satisfied till he receiveth. We must take by a faith which claims, appropriates, employs. Open your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ, that He may cause you to receive and enjoy all his precious gifts. In Christ all things are yours: go in and possess; take your inheritance; believe that you do receive; thank Him, and go on your way rejoicing. Joshua 16:5 Now this was the territory of the sons of Ephraim according to their families: the border of their inheritance eastward was Ataroth-addar, as far as upper Beth-horon. Ataroth-addar: Jos 16:2 18:13 Joshua 16 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Map to help visualize descriptions of boundaries of Ephraim Zondervan Atlas of the Bible: C. Rasmussen (recommended resource) THE INHERITANCE FOR EPHRAIM The Zondervan Atlas of the Bible by Carl Rasmussen gives one of the best maps for helping to visualize these locations, albeit admittedly the exact location of many of the sites is not absolutely established. That said, the map locations correlate with the Scripture descriptions so that they would seem to be very close approximations. Rasmussen has a very helpful comment on Ephraim's borders - The second distribution was made to the tribe of Ephraim, the first son of Joseph. Only incomplete portions of its boundary description are given. Its southern boundary matched the northern one of Benjamin (Josh 16:1–5; Josh 18:12–13), while on the west it theoretically was blocked from the sea by the tribe of Dan (Josh 19:40–48). Its northwestern boundary along the Kanah Ravine was well defined (Josh 16:8; 17:7–10), while on the northeast and east fewer border points are provided. For most of its history, Ephraim was confined to the rugged mountainous area. Deep V-shaped valleys provided it with security and inaccessible areas (see pp. 46). Since no city list for the tribe of Ephraim is provided, relatively little is known about its population centers. In addition, some Ephraimites settled in the territory of Manasseh located to the north (Josh 16:9). ( Zondervan Atlas of the Bible) Madvig adds that "Although a disproportionate amount of space is devoted to Ephraim and Manasseh, the description of their territories is fragmentary and difficult to follow." (The Expositor's Bible Commentary Volume 3) Ephraim receives specific boundary limits for her land allotment in Joshua 16:5-9, beginning with the southern border of Ephraim. David Thompson points out that "Just as Jacob had predicted, Ephraim was awarded his blessings prior to Manasseh, even though Manasseh was older (Ge 48:14, 17, 20). Everything God does is done in precise conformity to His Word." Now this was the territory of the sons of Ephraim according to their families: the border of their inheritance eastward was Ataroth-addar (see map above), as far as upper Beth-horon (see map above) - The southern boundary of Ephraim’s inheritance is described briefly, since it has already been detailed from the perspective of Joseph’s lot in Joshua 16:1-4. Locate Beth-Horon on the map above - this description is of the southern border of Ephraim which on the map is somewhat rectangular shaped. Note that the word "allotment" is replaced by "inheritance" which more directly speaks of a sovereign arrangement the Lord has chosen to give to Ephraim. Joshua would have personal interest in this inheritance since this was his tribe of origin. Joshua 16:6 Then the border went westward at Michmethath on the north, and the border turned about eastward to Taanath-shiloh and continued beyond it to the east of Janoah. Michmethah: Jos 17:7 Taanathshiloh: Placed by Eusebius ten miles of Neapolis or Shechem. Jos 18:1 Janohah: Eusebius calls it [Iano,] in Acrabatene, twelve miles east from Neapolis. Joshua 16 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Then - In verse 5, the description of Ephraim’s border described the southern boundary, but now the description swings west but we do not know for sure where some of these boundaries were. NET Note - "It then extended on to the sea." Note that the NAS translation lacks the "on to the sea" which is found in ESV, NIV, NLT. The border went westward at Michmethath on the north The location of Michmethah is uncertain but in Joshua 17:7 it is located near Shechem (see possible location on map above). And the border turned about eastward to Taanath-shiloh (see map above) and continued beyond it to the east of Janoah (see map above).- This is the description of the northern border Ephraim’s portion and it is described in two parts, the first part in this passage, and then the second part in Joshua 16:7.