Josué 15

Josué 15

Morris - Joshua had defeated "the king of Jerusalem" (Joshua 12:7,10), but apparently did not destroy the Jebusites. The Jebusites later returned to reoccupy their city. It was not until David's time that they were finally expelled permanently from Jerusalem (2 Samuel 5:5-9). ESV Study Bible note says the Jebusites live with the sons of Judah at Jerusalem until this day is disconcerting in at least two respects. First, it recalls Moses’ repeated warnings against allowing Canaanites to survive and live among the Israelites (see Joshua 6:17,18+). Second, it raises a theological question: how is it that the people of Judah “could not” drive out their foes? Surely the god of the Jebusites is not stronger than the God of Judah! This is not the first instance of failure to occupy (Joshua 13:13), and it will not be the last. In Joshua 17:12 the Manassites are unable to occupy certain towns because “the Canaanites persisted in dwelling in that land.” In Joshua 17:16 the Ephraimites cite Canaanite possession of “chariots of iron” as preventing them from taking the plains. These statements seem to be in tension with the dominant theological conviction of the book of Joshua that “the hand of the Lord is mighty” (Joshua 4:24) and with the divine promise to the leader Joshua that “No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life.... You shall cause this people to inherit the land” (Joshua 1:5-6). Joshua himself seems to agree with this assessment, insisting in Joshua 17:18 that “you shall drive out the Canaanites, though they have chariots of iron, and though they are strong.” Perhaps statements of what Israel “could not” do are to be read as early evidence of spiritual slippage—of failure to follow the Lord “wholly” (see Joshua 14:8)—which will become increasingly evident in the book of Judges. (ED: I AGREE -- THEY "COULD NOT" BECAUSE THEY "WOULD NOT!" ) (ESV Study Bible) Kenneth Gangel - Did they just get tired? Or perhaps lazy? Or just weary of constant warfare? We don't know the reason, but we do know they didn't finish the conquest. It's like walking the last part of a hill. Sometimes we just get tired of trying to serve God and live for him and grow spiritually and we just give up before the race is over. We condescend just to "live with" negative issues in our lives. This is the first "conquest motif" describing a tribe's failure to drive out the pagan peoples of Canaan from their territory. But this verse throws us off stride because the city of Jerusalem lay in Benjaminite territory not in Judah. As Howard explains: "Judges 1:21 is an almost verbatim repetition of this verse, except stating that Benjamin (not Judah) did not drive out the Jebusites. The reason for this dual assignment of the city undoubtedly is that Jerusalem sat astride the boundary between Benjamin and Judah, and it was not strongly identified with either tribe. On the one hand, Jerusalem was a Benjaminite city: in the Benjaminite tribal allotment, the boundary line runs "down the Hinnom Valley along the southern slope of the Jebusite city and so to En Rogel" (Josh. 18:16) and "the Jebusite city (that is, Jerusalem)" appears in the Benjaminite city list (18:28). On the other hand, Jerusalem also appears in the Judahite boundary list: the description in Joshua 15:8 uses almost the same language as is found in the Benjaminite list.... The solution to this difference in perspective lies in understanding that Judah's success [in driving out the Jebusites] may have been limited and temporary, while Benjamin's failure was total. In either case Jebusites and Israelites lived intermingled, according to Josh. 15:64 and Jdg. 1:21, and the city was not taken decisively by Israelites until the time of David, ca. 1003 b.c. (2Sa 5:5-10) (Howard, 343-44). (Holman Old Testament Commentary - Joshua) GEORGE BUSH - Notes Critical and Practical on the Book of Joshua - Chapter 15 63. The Jebusites—the children of Judah could not drive them out. Joshua had before taken the king of Jerusalem, but not the city. The part from which the Jebusites could not be dislodged was more particularly the stronghold of Zion, falling within the lot of Benjamin, which was not finally reduced till the time of David, 2 Sam. 5:6–10. As precisely the same thing is said of the children of Benjamin, Judg. 1:21, which is here said of the children of Judah, the inference is inevitable that part of Jerusalem was in the lot of Judah, and part in the lot of Benjamin. The inability of Judah to expel these Jebusites was owing solely to their own remissness and unbelief. If they had attempted it with vigor and resolution, if they had all had the undaunted spirit of Caleb, there is no reason to doubt that God would have been present with them to crown their efforts with success. QUESTION - Who were the Jebusites? ANSWER - When God promised to give Abraham a land for his descendants, it was described as being inhabited by many tribes, including the Jebusites (Genesis 15:18–21). Who were these people, and where did they come from? According to the Table of Nations in Genesis 10, the Jebusites were descended from Noah’s son Ham, through his son Canaan. They were one of the Amorite tribes who were placed under judgment by God for their wickedness (Genesis 15:16). God described their pagan worship as abominable practices (Deuteronomy 20:18), which may have included child sacrifice. As a result of that judgment, God told the Israelites to exterminate all of the Amorite tribes when they came into the land. The Israelites were also forbidden to intermarry with them, so the Jebusites would not pass on their pagan practices. The Jebusites dwelt in the hill country, with Jerusalem as one of their key cities (Numbers 13:29; Judges 19:10–11). The Jebusites’ name for “Jerusalem” was “Jebus,” and it retained that name until the time of King David (1 Chronicles 11:4–5). During the time of Joshua, the Jebusite king Adoni-zedek joined with four other Amorite kings to attack the Israelites at Gibeon (Joshua 10:5), but he was defeated and put to death. Later, the Jebusites joined with Jabin, king of Hazor, in a pitched battle against the Israelites, but they were also defeated by Joshua’s army (Joshua 11:3). Despite these defeats, the Jebusites continued to live in the hill country around Jerusalem for many generations. During the time of the judges, some Israelites began to intermarry with the Jebusites, causing God to bring judgment on the nation (Judges 3:5). When David became king of Israel, he attacked the Jebusites of Jerusalem (2 Samuel 5:6) and conquered the city, which then became known as the City of David. Apparently, David granted terms of peace with the remaining Jebusites, because he made a friendly deal with Araunah the Jebusite to purchase land for building the temple (2 Samuel 24:18–25). The Jebusites remained subjugated to Israel and were part of the forced labor Solomon later used for his building projects. Though they were allowed to live among the Israelites, the Jebusites and other Amorite tribes maintained their distinctive ways and thus became a continuing snare to the people of Israel. When Ezra the priest led a revival among the Jews who returned from the Babylonian captivity, he had to deal with the issue of intermarriage with Jebusites and others (Ezra 9:1). Ezra commanded the men of Israel to confess their sins and put away their pagan wives so that God would take away His wrath. After this, the Jebusites disappear from history; likely, they were absorbed into the other Gentile peoples who lived in the land of Israel. An extra-biblical reference to the Jebusites may be contained in one of the tablets discovered at Mari, in modern-day Syria. One cuneiform tablet mentions a people called the “Yabusiim,” which could very well be a reference to the Jebusites.GotQuestions.org Jebusites - 39x - Gen. 10:16; Gen. 15:21; Exod. 3:8; Exod. 3:17; Exod. 13:5; Exod. 23:23; Exod. 33:2; Exod. 34:11; Num. 13:29; Deut. 7:1; Deut. 20:17; Jos. 3:10; Jos. 9:1; Jos. 11:3; Jos. 12:8; Jos. 15:8; Jos. 15:63; Jos. 18:16; Jos. 18:28; Jos. 24:11; Jdg. 1:21; Jdg. 3:5; Jdg. 19:11; 2 Sam. 5:6; 2 Sam. 5:8; 2 Sam. 24:16; 2 Sam. 24:18; 1 Ki. 9:20; 1 Chr. 1:14; 1 Chr. 11:4; 1 Chr. 11:6; 1 Chr. 21:15; 1 Chr. 21:18; 1 Chr. 21:28; 2 Chr. 3:1; 2 Chr. 8:7; Ezr. 9:1; Neh. 9:8; Zech. 9:7 Jebusites - Holman Bible Dictionary Clan who originally controlled Jerusalem before David conquered the city. In the list of the descendants of Noah (Genesis 10:1 ) the Jebusites are traced through the line of Ham and Canaan and are listed alongside other clans such as the Amorites and Girgashites. In Joshua 10:1 , the king of Jerusalem, Adonizedek, is considered one of the five Amorite kings who fought against Joshua. In the time of the Judges, Jerusalem was attacked and burned by the men of Judah (Judges 1:8 ), but the Jebusites were not expelled. Centuries later David captured the city and made it his capital. David purchased a stone threshing-floor from a Jebusite named Araunah (2 Samuel 24:16-24 ), and this later became the site of Solomon's Temple. The remnants of the Jebusites became bondservants during Solomon's reign (1 Kings 9:20-21 ). Jebusite names appear to be Hurrian rather than Semitic. See Jerusalem . Cities Not Conquered by the Israelites TRIBES JOSHUA JUDGES PEOPLE CITIES Israelites in General Judah Jebusites Jerusalem Benjamin Jebusites Jerusalem W. Manasseh Canaanites Beth Shan, Taanach, Dor, Ibleam, Megiddo, Endor,* Naphoth* Ephraim Canaanites Gezer Zebulun Canaanites Kitron, Nahalol Asher Canaanites Acco, Sidon, Ahlab, Aczib, Helbah, Aphek, Rehob Naphtali Canaanites Beth Shemesh, Beth Anath Dan Amorites Leshem Note - This is a list of the so-called “Conquest Lacunae,” consisting primarily of cities the Israelites did not conquer (see Kallai, Historical Geography, 102–11). It differs from the list of “Remaining Lands,” which are listed together in Josh 13:2–6 and consist of territories the Israelites did not conquer (in addition to Kallai, see Na’aman, Borders and Districts, 39–73). (Source: David Howard - Joshua: An Exegetical and Theological Exposition of Holy Scripture Volume 5 The New American Commentary)