Joshua 13-14

CHAPTER 13:
         Verses 1-6: Despite all of the victories in the military campaign thus far, there still remains for Israel much of the promised land left to conquer and subdue. (v.2-6) But Joshua is now old and close to the end of his life. (v.1) God promises him that He will drive out of the remaining land Israel’s enemies, but Joshua’s only responsibility now is to properly divide the land Israel has conquered thus far among the twelve tribes as originally instructed by God to Moses. (v.6) (Refer to the map above, courtesy of the Thomas Nelson KJV Study Bible.)
 
          Verses 7-14: This is a summary of the land east of the Jordan river that Moses granted to the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh. (Numbers 32:33, Deuteronomy 3:12-13) However, the Israelites failed to completely drive out the Geshurites and the Maachathites, as noted in verse 13. There’s also a reminder in verse 14 that the Levites are excluded from any land allotments and inheritance because of God’s decree to Moses that their service in the tabernacle is their unique privilege and inheritance from the LORD. (Numbers 18:20, 23-24, Deuteronomy 18:1)
 
            Verses 15 – 33: Now the author of Joshua goes into detail regarding the land given to Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh. This may seem tedious to modern readers, but remember that the point of the book of Joshua is the conquering and settling of the promised land by Israel. As such, passages like this one are designed to be an official record for future generations. Remember also that this was a custom for the people of this time living in the ANE, so while it may seem repetitive and somewhat dull to us today to read what has already been recorded in earlier books, it’s written here for good reasons.

CHAPTER 14:
         This chapter is divided into two parts: a summary of the division of the newly conquered promised land among the rest of the tribes on the western side of the Jordan River (v.1-5); and the special request by Caleb for the land of Hebron (v.6-15).
 
           Verses 1-5: The author gives a summary of the division of all the land west of the Jordan among the remaining nine and a half tribes. He confirms that Israel divides up the land according to lot, “…as the Lord commanded by the hand of Moses…”. (v.2) The same phrase is repeated in verse 5, affirming Israel’s obedience to all that Moses had instructed them, according to the word of the Lord. There’s also yet another reminder in verse 3 that the Levites have no land inheritance, and this is partly because of the two tribes that came out of the lineage of Joseph. (v.4) Only twelve tribes divided up the land, although there are technically thirteen tribes because of Joseph’s two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, hence the additional explanation for the reader in verses 3-4. The Levites have no land inheritance because God had set apart their men for the priesthood and full time service in the tabernacle as their inheritance. Instead, that tribe would be given specific cities and pastures for their dwelling and habitation as they served in the tabernacle. (v.4) (Numbers 35:2)
 
            Verses 6-15: Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, a Kenezite, (v.6) now appears on the page for the first time in the book of Joshua. Caleb’s heritage was first mentioned in Numbers 32:12, and the name “Kenizzite” first appears in Genesis 15:19 where God lists the foreign nations and peoples that are currently occupying the promised land which He will give to the descendants of Abraham. That means that Caleb is not a direct descendant of the twelve sons of Jacob, but because he is listed as a member of the tribe of Judah (Numbers 13:6) when Moses is naming and commissioning the twelve spies, we can logically infer that Caleb’s father or grandfather must have been absorbed into Israel at some point after the exodus from Egypt; or possibly even his great grandfather, at some point during the four hundred and thirty years of Israel’s slavery. There is continual mention throughout Exodus and Leviticus of the strangers that are not Israelites, many of whom came with them out of Egypt. It appears that Caleb and his ancestry fall into that category.
            Caleb comes to Joshua with a special request. He reminds Joshua of God’s promise to the two of them because of their faithfulness in the aftermath of the scouting mission that doomed all of Israel to wander for another thirty-eight years in the wilderness. All of that first generation, except for Caleb and Joshua, died because of their disobedience to God and their unfaithfulness. (v.8) But “…because thou hast wholly followed the LORD my God…” (v.9), Caleb was promised by Moses a portion of the promised land.
            In verse 7 Caleb states that he was forty years old when he was selected by Moses as one of the twelve spies. In verse 10, Caleb is now eighty-five years old, which means the conquest of the promised land took seven years. (Thirty-eight years total of wandering in the wilderness following the mission of the twelve spies.) Caleb affirms to Joshua that “…I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me…”. (v.11) He goes on to say that he is even ready for war today, just as he was forty-five years ago! The phrase “… to go out, and to come in…” means that he had returned from all his battles unharmed. It’s hard for us today to imagine an eighty-five year old man as healthy, fit and robust enough to lead an army into battle, but this is clearly the case as we will see in the coming verses.
          It also helps to keep in mind that this period in history was a much different time than our modern era today. Even with so many generations now come and gone since the global flood of Noah’s day, men and women still lived to be well over a hundred years old, primarily by the grace of God. It’s even one of His promises for all those that honor and obey their parents. (Exodus 20:12, Deuteronomy 5:16, Ephesians 6:1-3) So it shouldn’t be that surprising that both Caleb and Joshua were still mighty men of war even though they were both pushing ninety!
         Caleb’s request is for the land containing the city of Hebron (v.14) that is still currently occupied by the Anakim. (v.12) (Numbers 13:28, 33) (Refer back to the map at the top of this post.) Caleb’s faith is just as great as it was forty-five years earlier. He has no doubt that God is with him, and He will give Caleb and the army of Israel victory over the heathen giants that currently occupy that city. This is confirmed in verses 14-15. Hebron was originally named Kirjath-Arba after one of the giants that lived there. (v.15) Following Caleb’s victorious conquest of that city “…the land had rest from war.”
             Caleb’s faith and patience should be an example for all believers today. Sometimes we must wait several years – or even decades – for God’s promises in our lives to be fulfilled, and that is often a test or trial in and of itself. Our timing is rarely God’s timing, and we should never try to rush ahead nor lag behind. Instead, as we see with Caleb in this passage, we are to simply go where the LORD leads us, serving him faithfully and consistently each day wherever He has placed us until such time as He deems fit to fulfill His ultimate plan for our life. Waiting on God and His timing will always be worth the years of pain, struggle, and – often – tears! There is always joy in the morning, and God always rewards the faithfulness of His children, and always more bountifully than we could have imagined!