Deeper Commentary
Jos 14:1 These are the inheritances which the children of Israel
took in the land of Canaan, which Eleazar the priest, Joshua the son of
Nun, and the heads of the fathers’ houses of the tribes of the children of
Israel, distributed to them-
"Distributed" is s.w. "inheritance" or "inherit", and also
"possessed". I have noted elsewhere the difference between Joshua slaying
the kings, and Israel possessing or inheriting the land- which they
generally failed to do. But here we read that Joshua also 'inherited' it
to them. So much was done for them. We note too the king-priest
association, again looking ahead to the work and dual office of the Lord
Jesus.
Jos 14:2 by the lot of their inheritance, as Yahweh commanded by Moses,
for the nine tribes, and for the half-tribe-
See on :5. Joshua was very good at obedience to clear commandments (Josh.
4:10,17; 8:27; 10:40). But when he had to articulate his faith in God in
unexpected situations, e.g. when the ambassadors from Gibeon arrived, or
when the first attack on Ai failed, he seems to have performed poorly.
Legalistic obedience is no use in those cases when principles need to be
applied. Josh. 5:13,14 can be read as a rebuke of Joshua, wanting to boil
everything down to black and white, wanting to see God as either
personally for him or against him; when the essence is to seek to discern
and do God’s will. He very strictly adhered to God’s commandments with
legalistic obedience, e.g., about how to approach and deal with Jericho,
or how to cross the flooded Jordan and build an altar; and time and again,
we read in Joshua of how he strictly relayed and obeyed the Divine
commandments given by Moses (Josh. 8:31,33,35; 11:12,15,20; 14:2,5; 17:4;
21:2,8). Yet as with any literalistic or legally minded person, it was
hard for Joshua to apply the principles behind the laws to situations
which weren’t specifically addressed by Divine revelation, where
legalistic obedience wasn't what was required.
Jos 14:3 For Moses had given the inheritance of the two tribes and the
half-tribe beyond the Jordan; but to the Levites he gave no inheritance
among them-
The Levites had no material inheritance because "the
sacrifices of Yahweh the God of Israel... are his inheritance... Yahweh God
of Israel was their inheritance" (Josh. 13:14,33; Num. 18:20; Dt. 10:9;
18:2). Notice how "Yahweh" is put for what is sacrificed to Him. His very existence is an
imperative to sacrifice to Him, despising all material advantage in doing
so. Job comments that to make gold our hope and wealth our confidence is
to deny “the God that is above” (Job 31:24,28). To trust in material
wealth is effectively to proclaim ourselves atheists.
Jos 14:4 For the children of Joseph were two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim:
and they gave no portion to the Levites in the land, except towns to dwell
in, with their suburbs for their livestock and for their property-
The idea is that the number 12 was significant to God, and therefore
to replace the tribe of Levi, the tribe of Joseph was split into two
tribes.
Jos 14:5 The children of Israel did as Yahweh commanded Moses, and they
divided the land-
The division by lot (:2) presumably meant that the tribal areas were
defined and then distributed by lot. And then within those areas, each
family was given a specific inheritance.
Jos 14:6 Then the children of Judah drew near to Joshua in Gilgal. Caleb
the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, You know the thing that
Yahweh spoke to Moses the man of God concerning me and concerning you in
Kadesh Barnea-
Caleb was head of a household within the tribe of Judah. It could be
argued that he was directly related to Judah through Hezron and Pharez (1
Chron. 2:5,18,25). But "Kenizzite" (also Num. 32:12) could refer to the
Gentile tribe of Gen. 15:19; or to a man called Kenaz, memorialized by
Caleb naming his son with that same name (1 Chron. 4:15). And Jud. 1:13
could mean that Caleb's father was called Kenaz. Caleb means "dog", and
this is apparently alluded to when he is commended for faithfully
following Yahweh, as a dog would follow its master (:8; Num. 14:24). The
genealogies are constructed in such a way that they don't preclude Caleb
having been a Gentile who was fully accepted into the tribe of Judah.
Jos 14:7 I was forty years old when Moses the servant of Yahweh sent me
from Kadesh Barnea to spy out the land. I brought him word again as it was
in my heart-
We love Caleb for this. He as utterly persuaded, as he beheld the
high walled cities, that it was absolutely possible for Israel to take the
land- with God's help. LXX "I returned him an answer according to his
mind" suggests that his mind / heart and that of Moses were united; they
were both equally confident the land could be taken. But their heart /
mind is contrasted with that of the people (:8). It was all a matter of
the mind, and we see again the huge importance which the Bible attaches to
the heart, spiritual mindedness.
Jos 14:8 Nevertheless, my brothers who went up with me made the heart of
the people melt-
Yet the same phrase is used by Rahab of how the hearts of the
Canaanites melted at this time. They were both scared silly about each
other. The apparently insuperable obstacles to inheriting the Kingdom were
shown to be nothing at all- if approached in faith.
But I wholly followed Yahweh my God-
See on :6. Joshua and Caleb were earlier characterized by the comment that they
“wholly followed the Lord” when they went to spy out Canaan (Num. 14:24;
32:11,12; Dt. 1:36; Josh. 14:8,9,14), and urged Israel to go up and
inherit it. This refers to the way that the Angel had gone ahead of them,
and they faithfully followed where the Angel had gone, and believed that
Israel could follow that Angel wherever it led. When Israel finally did go
into the land, they were told that Joshua would ‘go before’ them, and they
were to follow him and thereby inherit the land (Dt. 31:3). From this we
see that circumstances repeat in our lives. As Joshua had been told to be
strong and of good courage in order to take the land, so he had to tell
others (Josh. 10:25). As God charged him to be courageous and obedient to
the book of the Law, so Joshua on his deathbed charged his people (Josh.
1:7,8 cp. 23:6). Joshua had faithfully followed, and now he became the
leader who was to be faithfully followed. Likewise, he led the Israelites
in battle whilst Moses stood on the hill with arms uplifted in prayer for
his success. And in capturing Ai, it was Joshua’s turn to stand on a hill
with arms uplifted [also in prayer?] whilst Israel fought. However, Joshua
seems to have somehow gotten out of synch with the Angel when he meets Him
in Josh. 5:14 and asks Him whether He is for or against Israel. We must
walk in step with the Spirit / Angel in our lives; and yet no matter how
much we’ve walked in step with Him, we can always allow pressure of
circumstances to let us fall out of step with Him.
Jos 14:9 Moses swore on that day saying, ‘Surely the land where you
walked shall be an inheritance to you and to your children forever,
because you have wholly followed Yahweh my God’-
But "forever" was conditional. For Hebron was in due course to be
captured by Gentile powers. Just as the promise of eternity for us is
conditional.
Jos 14:10 Now, behold, Yahweh has kept me alive as He spoke these
forty-five years, from the time that Yahweh spoke this word to Moses,
while Israel walked in the wilderness. Now, behold, I am eighty-five years
old today-
Comparing with :7, Joshua is saying that at this point, he has been
subduing Canaan for a period of five to seven years [if we include parts
of years as a year, as was the Hebrew style of reckoning, or if we
consider the wilderness journeys to have been 38 and not 40 years]. This was the
"long time" of Josh. 11:18.
Jos 14:11 As yet I am as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent
me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now for war, to go out
and to come in-
Caleb is confident that he is still strong enough to fight the
Canaanites living in Hebron and secure it. We might prefer however if he
had spoken more of God's blessing than of taking the inheritance in his
own strength. The first word for "strong" is different to that translated
"strength". It seems to refer to mental strength and the determination of
faith. And it was this which gave him his physical strength.
Joshua appears to have been only one of a group of
Moses' "young men", who moved around the camp running his errands (Ex.
24:5; Num. 11:27,28); as a similar group did for Nehemiah and Paul years
later. The young men of the New Testament were also characterized by their
love of the word (1 Jn. 2:14). Moses would have had a special fondness for
this generation who were to enter the land. A large part of the Law was
concerned with Israel's behaviour after they had settled in the land;
these would only have been relevant to that younger generation. It is
fitting that both Moses and Caleb (and Joshua?) maintained their youthful
vigour right up to their death (Dt. 34:7; Josh. 14:11).
Jos 14:12 Now therefore give me this hill country, of which Yahweh spoke
in that day-
Although not recorded in Num. 14:24; Dt. 1:36, it appears Caleb was
specifically promised Hebron at that time. Caleb had explored that area as
a spy (Num. 13:22) and taken a special liking to it. We see therefore his
spiritual ambition; 'this shall one day be mine'. And we can do the same,
as we in this life spy out our future inheritance.
For you heard in that day how the Anakim were there, and
great and fortified cities-
Caleb seems to have wanted to make a point; that even the fortified
mountain lair of the giants could be taken, even by an 85 year old. See on
:15.
It will surely be that Yahweh will be with me
and I shall drive them out, as Yahweh spoke-
"Drive them out" is s.w. "possess"; see on Josh. 13:1. Examples of spiritual ambition are inspirational; just as soldiers
inspire each other by their acts of bravery. Achsah followed her father
Caleb’s spiritual ambition in specifically asking for an inheritance in
the Kingdom (Josh. 14:12; 15:18); and this in turn inspired another woman
to ask for an inheritance soon afterwards (Josh. 17:4). And so it ought to
be in any healthy congregation of believers. Ponder the parallel between
Is. 51:1 and 7: “Hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye
that seek the Lord…hearken unto me, ye that know righteousness”. To know
God’s righteousness is to seek / follow it; of itself, it inspires us to
ambitiously seeking to attain it.
Caleb was a Gentile who became adopted into the tribe of Judah and
became a leader of the tribe. Yet he was graciously given an inheritance
in the land of Israel. By his spiritual ambition, he was granted Hebron as
his inheritance. He went up there and drove out the tribes with a faithful
zeal unmatched in Israel. And yet, he gave away that city- for Hebron
became a priestly city for the Levites to live in. He gave his place in
the Kingdom to others (Josh. 14:12)- that was the level of love this great
man reached.
Jos 14:13 Joshua blessed him; and he gave Hebron to Caleb the son of
Jephunneh for an inheritance-
On one level, we can quite rightly ask for material blessing, and the
Father is pleased that we should. But there is a higher level we can live
on, where requesting physical blessings doesn't figure so largely. We can
be like Caleb, who conquered Hebron (his part in the Kingdom) for himself
and then gave it to others (Josh. 14:12-14; 21:11). Many mature brethren realize
that their prayers place decreasing emphasis on requesting physical
blessing from God; be it safe-keeping, health etc.
Jos 14:14 Therefore Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of
Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day; because he wholly followed Yahweh the
God of Israel-
He zealously followed the Angel which went before him, and therefore he
obtained his inheritance which in prospect the Angel had prepared for him.
I would consider the book of Joshua to have largely been written by Joshua, under Divine inspiration, although edited [again under Divine inspiration] for the exiles. And the book of Judges likewise. For the exiles too were set to reestablish God's Kingdom in the land and to inherit it again as the Israelites first did. The phrase "to this day" occurs several times in Joshua / Judges, and appears to have different points of historical reference (Josh. 4:9; 5:9; 6:25; 7:26; 8:28,29; 9:27; 10:27; 13:13; 14:14; 15:63; 16:10; 22:3; 23:8,9; Jud. 1:26; 6:24; 10:4; 15:19; 18:12). I would explain this by saying that the book was edited a number of times and the remains of those edits remain in the text. For God's word is living and made relevant by Him to every generation.
Jos 14:15 Now the name of Hebron before was Kiriath Arba, after the
greatest man among the Anakim. The land had rest from war-
As noted on the force of "For..." in :12,
Caleb seems to have wanted to make a point; that even the fortified
mountain lair of the giants, even the greatest giant, could be taken- even
by an 85 year old.
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