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Read Joshua Chapter 16

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1And the lot of the children of Joseph fell from Jordan by Jericho, unto the water of Jericho on the east, to the wilderness that goeth up from Jericho throughout mount Bethel,

2And goeth out from Bethel to Luz, and passeth along unto the borders of Archi to Ataroth,

3And goeth down westward to the coast of Japhleti, unto the coast of Bethhoron the nether, and to Gezer: and the goings out thereof are at the sea.

4So the children of Joseph, Manasseh and Ephraim, took their inheritance.

5And the border of the children of Ephraim according to their families was thus: even the border of their inheritance on the east side was Atarothaddar, unto Bethhoron the upper;

6And the border went out toward the sea to Michmethah on the north side; and the border went about eastward unto Taanathshiloh, and passed by it on the east to Janohah;

7And it went down from Janohah to Ataroth, and to Naarath, and came to Jericho, and went out at Jordan.

8The border went out from Tappuah westward unto the river Kanah; and the goings out thereof were at the sea. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Ephraim by their families.

9And the separate cities for the children of Ephraim were among the inheritance of the children of Manasseh, all the cities with their villages.

10And they drave not out the Canaanites that dwelt in Gezer: but the Canaanites dwell among the Ephraimites unto this day, and serve under tribute.

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Explanation

Joshua 16

In short

Joshua is dividing the promised land among the twelve tribes of Israel. This chapter describes the territory given to the descendants of Joseph, specifically to his two sons Ephraim and Manasseh. The text traces the borders of their land and notes that they did not completely remove the people who lived there before them.

What the text says

Verses 1 to 3 describe the outer boundary of Joseph's sons' territory. It runs from the Jordan River near Jericho, through the wilderness toward Bethel, and westward down to the sea, passing by Gezer.

Verse 4 states that Joseph's two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, received this inheritance.

Verses 5 to 8 give the specific borders of Ephraim's portion, naming places like Ataroth, Bethhoron, Michmethah, Janohah, and the river Kanah. The border goes from east to west and ends at the sea.

Verse 9 mentions that some Ephraim cities were scattered within Manasseh's territory.

Verse 10 reports that "they drave not out the Canaanites" who lived in Gezer. Instead, these Canaanites remained and worked "under tribute," which means they were forced laborers or subjects paying taxes.

Takeaways

  • Ephraim and Manasseh (Joseph's sons) received a large area of central land with clear boundaries.
  • The Ephraimites did not remove all the original inhabitants from their territory.
  • Some conquered people stayed in the land and served the Israelites under forced labor.

Explanation written with the help of AI. The Bible text above is not changed. Context and interpretation are flagged as such; always come back to the text itself.