SERIES G --- THE PROMISED LAND --- LESSON 17

THE TABERNACLE

THE TABERNACLE AT SHILOH

From Joshua 18:1-10

The people of Israel had conquered enough of the new land to feel safe in setting up the tabernacle in a permanent place. They all met together at Shiloh to put their great tent at that place. Joshua spoke especially to the seven tribes that had not yet conquered the land assigned to them. [What are you waiting for?] Joshua asked. [Why don’t you conquer the land which Adonai has given you and drive out the people who live there? Each of your tribes will choose three men to go through the land to make a report. They will divide the land into seven parts and I will choose by lot which tribe shall get each part. Of course, the Levites will not have land assigned to them for they are YHVH’s priests. The tribes of Gad, Reuben and Manasseh will stay where they are, for their land has already been assigned to them east of the Jordan River, the land which Moses, YHVH’s servant, gave them.] The men went from each tribe with these orders from Joshua: [Go through the land and make a description of it. Come back to me and I will assign the land by casting lots here at Shiloh.] They went through the land and wrote a complete description of it, dividing it into seven parts and listing its cities. Then they returned to Joshua at Shiloh with this description. There at Shiloh, Joshua cast lots to decide which tribe should get each of the seven parts.

BENJAMIN’S LAND

From Joshua 18:11-28

Benjamin’s land lay between the land assigned to Judah and Joseph’s family. The northern boundary was described this way: Starting at the Jordan River, the boundary moved westward on the north side of Jericho. Continuing westward, it moved through the hill country, ending at the Wilderness of Beth-aven. From there, the western boundary moved southward to Luz, also known as Bethel, then to Ataroth-addar, in the hills near Lower Beth-horon. It went on past the mountain near Beth-horon and ended at Kiriath-baal, also called Kiriath-jearim, which was a city belonging to the tribe of Judah. The southern boundary moved from the edge of Kiriath-jearim to the Springs of Nephtoah. Then it moved in a south-eastern direction to the hill in the Valley of Ben-hinnoni north of the Valley of Rephaim, and then to the Valley of Hinnom, crossing by the city of Jerusalem, a Jebusite city, to En-rogel. From En-rogel, it went northeast to En-shemesh, then to Geliloth near the slope of Adummim, then down to the stone of Bohan the son of Reuben. The southern boundary continued eastward along the north side of the Arabah, then down into the Arabah. It went on southward past Beth-hoglah, ending at the northern part of the Dead Sea, where the Jordan River empties into it. The Jordan River formed the eastern boundary of Benjamin’s land. The following twenty-six cities lay within the land: Jericho, Beth-hoglah, Emek-keziz, Zemaraim, Bethel, Avvim, Parah, Ophrah, Chephar-ammoni, Ophni, Geba, Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth, Mizpeh, Chephirah, Mozah, Rekem, Irpeel, Taralah, Zela, Haeleph, Jebus or Jerusalem, Gibeah, and Kiriath-jearim. This land and its cities and villages formed the inheritance of the tribe of Benjamin.

COMMENTARY

BORDERS OF BENJAMIN

Throughout Joshua’s lifetime, the tabernacle had been moved from place to place with the Israelites. Now with the land conquered, it was located at Shiloh. It remained there for three or four hundred years. Through those years, YHVH’s people would worship Him at Shiloh. The first five Israelite tribes were well on the way to conquering their parts of Canaan and Joshua encouraged the remaining seven to start moving into the land. The lots selected Benjamin as the first. Benjamin’s territory was sandwiched between Ephraim in the north and Judah to the south. The eastern boundary was clearly defined by the Jordan River, but the border to the west was vague since the Philistines lived along the coast. The tribal cities marked on the map do not always fall within the borders as they are described in the Bible. This is for two reasons. One, borders occasionally shifted; two, the city lists were probably made up at a later time than the borders were described. Beth-hoglah or House of the Partridge and Emek-keziz, meaning Cut-Off Valley, were centred around Jericho. Bethel became the central city for seven other towns, including Zemaraim {Double Peak} and Chephat-ammoni {Ammonite Town}. Gibeon served as the main city for the central hill region to the west. The names of the cities in the area; Giba and Gibeah {both Hill}, Mizpeh {Watch-tower} and Ramah {Height}; suggest how hilly the terrain was. Some cities, like Rekem and Irpeel {both meaning YHVH Heals}, are unknown today. The city of Jebus, which later became Jerusalem, for a while was claimed by both Judah and Benjamin.