The Fallible · Synthetic · Study Bible
Lands Yet Unconquered
Joshua 13:1–7 — Lands Yet Unconquered. Each verse below carries the full apparatus: the Berean Standard Bible, the vocalized original (tap any word), and a parsed breakdown of every term transcribed from the interlinear. Synthesized commentary, canonical threads, and the reading of Christ gather at the end, over the whole unit.
1Now Joshua was old and well along in years, and the LORD said to him, “You are old and well along in years, but very much of the land remains to be possessed.
Berean Standard Bible · CC0
Hebrew — tap a word ↓
wî·hō·wō·šu·a‘ zā·qên bā bay·yā·mîm Yah·weh way·yō·mer ’ê·lāw ’at·tāh zā·qan·tāh bā·ṯā ḇay·yā·mîm mə·’ōḏ har·bêh- wə·hā·’ā·reṣ niš·’ă·rāh lə·riš·tāh
Literal — word-for-word from the original
And-Joshua [was] old, come into the-days; and-Yahweh said unto-him: "You are-old, [you have] come into the-days, and-the-land remains — very much [of it] — to-take-possession-of-it."
Where the English smooths the original
Joshua was now a very old man and had occupied seven years in the conquest. His work was over, and now he had only to take steps to secure the completion by others of the triumph which he would never see.
It is remarkable that we have here a distinct order given to Joshua to divide to Israel land which was not yet conquered.Ellicott marks the paradox the chapter turns on: the land is allotted before it is held.
It is good for those that are stricken in years to be reminded that they are so; that they may be quickened to do the work of life, and prepare for death, which is coming on apace.
Joshua is bidden to allot the whole of the promised land among the twelve tribes in faith that God would perfect in due time that expulsion of the Canaanites which Joshua himself could not carry further
2This is the land that remains: All the territory of the Philistines and the Geshurites,
Berean Standard Bible · CC0
Hebrew — tap a word ↓
zōṯ hā·’ā·reṣ han·niš·’ā·reṯ kāl- gə·lî·lō·wṯ hap·pə·liš·tîm wə·ḵāl hag·gə·šū·rî
Literal — word-for-word from the original
This [is] the-land that-remains: all the-circuits of-the-Philistines, and-all the-Geshurite[-territory];
Where the English smooths the original
This section forms a parenthesis, in which the historian briefly notices the districts yet unsubdued; namely, first, the whole country of the Philistines—a narrow tract stretching about sixty miles along the Mediterranean coast, and that of the Geshurites to the south of it
Literally, all the circles of the Philistines. Vulgate, “ Galilæa Philisthiim ;” “ Galilee of the Philistines ,” Luther.
Literally, all the circles (Geliloth) of the Philistines. The expression is found in several places in this book
3from the Shihor east of Egypt to the territory of Ekron on the north (considered to be Canaanite territory)—that of the five Philistine rulers of Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron, as well as that of the Avvites;
Berean Standard Bible · CC0
Hebrew — tap a word ↓
min- haš·šî·ḥō·wr ’ă·šer ‘al- pə·nê miṣ·ra·yim wə·‘aḏ gə·ḇūl ‘eq·rō·wn ṣā·p̄ō·w·nāh tê·ḥā·šêḇ lak·kə·na·‘ă·nî ḥă·mê·šeṯ p̄ə·liš·tîm sar·nê hā·‘az·zā·ṯî wə·hā·’aš·dō·w·ḏî hā·’eš·qə·lō·w·nî hag·git·tî wə·hā·‘eq·rō·w·nî wə·hā·‘aw·wîm
Literal — word-for-word from the original
from the-Shihor that [is] upon the-face-of Egypt, and-unto the-border-of Ekron northward, it-is-reckoned to-the-Canaanite — the-five axle-lords of-the-Philistines: the-Gazite, and-the-Ashdodite, the-Ashkelonite, the-Gittite, and-the-Ekronite; and-the-Avvites.
Where the English smooths the original
Lords - The Hebrew word סרן seren means "an axle," and is applied as a title special to the chiefs (compare Judges 3:3 and marginal references) of the Philistines
does not mean kings, but princes, and is interchangeable with שׂריםOn סרני, the axle-title of the Philistine lords.
The western strip of country beginning at Sihor, and extending northward to Ekron, was to be regarded as Canaanitish, and so subject to conquest; although the Philistines were not Canaanites, but were sprung from Mizraim ( Genesis 10:13 ) and had dispossessed the Canaanite Avites or Avim.
4to the south, all the land of the Canaanites, from Mearah of the Sidonians to Aphek, as far as the border of the Amorites;
Berean Standard Bible · CC0
Hebrew — tap a word ↓
mit·tê·mān kāl- ’e·reṣ hak·kə·na·‘ă·nî ū·mə·‘ā·rāh ’ă·šer laṣ·ṣî·ḏō·nîm ‘aḏ- ’ă·p̄ê·qāh ‘aḏ gə·ḇūl hā·’ĕ·mō·rî
Literal — word-for-word from the original
from-the-south, all the-land-of the-Canaanite, and-Mearah that [belongs] to-the-Sidonians, unto Aphek, as-far-as the-border-of the-Amorite;
Where the English smooths the original
Read "on the south," and connect the words with the verse preceding. They indicate the southern limit of the still unconquered territory in this neighborhood, as Joshua 13:3 gives the northern one.
The Amorites were a very strong and numerous people, and we find them dispersed in several parts, some within Jordan, and some without it, some in the south, and others in the north, of whom he speaks here.
The LXX. here gives a proper name, “from Teman.” This was the former southern limit of the Avites’ territory.
5the land of the Gebalites; and all Lebanon to the east, from Baal-gad below Mount Hermon to Lebo-hamath.
Berean Standard Bible · CC0
Hebrew — tap a word ↓
wə·hā·’ā·reṣ hag·giḇ·lî wə·ḵāl hal·lə·ḇā·nō·wn miz·raḥ haš·še·meš mib·ba·‘al gāḏ ta·ḥaṯ har- ḥer·mō·wn ‘aḏ lə·ḇō·w ḥă·māṯ
Literal — word-for-word from the original
and-the-land-of the-Gebalite, and-all the-Lebanon toward-the-rising-of the-sun, from-Baal-gad under Mount Hermon unto the-entering-of Hamath.
Where the English smooths the original
They were "stone-squarers" 1 Kings 5:18 and (ship) "caulkers" Ezekiel 27:9 .Barnes on the Gebalites/Giblites of Byblos.
The Gibites; a people dwelling near Sidon in Gebal, of which see 1 Kings 5:18 Ezekiel 27:9 .Poole names the same cross-references (1 Kings 5:18; Ezekiel 27:9) that anchor the Gebalite thread below.
The extreme northern boundary point of Palestine whither the spies originally penetrated ( Numbers 13:21 ), and to which the kingdom of David and Solomon once actually extendedOn "the entering in of Hamath."
This territory was never actually occupied by the Israelites
6All the inhabitants of the hill country from Lebanon to Misrephoth-maim—all the Sidonians—I Myself will drive out before the Israelites. Be sure to divide it by lot as an inheritance to Israel, as I have commanded you.
Berean Standard Bible · CC0
Hebrew — tap a word ↓
kāl- yō·šə·ḇê hā·hār min- hal·lə·ḇā·nō·wn ‘aḏ- miś·rə·p̄ōṯ ma·yim kāl- ṣî·ḏō·nîm ’ā·nō·ḵî ’ō·w·rî·šêm mip·pə·nê bə·nê yiś·rā·’êl raq hap·pi·le·hā bə·na·ḥă·lāh lə·yiś·rā·’êl ka·’ă·šer ṣiw·wî·ṯî·ḵā
Literal — word-for-word from the original
All the-inhabitants-of the-hill-country from the-Lebanon unto Misrephoth-maim, all the-Sidonians — I Myself will-dispossess-them from-before the-sons-of Israel; only cause-it-to-fall [by lot] to-Israel as-an-inheritance, as I-have-commanded-you.
Where the English smooths the original
From this we may learn to rely so perfectly upon the word of God, when undertaking any duty, as not to be deterred by doubts of fearsK&D close by quoting Calvin on the command to divide what is still unwon.
But the promise of driving them out from before the children of Israel, supposes that the Israelites must use their own endeavours, must go up against them. If Israel, through sloth or cowardice, let them alone, they are not likely to be driven out.
Though they be now unconquered, yet divide them, partly, as a pledge to assure them of my help in conquering them after thy death; partly, to lay an obligation upon the Israelites to proceed in conquering work
The fulfilment of this promise was conditional. In the event of the Israelites proving unfaithful or disobedient, they would not subdue the districts now specified; and, in point of fact, the Israelites never possessed them
7Now therefore divide this land as an inheritance to the nine tribes and the half-tribe of Manasseh.”
Berean Standard Bible · CC0
Hebrew — tap a word ↓
wə·‘at·tāh ḥal·lêq ’eṯ- haz·zōṯ hā·’ā·reṣ bə·na·ḥă·lāh lə·ṯiš·‘aṯ haš·šə·ḇā·ṭîm wa·ḥă·ṣî haš·šê·ḇeṭ ham·naš·šeh
Literal — word-for-word from the original
And-now, divide this the-land as-an-inheritance to-the-nine the-tribes and-the-half-of the-tribe of-the-Manasseh.
Where the English smooths the original
Both that which was conquered and that which remained unconquered was to be divided, that every tribe might know what belonged to them by God’s gift, and be encouraged to attempt the conquest of it when they were able
Joshua must be herein a type of Christ, who has not only conquered the gates of hell for us, but has opened to us the gates of heaven, and having purchased the eternal inheritance for all believers, will put them in possession of it.
each tribe received the possession predicted by Jacob (Ge 49:3-28) and by Moses (De 33:6-25).On the lot as the instrument by which prophecy was fulfilled.
Having the command and authority of God for it, he was to set about it at once, with all diligence and applicationGill on the urgency of the imperative ḥallêq — the standing charge demands action now, not further conquest.
The verse-by-verse work is done. What follows gathers the whole unit. All three layers below are machine-generated (⚙). Weigh them; they have no authority.
AI synthesis — woven from the public-domain voices above and the original text; generated and fallible.
The unit opens with God speaking a man's mortality back to him: "You are old, [you have] come into the days" (’at·tāh zā·qan·tāh bā·ṯā ḇay·yā·mîm). Ellicott insists the word is gentler than English suggests — "Old is too absolute a word... the Hebrew word here employed is used not so much in respect of the number of years men lived, but rather in regard to the weakening of the vital powers"; Joshua died at 110, "not a great age for the time." Benson draws the pastoral edge: "It is good for those that are stricken in years to be reminded that they are so; that they may be quickened to do the work of life, and prepare for death, which is coming on apace." Maclaren sets the scene whole: "Joshua was now a very old man and had occupied seven years in the conquest. His work was over, and now he had only to take steps to secure the completion by others of the triumph which he would never see." The verb that governs the rest of the chapter is niš·’ă·rāh ("remains," root shâʼar) — the land that is left over, very much of it, still lə·riš·tāh, "to be taken by dispossession."
Verses 2–6 are a parenthesis — Jamieson, Fausset & Brown: "This section forms a parenthesis, in which the historian briefly notices the districts yet unsubdued." The Hebrew is dense with rare survey-terms. The Philistine coast is gə·lî·lō·wṯ, "circuits" — The Pulpit Commentary: "Literally, all the circles (Geliloth) of the Philistines," the root behind Galilee. Their five chiefs are sar·nê, a title Barnes traces to its metaphor: "The Hebrew word סרן seren means 'an axle,'" the hubs on which the cities turn; Keil & Delitzsch add it "does not mean kings, but princes." Even the place-names hide common nouns: Mearah (v. 4) is mᵉʻârâh, "a cave," which is why Barnes can render "the 'cave'." The northern arc runs through the Gebalites — the Phoenician masons of Byblos who, Barnes notes, "were 'stone-squarers' (1 Kings 5:18) and (ship) 'caulkers' (Ezekiel 27:9)" — up to "the entering in of Hamath," which Cambridge calls "the extreme northern boundary point of Palestine." Every name on this list is a name Israel does not yet hold.
The paradox the chapter turns on is stated by Ellicott: "It is remarkable that we have here a distinct order given to Joshua to divide to Israel land which was not yet conquered." The ground is divided before it is held — because the dispossessing belongs to God: "I Myself will dispossess them" (’ā·nō·ḵî ’ō·w·rî·šêm), the emphatic pronoun before the Hiphil of yârash. The command is then guarded by the restrictive raq — Keil & Delitzsch gloss it "only, i.e., although thou hast not yet taken it," closing with Calvin's counsel "to rely so perfectly upon the word of God... as not to be deterred by doubts of fears." Yet the promise is not unconditional. Jamieson, Fausset & Brown: "The fulfilment of this promise was conditional... in point of fact, the Israelites never possessed them." Benson holds both sides: "the promise of driving them out... supposes that the Israelites must use their own endeavours." Poole reads the early allotment as a triple instrument — "a pledge to assure them of my help," an "obligation upon the Israelites to proceed in conquering work," and "a wall of partition" against alliance. Then the long sentence begun in v. 1 finally closes (wə·‘at·tāh ḥal·lêq, "and now, divide"): apportion this land as a nachălâh, an inheritance, to the nine and a half tribes.
A fallible reading, offered to be tested (Sola Scriptura). The strangeness of Joshua 13 is that God commands a dying man to give away land that is still in enemy hands. The natural objection is the one Keil & Delitzsch name — Joshua "might very possibly suppose that... the time for allotting the land had not yet arrived." Scripture answers the objection by splitting one verb between two agents. The land must be taken by dispossession — yârash — and that same root is spoken twice over: in v. 1 it is Israel's unfinished task (lə·riš·tāh), and in v. 6 it is God's own pledge (’ō·w·rî·šêm, "I Myself will dispossess"). The conquest is therefore both already God's settled gift and not yet Israel's actual holding. Maclaren read the whole incident exactly here, naming as its two halves "The confident reckoning on complete possession" and "The vigorous effort animated by both the preceding" — for, he writes, "Efforts without hope are feeble; hope without effort is fallacious." The allotment of unwon ground is faith made visible — surveying as worship. And the structure is unblinkingly honest: by the chapter's own later admission and by Jamieson, Fausset & Brown's verdict, "the Israelites never possessed them." The inheritance was deeded in full and entered only in part. That gap — promise total, possession ragged — is not a flaw in the text but its theology, and it points past Joshua, who could not finish, to a deliverer who can.
The land was deeded in full and entered in part — and the same verb names both what God has already given and what Israel has not yet taken. (An interpretive line from the synthesis layer, not a verse of Scripture.)
AI-generated connections. Each carries a verification badge with a recorded basis; contested links are flagged.
Joshua 13:3 fixes the unconquered Philistine coast "unto the border of Ekron northward," naming both the place Ekron (‘eq·rō·wn) and its people, "the Ekronite" (‘eq·rō·w·nî). The same rare pair recurs at 1 Samuel 5:10, when the Philistines, terrified by the plague, send God's captured ark away — "and they sent the ark of God to Ekron... the Ekronites cried out." The Verifier records a genuinely verbal link: the two verses share ‘Eqrôwnîy ("Ekronite," found in only 2 verses in the whole canon) together with ‘Eqrôwn ("Ekron," 20 vv). The first is rare enough to carry real dependence. The thematic payoff is sharp: the city listed here as a Philistine stronghold Israel could not take is, in Samuel, the place the Philistines themselves cannot keep the ark — the unconquered frontier becomes the scene of the LORD's self-vindication among His enemies.
Joshua 13:3 · 1 Samuel 5:10
basis: Verifier-computed shared lexemes H6139 ʻEqrôwnîy (rare — 2 vv) + H6138 ʻEqrôwn (20 vv); the rarity of ʻEqrôwnîy confirms a verbal link, not mere thematic overlap
Among the lands left unsubdued (Joshua 13:5) is "the land of the Gebalite" (hag·giḇ·lî) — the men of Gebal, the Phoenician Byblos. The only other occurrence of this exact gentilic is 1 Kings 5:18, where "the builders of Solomon and the builders of Hiram and the Gebalites" (Giblites) dress the great stones for the temple. The Verifier ties the two verses by the single shared lexeme Giblîy ("Gebalite"), and it is markedly rare — present in just 2 verses canon-wide, which is what gives the link verbal weight. Barnes sees the trade carried in the name: "They were 'stone-squarers' (1 Kings 5:18) and (ship) 'caulkers' (Ezekiel 27:9)." The thread is quietly providential: a people Israel never conquered nonetheless served the LORD's house, their masonry — as Cambridge notes of the bevelled, iron-clamped stones — "probably the work of the Giblites."
Joshua 13:5 · 1 Kings 5:18
basis: Verifier-computed shared lexeme H1382 Giblîy (rare — 2 vv); the gentilic occurs in only two canonical verses, confirming a verbal link
Joshua 13:6 reaches "from Lebanon unto Misrephoth-maim" (miś·rə·p̄ōṯ ma·yim), the promontory marking the northern limit of the Sidonian coast. That landmark appears only one other time — Joshua 11:8, where, after the rout of the northern coalition at the Waters of Merom, Israel chased the fleeing kings "unto great Sidon, and unto Misrephoth-maim." The Verifier confirms a verbal tie through Misrᵉphôwth mayim itself (found in only 2 verses in all of Scripture), alongside the common preposition ‘ad ("unto," 1127 vv). The rare place-name is decisive. The link frames the chapter's logic: the very point Israel reached in the pursuit of 11:8 is, in 13:6, the boundary of land they have not yet taken — the war's furthest chase and the allotment's furthest claim meet at the same rock.
Joshua 13:6 · Joshua 11:8
basis: Verifier-computed shared lexeme H4956 Misrᵉphôwth mayim (rare — 2 vv), with H5704 ʻad (1127 vv); the unique place-name confirms a verbal link within Joshua
The peoples enumerated here as still-unsubdued — "the five axle-lords of the Philistines... and the Canaanite" (Joshua 13:3) — reappear as a named set in Judges 3:3: "five lords of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites... whom the LORD left, to prove Israel by them." The Verifier finds a shared pattern rather than a quotation: the two verses hold in common çeren ("axle-lord," 20 vv), Pᵉlishtîy ("Philistine," 244 vv), Kᵉnaʻanîy ("Canaanite," 71 vv), and châmêsh ("five," 272 vv) — frequent words whose combination marks the same roster. Because no single rare lexeme or citation-formula carries it, the tier is structural, not verbal. The theological link, however, is exact and editorial: what Joshua 13 records as land left undivided-in-fact, Judges 3 interprets as land left by design — "to prove Israel." The gap between deed and possession that this unit opens is the very probation the book of Judges narrates.
Joshua 13:3 · Judges 3:3
basis: Verifier-computed shared lexemes H5633 çeren (20 vv) + H6430 Pᵉlishtîy (244 vv) + H3669 Kᵉnaʻanîy (71 vv) + H2568 châmêsh (272 vv) — all common; the matched roster (not a rare lexeme) makes this a structural/thematic, not verbal, link
God's pledge in Joshua 13:6, "I Myself will dispossess them from before the sons of Israel" (’ā·nō·ḵî ’ō·w·rî·šêm mip·pə·nê bə·nê yiś·rā·’êl), restates the standing Mosaic promise of Deuteronomy 7:1, where the LORD "casts out many nations before you" (same root yârash, "to dispossess," before pânîym, "the face / presence"), and it is read forward into Judges 2:21, where God reverses the offer: "I also will not henceforth drive out any from before them." The Verifier ties all three by the shared common lexemes yârash ("dispossess," 204 vv) and pânîym ("before/face," 1892 vv) — frequent words, so the basis is structural rather than verbal. The motif is unmistakable: the dispossession Israel was charged to perform (vv. 1, 7), God here promises to perform (v. 6) on the law's terms (Deut 7:1), and Judges 2:21 shows the promise withdrawn when the condition Jamieson, Fausset & Brown flag — "conditional... the Israelites never possessed them" — was broken.
Joshua 13:6 · Deuteronomy 7:1 · Judges 2:21
basis: Verifier-computed shared lexemes H3423 yârash (204 vv) + H6440 pânîym (1892 vv) — both common; the recurring dispossession-formula is a shared motif, not a rare-lexeme quotation, so the tier is structural
AI-generated reading; weigh it against the text.
The chapter's whole tension — a leader at the end of his strength, commanded to deed an inheritance he cannot himself bring Israel into — was read by the older expositors as a figure of Christ. Matthew Henry states it on this very verse: "Joshua must be herein a type of Christ, who has not only conquered the gates of hell for us, but has opened to us the gates of heaven, and having purchased the eternal inheritance for all believers, will put them in possession of it." The name itself carries the figure: Yᵉhôwshûwaʻ ("Yahweh saves") is, in Greek, Iēsous — Jesus. Where the first Joshua aged and died with "very much land" still unwon (v. 1), the New Testament makes the structural point explicit at Hebrews 4:8: "if Joshua had given them rest, He would not have spoken later of another day" — the conquest-leader's inheritance was real but partial, pointing past itself to the rest secured in Christ. The land here is named a nachălâh (v. 7), an inheritance held by hereditary right; the New Testament gives believers "an inheritance incorruptible" in the risen Joshua who finishes what the first could not.
Joshua 13:1 · Joshua 13:7 · Hebrews 4:8
God commands the land allotted while it is still in enemy hands — "divide to Israel land which was not yet conquered," as Ellicott marks the paradox — and grounds the command on His own pledge, "I Myself will dispossess them" (v. 6). Maclaren read this as the very pattern of Christian hope: "a great part of Christian duty, and a great secret of Christian progress, is to familiarise ourselves with the hope of complete victory... complete conformity to Christ's character, complete appropriation of Christ's gifts." The structure — a possession legally guaranteed before it is experientially entered — is the New Testament's logic of the Spirit as "the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it" (Ephesians 1:14). This is not a verbal citation but a typological reading: the allotment of unwon Canaan figures the already/not-yet of salvation — deeded in full by God's word, entered by faith-driven effort, secured by the promise of the One who said "I Myself." It is offered as a figural correspondence, widely held among the expositors, not asserted from a shared Hebrew–Greek lexeme.
Joshua 13:6 · Joshua 13:7 · Ephesians 1:14
The biblical text is the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), public domain (CC0). Hebrew/Greek text, transliteration, morphology and Strong’s are transcribed from the Berean interlinear (CC0) + Strong’s lexicons (PD); the literal renderings, divergence notes, word notes and all synthesis are this tool’s own work (⚙) — fallible; verify them.
Named voices, quoted verbatim from public-domain works:
This unit is half geography, half charge, and its cross-references split accordingly. The strongest threads rest on rare proper names — Ekron/Ekronite (the gentilic in just 2 vv), the Gebalite (2 vv), Misrephoth-maim (2 vv) — whose recurrence elsewhere is unlikely to be coincidence, and the Verifier tiers them verbal on that basis. The two motif-threads (the "nations left to test Israel" of Judges 3:3, and the dispossession-promise of Deuteronomy 7:1 / Judges 2:21) are deliberately tiered only structural: they rest on common, high-frequency words (yârash, pânîym, Pᵉlishtîy, çeren, châmêsh) whose shared combination marks a real editorial connection but contains no rare lexeme or citation-formula to justify calling it a quotation. The Christ-readings are flagged as typological and ancient/widely-held, not verbal: the Joshua→Jesus and inheritance→inheritance correspondences are figural, argued from the name's meaning and the structure of promise-before-possession, never from a shared Hebrew–Greek Strong's number (a cross-Testament verbal link by shared Strong's is impossible across the two lexicons). Two honest text-critical notes belong to the verses themselves: Keil & Delitzsch and the LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate attach "from the south" (v. 4) to the close of v. 3 with the Avvites, against the Masoretic versification; and "Mearah" (v. 4) may be a place-name or the common noun "a cave" (Barnes reads the latter) — the translation itself is contested, so this synthesis names both. Finally: the standing directive to flag Joshua 1:5 → Hebrews 13:5 does not apply to this unit, which is Joshua chapter 13, not the verse Joshua 1:5; no such NT-quotation thread is in view here.
✦ = human, public-domain source, quoted and named. ⚙ = machine synthesis, to be verified. Flagged cross-references are left visible on purpose — the verifier working in the open. “Search the Scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” (Acts 17:11)