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Manasseh’s Western Inheritance
Joshua 17:1–18 — Manasseh’s Western Inheritance. 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 this was the allotment for the tribe of Manasseh as Joseph’s firstborn son, namely for Machir the firstborn of Manasseh and father of the Gileadites, who had received Gilead and Bashan because Machir was a man of war.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
way·hî hag·gō·w·rāl lə·maṭ·ṭêh mə·naš·šeh kî- hū yō·w·sêp̄ bə·ḵō·wr lə·mā·ḵîr bə·ḵō·wr mə·naš·šeh ’ă·ḇî hag·gil·‘āḏ way·hî- lōw hag·gil·‘āḏ wə·hab·bā·šān kî hū hā·yāh ’îš mil·ḥā·māh
Literal — word-for-word from the original
And the lot was for the tribe of Manasseh, for he was the firstborn of Joseph — for Machir the firstborn of Manasseh, father of the Gilead, for he was a man of war, and to him were Gilead and Bashan.
Where the English smooths the original
to Machir, the first-born of Manasseh ... to him were Gilead and Bashan assigned, because he was a man of war,
Thus, though Ephraim took precedence of Manasseh, according to the prediction of Joseph Genesis 48:20 , yet Manasseh received "the double portion" which was the special privilege of the first-born Deuteronomy 21:17 .
the proper possession of the tribe of Manasseh fell to Machir and his descendants only, because of their warlike spirit, and possibly on account of their numbers also.
the rest of the tribe now claimed a further grant of land in addition to what they had acquired by force of arms.
2So this allotment was for the rest of the descendants of Manasseh—the clans of Abiezer, Helek, Asriel, Shechem, Hepher, and Shemida. These are the other male descendants of the clans of Manasseh son of Joseph.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
way·hî han·nō·w·ṯā·rîm liḇ·nê mə·naš·šeh lə·miš·pə·ḥō·ṯām liḇ·nê ’ă·ḇî·‘e·zer wə·liḇ·nê- ḥê·leq wə·liḇ·nê ’aś·rî·’êl wə·liḇ·nê- še·ḵem wə·liḇ·nê- ḥê·p̄er wə·liḇ·nê šə·mî·ḏā‘ ’êl·leh haz·zə·ḵā·rîm bə·nê lə·miš·pə·ḥō·ṯām mə·naš·šeh ben- yō·w·sêp̄
Literal — word-for-word from the original
And it was for the rest of the sons of Manasseh by their clans — for the sons of Abiezer, and for the sons of Helek, and for the sons of Asriel, and for the sons of Shechem, and for the sons of Hepher, and for the sons of Shemida; these were the male children of Manasseh son of Joseph by their clans.
Where the English smooths the original
The descendants of Machir received their inheritance on the east of the Jordan, the descendants of Gilead on the west side, along with Ephraim. These— the rest of the children of Manasseh —were divided into six families.
Abiezer (see Judges 6:11 ; Judges 8:2 ). Gideon, therefore, was of the tribe of Manasseh. He is called Jeezer in Numbers 26:30 . The male children. Rather, the male descendants. None of the persons here mentioned were ( Numbers 26:30, 31 ; 1 Chronicles 7:18 ) the sons of Manasseh.
These were the male children: this expression is used to bring in what follows, concerning his female children.
3But Zelophehad son of Hepher (the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh) had no sons but only daughters. These are the names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
wə·liṣ·lā·p̄ə·ḥāḏ ben- ḥê·p̄er ben- gil·‘āḏ ben- mā·ḵîr ben- mə·naš·šeh hā·yū lōw lō- bā·nîm kî ’im- bā·nō·wṯ wə·’êl·leh šə·mō·wṯ bə·nō·ṯāw maḥ·lāh wə·nō·‘āh ḥā·ḡə·lāh mil·kāh wə·ṯir·ṣāh
Literal — word-for-word from the original
But Zelophehad son of Hepher, son of Gilead, son of Machir, son of Manasseh, had no sons, but daughters; and these are the names of his daughters: Mahlah, and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.
Where the English smooths the original
These daughters had petitioned Moses for a separate portion in the promised land, and their request had been granted ( Numbers 27:2 ., compared with Joshua 36 ). They therefore came before the committee appointed for dividing the land and repeated this promised, which as at once fulfilled.
He had been born during the bondage in Egypt, and came out thence with Moses, but died in the wilderness, as did the whole of that generation ( Numbers 14:35 ; Numbers 27:3 ). He died without male heirs.
Thus the name of Zelophehad, and the portion of land belonging to him, was not blotted out from the memory of his descendants.
The daughters of Zelophehad now reaped the benefit of their pious zeal and prudent forecast.Henry comments on the block vv. 1–6; this clause is his devotional gloss on the daughters' earlier petition (Numbers 27) now bearing fruit in the land-grant.
4They approached Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the leaders, and said, “The LORD commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among our brothers.” So Joshua gave them an inheritance among their father’s brothers, in keeping with the command of the LORD.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
wat·tiq·raḇ·nāh lip̄·nê ’el·‘ā·zār hak·kō·hên wə·lip̄·nê yə·hō·wō·šu·a‘ bin- nūn wə·lip̄·nê han·nə·śî·’îm lê·mōr Yah·weh ṣiw·wāh ’eṯ- mō·šeh lā·ṯeṯ- lā·nū na·ḥă·lāh bə·ṯō·wḵ ’a·ḥê·nū way·yit·tên lā·hem na·ḥă·lāh bə·ṯō·wḵ ’ă·ḇî·hen ’ă·ḥê ’el- pî Yah·weh
Literal — word-for-word from the original
And they drew near before Eleazar the priest, and before Joshua son of Nun, and before the leaders, saying, "Yahweh commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among our brothers." So, in keeping with the mouth of Yahweh, he gave them an inheritance among the brothers of their father.
Where the English smooths the original
In place of sons, Zelophehad had five daughters, and they, anxious that their father’s name should not perish, present themselves before Eleazar and Joshua, with a request for an inheritance.
He gave them, i.e. Eleazar, or Joshua, with the consent of the princes appointed for that work.
the Lord commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among our brethren; those of the same tribe with them; for upon their application to Moses he inquired of the Lord, who ordered him to grant their request, Numbers 27:1
5Thus ten shares fell to Manasseh, in addition to the land of Gilead and Bashan beyond the Jordan,
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
‘ă·śā·rāh ḥaḇ·lê- way·yip·pə·lū mə·naš·šeh lə·ḇaḏ mê·’e·reṣ hag·gil·‘āḏ wə·hab·bā·šān ’ă·šer mê·‘ê·ḇer lay·yar·dên
Literal — word-for-word from the original
And there fell ten portions to Manasseh, besides the land of Gilead and Bashan, which are beyond the Jordan;
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Literally, and the measured portions of Manasseh fell ten ( in number ). It will be observed that the descendants of Manasseh, exclusive of Hepher, are five in number. These, with the five portions allotted to the family of Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, made up ten.
Ten portions - i. e. five for the five families descended from the male children of Gilead, and five others for the five daughters of Zelophehad, who represented the sixth family, the Hepherites.
Ten portions, five for the sons, and five for the daughters; for as for Hepher, both he and his son Zelophehad were dead, and that without sons, and therefore he had no portion; but his daughters had several portions allotted to them.
6because the daughters of Manasseh received an inheritance among his sons. And the land of Gilead belonged to the rest of the sons of Manasseh.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
kî bə·nō·wṯ mə·naš·šeh nā·ḥă·lū na·ḥă·lāh bə·ṯō·wḵ bā·nāw wə·’e·reṣ hag·gil·‘āḏ hā·yə·ṯāh han·nō·w·ṯā·rîm liḇ·nê- mə·naš·šeh
Literal — word-for-word from the original
because the daughters of Manasseh received an inheritance among his sons; and the land of the Gilead belonged to the rest of the sons of Manasseh.
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Among his sons, i.e. no less than the sons; so their sex was no bar to their inheritance.
Which occasioned such a number of portions; the daughters of Zelophehad are meant, who descended from Manasseh
The ambiguity is due to the indefinite way in which "son" is used in Scripture. Thus the B'ne Israel, which we translate "children of Israel," is literally, "sons of Israel," or Jacob.
7Now the border of Manasseh went from Asher to Michmethath near Shechem, then southward to include the inhabitants of En-tappuah.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
ḡə·ḇūl- mə·naš·šeh way·hî mê·’ā·šêr ham·miḵ·mə·ṯāṯ ’ă·šer ‘al- pə·nê šə·ḵem hag·gə·ḇūl wə·hā·laḵ ’el- hay·yā·mîn ’el- yō·šə·ḇê ‘ên tap·pū·aḥ
Literal — word-for-word from the original
And the border of Manasseh was from Asher to Michmethath, which is before Shechem; and the border went to the right hand, to the inhabitants of En-tappuah.
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the southern boundary, which coincides with the northern boundary of Ephraim described in Joshua 16:6-8 , and is merely given here with greater precision in certain points. It went "from Asher to Michmethah, before Shechem." Asher is not the territory of the tribe of Asher, but a distinct locality
Not the tribe so called, but a place somewhere toward the eastern end of the boundary line here drawn: perhaps "Teyasir," on the road from Sichem to Beth-shean.
The southern boundary is here traced from the east. Asher (now Yasir), the starting point, was a town fifteen Roman miles east of Shechem, and anciently a place of importance.
8The region of Tappuah belonged to Manasseh, but Tappuah itself, on the border of Manasseh, belonged to Ephraim.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
’e·reṣ tap·pū·aḥ hā·yə·ṯāh lim·naš·šeh wə·ṯap·pū·aḥ ’el- gə·ḇūl mə·naš·šeh liḇ·nê ’ep̄·rā·yim
Literal — word-for-word from the original
To Manasseh belonged the land of Tappuah, but Tappuah itself, on the border of Manasseh, belonged to the sons of Ephraim.
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The “land” of Tappuah fell to the lot of Manasseh, the “city” to Ephraim.
all the fields and villages in it belonged to the tribe of Manasseh: but Tappuah on the border of Manasseh belonged to the children of Ephraim
Now Manasseh had the land of Tappuah: but {d} Tappuah on the border of Manasseh belonged to the children of Ephraim; (d) Meaning, the city itself.
9From there the border continued southward to the Brook of Kanah. There were cities belonging to Ephraim among the cities of Manasseh, but the border of Manasseh was on the north side of the brook and ended at the Sea.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
hag·gə·ḇūl wə·yā·raḏ neḡ·bāh na·ḥal qā·nāh lan·na·ḥal ‘ā·rîm hā·’êl·leh lə·’ep̄·ra·yim bə·ṯō·wḵ ‘ā·rê mə·naš·šeh ū·ḡə·ḇūl mə·naš·šeh miṣ·ṣə·p̄ō·wn lan·na·ḥal way·hî ṯō·ṣə·’ō·ṯāw hay·yām·māh
Literal — word-for-word from the original
And the border went down to the Brook of Kanah, southward of the brook. These cities belonged to Ephraim, among the cities of Manasseh; and the border of Manasseh was on the north side of the brook, and its outgoings were at the Sea.
Where the English smooths the original
The intention seems to be to state that the cities lying south of the river, though within the limits of Manasseh, were in fact made over to Ephraim, and were among the "separate cities" Joshua 16:9 . On the contrary, the north bank of the river, both land and towns, belonged to Manasseh exclusively.
The line which separated the possessions of the two brothers from each other ran to the south of the stream. Thus the river was in the territory of Manasseh; but the cities which were upon the river, though all were within the limits of Manasseh's possessions, were assigned partly to Ephraim, and partly to Manasseh
By the coast of Manasseh is meant the cities inhabited by the Manassites; which were all on the north side of this river
10Ephraim’s territory was to the south, and Manasseh’s was to the north, having the Sea as its border and adjoining Asher on the north and Issachar on the east.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
lə·’ep̄·ra·yim neḡ·bāh lim·naš·šeh way·hî wə·ṣā·p̄ō·w·nāh hay·yām gə·ḇū·lōw yip̄·gə·‘ūn ū·ḇə·’ā·šêr miṣ·ṣā·p̄ō·wn ū·ḇə·yiś·śā·š·ḵār mim·miz·rāḥ
Literal — word-for-word from the original
Southward it was Ephraim's, and northward it was Manasseh's, and the Sea was his border; and they reached upon Asher on the north and Issachar on the east.
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Rather, they ( i.e. , the Manassites) impinged (this is the very same word as the Hebrew יִפְגְעוּ ), i.e. , "touched upon."
the northern border being treated here as common to the two) reached unto Asher." (See the map.) The northern border is only indicated in general terms, perhaps because the Israelites were not yet completely masters of this part of the country, and so had not precisely determined it.
In Asher, i.e. upon the tribe of Asher; for though Zebulun came between Asher and them for the greatest part of their land, yet it seems there were some necks or parcels of land, both of Ephraim’s and of Manasseh’s, which jutted out farther than the rest, and touched the borders of Asher.
11Within Issachar and Asher, Manasseh was assigned Beth-shean, Ibleam, Dor (that is, Naphath), Endor, Taanach, and Megiddo, each with their surrounding settlements.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
bə·yiś·śā·š·ḵār ū·ḇə·’ā·šêr bêṯ- lim·naš·šeh way·hî šə·’ān ū·ḇə·nō·w·ṯe·hā wə·yiḇ·lə·‘ām ū·ḇə·nō·w·ṯe·hā wə·’eṯ- yō·šə·ḇê ḏōr ū·ḇə·nō·w·ṯe·hā šə·lō·šeṯ han·nā·p̄eṯ wə·yō·šə·ḇê ‘ên- dōr ū·ḇə·nō·ṯe·hā wə·yō·šə·ḇê ṯa‘·naḵ ū·ḇə·nō·ṯe·hā wə·yō·šə·ḇê mə·ḡid·dōw ū·ḇə·nō·w·ṯe·hā
Literal — word-for-word from the original
And Manasseh had in Issachar and in Asher Beth-shean and her daughters, and Ibleam and her daughters, and the inhabitants of Dor and her daughters, and the inhabitants of En-dor and her daughters, and the inhabitants of Taanach and her daughters, and the inhabitants of Megiddo and her daughters — three heights.
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Beth-shean and her towns—Greek, "Scythopolis" (now Beisan), in the valley of the Jordan, towards the east end of the plain of Jezreel. "Beth-shean" means "house of rest," so called from its being the halting place for caravans
Six cities are now enumerated, which Manasseh received beyond the borders of his own country in Issachar and Asher, but from which he failed to expel the Canaanites.
Three countries — The words may be rendered, the third part of that country
12But the descendants of Manasseh were unable to occupy these cities, because the Canaanites were determined to stay in this land.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
bə·nê mə·naš·šeh yā·ḵə·lū wə·lō lə·hō·w·rîš ’eṯ- hā·’êl·leh he·‘ā·rîm hak·kə·na·‘ă·nî way·yō·w·’el lā·še·ḇeṯ haz·zōṯ bā·’ā·reṣ
Literal — word-for-word from the original
But the sons of Manasseh were not able to dispossess these cities, and the Canaanite was determined to dwell in this land.
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Yet the children of Manasseh could not drive out those cities—probably due to indolence, a love of ease. Perhaps a mistaken humanity, arising from a disregard or forgetfulness of the divine command, and a decreasing principle of faith and zeal in the service of God, were the causes of their failure.
They willed to dwell there, in spite of their defeats, and their purpose was not frustrated.
For at first they lacked courage, and later agreed with them on condition, contrary to God's commandment.
they suffered the Canaanites to live among them, against the command of God, to serve their own ends.From Henry's note on vv. 7–13; he names the motive the narrative leaves implicit — a self-serving tolerance of what God commanded driven out.
13However, when the Israelites grew stronger, they put the Canaanites to forced labor; but they failed to drive them out completely.
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
way·hî kî bə·nê yiś·rā·’êl ḥā·zə·qū way·yit·tə·nū ’eṯ- hak·kə·na·‘ă·nî lā·mas lō wə·hō·w·rêš hō·w·rî·šōw
Literal — word-for-word from the original
However, when the sons of Israel grew strong, they put the Canaanite to forced labor; but they did not utterly drive him out — drive out, they did not drive out.
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they did not take away their lives, as they were commanded to do, but made them tributaries to them, which seems to arise from a covetous disposition, and done for the sake of gain
They made them tributary servants , but could not drive them out.
The Manassites were unable to exterminate the Canaanites from these six towns, and the districts round; but when they grew stronger, they made them tributary slaves
14Then the sons of Joseph said to Joshua, “Why have you given us only one portion as an inheritance? We have many people, because the LORD has blessed us abundantly.”
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
bə·nê yō·w·sêp̄ way·ḏab·bə·rū ’eṯ- yə·hō·wō·šu·a‘ lê·mōr mad·dū·a‘ nā·ṯat·tāh lî ’e·ḥāḏ wə·ḥe·ḇel ’e·ḥāḏ gō·w·rāl na·ḥă·lāh wa·’ă·nî rāḇ ‘am- ‘aḏ ’ă·šer- Yah·weh ‘aḏ- kōh bê·rə·ḵa·nî
Literal — word-for-word from the original
Then the sons of Joseph spoke to Joshua, saying, "Why have you given me one lot and one portion as an inheritance, and I am a numerous people, inasmuch as Yahweh has blessed me until now?"
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The children of Joseph seem therefore to exhibit here that arrogant and jealous spirit which elsewhere characterises their conduct ( Judges 8:1 ; Judges 12:1 ; 2 Samuel 19:41 ; 2 Chronicles 28:7 etc.).
they gave utterance to their dissatisfaction that Joshua had given them ("me," the house of Joseph, Joshua 17:17 ) but one lot, but one portion (חבל, a measure, then the land measured off), for an inheritance, although they were a strong and numerous people.
According to my father Jacob's prophecy, Ge 48:19.
expostulated with him, when they went and saw that portion which was allotted them, and found it much short of their expectation.
Joshua, as a public person, had no more regard to his own tribe than to any other, but would govern without favour or affection; wherein he has left a good example to all in public trusts.Henry on the block vv. 14–18; the point corroborates Barnes' note that Joshua, himself an Ephraimite, refused to favor his own kin.
15Joshua answered them, “If you have so many people that the hill country of Ephraim is too small for you, go to the forest and clear for yourself an area in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim.”
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
yə·hō·wō·šu·a‘ way·yō·mer ’ă·lê·hem ’im- ’at·tāh raḇ ‘am- kî- har- ’ep̄·rā·yim ’āṣ lə·ḵā ‘ă·lêh lə·ḵā hay·ya‘·rāh ū·ḇê·rê·ṯā lə·ḵā šām bə·’e·reṣ hap·pə·riz·zî wə·hā·rə·p̄ā·’îm
Literal — word-for-word from the original
And Joshua said to them, "If you are a numerous people, go up for yourself to the forest, and clear ground for yourself there in the land of the Perizzite and the Rephaim, since the hill country of Ephraim is too narrow for you."
Where the English smooths the original
There is a kind of delicate irony in Joshua’s reply. “Yes, it is true that thou art a numerous people, and hast great strength, and oughtest to have more than one share. But if thou wouldest have it, procure it for thyself! Rely on thine own power and resources!”
Joshua was himself of the tribe of Ephraim, but far from supporting the demands of his kinsmen he reproves them, and calls upon them to make good their great words by corresponding deeds of valor.
He retorts their own argument: Seeing thou art a great and numerous people, turn thy complaints into actions and valiant exploits, and enlarge thy borders by thy own hand, to which thou mayst confidently expect God’s assistance.
16“The hill country is not enough for us,” they replied, “and all the Canaanites who live in the valley have iron chariots, both in Beth-shean with its towns and in the Valley of Jezreel.”
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
hā·hār lō- yim·mā·ṣê lā·nū bə·nê yō·w·sêp̄ way·yō·mə·rū bə·ḵāl hak·kə·na·‘ă·nî hay·yō·šêḇ hā·‘ê·meq la·’ă·šer bə·ḇêṯ- bə·’e·reṣ- bar·zel wə·re·ḵeḇ šə·’ān ū·ḇə·nō·w·ṯe·hā wə·la·’ă·šer bə·‘ê·meq yiz·rə·‘el
Literal — word-for-word from the original
And the sons of Joseph said, "The hill country is not found enough for us, and iron chariots are with every Canaanite who dwells in the land of the valley — both those in Beth-shean and her daughters, and those in the Valley of Jezreel."
Where the English smooths the original
chariots of iron—unusually strengthened with that metal, and perhaps armed with projecting scythes.
The iron chariots of the Canaanites were objects of terror to the Israelites, see above, ch. Joshua 11:6-9 . They were the main reason why the Israelites could not establish themselves in the plain
The hill is not enough for us; if we should invade and conquer it, and cut down both wood and men, yet it would not be sufficient for us. Heb. The hill will not be found , i.e. obtained, by us
17So Joshua said to the house of Joseph—to Ephraim and Manasseh—“You have many people and great strength. You shall not have just one allotment,
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
yə·hō·wō·šu·a‘ way·yō·mer ’el- bêṯ yō·w·sêp̄ lə·’ep̄·ra·yim wə·lim·naš·šeh lê·mōr raḇ ’at·tāh ‘am- gā·ḏō·wl lāḵ wə·ḵō·aḥ lō- yih·yeh lə·ḵā ’e·ḥāḏ gō·w·rāl
Literal — word-for-word from the original
And Joshua said to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, "You are a numerous people and have great power; you shall not have one lot only,
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"Thou art a strong people, and hast great power; there will not be one lot to thee:" i.e., because thou art a numerous people and endowed with strength, there shall not remain one lot to thee, thou canst and wilt extend thine inheritance.
Joshua therefore contents himself, “with no less wisdom than patriotism,” by telling them that what more they won must be by their own exertions.
Thou needest and deservest more than that lot, of which thou art actually possessed, and thou hast power to get more; which if thou endeavourest to do, God will bless thee, and give thee more.
18because the hill country will be yours as well. It is a forest; clear it, and its farthest limits will be yours. Although the Canaanites have iron chariots and although they are strong, you can drive them out.”
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Hebrew — tap a word ↓
kî har yih·yeh- lāḵ kî- hū ya·‘ar ū·ḇê·rê·ṯōw tō·ṣə·’ō·ṯāw wə·hā·yāh lə·ḵā kî- kî bar·zel lōw re·ḵeḇ kî ḥā·zāq hū ṯō·w·rîš ’eṯ- hak·kə·na·‘ă·nî
Literal — word-for-word from the original
for the hill country will be yours; though it is a forest, you shall clear it, and its outgoings shall be yours; for you shall drive out the Canaanite, though he has iron chariots, though he is strong."
Where the English smooths the original
i. e. by dispossessing the Canaanites, thou shalt double the portion of land at thy disposal. The "but" with which the King James Version begins Joshua 17:18 should be "for."
Though they have war chariots, and are so formidable, yet wilt thou who art a great people and hast great power, drive them out. None of the tribes of Israel can compete with thee in strength!
for thou shalt drive out the Canaanites, though they have iron chariots, and though they be strong.
The valleys and fields belonging or adjoining to it, for there the Canaanites were, Joshua 17:16 .
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 chapter opens on a paradox the voices race to explain: Manasseh is named the firstborn of Joseph (v. 1), yet Ephraim has already taken precedence. The Hebrew hinges on a single ambiguous kî — and the commentators split. Joseph Benson reports that "Bishop Patrick thinks it ought to be" rendered though ("though he was the firstborn... yet Jacob had preferred Ephraim"), while Albert Barnes reads it as because: "though Ephraim took precedence of Manasseh, according to the prediction of Joseph Genesis 48:20 , yet Manasseh received 'the double portion' which was the special privilege of the first-born Deuteronomy 21:17 ." The double portion is not metaphor but map: Gilead and Bashan east of Jordan, plus a western allotment. Keil & Delitzsch press the grammar of ʼăbî hag-gilʻâd — because the country always takes the article and the man never does, "father" must mean "lord (possessor) of Gilead" — while The Pulpit Commentary answers that the article proves no such thing in Hebrew. The land falls to Machir's line, Keil notes, "because he was a man of war"; the warrior-clan earns by valor what the lot confirms by grace. The name Manasseh means forgetting (Genesis 41:51, which Cambridge quotes); the forgetter of toil receives a memory in the land.
Against six male families the narrator sets one man with no sons — Zelophehad — and five named daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, Tirzah. The Hebrew of v. 3 is emphatic, no sons, kî ʼim daughters, and the verb of v. 4 is feminine plural: the women step forward (wat-tiqraḇnâh) before Eleazar, Joshua, and the assembled chiefs, and they do not beg — they invoke a standing order, "Yahweh commanded Moses" (v. 4, ʼel-pî YHWH, "according to the mouth of Yahweh"). Cambridge reads their motive plainly: "anxious that their father's name should not perish, [they] present themselves before Eleazar and Joshua, with a request for an inheritance." Keil traces the back-story — they "had petitioned Moses for a separate portion... and their request had been granted (Numbers 27:2)" — and now "repeated this promise, which as at once fulfilled." The result is the strange total of v. 5: ten portions. Matthew Poole and Barnes agree on the math — five male families plus five daughters standing in for the dead Hepher's house. And v. 6 makes the principle explicit in a Hebrew figura etymologica, the daughters inherited an inheritance among his sons; Poole: "no less than the sons; so their sex was no bar to their inheritance." The Pulpit Commentary adds the lasting fruit: "the name of Zelophehad, and the portion of land belonging to him, was not blotted out." A case of equity legislated in Numbers is here written into the deed of the land.
The survey (vv. 7–11) traces Manasseh's line by towns and watercourses, and the first trap is a homonym. From Asher (v. 7) is not the tribe but a town; Barnes, JFB and Keil are unanimous — "Asher is not the territory of the tribe of Asher, but a distinct locality," "now Yasir," "fifteen Roman miles east of Shechem." The line bends "to the right hand" (hay-yâmîn, the south, in a body-oriented Hebrew compass), and the surveyor splits hairs: the land of Tappuah is Manasseh's, the city Ephraim's (Cambridge: "the 'land' of Tappuah fell to the lot of Manasseh, the 'city' to Ephraim"). The seam is so interwoven that Barnes calls v. 9 "possibly corrupt," with Ephraimite cities embedded "among the cities of Manasseh." And where the brothers meet the neighbors, the Hebrew verb is violent: The Pulpit Commentary renders yip̄gᵉʻûn as "impinged... touched upon" — the territories strike against Asher and Issachar. The list of v. 11 — Beth-shean, Ibleam, Dor, En-dor, Taanach, Megiddo, each "and her daughters" (the towns' dependent villages share the very word, bath, that named Zelophehad's heirs) — names the great fortress-cities of the plain. JFB glosses Beth-shean as "house of rest," the caravan halt; the catalog of strongholds is, in retrospect, a list of what Manasseh will fail to hold.
The strongholds turn to indictment. Manasseh "could not dispossess" the cities (v. 12, lōʼ yâḵᵉlû lᵉhôwrîš), and the Canaanite "willed to dwell" there (way-yôwʼel) — two opposed wills locked. The Pulpit Commentary corrects the old mistranslation: "They willed to dwell there, in spite of their defeats, and their purpose was not frustrated." JFB diagnoses the failure spiritually: "probably due to indolence, a love of ease... a disregard or forgetfulness of the divine command, and a decreasing principle of faith and zeal." Geneva is sharper still: "at first they lacked courage, and later agreed with them on condition, contrary to God's commandment." Then comes the bitter irony of v. 13, where the same root châzaq (grew strong) condemns them: when Israel "grew stronger" they put the Canaanite to forced labor (mas) rather than driving him out — and the Hebrew piles an infinitive-absolute on the negation, drive out, they did not drive out. John Gill exposes the motive: "made them tributaries... which seems to arise from a covetous disposition, and done for the sake of gain." Strength enough for tribute, never enough for obedience. The chapter has now set its two halves in tension: women who claimed what was promised, and warriors who would not.
The sons of Joseph come complaining — one lot, one measuring-line (chebel, the very rope that measured the daughters' fair portions in v. 5) is too little for so "great a people," since "Yahweh has blessed me" (v. 14). Barnes doubts the boast outright: the census shows Ephraim and Manasseh "were not greatly more numerous than the single tribe of Judah," and finds in them "that arrogant and jealous spirit which elsewhere characterises their conduct." Joshua — himself an Ephraimite, yet, Barnes notes, far from "supporting the demands of his kinsmen" — turns their own words on them. The reply drips with what Cambridge calls "a kind of delicate irony": "thou art a numerous people... But if thou wouldest have it, procure it for thyself! Rely on thine own power and resources!" He bids them go up for yourself, four times stamping the ethical dative lᵉḵâ, and clear the forest — the verb bârâʼ, the Genesis word for create, here "cut down the timber" — even in the land of "the giants" (Geneva, Gill). They plead iron chariots (v. 16); JFB grants the menace, "unusually strengthened with that metal, and perhaps armed with projecting scythes," and Cambridge that they were "objects of terror." Joshua concedes every premise and overrides all of them (vv. 17–18): "thou art a great people and hast great power" — your own claim — therefore "there shall not remain one lot to thee." Keil: "thou canst and wilt extend thine inheritance." The conjunction Barnes insists on ('for,' not 'but') makes the whole promise a logical ground: the forested hill is yours, clear it, and "thou shalt drive out the Canaanite" — the very verb (yârash) Manasseh "could not" perform in v. 12, now spoken as command and promise to the house that would not.
Read under Sola Scriptura, Joshua 17 is one chapter holding up two mirrors. In the first (vv. 1–6) five women with no legal standing and no army take God at His prior word and walk straight up to the high priest, the conqueror, and the council to claim what "the mouth of Yahweh" had granted — and they receive a full inheritance, named and recorded, "no less than the sons" (Poole). In the second (vv. 12–18) the largest and most blessed house in Israel, armed and numerous, could not drive out the Canaanite and then would not, settling instead for tribute money and a grievance against Joshua. The text never moralizes the contrast; it simply lays them side by side and lets the same vocabulary indict — the chebel (measuring-line) that gave the daughters their share is the "one lot" Joseph despises; the yârash (dispossess) Joseph cannot manage is the verb Joshua finally hands them as a promise. The lesson is not that faith is rewarded with ease but that faith acts on the word already given: the daughters claimed a promise and got land; Joseph was handed a promise — "the hill country will be yours... you shall drive them out, though they have iron chariots, though they are strong" — and balked at the labor of taking it. Blessing is not a license to demand more; it is power put into the hand to be spent. The chariots of iron were real. So was the word that said they would avail nothing.
The five daughters claimed a promise and received an inheritance; the great house of Joseph was handed a promise and bargained it down to tribute — and the chapter judges them by setting the two side by side, in the same words.
AI-generated connections. Each carries a verification badge with a recorded basis; contested links are flagged.
The five names of v. 3 — Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, Tirzah — are the rarest verbal fingerprint in this unit. They appear as a fixed cluster in only a handful of verses (Numbers 26:33; 27:1; 36:11), and the Verifier confirms a strong Hebrew↔Hebrew link to Numbers 36:11 and Numbers 26:33 on these very low-frequency proper names plus Tsᵉlophchâd itself. The earlier texts establish the law (a man dying without sons passes his inheritance to his daughters, who must marry within the tribe); Joshua 17:3–6 records its execution. This is not allusion but the same legal case carried from statute to fulfilment — the narrative deliberately re-cites the names so the reader sees Numbers' promise kept.
Numbers 27:1 · Numbers 36:11 · Numbers 26:33
basis: Verifier-confirmed Hebrew↔Hebrew link on rare shared lexemes: H4244 Machlâh (in 5 vv), H5270 Nôʻâh (in 4 vv), H2295 Choglâh (in 4 vv), H6765 Tsᵉlophchâd (in 9 vv), H4435 Milkâh (in 10 vv). The five-name cluster is a near-quotation of Numbers 26:33 / 36:11.
The catalog of v. 11 — Beth-shean, Ibleam, Dor, En-dor, Taanach, Megiddo — reappears almost verbatim in Judges 1:27, the parallel record of the unfinished conquest. The Verifier confirms a verbal Hebrew↔Hebrew link on a chain of rare place-names: Yiblᵉʻâm (Ibleam, in only 3 vv), Dôwr (Dor, H1756, 6 vv), Taʻănâk (Taanach, 7 vv), Bêyth Shᵉʼân (Beth-shean, 8 vv), and Mᵉgiddôwn (Megiddo, H4023, 12 vv). One member of the six is not shared — En-dor (ʻÊyn Dôʼr, H5874, distinct from Dor/H1756) is absent from Judges 1:27, so the lists overlap on five of six; we mark that rather than overstate it. Joshua 17:12–13 and Judges 1:27–28 tell the same failure in the same words — Manasseh "could not drive out" these cities and later set the Canaanite to tribute — so the verbal overlap is the Verifier's evidence that the two passages are one tradition: Joshua states the failure, Judges confesses its persistence. The same rare names recur as Solomon's administrative districts (1 Kings 4:12: Taanach, Megiddo, Beth-shean — Verifier-confirmed verbal link) and as the death-road of Ahaziah (2 Kings 9:27: Ibleam, Megiddo), so these fortress-towns become fixed landmarks of the later monarchy precisely where the conquest stalled.
Judges 1:27 · 1 Kings 4:12 · 2 Kings 9:27
basis: Verifier-confirmed Hebrew↔Hebrew link on rare shared place-names: H2991 Yiblᵉʻâm (3 vv), H1756 Dôwr (6 vv), H8590 Taʻănâk (7 vv), H1052 Bêyth Shᵉʼân (8 vv), H4023 Mᵉgiddôwn (12 vv) — five of the six cities shared with Judges 1:27 (En-dor / H5874 is the one not shared). Same rare-name cluster also verbally links 1 Kings 4:12 and 2 Kings 9:27.
Verse 13's pattern — Israel grows strong, sets the Canaanite to forced labor (mas), but does not dispossess him — recurs across the conquest accounts, most closely in Judges 1:28. The Verifier finds a Hebrew↔Hebrew link on the shared cluster maç (tribute, H4522, in 22 vv), yârash (dispossess, H3423), châzaq (grow strong, H2388), and Kᵉnaʻanî (Canaanite). Because these are pattern-words rather than a rare quotation, the tier is structural/thematic, not verbal: the link is a shared motif of compromised obedience — power used for profit instead of for the command of Deuteronomy 7:1 — not a unique citation.
Judges 1:28 · Joshua 16:10
basis: Verifier-confirmed Hebrew↔Hebrew shared lexemes H4522 maç (tribute, in 22 vv), H3669 Kᵉnaʻanîy (Canaanite, 71 vv), H3423 yârash (drive out, 204 vv), H2388 châzaq (grew strong, 266 vv) — pattern-words of the conquest left incomplete, not a rare quotation, so tiered structural.
The southern border of Manasseh in v. 7 is, in Keil's words, the very same line as "the northern boundary of Ephraim described in Joshua 16:6–8." The Verifier confirms it: a Hebrew↔Hebrew link to Joshua 16:6 on the place-name Mikmᵉthâth (Michmethath, in only 2 verses in all of Scripture) plus the boundary-word gᵉbûwl. Two tribal allotments are described from opposite sides of one shared frontier; the rare town Michmethath is the surveyor's fixed peg in both. The verbal overlap (a 2-verse hapax-class name) makes this a confirmed verbal link, not a guess.
Joshua 16:6 · Joshua 16:8
basis: Verifier-confirmed Hebrew↔Hebrew link on H4366 Mikmᵉthâth (Michmethath, in only 2 vv) + H1366 gᵉbûwl (border). The same boundary described from both Ephraim's (16:6) and Manasseh's (17:7) side.
Joseph's excuse — the valley-Canaanites have iron chariots (v. 16) — is the recurring obstacle of the lowland conquest, voiced almost identically in Judges 1:19 ("he could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had chariots of iron"). The Verifier confirms a Hebrew↔Hebrew link on ʻêmeq (valley, H6010), barzel (iron, H1270), rekeb (chariot, H7393), and har (hill). These are common-enough nouns that the tier is structural/thematic rather than a rare quotation, but the shared scene — hill winnable, plain ruled by iron chariots, faith faltering at the lowland — is unmistakable, and Joshua's reply ("thou shalt drive them out, though they have iron chariots") is the canonical rebuttal to the fear Judges 1:19 records as defeat.
Judges 1:19 · Joshua 11:2
basis: Verifier-confirmed Hebrew↔Hebrew shared lexemes H6010 ʻêmeq (valley, in 64 vv), H1270 barzel (iron, 70 vv), H7393 rekeb (chariot, 104 vv), H2022 har (hill). A shared scene/motif of the chariot-held plain, not a rare quotation — tiered structural.
The verse's insistence that Manasseh was "the firstborn of Joseph" (v. 1), even while Ephraim takes precedence, looks back to Genesis 48, where the dying Jacob crosses his hands to set the younger Ephraim above the elder Manasseh (48:14, 19–20). Geneva ties Joseph's claim of v. 14 directly to "my father Jacob's prophecy, Ge 48:19," and Barnes to "the prediction of Joseph Genesis 48:20." The Verifier finds only the common pronouns hûʼ and ʼâb shared with Genesis 48:19, so this is not a verbal link but a genuine narrative-theological one: the land-allotment of Joshua 17 is the working-out of the patriarchal blessing — firstborn rights and younger-son precedence held in the same tension the deed now records.
Genesis 48:19 · Genesis 48:14
basis: Verifier finds only high-frequency shared lexemes (H1931 hûwʼ, H1 ʼâb) with Genesis 48:19 — no rare verbal anchor — so the link is the shared narrative of the Joseph blessing (firstborn vs. precedence), tiered thematic, not verbal.
AI-generated reading; weigh it against the text.
The daughters of Zelophehad — who by default law could inherit nothing — are granted a full portion "among the brothers of their father" because the word of God was on their side. Read forward, the figure anticipates the gospel's reversal in which those with no standing become heirs: "if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to the promise" (Galatians 3:29), and "there is neither... male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28). In Christ the inheritance passes not by birthright or sex or merit but by promise claimed in faith — exactly the ground on which five women received their land. Because this is a Greek-to-Hebrew connection, the Verifier finds no shared original-language lexeme; the link is argued typologically, by figure and trajectory, not asserted as a verbal quotation.
Galatians 3:28 · Galatians 3:29 · Joshua 17:4
Joshua promises the doubting house of Joseph that the forested hill will be theirs and that they shall drive out the Canaanite "though he has iron chariots, though he is strong" (v. 18) — a victory secured by the word of the leader, contingent only on their going up to take it. Matthew Henry already draws the line forward from this very passage: "many of our cannots are only the language of idleness, which magnifies every difficulty and danger. This is especially the case in our spiritual work and warfare. Without Christ we can do nothing, but we are apt to sit still and attempt nothing." The pattern reaches its fulfilment in the One who bears Joshua's own name (Yēshûaʻ / Jesus), the captain of salvation who has already overcome the strong man and bids His people enter the inheritance He has won: "In the world you will have tribulation. But take courage; I have overcome the world" (John 16:33); "we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us" (Romans 8:37). The iron chariots that would "avail them nothing" (Cambridge) prefigure every strength arrayed against God's heirs, overcome not by their numbers but by their Leader's word. This is a Greek-to-Hebrew reading with no shared Strong's lexeme — the Verifier flags any Joshua 17:18 ↔ Romans 8:37 connection as carrying no verbal anchor — so it is offered as figure and type, to be tested, never as a quotation; Henry's gloss is the historic devotional warrant, not a verbal bridge.
John 16:33 · Romans 8:37 · Joshua 17:18
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:
Honesty notes specific to Joshua 17. (1) The opening kî of v. 1 is genuinely undecided in the sources. Benson (citing Bishop Patrick) reads though; Barnes and Gill read because; the syntax supports either, and the BSB's punctuation quietly chooses neither — we report the disagreement rather than resolve it. (2) "Father of Gilead" (v. 1) is a real crux. Keil & Delitzsch argue from the article that ʼâb means "lord/possessor," the Pulpit Commentary disputes that the article carries that weight in Hebrew; we name both and decide neither. (3) Verses 9 and 11 are textually rough. Barnes calls v. 9 "possibly corrupt"; the LXX adds and omits words the Pulpit notes; and "three heights" / šᵉlōšeṯ han-nâp̄eṯ (v. 11) is rendered variously — Benson even offers "the third part of that country." These belong to the transmitted text, not to our synthesis. (4) The cross-Testament threads (Galatians 3; John 16:33; Romans 8:37) carry no shared original-language lexeme — Greek cannot share a Hebrew Strong's number — so every Christ-link here is tiered typological/thematic and presented as figure to be tested, never as verbal quotation. The Verifier explicitly flags the Joshua 17:18 ↔ Romans 8:37 pair as having "no shared original-language lexeme." (5) This unit does not contain Joshua 1:5, so the standing Joshua 1:5 → Hebrews 13:5 flag does not apply here. (6) The thread tiers above are taken verbatim from the Verifier's computed bases: rare-lexeme links (the five daughters' names; the city-names; Michmethath) are tiered verbal; common-word motif links (tribute/Canaanite; iron-chariot valley) and pronoun-only links (Genesis 48) are tiered structural or thematic, deliberately under-claiming. (7) The v. 11 / Judges 1:27 city-list overlaps on five of six names, not all six. En-dor (ʻÊyn Dôʼr, H5874) is a distinct lexeme from Dor (H1756) and does not appear in Judges 1:27; the verbal badge rests on Ibleam, Dor, Taanach, Beth-shean, and Megiddo, and we say so rather than round up to a perfect match.
✦ = 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)