Judah’s Inheritance

¹Now the allotment for the clans of the tribe of Judah extended to the border of Edom, to the Wilderness of Zin at the extreme southern boundary:

²Their southern border started at the bay on the southern tip of the Salt Sea,

³proceeded south of the Ascent of Akrabbim,continued on to Zin, went over to the south of Kadesh-barnea, ran past Hezron up to Addar, and curved toward Karka.

⁴It proceeded to Azmon, joined the Brook of Egypt, and ended at the Sea.This was theirsouthern border.

⁵The eastern border was the Salt Sea as far as the mouth of the Jordan.The northern border started from the bay of the sea at the mouth of the Jordan,

⁶went up to Beth-hoglah, proceeded north of Beth-arabah, and went up to the Stone of Bohan son of Reuben.

⁷Then the border went up to Debir from the Valley of Achor, turning north to Gilgal, which faces the Ascent of Adummim south of the ravine. It continued along the waters of En-shemesh and came out at En-rogel.

⁸From there the border went up the Valley of Ben-hinnom along the southern slope of the Jebusites (that is, Jerusalem) and ascended to the top of the hill that faces the Valley of Hinnom on the west, at the northern end of the Valley of Rephaim.

⁹From the hilltop the border curved to the spring of the Waters of Nephtoah, proceeded to the cities of Mount Ephron, and then bent around toward Baalah (that is, Kiriath-jearim).

¹⁰The border curled westward from Baalah to Mount Seir, ran along the northern slope of Mount Jearim (that is, Chesalon), went down to Beth-shemesh, and crossed to Timnah.

¹¹Then it went out to the northern slope of Ekron, curved toward Shikkeron, proceeded to Mount Baalah, went on to Jabneel, and ended at the Sea.

¹²And the western border was the coastline of the Great Sea.These are the boundaries around the clans of the descendants of Judah.

Caleb’s Portion and Conquest

¹³According to the LORD’s command to him, Joshua gave Caleb son of Jephunneh a portion among the sons of Judah—Kiriath-arba, that is, Hebron. (Arba was the forefather of Anak.)

¹⁴And Caleb drove out from there the three sons of Anak—the descendants of Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai, the children of Anak.

¹⁵From there he marched against the inhabitants of Debir (formerly known as Kiriath-sepher).

¹⁶And Caleb said, “To the man who strikes down Kiriath-sepher and captures it, I will give my daughter Acsah in marriage.”

¹⁷So Othniel son of Caleb’s brother Kenaz captured the city, and Caleb gave his daughter Acsah to him in marriage.

¹⁸One day Acsah came to Othniel and urged himto ask her father for a field. When she got off her donkey, Caleb asked her, “What do you desire?”

¹⁹“Give me a blessing,” she answered. “Since you have given me land in the Negev, give me springs of water as well.”So Caleb gave her both the upper and lower springs.

The Cities of Judah

²⁰This is the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Judah.

²¹These were the southernmost cities of the tribe of Judah in the Negev toward the border of Edom:Kabzeel, Eder, Jagur,

²²Kinah, Dimonah, Adadah,

²³Kedesh, Hazor, Ithnan,

²⁴Ziph, Telem, Bealoth,

²⁵Hazor-hadattah, Kerioth-hezron (that is, Hazor),

²⁶Amam, Shema, Moladah,

²⁷Hazar-gaddah, Heshmon, Beth-pelet,

²⁸Hazar-shual, Beersheba, Biziothiah,

²⁹Baalah, Iim, Ezem,

³⁰Eltolad, Chesil, Hormah,

³¹Ziklag, Madmannah, Sansannah,

³²Lebaoth, Shilhim, Ain, and Rimmon—twenty-nine cities in all, along with their villages.

³³These were in the foothills:Eshtaol, Zorah, Ashnah,

³⁴Zanoah, En-gannim, Tappuah, Enam,

³⁵Jarmuth, Adullam, Socoh, Azekah,

³⁶Shaaraim, Adithaim, and Gederah (or Gederothaim)—fourteen cities, along with their villages.

³⁷Zenan, Hadashah, Migdal-gad,

³⁸Dilan, Mizpeh, Joktheel,

³⁹Lachish, Bozkath, Eglon,

⁴⁰Cabbon, Lahmas, Chitlish,

⁴¹Gederoth, Beth-dagon, Naamah, and Makkedah—sixteen cities, along with their villages.

⁴²Libnah, Ether, Ashan,

⁴³Iphtah, Ashnah, Nezib,

⁴⁴Keilah, Achzib, and Mareshah—nine cities, along with their villages.

⁴⁵Ekron, with its towns and villages;

⁴⁶from Ekron to the sea, all the cities near Ashdod, along with their villages;

⁴⁷Ashdod, with its towns and villages; Gaza, with its towns and villages, as far as the Brook of Egypt and the coastline of the Great Sea.

⁴⁸These were in the hill country:Shamir, Jattir, Socoh,

⁴⁹Dannah, Kiriath-sannah (that is, Debir),

⁵⁰Anab, Eshtemoh, Anim,

⁵¹Goshen, Holon, and Giloh—eleven cities, along with their villages.

⁵²Arab, Dumah, Eshan,

⁵³Janim, Beth-tappuah, Aphekah,

⁵⁴Humtah, Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), and Zior—nine cities, along with their villages.

⁵⁵Maon, Carmel, Ziph, Juttah,

⁵⁶Jezreel, Jokdeam, Zanoah,

⁵⁷Kain, Gibeah, and Timnah—ten cities, along with their villages.

⁵⁸Halhul, Beth-zur, Gedor,

⁵⁹Maarath, Beth-anoth, and Eltekon—six cities, along with their villages.

⁶⁰Kiriath-baal (that is, Kiriath-jearim), and Rabbah—two cities, along with their villages.

⁶¹These were in the wilderness:Beth-arabah, Middin, Secacah,

⁶²Nibshan, the City of Salt, and En-gedi—six cities, along with their villages.

⁶³But the descendants of Judah could not drive out the Jebusites living in Jerusalem. So to this day the Jebusites live there among the descendants of Judah.

The Conquest of Canaan Proceeds

¹After the death of Joshua, the Israelites inquired of the LORD, “Who will be the first to go up and fight for us against the Canaanites?”

²“Judah shall go up,” answered the LORD. “Indeed, I have delivered the land into their hands.”

³Then the men of Judah said to their brothers the Simeonites, “Come up with us to our allotted territory, and let us fight against the Canaanites. And we likewise will go with you to your territory.” So the Simeonites went with them.

⁴When Judah attacked, the LORD delivered the Canaanites and Perizzites into their hands, and they struck down ten thousand men at Bezek.

⁵And there they found Adoni-bezek and fought against him, striking down the Canaanites and Perizzites.

⁶As Adoni-bezek fled, they pursued him, seized him, and cut off his thumbs and big toes.

⁷Then Adoni-bezek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off have gathered the scraps under my table. As I have done to them, so God has repaid me.” And they brought him to Jerusalem, where he died.

The Capture of Jerusalem and Hebron

⁸Then the men of Judah fought against Jerusalem and captured it. They put the city to the sword and set it on fire.

⁹Afterward, the men of Judah marched down to fight against the Canaanites living in the hill country, in the Negev, and in the foothills.

¹⁰Judah also marched against the Canaanites who were living in Hebron (formerly known as Kiriath-arba), and they struck down Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai.

¹¹From there they marched against the inhabitants of Debir (formerly known as Kiriath-sepher).

¹²And Caleb said, “To the man who strikes down Kiriath-sepher and captures it, I will give my daughter Acsah in marriage.”

¹³So Othniel son of Caleb’s younger brother Kenaz captured the city, and Caleb gave his daughter Acsah to him in marriage.

¹⁴One day Acsah came to Othniel and urged himto ask her father for a field. When she got off her donkey, Caleb asked her, “What do you desire?”

¹⁵“Give me a blessing,” she answered. “Since you have given me land in the Negev, give me springs of water as well.”So Caleb gave her both the upper and lower springs.

¹⁶Now the descendants of Moses’ father-in-law, the Kenite, went up with the men of Judah from the City of Palmsto the Wilderness of Judah in the Negev near Arad. They went to live among the people.

¹⁷Then the men of Judah went with their brothers the Simeonites, attacked the Canaanites living in Zephath, and devoted the city to destruction.So it was called Hormah.

¹⁸And Judah also capturedGaza, Ashkelon, and Ekron—each with its territory.

¹⁹The LORD was with Judah, and they took possession of the hill country; but they could not drive out the inhabitants of the plains because they had chariots of iron.

²⁰Just as Moses had promised, Judah gave Hebron to Caleb, who drove out the descendants of the three sons of Anak.

²¹The Benjamites, however, failed to drive out the Jebusites living in Jerusalem. So to this day the Jebusites live there among the Benjamites.

²²The house of Joseph also attacked Bethel, and the LORD was with them.

²³They sent spies to Bethel (formerly known as Luz),

²⁴and when the spies saw a man coming out of the city, they said to him, “Please show us how to get into the city, and we will treat you kindly.”

²⁵So the man showed them the entrance to the city, and they put the city to the sword but released that man and all his family.

²⁶And the man went to the land of the Hittites, built a city, and called it Luz, which is its name to this day.

The Failure to Complete the Conquest

²⁷At that time Manasseh failed to drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shean, Taanach, Dor, Ibleam, Megiddo, and their villages; for the Canaanites were determined to dwell in that land.

²⁸When Israel became stronger, they pressed the Canaanites into forced labor, but they never drove them out completely.

²⁹Ephraim also failed to drive out the Canaanites living in Gezer; so the Canaanites continued to dwell among them in Gezer.

³⁰Zebulun failed to drive out the inhabitants of Kitron and Nahalol; so the Canaanites lived among them and served as forced laborers.

³¹Asher failed to drive out the inhabitants of Acco, Sidon, Ahlab, Achzib, Helbah, Aphik, and Rehob.

³²So the Asherites lived among the Canaanite inhabitants of the land, because they did not drive them out.

³³Naphtali failed to drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and Beth-anath. So the Naphtalites also lived among the Canaanite inhabitants of the land, but the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and Beth-anath served them as forced laborers.

³⁴The Amorites forced the Danites into the hill country and did not allow them to come down into the plain.

³⁵And the Amorites were determined to dwell in Mount Heres, Aijalon, and Shaalbim. But when the house of Joseph grew in strength, they pressed the Amorites into forced labor.

³⁶And the border of the Amorites extended from the Ascent of Akrabbimto Sela and beyond.

Manasseh’s Western Inheritance

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.

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.

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.

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.

⁵Thus ten shares fell to Manasseh, in addition to the land of Gilead and Bashan beyond the Jordan,

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.

⁷Now the border of Manasseh went from Asher to Michmethath near Shechem, then southward to include the inhabitants of En-tappuah.

⁸The region of Tappuah belonged to Manasseh, but Tappuah itself, on the border of Manasseh, belonged to Ephraim.

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.

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.

¹¹Within Issachar and Asher, Manasseh was assigned Beth-shean, Ibleam, Dor (that is, Naphath), Endor, Taanach, and Megiddo, each with their surrounding settlements.

¹²But the descendants of Manasseh were unable to occupy these cities, because the Canaanites were determined to stay in this land.

¹³However, when the Israelites grew stronger, they put the Canaanites to forced labor; but they failed to drive them out completely.

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.”

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.”

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.”

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,

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.”

Israel’s Kingdom Blessing

¹My heart is steadfast, O God;I will sing and make music with all my being.

²Awake, O harp and lyre!I will awaken the dawn.

³I will praise You, O LORD, among the nations;I will sing Your praises among the peoples.

⁴For Your loving devotion extends beyond the heavens,and Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.

⁵Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;may Your glory cover all the earth.

⁶Respond and save us with Your right hand,that Your beloved may be delivered.

⁷God has spoken from His sanctuary:“I will triumph!I will parcel out Shechemand apportion the Valley of Succoth.

⁸Gilead is Mine, and Manasseh is Mine;Ephraim is My helmet, Judah is My scepter.

⁹Moab is My washbasin;upon Edom I toss My sandal;over Philistia I shout in triumph.”

¹⁰Who will bring me to the fortified city?Who will lead me to Edom?

¹¹Have You not rejected us, O God?Will You no longer march out, O God, with our armies?

¹²Give us aid against the enemy,for the help of man is worthless.

¹³With God we will perform with valor,and He will trample our enemies.