Joshua 19:23

The land given to the tribe of Issachar included much of the fertile Jezreel Valley. During Old Testament times, much of this valley was swampy land, surrounded by prosperous and important cities. This area was a center of Canaanite power, so this small tribe had trouble gaining control of the land at first.

The tribes of Zebulun and Issachar had lands in a strategic location. The main international trade route from Egypt to Mesopotamia passed through their territories. When Israel was strong, this location brought wealth. However, when Israel was weak, these tribes became exposed to attacks from Egyptian armies and Mesopotamian powers fighting for control of the ancient Near East.

The five small remaining tribes received land on the edges of Israelite territory and had little influence on the nation.

OF ISSACHAR. (Jos 19:17-23)

the fourth lot came out to Issachar--Instead of describing the boundaries of this tribe, the inspired historian gives a list of its principal cities. These cities are all in the eastern part of the plain of Esdraelon.

The lot of Issachar ran from Jordan in the east to the great sea in the west, Manasseh on the south, and Zebulun on the north. A numerous tribe, Num 26:25. Tola, one of the judges, was of this tribe, Jdg 10:1. So was Baasha, one of the kings of Israel, Kg1 15:27. The most considerable places in this tribe were, 1. Jezreel, in which was Ahab's palace, and near it Naboth's vineyard. 2. Shunem, where lived that good Shunamite that entertained Elisha. 3. The river Kishon, on the banks of which, in this tribe, Sisera was beaten by Deborah and Barak. 4. The mountains of Gilboa, on which Saul and Jonathan were slain, which were not far from Endor, where Saul consulted the witch. 5. The valley of Megiddo, where Josiah was slain near Hadad-rimmon, Kg2 23:29; Zac 12:11.

Joshua 19:10-31

10. And the third lot came up for the children of Zebulun according to their families: and the border of their inheritance was unto Sarid:

10. Ascendit autem sors tertia filiis Zabulon per familias suas: et fuit terminus haereditatis eorum usque ad Sarid.

11. And their border went up toward the sea, and Maralah, and reached to Dabbasheth, and reached to the river that is before Jokneam;

11. Ascenditque terminus eorum ad mare: et Maralah, et pertingit ad Dabbaseth: pervenitque ad flumen quod est e regione Jocneam.

12. And turned from Sarid eastward toward the sunrising unto the border of Chislothtabor, and then goeth out to Daberath, and goeth up to Japhia,

12. Revertiturque a Sarid ad orientem, id est, ad ortum solis, ad terminum Chisloth-Thabor, et illinc egreditur ad Dobrath, et ascendit in Japhia.

13. And from thence passes on along on the east to Gittahhepher, to Ittahkazin, and goeth out to Remmonmethoar to Neah;

13. Inde praeterea transit ad orientem, ad ortum, ad Githah-Hepher, et ad Ihtah-casin: et illinc exit in Rimmon, et gyrat ad Neah:

14. And the border compasseth it on the north side to Hannathon: and the outgoings thereof are in the valley of Jiphthahel:

14. Gyrat item idem terminus ab aquilone ad Hannathon: suntque egressus ejus ad vallem Iphthael.

15. And Kattath, and Nahallal, and Shimron, and Idalah, and Bethlehem: twelve cities with their villages.

15. Et Catthath, et Nahalal, et Simron, et Idalah, et Bethlehem: urbes duodecim, et villae earum.

16. This is the inheritance of the children of Zebulun according to their families, these cities with their villages.

16. Haec est haereditas filiorum Zabulon per familias suas: urbes istae, et villae earum.

17. And the fourth lot came out to Issachar, for the children of Issachar according to their families.

17. Ipsi Issachar egressa est sors quarta, filiis inquam, Issachar per familias suas.

18. And their border was toward Jezreel, and Chesulloth, and Shunem,

18. Et fuit terminus eorum Jezrael, et Chesuloth, et Sunem,

19. And Hapharaim, and Shion, and Anaharath,

19. Et Hapharaim, et Sion, et Anaharath,

20. And Rabbith, and Kishion, and Abez,

20. Et Rabbith, et Cicion, et Abeth,

21. And Remeth, and Engannim, and Enhaddah, and Bethpazzez;

21. Et Remeth, et Engannin, et Enhaddah, et Beth-passes.

22. And the coast reacheth to Tabor, and Shahazimah, and Bethshemesh; and the outgoings of their border were at Jordan: sixteen cities with their villages.

22. Et pervenit terminus in Thabor, et Sahasima, et Beth-semes: eruntque exitus termini eorum ad Jordanem: urbes sedecim, et villae earum.

23. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Issachar according to their families, the cities and their villages.

23. Haec est haereditas tribus filiorum Issachar per familias suas: urbes et villae earum.

24. And the fifth lot came out for the tribe of the children of Asher according to their families.

24. Egressa est autem sors quinta tribui filiorum Aser per familias suas.

25. And their border was Helkath, and Hali, and Beten, and Achshaph,

25. Fuitque terminus eorum Helcath, et Hali, et Bethen, et Achsaph,

26. And Alammelech, and Amad, and Misheal; and reacheth to Carmel westward, and to Shihorlibnath;

26. Et Alamelech, et Amad, et Misal, et pervenit in Carmel ad mare, et in Sihor Libnath.

27. And turns toward the sunrising to Bethdagon, and reacheth to Zebulun, and to the valley of Jiphthahel toward the north side of Bethemek, and Neiel, and goeth out to Cabul on the left hand,

27. Et revertitur ad ortum solis in Beth-dagon, et pervenit in Zabulon, et in vallem Iphtahel ad aquilonem, et in Beth-emec, et Neel: et exit ad Chabul a sinistra.

28. And Hebron, and Rehob, and Hammon, and Kanah, even unto great Zidon;

28. Et Ebron, et Rehob, et Hamon, et Canah, usque ad Sidon magnam:

29. And then the coast turns to Ramah, and to the strong city Tyre; and the coast turns to Hosah; and the outgoings thereof are at the sea from the coast to Achzib:

29. Revertiturque terminus in Rama, usque ad urbem munitam petrae: inde revertitur terminus in Hosah: suntque exitus ejus ad mare a funiculo Achzib,

30. Ummah also, and Aphek, and Rehob: twenty and two cities with their villages.

30. Et Ummah, et Aphec, et Rehob: urbes viginti duae, et villae earum.

31. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Asher according to their families, these cities with their villages.

31. Haec est haereditas tribus filiorum Aser per familias suas: urbes istae, et villae earum.

10. And the third lot came up, etc In the lot of Zebulun there is a clear fulfillment of the prophecy of Jacob, which had foretold that they would dwell on the sea-coast. An old man, an exile who could not set a foot on his own land, [168] assigned a maritime district to the posterity of his son Zebulun. What could be more extravagant? But now, when the lot assigns them a maritime region, no clearer confirmation of his decision could be desired. It was just as if God were twice thundering from heaven. The tribe of Zebulun, therefore, do not occupy the shore of their own accord or by human suffrage, but a divine arrangement fixes their habitation contiguous to the sea. Thus, although men erred, still the light was always seen shining brightly in the darkness. Jacob goes farther, and makes a clear distinction between Zebulun and Issachar. The former tribe will travel far and wide, carrying on trade and commerce; the latter remaining in his tents, will cultivate ease and a sedentary life. (Genesis 49:13-15) Hence it is probable that the sea-coast where Zebulun settled, was provided with harbors and well adapted for the various forms of commercial intercourse, [169] whereas the children of Issachar were contented with their own produce, and consumed the fruits which they had raised by their own labor and culture at home.

Those who are thought to be well acquainted with these countries, affirm that the land of the tribe of Asher was fertile in corn. [170] This is in complete accordance both with the letter and the spirit of Jacob's prophecy. (Genesis 49:20) From the fact that only a small number of cities are designated by name, we may infer that there were then many ruined cities which were not taken into account, and from the other fact that the people dwelt commodiously, we may also infer that they built many cities, with which it is plain from other passages that the land was adorned. And it is certainly apparent that only a summary of the division is briefly glanced at, and that thus many things were omitted which no religious feeling forbids us to investigate, provided we do not indulge in an excessive curiosity leading to no beneficial result. There cannot be a doubt that those to whom twenty or even only seventeen cities are attributed, had more extensive territories. Therefore, all we have here is a compendious description of the division as it was taken from the general and confused notes of the surveyors.

The next lot mentioned is that of Naphtali, and it seems to correspond with the disposition and manners of that tribe. For Jacob had testified, Naphtali is a hind let loose; he gave goodly words. For this reason they seem to have been contiguous on one side to the children of Judah, and to have been surrounded on other sides by the enclosures of their brethren. [171] Indeed, in its being said that the tribe of Dan took Lesen, there seems to be a tacit comparison, because the children of Naphtali did not employ arms to force their way into their inheritance, but kept themselves quietly in a subdued territory, and thus enjoyed safety and tranquillity under the faith, and, as it were, protection of Judah and the other tribes. The capture of Lesen by the children of Dan, in accordance with the divine grant which they had received of it, did not take place till after the death of Joshua. But the fact which is more fully detailed in the book of Judges is here mentioned in passing, because praise was due to them for their boldness and activity in thus embracing the right which God had bestowed upon them, and so trusting in him as to go down bravely and defeat the enemy.

Footnotes:

[168] French, "Estant un vieillard, povre banni, qui n'avoit pas un pied de terre a luy ou il peust marcher;" "Being an old man, a poor exile, who had not a foot of land of his own on which he could walk." -- Ed.

[169] The extent of coast possessed by Zebulun was of very limited extent, but included the large and beautiful bay of Acre, which commences in the north at the promontory on which the town of Acre stands, and is terminated magnificently in the south by the lofty heights of Mount Carmel. -- Ed.

[170] The greater part of it consisted of a rich and undulating plain, diversified by gentle hills, well watered by the Leontes and other streams which derived their supplies from the snowy heights of Lebanon, and sloping gradually to that part of the sea-coast, on which were built the famous cities of Tyre and Sidon. According to Clarke, the plain of Asher and Zebulun bore a considerable resemblance to the southern districts of England. -- Ed.

[171] The tribe of Naphtali, as marked out by Joshua, Eleazar, and the heads of the tribes, harmonizes well with the figurative description of it given by Jacob, for both in scenery and fertility it is one of the fairest in the Promised Land, but the locality assigned to it in the Commentary is singularly inaccurate. In the Latin it is said that the children of Naphtali "Videntur contigui ab una parte fuisse filiis Juda: alibi autem cincti coste ils estoyent contigus aux enfans de Juda; et d'autrepart qu'ils estoyent environnez du secours de leurs freres;" "It seems that on one side that they were surrounded by the help of their brethren." The fact, however, is that Judah and Naphtali are at the opposite extremities of the country, and so far from being contiguous to each other, are widely separated by the intervention of no fewer than five tribes, which commencing on the frontiers of Judah, and proceeding northwards, are, in succession, Benjamin, Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun. Then, as it stretched from the shores of the lake of Gennesaret, north to the roots of Lebanon, it cannot well be said to have been surrounded on all sides by the enclosures of other tribes. It certainly had Zebulun on the south-west, and Asher on the west, but on the north and east, it formed the extreme frontiers of the Promised Land, and, of course, bounded with foreign and hostile settlements. -- Ed.

Beth-shemesh - The house or temple of the sun; there were several cities or towns of this name in Palestine; an ample proof that the worship of this celestial luminary had generally prevailed in that idolatrous country.

This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Issachar,.... Which fell to them by lot, as before described:

according to their families; was divided among them, according to the number of them:

the cities and their villages; the cities before enumerated, and the villages adjacent to them.

The Inheritance of Issachar. - In this instance only towns are given, and the boundaries are not delineated, with the exception of the eastern portion of the northern boundary and the boundary line; at the same time, they may easily be traced from the boundaries of the surrounding tribes. Issachar received for the most part the large and very fertile plain of Jezreel (see at Jos 17:16, and Ritter, Erdk. xvi. pp. 689ff.), and was bounded on the south by Manasseh, on the west by Manasseh and Asher, on the north by Zebulun, and farther east by Naphtali also, and on the east by the Jordan.
Jos 19:18
"And their boundary was towards Jezreel," i.e., their territory extended beyond Jezreel. Jezreel, the summer residence of Ahab and his house (Kg1 18:45-46, etc.), was situated upon a mountain, with an extensive and splendid prospect over the large plain that was called by its name. It was afterwards called Esdraela, a place described in the Onom. (s. v. Jezreel) as standing between Scythopolis and Legio; it is the present Zern, on the north-west of the mountains of Gilboa (see Seetzen, ii. pp. 155-6; Rob. iii. pp. 161ff.; Van de Velde, R. ii. pp. 320ff.). Chesulloth, possibly the same as Chisloth-tabor (see at Jos 19:12). Sunem, the home of Abishag (Kg1 1:3-15, etc.), also mentioned in Sa1 28:4 and Kg2 4:8, was situated, according to the Onom., five Roman miles (two hours) to the south of Tabor; it is the present Solam or Sulem, at the south-western foot of the Duhy or Little Hermon, an hour and a half to the north of Jezreel (see Rob. iii. pp. 170ff.; Van de Velde, R. ii. p. 323).
Jos 19:19
Haphraim, according to the Onom. (s. v. Aphraim) villa Affaraea, six Roman miles to the north of Legio, is identified by Knobel with the village of Afuleh, on the west of Sulem, and more than two hours to the north-east of Legun (Rob. iii. pp. 163, 181). Sion, according to the Onom. villa juxta montem Thabor, has not yet been discovered. Anaharath is supposed by Knobel to be Na'urah, on the eastern side of the Little Hermon (Bibl. Res. p. 337); but he regards the text as corrupt, and following the Cod. Al. of the lxx, which has Ῥενάθ and Ἀῤῥανέθ, maintains that the reading should be Archanath, to which Arneh on the north of Jenin in the plain corresponds (Seetzen, ii. p. 156; Rob. iii. p. 157). But the circumstance that the Cod. Al. has two names instead of one makes its reading very suspicious.
Jos 19:20
Harabbit is supposed by Knobel to be Araboneh, on the north-east of Arneh, at the southern foot of Gilboa (Rob. iii. p. 157). Kishion, which was given up to the Levites (Jos 21:28) and is erroneously written Kedesh in Ch1 6:57, is unknown. This also applies to Abez or Ebez, which is never mentioned again.
Jos 19:21
Remeth, for which Jarmuth stands in the list of Levitical towns in Jos 21:29, and Ramoth in Ch1 6:58, is also unknown.
(Note: Knobel imagines Remeth, whose name signifies height, to be the village of Wezar, on one of the western peaks of Gilboa (Seetzen, ii. p. 156; Rob. iii. p. 166, and Bibl. Res. p. 339), as the name also signifies "a lofty, inaccessible mountain, or a castle situated upon a mountain." This is certainly not impossible, but it is improbable. For this Mahometan village evidently derived its name from the fact that it has the appearance of a fortification when seen from a distance (see Ritter, Erdk. xv. p. 422). The name has nothing in common therefore with the Hebrew Remeth, and the travellers quoted by him say nothing at all about the ruins which he mentions in connection with Wezar (Wusar).)
En-gannim, which was also allotted to the Levites (Jos 21:29; also Ch1 6:73, where it is called Anem), has been associated by Robinson (iii. p. 155) with the Γιναία of Josephus, the present Jenin. The name En-gannim signifies fountain of gardens, and Jenin stands at the southern side of the plain of Jezreel in the midst of gardens and orchards, which are watered by a copious spring (see Seetzen, ii. pp. 156ff.); "unless perhaps the place referred to is the heap of ruins called Um el Ghanim, on the south-east of Tabor, mentioned by Berggren, ii. p. 240, and Van de Velde, Mem. p. 142" (Knobel). En-chadda and Beth-pazzez are only mentioned here, and have not yet been discovered. According to Knobel, the former of the two may possibly be either the place by Gilboa called Judeideh, with a fountain named Ain Judeideh (Rob. Bibl. Res. p. 337), or else Beit-kad or Kadd near Gilboa, mentioned by Seetzen (ii. p. 159) and Robinson (iii. p. 157).
Jos 19:22-23
"And the boundary touched Tabor, Sahazim, and Beth-shemesh." Tabor is not the mountain of that name, but a town upon the mountain, which was given to the Levites, though not by Issachar but by Zebulun (Ch1 6:62), and was fortified afresh in the Jewish wars (Josephus, Bell. Jud. iv. 1, 8). In this passage, however, it appears to be reckoned as belonging to Issachar, since otherwise there are not sixteen cities named. At the same time, as there are several discrepancies between the numbers given and the names actually mentioned, it is quite possible that in this instance also the number sixteen is incorrect. In any case, Tabor was upon the border of Zebulun (Jos 19:12), so that it might have been allotted to this tribe. There are still the remains of old walls and ruins or arches, houses, and other buildings to be seen upon Mount Tabor; and round the summit there are the foundations of a thick wall built of large and to a great extent fluted stones (see Rob. iii. pp. 453ff.; Seetzen, ii. p. 148; Buckingham, Syr. i. pp. 83ff.). The places which follow are to be sought for on the east of Tabor towards the Jordan, as the boundary terminated at the Jordan. Sachazim (Shahazimah) Knobel connects with el Hazetheh, as the name, which signifies heights, points to a town situated upon hills; and el Hezetheh stands upon the range of hills, bounding the low-lying land of Ard el Hamma, which belonged to Naphtali. The reason is a weak one, though the situation would suit. There is more probability in the conjecture that Beth-shemesh, which remained in the hands of the Canaanites (Jdg 1:33), has been preserved in the ruined village of Bessum (Rob. iii. p. 237), and that this new name is only a corruption of the old one, like Beth-shean and Beisan. It is probable that the eastern portion of the northern boundary of Issachar, towards Naphtali, ran in a north-easterly direction from Tabor through the plain to Kefr Sabt, and thence to the Jordan along the Wady Bessum. It is not stated how far the territory of Issachar ran down the valley of the Jordan (see the remarks on Jos 17:11).