The Book of Joshua – Part 18, Chapters 21-22

The children of Gad called the altar Ed: for it shall be a witness between us that the LORD is God. – Jos 22:34

Study Aired July 1, 2023

The division of the Promised Land and the formation of its cities are in the final stages, and for brevity’s sake, any seemingly routine items the Lord hasn’t sparked with His spirit to expose will be excluded.

Cities and Pasturelands Allotted to Levi

Jos 21:1 Then came near the heads of the fathers of the Levites unto Eleazar [el-aw-zawr’ = God has helped. 1. the high priest son of Aaron 2. Abinadab’s son who cared for the ark 3. the priest who rebuilt and dedicated the restored walls of Jerusalem in time of Ezra] the priest, and unto Joshua the son of Nun, and unto the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel; 
Jos 21:2 And they spake unto them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, saying, The LORD commanded by the hand of Moses to give us cities to dwell in, with the suburbs [Common, common land, open land] thereof for our cattle.
Jos 21:3 And the children of Israel gave unto the Levites out of their inheritance, at the commandment of the LORD, these cities and their suburbs. 
Jos 21:4 And the lot came out for the families of the Kohathites: and the children of Aaron the priest, which were of the Levites, had by lot out of the tribe of Judah, and out of the tribe of Simeon, and out of the tribe of Benjamin, thirteen cities.

The number thirteen denotes rebellion which always attracts the Lord’s wrath. We are well versed in Israel’s rebellion, which mirrors our natural inclination to challenge our Lord’s word with strange fire or, like children, rebelliously dig in our heels to His commands.

Exo 32:11  And Moses prayed to Jehovah his God, and said, Jehovah, why does Your wrath become hot against Your people whom You have brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? 

Eph 2:3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

Our Lord’s wrath against our old Adam is a vital element pointing the Israel of God toward Christ. We are by “nature the children of wrath, even as is the entire world.“

Eleazar represents Christ, our high priest, who speaks to His endtime Elect, “the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the sons of Israel.” They, being a priestly tribe, have more extensive dwelling places that parallel Christ’s wife’s soon-coming inheritance of the entire composition of humanity, her children. “Suburbs” are open and extensive lands depicting the world’s vastness.

Joh 14:2 In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 
Joh 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, so that where I am, you may be also.

Notice in verse 3 that “the children of Israel gave unto the Levites out of their inheritance.” The world, particularly Babylonian Christianity, represents Esau and the Kohathites, the rejected wife of God who serves the younger Jacob, Christ’s Elected wife. That fact is affirmed in the next verse.

Jos 21:5 And the rest of the children of Kohath had by lot out of the families of the tribe of Ephraim, and out of the tribe of Dan, and out of the half tribe of Manasseh, ten cities. 

The ten tribes of Jacob by Rachel’s handmaids represent Babylonian Christianity. Ephraim and Manasseh, the Elect of God’s nearest kin, have hugely rich lands to the north of Israel. They, and we in our time, glory in the deluded richness of being Jews who are not spiritual Jews and lead the Christian world quite willingly astray, particularly by their misunderstanding that “salvation is of the Jews”. By our Lord’s chastising grace, he has anointed our eyes with His spirit to discern spiritual intelligence.

Rev 3:17 Because you say, I am rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing, and do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, 
Rev 3:18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold purified by fire, so that you may be rich; and white clothing, so that you may be clothed, and so that the shame of your nakedness does not appear. And anoint your eyes with eye salve, so that you may see.

Jos 21:6 And the children of Gershon had by lot out of the families of the tribe of Issachar, and out of the tribe of Asher, and out of the tribe of Naphtali, and out of the half tribe of Manasseh in Bashan, thirteen cities [rebellion].
Jos 21:7 The children of Merari [bitter] by their families had out of the tribe of Reuben [to see; look at; inspect], and out of the tribe of Gad [troop; invade; attack], and out of the tribe of Zebulun [exalted], twelve cities [Christ and his Body; foundations].

Once again, and by the maturing Saint’s growing knowledge, experience and endurance through trials, he pieces together the meanings of those names of peoples and places for his spiritual-educational prosperity.

Jos 21:8 And the children of Israel gave by lot unto the Levites these cities with their suburbs, as the LORD commanded by the hand of Moses. 
Jos 21:9 And they gave out of the tribe of the children of Judah, and out of the tribe of the children of Simeon, these cities which are here mentioned by name, 
Jos 21:10 Which the children of Aaron, being of the families of the Kohathites, who were of the children of Levi, had: for theirs was the first lot. 
Jos 21:11 And they gave them the city of Arba the father of Anak [meaning 4. H704 – 1. the father of Anak and the greatest of the giants (Anakim)], which city is Hebron, in the hill country of Judah, with the suburbs thereof round about it. 

Jos 21:12 But the fields of the city, and the villages thereof, gave they to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for his possession. 

Of significance is Caleb, who is similar to Joshua and represents the Lord’s Elect, and inherits the fields of the cities and villages just as the Lord’s Wife inherits her children, the world of humanity. The children of Aaron, who again represents the priestly Elect, have a refuge for their desperate and mentally tortured brothers and sisters in the Lake of Fire.

Jos 21:13 Thus they gave to the children of Aaron [= light bringer 1. brother of Moses], a Levite and the first high priest the priest Hebron with her suburbs, to be a city of refuge for the slayer; and Libnah with her suburbs,

Elder and study presenter Ato Barnes has extensively rendered the Gershonites,  Kohathites, Levites and the families of Merari (mer-aw-ree’) and other tribe’s exploits and the meanings of their names in his series studies in the book of Numbers. Attached is a link regarding the Gershonites:  https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/numbers-421-49-the-duties-of-the-levites-part-3/

Jos 21:14 And Jattir with her suburbs, and Eshtemoa with her suburbs, 
Jos 21:15 And Holon with her suburbs, and Debir with her suburbs, 
Jos 21:16 And Ain with her suburbs, and Juttah with her suburbs, and Bethshemesh with her suburbs; nine cities out of those two tribes. 
Jos 21:17 And out of the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon with her suburbs, Geba with her suburbs,
Jos 21:18 Anathoth with her suburbs, and Almon with her suburbs; four cities. 
Jos 21:19 All the cities of the children of Aaron, the priests, were thirteen cities with their suburbs. 
Jos 21:20 And the families of the children of Kohath, the Levites which remained of the children of Kohath, even they had the cities of their lot out of the tribe of Ephraim. 
Jos 21:21  For they gave them Shechem with her suburbs in mount Ephraim, to be a city of refuge for the slayer; and Gezer with her suburbs, 
Jos 21:22 And Kibzaim with her suburbs, and Bethhoron with her suburbs; four cities. 
Jos 21:23 And out of the tribe of Dan, Eltekeh with her suburbs, Gibbethon with her suburbs,
Jos 21:24 Aijalon with her suburbs, Gathrimmon with her suburbs; four cities. 
Jos 21:25 And out of the half-tribe of Manasseh, Tanach with her suburbs, and Gathrimmon with her suburbs; two cities. 
Jos 21:26 All the cities were ten with their suburbs for the families of the children of Kohath that remained. 
Jos 21:27 And unto the children of Gershon, of the families of the Levites, out of the other half tribe of Manasseh they gave Golan in Bashan with her suburbs, to be a city of refuge for the slayer; and Beeshterah with her suburbs; two cities. 
Jos 21:28 And out of the tribe of Issachar, Kishon with her suburbs, Dabareh with her suburbs, 
Jos 21:29 Jarmuth with her suburbs, Engannim with her suburbs; four cities. 
Jos 21:30 And out of the tribe of Asher, Mishal with her suburbs, Abdon with her suburbs, 
Jos 21:31 Helkath with her suburbs, and Rehob with her suburbs; four cities. 
Jos 21:32 And out of the tribe of Naphtali, Kedesh in Galilee with her suburbs, to be a city of refuge for the slayer; and Hammothdor with her suburbs, and Kartan with her suburbs; three cities. 
Jos 21:33 All the cities of the Gershonites according to their families were thirteen cities with their suburbs. 
Jos 21:34 And unto the families of the children of Merari, the rest of the Levites, out of the tribe of Zebulun, Jokneam with her suburbs, and Kartah with her suburbs, 
Jos 21:35 Dimnah with her suburbs, Nahalal with her suburbs; four cities. 
Jos 21:36 And out of the tribe of Reuben, Bezer with her suburbs, and Jahazah with her suburbs, 
Jos 21:37 Kedemoth with her suburbs, and Mephaath with her suburbs; four cities. 
Jos 21:38  And out of the tribe of Gad, Ramoth in Gilead with her suburbs, to be a city of refuge for the slayer; and Mahanaim with her suburbs, 
Jos 21:39 Heshbon with her suburbs, Jazer with her suburbs; four cities in all. 
Jos 21:40 So all the cities for the children of Merari by their families, which were remaining of the families of the Levites, were by their lot twelve cities. 
Jos 21:41 All the cities of the Levites within the possession of the children of Israel were forty and eight cities with their suburbs. 
Jos 21:42 These cities were every one with their suburbs round about them: thus were all these cities. 
Jos 21:43 And the LORD gave unto Israel all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein. 
Jos 21:44  round about [round about – on account of; string; harp], according to all that he sware unto their fathers: and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; the LORD delivered all their enemies into their hand. 
Jos 21:45 There failed not ought of any good thing which the LORD had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass. 

How beautiful! For the Elect’s sake, those experiences of the Israelites taking possession of their land is another stringed musical case of “all things are yours.” I feel a bit emotional for our Lord’s goodness when His purpose is to give His ravishing Bride “rest” from her labours when one of the keystones of her understanding is to “only acknowledge your iniquity” ~ how simple is that requirement?! (Jer 3:13) … and yet, I, being a ‘chief of sinners’, am somewhat perplexed by performing sins of yesteryear. Yet, I am certain that in the Lord’s good timing, ‘not a man of my enemies will stand before me as He delivers them all into His hand for my rest’ (abridged).

Pro 23:17 Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the LORD all the day long. 
Pro 23:18 For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.

Luk 12:32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 

The Eastern Tribes Return Home

Jos 22:1 Then Joshua called the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh, 
Jos 22:2 And said unto them, Ye have kept all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, and have obeyed my voice in all that I commanded you: 
Jos 22:3 Ye have not left your brethren these many days unto this day, but have kept the charge of the commandment of the LORD your God. 
Jos 22:4 And now the LORD your God hath given rest unto your brethren, as he promised them: therefore now return ye, and get you unto your tents, and unto the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of the LORD gave you on the other side Jordan. 
Jos 22:5 But take diligent heed to do the commandment and the law, which Moses the servant of the LORD charged you, to love the LORD your God, and to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and to cleave unto him, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul. 
Jos 22:6 So Joshua blessed them, and sent them away: and they went unto their tents. 

For the Elect, ‘wow!’  What wonderful impending rest, yet, and for the Israelites, for the Bride’s sake, we know that their coming historical and torturous trials will be for our benefit if we serve Him with all our heart and soul.

Mat 22:36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 
Mat 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 
Mat 22:38 This is the first and great commandment. 
Mat 22:39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 
Mat 22:40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. 

Jos 22:7 Now to the one half of the tribe of Manasseh Moses had given possession in Bashan: but unto the other half thereof gave Joshua among their brethren on this side Jordan westward. And when Joshua sent them away also unto their tents, then he blessed them, 

Jos 22:8  And he spake unto them, saying, Return with much riches unto your tents, and with very much cattle, with silver, and with gold, and with brass, and with iron, and with very much raiment: divide the spoil of your enemies with your brethren. 
Jos 22:9  And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh returned, and departed from the children of Israel out of Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to go unto the country of Gilead, to the land of their possession, whereof they were possessed, according to the word of the LORD by the hand of Moses. 

The Eastern Tribes’ Altar of Witness

Jos 22:10 And when they came unto the borders of Jordan, that are in the land of Canaan, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh built there an altar by Jordan, a great altar to see to. 
Jos 22:11 And the children of Israel heard say, Behold, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh have built an altar over against the land of Canaan, in the borders of Jordan, at the passage of the children of Israel. 
Jos 22:12 And when the children of Israel heard of it, the whole congregation of the children of Israel gathered themselves together at Shiloh, to go up to war against them. 
Jos 22:13 And the children of Israel sent unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh, into the land of Gilead, Phinehas [pee-nekh-aws’- = mouth of brass] the son of Eleazar the priest, 
Jos 22:14 And with him ten princes, of each chief house a prince throughout all the tribes of Israel; and each one was an head of the house of their fathers among the thousands of Israel. 
Jos 22:15 And they came unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh, unto the land of Gilead, and they spake with them, saying, 
Jos 22:16 Thus saith the whole congregation of the LORD, What trespass is this that ye have committed against the God of Israel, to turn away this day from following the LORD, in that ye have builded you an altar, that ye might rebel this day against the LORD? 
Jos 22:17 Is the iniquity of Peor [= cleft; 1. to open wide, gape] too little for us, from which we are not cleansed until this day, although there was a plague in the congregation of the LORD, 
Jos 22:18 But that ye must turn away this day from following the LORD? and it will be, seeing ye rebel to day against the LORD, that to morrow he will be wroth with the whole congregation of Israel. 
Jos 22:19 Notwithstanding, if the land of your possession be unclean [making the whole land unclean], then pass ye over unto the land of the possession of the LORD, wherein the LORD’S tabernacle dwelleth, and take possession among us: but rebel not against the LORD, nor rebel against us, in building you an altar beside the altar of the LORD our God. 
Jos 22:20 Did not Achan the son of Zerah commit a trespass in the accursed thing, and wrath fell on all the congregation of Israel? and that man perished not alone in his iniquity. 
Jos 22:21 Then the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh answered, and said unto the heads of the thousands of Israel, 
Jos 22:22 The LORD God of gods, the LORD God of gods, he knoweth, and Israel he shall know; if it be in rebellion, or if in transgression against the LORD, (save us not this day,) 
Jos 22:23 That we have built us an altar to turn from following the LORD, or if to offer thereon burnt offering or meat offering, or if to offer peace offerings thereon, let the LORD himself require it; 
Jos 22:24 And if we have not rather done it for fear of this thing, saying, In time to come your children might speak unto our children, saying, What have ye to do with the LORD God of Israel? 

The children of Israel west of the Jordan remain a little edgy in remembrance of the very first instance of them entering the Promised Land and with Achan’s sin. Now, near the conclusion of taking possession of the land, that rawness of rebelling against their Lord has positive effects. The Lord’s wrath is the last thing they need as they settle into their new life.

1Sa 15:23  For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

Our old man turns to the idols of our hearts, and in doing so, we become guilty of the sins of witchcraft and idolatry. At that time, we are comfortable with our bondage to the traditions of men. We like paying tithes on our gross income and dearly love keeping days, months, times and years, for just two examples. [Abridged quote, Mike].

The sin of rebellion, if not swiftly dealt with as the Lord often lets us be slothful for our excruciating benefit, will rebound on our children’s children. That seemingly vindictive plot will later be recognised as immensely beneficial for everyone’s chastised learning.

Exo 34:5 And the LORD descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD. 
Exo 34:6 And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, 
Exo 34:7 Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation. 
Exo 34:8 And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshipped. 
Exo 34:9 And he said, If now I have found grace in thy sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray thee, go among us; for it is a stiffnecked people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for thine inheritance. 

Stiff-neckedness is an early condition of the Lord’s Elect that must be burned out. It’s a good thing when our brothers are watchful over us through a ‘multitude of counsels’ ensuring fidelity, as do the western tribes for their eastern kin.

Jos 22:25 For the LORD hath made Jordan a border between us and you, ye children of Reuben and children of Gad; ye have no part in the LORD: so shall your children make our children cease from fearing the LORD. 

Notice in Joshua 22:14 that the greater portion of Israel, led by the ‘brass-like harshness of Phinehas [pee-nekh-aws’- = mouth of brass] the son of Eleazar, the priest, confronts the north-eastern tribe’s perceived rebellion: ~ And with him ten princes, of each chief house a prince throughout all the tribes of Israel; and each one was an head of the house of their fathers among the thousands of Israel.

These ten western tribes depict greater Israel, our brothers and sisters who, much later with us, go into Babylon. Egypt, Assyria, and every other evil nation are collectively represented as Babylon, but for now, Israel is stepping out with righteous intent to follow all the Lord’s commands in challenging the north-western tribe’s seeming dubious intentions. In type, the perceived division portrays our Babylonian Christian brothers’ and sisters’ gulf between them and the Lord’s Elect. The altar that is Christ certainly will be a future demarcation ‘witness between us and them’.

Jos 22:26 Therefore we said, Let us now prepare to build us an altar, not for burnt offering, nor for sacrifice: 
Jos 22:27 But that it may be a witness between us, and you, and our generations after us, that we might do the service of the LORD before him with our burnt offerings, and with our sacrifices, and with our peace offerings; that your children may not say to our children in time to come, Ye have no part in the LORD. 
Jos 22:28 Therefore said we, that it shall be, when they should so say to us or to our generations in time to come, that we may say again, Behold the pattern of the altar of the LORD, which our fathers made, not for burnt offerings, nor for sacrifices; but it is a witness between us and you.
Jos 22:29 God forbid that we should rebel against the LORD, and turn this day from following the LORD, to build an altar for burnt offerings, for meat offerings, or for sacrifices, beside the altar of the LORD our God that is before his tabernacle. 
Jos 22:30 And when Phinehas [pee-nekh-aws’] the priest, and the princes of the congregation and heads of the thousands of Israel which were with him, heard the words that the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the children of Manasseh spake, it pleased them. 
Jos 22:31 And Phinehas  [pee-nekh-aws’] the son of Eleazar the priest said unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the children of Manasseh, This day we perceive that the LORD is among us, because ye have not committed this trespass against the LORD: now ye have delivered the children of Israel out of the hand of the LORD. 
Jos 22:32 And Phinehas [pee-nekh-aws’] the son of Eleazar the priest, and the princes, returned from the children of Reuben, and from the children of Gad, out of the land of Gilead, unto the land of Canaan, to the children of Israel, and brought them word again. 
Jos 22:33 And the thing pleased the children of Israel; and the children of Israel blessed God, and did not intend to go up against them in battle, to destroy the land wherein the children of Reuben and Gad dwelt. 
Jos 22:34 And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad called the altar Ed: for it shall be a witness between us that the LORD is God. 

No greater gulf exists than between the Lord’s rejected wife and His Elected Bride. His Elect is coming out of Babylon and has almost finished her exit, leaving behind the woman from Mt. Sinai revelling in her God-given strong delusions. The Reubenite’s and Gadite’s stone edifice is a profound witness between those women and ‘the’ Christ.

For the Elect’s sake, our most honoured brothers and sisters of old Israel were oblivious to their coming descent into lukewarmness and witnessed by the Reubenite’s and Gadite’s stone marker and one of the significant ‘beginnings of the creation of God.’

Rev 3:14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;

Even though the Seven Churches of Asia during the Apostle’s time represent every stage of the creation of God, probably Laodicea’s lukewarmness is the broad representation of Israel’s soon weariness for her Lord’s light bread.

Not by my design, however, next week will be a relatively short conclusion to this series in Joshua, and probably representative of our Lord’s short work in His Body.

Rom 9:28 For he will finish the work, and cut it short in righteousness: because a short work will the Lord make upon the earth.