Joshua 14
Christian Standard Bible
Israel’s Inheritance in Canaan
14 The Israelites received these portions that the priest Eleazar,(A) Joshua son of Nun, and the family heads of the Israelite tribes gave them in the land of Canaan.(B) 2 Their inheritance was by lot(C) as the Lord commanded through Moses for the nine and a half tribes, 3 because Moses had given the inheritance to the two and a half tribes beyond the Jordan. But he gave no inheritance among them to the Levites. 4 The descendants of Joseph became two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim. No portion of the land was given to the Levites except cities to live in, along with pasturelands for their cattle and livestock. 5 So the Israelites did as the Lord commanded Moses,(D) and they divided the land.
Caleb’s Inheritance
6 The descendants of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the Lord promised Moses the man of God at Kadesh-barnea about you and me.(E) 7 I was forty years old when Moses the Lord’s servant sent me from Kadesh-barnea to scout the land, and I brought back an honest report.(F) 8 My brothers who went with me caused the people to lose heart, but I followed the Lord my God completely.(G) 9 On that day Moses swore to me, ‘The land where you have set foot will be an inheritance for you and your descendants forever, because you have followed the Lord my God completely.’(H)
10 “As you see, the Lord has kept me alive these forty-five years as he promised,(I) since the Lord spoke this word to Moses while Israel was journeying in the wilderness. Here I am today, eighty-five years old. 11 I am still as strong today as I was the day Moses sent me out. My strength for battle and for daily tasks[a] is now as it was then.(J) 12 Now give me this hill country the Lord promised me on that day, because you heard then that the Anakim are there,(K) as well as large fortified cities.(L) Perhaps the Lord will be with me and I will drive them out as the Lord promised.”
13 Then Joshua blessed Caleb son of Jephunneh and gave him Hebron as an inheritance.(M) 14 Therefore, Hebron still belongs to Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite as an inheritance today(N) because he followed the Lord, the God of Israel, completely. 15 Hebron’s name used to be Kiriath-arba; Arba was the greatest man among the Anakim.(O) After this, the land had rest from war.(P)
Footnotes
- 14:11 Lit for going out and coming in
Joshua 14
Contemporary English Version
The Land West of the Jordan River
14 1-5 (A) Nine and a half tribes still did not have any land, although two and a half tribes had already received land east of the Jordan River. Moses had divided that land among them, and he had also said that the Levi tribe would not receive a large region like the other tribes. Instead, the people of Levi would receive towns and the nearby pastures for their sheep, goats, and cattle. And since the descendants of Joseph had become the two tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, there were still nine and a half tribes that needed land. The Lord had told Moses that he would show those tribes[a] how to divide up the land of Canaan.
When the priest Eleazar, Joshua, and the leaders of the families and tribes of Israel met to divide up the land of Canaan, the Lord showed them how to do it.
Joshua Gives Hebron to Caleb
6 (B) One day while the Israelites were still camped at Gilgal, Caleb the son of Jephunneh went to talk with Joshua. Caleb belonged to the Kenaz clan, and many other people from the Judah tribe went with Caleb. He told Joshua:
You know that back in Kadesh-Barnea the Lord talked to his prophet Moses about you and me. 7 (C) I was 40 years old at the time Moses sent me from Kadesh-Barnea into Canaan as a spy. When I came back and told him about the land, everything I said was true. 8 The other spies said things that made our people afraid, but I completely trusted the Lord God. 9 (D) The same day I came back, Moses told me, “Since you were faithful to the Lord God, I promise that the places where you went as a spy will belong to you and your descendants forever.”
10 Joshua, it was 45 years ago that the Lord told Moses to make that promise, and now I am 85. Even though Israel has moved from place to place in the desert, the Lord has kept me alive all this time as he said he would. 11 I'm just as strong today as I was then, and I can still fight as well in battle.
12 So I'm asking you for the hill country that the Lord promised me that day. You were there. You heard the other spies talk about that part of the hill country and the large, walled towns where the Anakim[b] live. But maybe the Lord will help me take their land, just as he promised.
13 Joshua prayed that God would help Caleb, then he gave Hebron to Caleb and his descendants. 14 And Hebron still belongs to Caleb's descendants, because he was faithful to the Lord God of Israel.
15 Hebron used to be called Arba's Town,[c] because Arba had been one of the greatest[d] of the Anakim.
There was peace in the land.
Footnotes
- 14.1-5 he would show those tribes: The Hebrew text has “those tribes must cast lots to find out.” Pieces of wood or stone (called “lots”) were used to find out what God wanted his people to do.
- 14.12 Anakim: See the note at 11.21.
- 14.15 Arba's Town: Or “Kiriath-Arba.”
- 14.15 Arba's Town, because … greatest: Hebrew; one ancient translation “Arba's Town. It was one of the main towns.”
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.
