West Manasseh’s Inheritance

17 This was the allotment for the tribe of Manasseh^(A) as Joseph’s firstborn. Gilead and Bashan were given to Machir, the firstborn of Manasseh and the father of Gilead, because he was a man of war.^{(B) 2} So the allotment was for the rest of Manasseh’s descendants by their clans, for the sons of Abiezer, Helek, Asriel, Shechem, Hepher, and Shemida. These are the male descendants of Manasseh son of Joseph, by their clans.

³ Now Zelophehad son of Hepher, son of Gilead, son of Machir, son of Manasseh, had no sons, only daughters. These are the names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.^{(C) 4} They came before the priest Eleazar, Joshua son of Nun, and the leaders, saying, “The Lord commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among our male relatives.” So they gave them an inheritance among their father’s brothers, in keeping with the Lord’s instruction.^{(D) 5} As a result, ten tracts fell to Manasseh, besides the land of Gilead and Bashan, which are beyond the Jordan,^{[a] 6} because Manasseh’s daughters received an inheritance among his sons. The land of Gilead belonged to the rest of Manasseh’s sons.

⁷ The border of Manasseh went from Asher to Michmethath near Shechem. It then went southward toward the inhabitants of En-tappuah. ⁸ The region of Tappuah belonged to Manasseh, but Tappuah itself on Manasseh’s border^(E) belonged to the descendants of Ephraim. ⁹ From there the border descended to the Brook of Kanah; south of the brook, cities belonged to Ephraim among Manasseh’s cities. Manasseh’s border was on the north side of the brook and ended at the Mediterranean Sea. ¹⁰ Ephraim’s territory was to the south and Manasseh’s to the north, with the Sea as its border. They reached Asher on the north and Issachar on the east. ¹¹ Within Issachar and Asher, Manasseh had Beth-shean, Ibleam, and the inhabitants of Dor with their surrounding villages;^(F) the inhabitants of En-dor, Taanach, and Megiddo—the three cities of^[b] Naphath—with their surrounding villages.^(G)

¹² The descendants of Manasseh could not possess these cities, because the Canaanites were determined to stay in this land. ¹³ However, when the Israelites grew stronger, they imposed forced labor on the Canaanites but did not drive them out completely.^(H)

Joseph’s Additional Inheritance

¹⁴ Joseph’s descendants said to Joshua, “Why did you give us only one tribal allotment as an inheritance? We have many people, because the Lord has been blessing us greatly.”

¹⁵ “If you have so many people,” Joshua replied to them, “go to the forest and clear an area for yourselves there in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim, because Ephraim’s hill country is too small for you.”

¹⁶ But the descendants of Joseph said, “The hill country is not enough for us, and all the Canaanites who inhabit the valley area have iron chariots, both at Beth-shean with its surrounding villages and in the Jezreel Valley.”

¹⁷ So Joshua replied to Joseph’s family (that is, Ephraim and Manasseh), “You have many people and great strength. You will not have just one allotment, ¹⁸ because the hill country will be yours also. It is a forest; clear it and its outlying areas will be yours. You can also drive out the Canaanites, even though they have iron chariots and are strong.”

Land Distribution at Shiloh

18 The entire Israelite community assembled at Shiloh^(I) and set up the tent of meeting there. The land had been subdued before them, ² but seven tribes among the Israelites were left who had not divided up their inheritance. ³ So Joshua asked the Israelites, “How long will you delay going out to take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, gave you?^{(J) 4} Appoint for yourselves three men from each tribe, and I will send them out. They are to go and survey the land, write a description of it for the purpose of their inheritance, and return to me. ⁵ Then they are to divide it into seven portions. Judah is to remain in its territory in the south and Joseph’s family in their territory in the north.^{(K) 6} When you have written a description of the seven portions of land and brought it to me, I will cast lots^(L) for you here in the presence of the Lord our God.^{(M) 7} But the Levites among you do not get a portion, because their inheritance is the priesthood of the Lord.^(N) Gad, Reuben, and half the tribe of Manasseh have taken their inheritance beyond the Jordan to the east, which Moses the Lord’s servant gave them.”

⁸ As the men prepared to go, Joshua commanded them^[c] to write down a description of the land, saying, “Go and survey the land, write a description of it, and return to me. I will then cast lots for you here in Shiloh in the presence of the Lord.” ⁹ So the men left, went through the land, and described it by towns in a document of seven sections. They returned to Joshua at the camp in Shiloh. ¹⁰ Joshua cast lots for them at Shiloh in the presence of the Lord where he distributed the land to the Israelites according to their divisions.

Benjamin’s Inheritance

¹¹ The lot came up for the tribe of Benjamin’s descendants by their clans, and their allotted territory lay between Judah’s descendants and Joseph’s descendants.

¹² Their border on the north side began at the Jordan, ascended to the slope of Jericho on the north, through the hill country westward, and ended at the wilderness around Beth-aven.^{(O) 13} From there the border went toward Luz, to the southern slope of Luz (that is, Bethel); it then went down by Ataroth-addar, over the hill south of Lower Beth-horon.^(P)

¹⁴ On the west side, from the hill facing Beth-horon on the south, the border curved, turning southward, and ended at Kiriath-baal (that is, Kiriath-jearim), a city of the descendants of Judah. This was the west side of their border.

¹⁵ The south side began at the edge of Kiriath-jearim, and the border extended westward; it went to the spring at the Waters of Nephtoah. ¹⁶ The border descended to the foot of the hill that faces Ben Hinnom Valley at the northern end of Rephaim Valley. It ran down Hinnom Valley toward the south Jebusite slope and downward to En-rogel. ¹⁷ It curved northward and went to En-shemesh and on to Geliloth, which is opposite the Ascent of Adummim, and continued down to the Stone of Bohan^(Q) son of Reuben. ¹⁸ Then it went north to the slope opposite the Arabah^[d] and proceeded into the plains.^{[e] 19} The border continued to the north slope of Beth-hoglah and ended at the northern bay of the Dead Sea, at the southern end of the Jordan. This was the southern border.

²⁰ The Jordan formed the border on the east side.

This was the inheritance of Benjamin’s descendants, by their clans, according to its surrounding borders.

Benjamin’s Cities

²¹ These were the cities of the tribe of Benjamin’s descendants by their clans:

Jericho, Beth-hoglah, Emek-keziz, ²² Beth-arabah, Zemaraim, Bethel, ²³ Avvim, Parah, Ophrah, ²⁴ Chephar-ammoni, Ophni, and Geba—twelve cities, with their settlements; ²⁵ Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth, ²⁶ Mizpeh, Chephirah, Mozah, ²⁷ Rekem, Irpeel, Taralah, ²⁸ Zela, Haeleph, Jebus^[f] (that is, Jerusalem), Gibeah, and Kiriath^[g]—fourteen cities, with their settlements.

This was the inheritance for Benjamin’s descendants by their clans.

In Praise of John the Baptist

¹⁸ Then John’s disciples told him about all these things.^(A) So John summoned two of his disciples ¹⁹ and sent them to the Lord, asking, “Are you the one^(B) who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”

²⁰ When the men reached him, they said, “John the Baptist sent us to ask you, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?’”

²¹ At that time Jesus healed many people of diseases,^(C) afflictions, and evil spirits,^(D) and he granted sight to many blind people.^{(E) 22} He replied to them, “Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, those with leprosy^[a] are cleansed, the deaf hear,^(F) the dead are raised, and the poor are told the good news,^{(G) 23} and blessed is the one who isn’t offended by me.”

²⁴ After John’s messengers left, he began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swaying in the wind? ²⁵ What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothes? See, those who are splendidly dressed and live in luxury are in royal palaces. ²⁶ What then did you go out to see? A prophet?^(H) Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. ²⁷ This is the one about whom it is written:

²⁸ I tell you, among those born of women no one is greater than John,^[c] but the least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”

²⁹ (And when all the people, including the tax collectors, heard this, they acknowledged God’s way of righteousness, because they had been baptized with John’s baptism.^{(J) 30} But since the Pharisees and experts in the law^(K) had not been baptized by him, they rejected the plan of God for themselves.^(L))

An Unresponsive Generation

³¹ “To what then should I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? ³² They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to each other:

³³ For John the Baptist did not come eating bread or drinking wine,^(M) and you say, ‘He has a demon!’ ³⁴ The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’^{(N) 35} Yet wisdom is vindicated by all her children.”

Much Forgiveness, Much Love

³⁶ Then one of the Pharisees invited him to eat with him. He entered the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table.^{(O) 37} And a woman in the town who was a sinner found out that Jesus was reclining at the table in the Pharisee’s house.^(P) She brought an alabaster jar of perfume ³⁸ and stood behind him at his feet, weeping, and began to wash his feet with her tears. She wiped his feet with her hair, kissing them and anointing them with the perfume.^(Q)

³⁹ When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “This man, if he were a prophet, would know who and what kind of woman this is who is touching him—she’s a sinner!” ^(R)

⁴⁰ Jesus replied to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.”

He said, “Say it, teacher.”

⁴¹ “A creditor had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii,^[d](S) and the other fifty. ⁴² Since they could not pay it back,^(T) he graciously forgave them both. So, which of them will love him more?”

⁴³ Simon answered, “I suppose the one he forgave more.”

“You have judged correctly,” he told him. ⁴⁴ Turning to the woman, he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet,^(U) but she, with her tears, has washed my feet and wiped them with her hair. ⁴⁵ You gave me no kiss,^(V) but she hasn’t stopped kissing my feet since I came in. ⁴⁶ You didn’t anoint my head with olive oil,^(W) but she has anointed my feet with perfume. ⁴⁷ Therefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; that’s why she loved much. But the one who is forgiven little, loves little.” ⁴⁸ Then he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”^(X)

⁴⁹ Those who were at the table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this man who even forgives sins?” ^(Y)

⁵⁰ And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you.^(Z) Go in peace.”^(AA)

Psalm 44

Israel’s Complaint

For the choir director. A Maskil of the sons of Korah.