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The Boundaries of Canaan

34 The Lord told Moses to deliver these commands to the Israelites:

When you come into the land of Canaan (this is the land that will fall to you as an inheritance, the land of Canaan as defined by its boundaries), your southern border will extend from the Wilderness of Zin along the border of Edom. Your southern border on the east will start from the south end of the Dead Sea.[a] Your border will turn south of the Ascent of Akrabbim, pass through to Zin, and it will end south of Kadesh Barnea. Then it will go out to Hazar Adda and pass through to Azmon. The border will turn from Azmon to the Stream of Egypt,[b] and it will end at the Mediterranean Sea.[c]

For the western border, you will have the Mediterranean Sea as your border. This will be your western border.

This will be your northern border: From the Mediterranean Sea you will draw a line for yourselves to Mount Hor. From Mount Hor you will draw a line to Lebo Hamath. The end of the border will be at Zedad. Then the border will go to Ziphron, and it will end at Hazar Enan. This will be your northern border.

10 You will draw a line to serve as your eastern border from Hazar Enan to Shepham. 11 The border will go down from Shepham to Riblah, on the east side of Ain. The border will go down and meet the eastern slope of the Sea of Galilee.[d] 12 The border will go down to the Jordan and end at the Dead Sea. This will be your land according to its boundaries on all sides.

Tribal Chiefs Assigned for Dividing the Land

13 Moses commanded the Israelites, “This is the land which you will assign as a possession by lot, which the Lord has commanded you to give to the nine and a half tribes. 14 The tribe of Reuben’s descendants according to their fathers’ houses and the tribe of Gad’s descendants according to their fathers’ houses have already received their possession. Also half of the tribe of Manasseh has received its possession. 15 The two and a half tribes have received their possession east of the Jordan across from Jericho, toward the sunrise.”

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Footnotes

  1. Numbers 34:3 Hebrew Salt Sea
  2. Numbers 34:5 Not the Nile, but a seasonal stream further east, perhaps at Arish
  3. Numbers 34:5 Hebrew Great Sea
  4. Numbers 34:11 Hebrew Kinneret

The Land of Canaan Is Divided

34 Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, “Command the Israelites[a] and say to them, ‘When you come into the land of Canaan, this is the land that was allotted to you as an inheritance, the land of Canaan according to its boundaries. Your southern edge will be from the desert of Zin toward the side of Edom, and your southern border will be from the end of the Salt Sea[b] to the east; your boundary will turn from the south to the ascent of Akrabbim[c] and will pass over to Zin, and its limits will be from the south of Kadesh Barnea; it will continue to Hazar Addar and pass over to Azmon. The boundary will turn from Azmon to the valley of Egypt, and its limits will be to the sea.

“‘Your western boundary will be the Great Sea;[d] this will be your western boundary. Your northern border will be from the Great Sea;[e] you will make a boundary from the Great Sea[f] to Mount Hor. From Mount Hor you will make a boundary to reach Hamath; the limits of the territory will be at Zedad. The boundary will go out to Ziphron, and its limits will be at Hazar Enan. This will be your boundary to the north.

10 “‘You will mark out your eastern boundary from Hazar Enan to Shepham; 11 the boundary will go down from Shepham to Riblah from the east side of Ain, and the boundary will go down and border on the eastern side of the Sea of Kinnereth. 12 The boundary will go down to the Jordan, and its limits will be at the Salt Sea.[g] This will be your land according to its boundaries all around.’”

13 So Moses commanded the Israelites,[h] saying, “This is the land that you will obtain as an inheritance for yourself by lot, which Yahweh commanded to give to the nine and a half tribes. 14 For the tribe of the children of the Reubenites,[i] the children of the Gadites,[j] and the half-tribe of Manasseh took their inheritance according to the house of their families.[k] 15 The two and a half tribes have taken their inheritance from beyond the Jordan across Jericho, east toward the sunrise.”

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Footnotes

  1. Numbers 34:2 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
  2. Numbers 34:3 That is, the Dead Sea
  3. Numbers 34:4 Or “Scorpions”
  4. Numbers 34:6 That is, the Mediterranean
  5. Numbers 34:7 That is, the Mediterranean
  6. Numbers 34:7 That is, the Mediterranean
  7. Numbers 34:12 That is, the Dead Sea
  8. Numbers 34:13 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
  9. Numbers 34:14 Hebrew “Reubenite”
  10. Numbers 34:14 Hebrew “Gadite”
  11. Numbers 34:14 Or “their fathers”