Old/New Testament

13 Now the years passed and Joshua grew old; and one day the Eternal came to him.

⁸ The other half-tribe of Manasseh and the tribes of Reuben and Gad received their inheritance. Moses, the Eternal’s servant, gave them land on the far side of the Jordan and toward the east, ⁹ from Aroer, which is on the edge of the Arnon Valley, with the town that is in the middle of the valley, and the plains from Medeba to Dibon; ¹⁰ and all the cities of Sihon, king of the Amorites, who had reigned from Heshbon, as far as the border regions of the Ammonites; ¹¹ and the land of Gilead, and the lands of the Geshurites and Maacathites, and all of Mount Hermon, and all of Bashan as far as Salecah; ¹² in Bashan, this includes all the kingdom of Og who had reigned in Ashtaroth and in Edrei (who was the last of the survivors of the giants). Moses conquered these kings and took over their lands, ¹³ although the Israelites did not drive out the Geshurites or the Maacathites, which is why the people of Geshur and Maacath survive among the Israelites to this day.

¹⁴ The tribe of Levi was the only tribe of Israel that was not given land then as its inheritance. To offer burnt offerings to the Eternal God of Israel was their inheritance, as He told them.

¹⁵ Moses gave an inheritance to the tribe of the Reubenites, clan by clan. ¹⁶ Their territory comprised the plateau from Aroer, which is on the edge of the Arnon Valley, including the city in the middle of the valley, and the entire plain by Medeba; ¹⁷ Heshbon, and all its cities that are in the plains: Dibon, Bamoth-baal, and Beth-baal-meon, ¹⁸ Jahaz, Kedemoth, and Mephaath; ¹⁹ Kiriathaim, Sibmah, and Zereth-shahar on the mount of the valley; ²⁰ Beth-peor, the foothills of Mount Pisgah, and Beth-jeshimoth. ²¹ The tribe of Reuben received, then, all these cities of the plain and all the kingdom of Sihon, king of the Amorites who had reigned in Heshbon until Moses defeated him and the leaders of Midian (Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba) who were the princes of Sihon in the land. ²² Along with all of those they put to death, the Israelites also executed Balaam, the son of Beor, who practiced divination but blessed Israel by the command of the Eternal One. ²³ The western border of the land allotted to the people of Reuben was the Jordan with its banks. This, then, was the land given to the people of Reuben, clan by clan, and all their cities and villages.

²⁴ Moses also gave an inheritance to the tribe of the Gadites according to their clans. ²⁵ Their territory comprised Jazer, and all the cities of the land of Gilead, and half the country of the Ammonites as far as Aroer, east of Rabbah; ²⁶ from Heshbon to Ramath-mizpeh and Betonim, and from Mahanaim as far as the border of Debir; ²⁷ and in the valley, Beth-haram, Beth-nimrah, Succoth, and Zaphon—all the rest of the kingdom of Sihon, king of Heshbon—the Jordan and its eastern banks, to the southern end of the Sea of Galilee. ²⁸ This, then, was the land given to the people of Gad, clan by clan, and all their cities and villages.

²⁹ Finally Moses gave an inheritance to the half-tribe of Manasseh, again allotted clan by clan. ³⁰ Their territory started at Mahanaim and included all of Bashan and the whole kingdom of Og, king of Bashan, and all the settlements of Jair, which were in Bashan: 60 towns in all. ³¹ Half of Gilead, Ashtaroth, and Edrei (the royal cities of Og, king in Bashan) were allotted to half of the people of Machir, son of Manasseh, who would dwell east of the Jordan, according to their clans.

³² These were the inheritances Moses distributed on the plains of Moab beyond the Jordan River and east of Jericho. ³³ The clans of the tribe of Levi received no inheritance from Moses since the Eternal God of Israel was their inheritance as He promised them.

14 Here is an account of the land that the other people of Israel were given as an inheritance in the land of Canaan, as the priest Eleazar, Joshua (son of Nun), and the heads of the elders of the Israelite tribes distributed it to them. ² They determined the inheritance of the nine tribes and one half-tribe by lot, as the Eternal One had commanded them through Moses. ³ (Remember Moses had already distributed land to the two tribes and the other half-tribe who lived beyond the Jordan, and he gave no land as an inheritance to the Levites. ⁴ Since the descendants of Joseph consisted of two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim, no share of land was given to the Levites but only towns to live in, with pasture for their property and livestock.)

⁵ So the Israelites did as the Eternal commanded Moses and divided the land. ⁶ Some members of the tribe of Judah came to Joshua at Gilgal, including Caleb, son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite.

¹³ So Joshua blessed Caleb, son of Jephunneh, and gave him Hebron as an inheritance. ¹⁴ Hebron belongs to the descendants of Caleb, son of Jephunneh, the Kenizzite, even now because he obeyed the Eternal God of Israel completely. ¹⁵ (In ancient times, Hebron was called Kiriath-arba after Arba, who was the greatest of the Anakim.) So that land was peaceful.

15 The territory allotted to the tribe of the Judahites, clan by clan, reached south to the border of Edom, and even further south into the wilderness of Zin. ² Their southern border ran from the bay at the south end of the Dead Sea (the Salt Sea), ³ and continued to the south of the ascent of Akrabbim,^[c] crossed the wilderness of Zin, and went up south of Kadesh-barnea, past Hezron, on up to Addar, and then turning toward Karka, ⁴ on to Azmon, then out by the wadi of Egypt, and ending at the Mediterranean Sea. “This,” they were told, “will be your southern boundary.”

⁵ On the east the territory of Judah was bounded by the Dead Sea up to where the Jordan runs into it. Their boundary on the north began at the bay at the mouth of the Jordan, ⁶ went up to Beth-hoglah, passed north of Beth-arabah, and continued up to the stone of Bohan, Reuben’s descendant. ⁷ From there the boundary went to Debir from the valley of Achor, and then northward, turning toward Gilgal across from the ascent of Adummim, which is on the south side of the river valley. From there the boundary passed along to the waters of En-shemesh, and on to En-rogel. ⁸ Then the boundary went up the valley of Ben-hinnom, just at the southern slope of the Jebusite city, Jerusalem, and then up to the top of the mountain west of the Hinnom Valley at the northern end of the valley of Rephaim. ⁹ From the mountaintop, the boundary extended to the spring of Nephtoah, and from there to the towns of Mount Ephron. Then the boundary curved around to Baalah (that is, Kiriath-jearim); ¹⁰ and from there circled west of Baalah to Mount Seir, passed along to the northern slope of Mount Jearim (that is, Chesalon), went down to Beth-shemesh, passed through Timnah ¹¹ to the northern flank of Ekron, then turned toward Shikkeron, past Mount Baalah, and out to Jabneel. The boundary ended at the Mediterranean Sea.

¹² The western boundary, then, was the Mediterranean coast, and this recounts all the boundary of the land allotted to the people of Judah and its clans.

¹³ As the Eternal had commanded him, Joshua gave Caleb, son of Jephunneh, a share of land within the territory allotted to the people of Judah—Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron; Arba was the father of Anak). ¹⁴ Caleb drove from that land the three sons of Anak: Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai. ¹⁵ From there he went to battle the inhabitants of Debir (formerly Kiriath-sepher).

¹⁷ Othniel, son of Kenaz, Caleb’s brother, captured it, so Caleb gave Othniel his daughter Achsah in marriage. ¹⁸ One day she urged Othniel to ask her father for a field. As she dismounted her donkey, Caleb spoke to her.

So Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs.

²⁰ This, then, is the inheritance of the tribe of the people of Judah, according to their clans. ²¹ A list of the towns belonging to the tribe of the people of Judah, beginning in the far south near the boundary of Edom: Kabzeel, Eder, Jagur, ²² Kinah, Dimonah, Adadah, ²³ Kedesh, Hazor, Ithnan, ²⁴ Ziph, Telem, Bealoth, ²⁵ Hazor-hadattah, Kerioth-hezron (that is, Hazor), ²⁶ Amam, Shema, Moladah, ²⁷ Hazar-gaddah, Heshmon, Beth-pelet, ²⁸ Hazar-shual, Beersheba, Biziothiah, ²⁹ Baalah, Iim, Ezem, ³⁰ Eltolad, Chesil, Hormah, ³¹ Ziklag, Madmannah, Sansannah, ³² Lebaoth, Shilhim, Ain, and Rimmon—in all, 29 cities with their surrounding villages.

³³ In the lowlands: Eshtaol, Zorah, Ashnah, ³⁴ Zanoah, En-gannim, Tappuah, Enam, ³⁵ Jarmuth, Adullam, Socoh, Azekah, ³⁶ Shaaraim, Adithaim, Gederah, and Gederothaim—14 cities with their surrounding villages.

³⁷ Also Zenan, Hadashah, Migdal-gad, ³⁸ Dilean, Mizpeh, Joktheel, ³⁹ Lachish, Bozkath, Eglon, ⁴⁰ Cabbon, Lahmas, Chitlish, ⁴¹ Gederoth, Beth-dagon, Naamah, and Makkedah—16 cities with their surrounding villages.

⁴² Libnah, Ether, Ashan, ⁴³ Iphtah, Ashnah, Nezib, ⁴⁴ Keilah, Achzib, and Mareshah—9 cities with their surrounding villages.

⁴⁵ Ekron with its towns and villages, ⁴⁶ from Ekron to the Mediterranean Sea, and everything near Ashdod, with its villages.

⁴⁷ Also Ashdod, its towns and its villages; Gaza, its towns and its villages; on to the wadi of Egypt, and then the Mediterranean with its coast.

⁴⁸ In the hill country: Shamir, Jattir, Socoh, ⁴⁹ Dannah, Kiriath-sannah (that is, Debir), ⁵⁰ Anab, Eshtemoh, Anim, ⁵¹ Goshen, Holon, and Giloh—11 cities with their surrounding villages.

⁵² Also Arab, Dumah, Eshan, ⁵³ Janum, Beth-tappuah, Aphekah, ⁵⁴ Humtah, Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), and Zior—9 cities with their surrounding villages.

⁵⁵ Maon, Carmel, Ziph, Juttah, ⁵⁶ Jezreel, Jokdeam, Zanoah, ⁵⁷ Kain, Gibeah, and Timnah—10 cities with their surrounding villages.

⁵⁸ Also Halhul, Beth-zur, Gedor, ⁵⁹ Maarath, Beth-anoth, and Eltekon—6 cities with their surrounding villages.

⁶⁰ Kiriath-baal (that is, Kiriath-jearim) and Rabbah—2 cities with their surrounding villages.

⁶¹ In the desert: Beth-arabah, Middin, Secacah, ⁶² Nibshan, the City of Salt, and Engedi—6 cities with their surrounding villages.

⁶³ But the people of Judah could not conquer the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem, so the Jebusites still live alongside the people of Judah in Jerusalem today.

⁵⁷ When the time was right, Elizabeth gave birth to a son. ⁵⁸ News about the Lord’s special kindness to her had spread through her extended family and the community. Everyone shared her joy, for after all these years of infertility, she had a son! ⁵⁹ As was customary, eight days after the baby’s birth the time came for his circumcision and naming. Everyone assumed he would be named Zacharias, like his father.

⁶² They turned to Zacharias and asked him what he wanted the baby’s name to be.

⁶³ He motioned for a tablet, and he wrote, “His name is John.” Everyone was shocked by this breach of family custom. ⁶⁴ They were even more surprised when, at that moment, Zacharias was able to talk again, and he shouted out praises to God. ⁶⁵ A sense of reverence spread through the whole community. In fact, this story was spread throughout the hilly countryside of Judea. ⁶⁶ People were certain that God’s hand was on this child, and they wondered what sort of person John would turn out to be when he became a man.

⁶⁷ When Zacharias’s voice was restored to him, he sang from the fullness of the Spirit a prophetic blessing.

⁸⁰ And John grew up and became strong in spirit. He lived in the wilderness, outside the cities, until the day came for him to step into the public eye in Israel.