Joshua 18:1 – 25 “The whole assembly of the Israelites gathered at Shiloh and set up the tent of meeting there. The country was brought under their control, but there were still seven Israelite tribes who had not yet received their inheritance.
So, Joshua said to the Israelites: “How long will you wait before you begin to take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has given you? Appoint three men from each tribe. I will send them out to make a survey of the land and to write a description of it, according to the inheritance of each. Then they will return to me. You are to divide the land into seven parts. Judah is to remain in its territory on the south and the tribes of Joseph in their territory on the north. After you have written descriptions of the seven parts of the land, bring them here to me and I will cast lots for you in the presence of the Lord our God. The Levites, however, do not get a portion among you, because the priestly service of the Lord is their inheritance. And Gad, Reuben and the half-tribe of Manasseh have already received their inheritance on the east side of the Jordan. Moses the servant of the Lord gave it to them.”
As the men started on their way to map out the land, Joshua instructed them, “Go and make a survey of the land and write a description of it. Then return to me, and I will cast lots for you here at Shiloh in the presence of the Lord.” So the men left and went through the land. They wrote its description on a scroll, town by town, in seven parts, and returned to Joshua in the camp at Shiloh. Joshua then cast lots for them in Shiloh in the presence of the Lord, and there he distributed the land to the Israelites according to their tribal divisions.
The first lot came up for the tribe of Benjamin according to its clans. Their allotted territory lay between the tribes of Judah and Joseph: On the north side their boundary began at the Jordan, passed the northern slope of Jericho and headed west into the hill country, coming out at the wilderness of Beth Aven. From there it crossed to the south slope of Luz (that is, Bethel) and went down to Ataroth Addar on the hill south of Lower Beth Horon. From the hill facing Beth Horon on the south the boundary turned south along the western side and came out at Kiriath Baal (that is, Kiriath Jearim), a town of the people of Judah. This was the western side. The southern side began at the outskirts of Kiriath Jearim on the west, and the boundary came out at the spring of the waters of Nephtoah. The boundary went down to the foot of the hill facing the Valley of Ben Hinnom, north of the Valley of Rephaim. It continued down the Hinnom Valley along the southern slope of the Jebusite city and so to En Rogel. It then curved north, went to En Shemesh, continued to Geliloth, which faces the Pass of Adummim, and ran down to the Stone of Bohan son of Reuben. It continued to the northern slope of Beth Arabah and on down into the Arabah. It then went to the northern slope of Beth Hoglah and came out at the northern bay of the Dead Sea, at the mouth of the Jordan in the south. This was the southern boundary. The Jordan formed the boundary on the eastern side. These were the boundaries that marked out the inheritance of the clans of Benjamin on all sides. The tribe of Benjamin, according to its clans, had the following towns: Jericho, Beth Hoglah, Emek Keziz, Beth Arabah, Zemaraim, Bethel, Avvim, Parah, Ophrah, Kephar Ammoni, Ophni and Geba— twelve towns and their villages. Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth, Mizpah, Kephirah, Mozah, Rekem, Irpeel, Taralah, Zelah, Haeleph, the Jebusite city (that is, Jerusalem), Gibeah and Kiriath—fourteen towns and their villages. This was the inheritance of Benjamin for its clans.”
POOR JOSHUA! There must have been times when he felt as if he was running a day nursery! The tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh saw how good the land was on the east side of the Jordan and claimed that for their inheritance. The fighting men from those tribes then crossed with the rest of the Israelites and helped subdue part of Canaan. The Tribe of Judah, probably led by fearless Caleb, went out and claimed their inheritance. The Levites didn’t come in for one chunk of land because each of the other tribes was to designate a certain amount for the Levites in their midst. Ephraim and Manasseh had already received their allotment. But now there were seven tribes still sitting, waiting for someone to tell them what to do and probably hoping that someone else would go out and conquer territory for them.
It’s likely that Joshua went into the Tent of Meeting to get instructions from the Lord, and the Lord told him what to do. Each of the seven tribes was to select three men as part of a survey team. Why would there be three men? So that at any one time, there would be a majority opinion. These twenty – one men would then go out and assess the land, writing a description of it. When these men returned, Joshua would divide the land into seven parts and then cast lots to determine which tribe would get which piece of land. Joshua was trusting that God would guide the lots so that each tribe would get the land that He (God) wanted them to have.
Why would Joshua cast lots? Joshua was in the unenviable position of having to make decisions for people too cowardly to go out and take land on their own. At the same time, the method Joshua chose for land distribution was really the only means of ensuring that the distribution would be impartial. If Joshua had attempted to divide up the land by himself, he would have faced slanderous attacks that he was playing favorites, or that he had been bought off by someone. By casting lots, Joshua was leaving everything to God.
APPLICATION: Reading the descriptions of the various tribal lands can make your head swim! Unless you are an archaeologist or a very serious Bible scholar, these descriptions might be meaningless. But one thing to notice is the details. The boundaries are laid out with scrupulous care, even to the mentioning of particular landmarks and villages. A second thing to notice is that Joshua didn’t worry about which tribes were more numerous once he began casting lots. Joshua did the best job he could to divide things up equally; if someone wasn’t happy, they should have taken action sooner.
Become a leader at any level and you will immediately face the same challenges that Joshua faced. For years, I headed a mission hospital that grew from a handful of workers to a staff of more than 200. I observed that heading an institution felt very similar to being the head of a large family with lots of children, each one of whom thought that he or she should have been born an only child! Give person A the slightest advantage over person B, and person B will be in your office, demanding the same advantage. And whatever you do, don’t play favorites! Anyone feeling that they are highly favored will immediately begin to lord it over others and may become unmanageable, uncorrectable, and unteachable.
Ever notice something? While Moses had Joshua as his assistant, there is no record of Joshua having anyone as his assistant. Moses led a group of people through the desert; however, Joshua had to divide up land. Had anyone been acting as Joshua’s assistant, there would have been charges of favoritism, even if they weren’t true. There were probably days when Joshua wished heartily for someone else to share his problems, but that couldn’t happen.
Are you in the lonely position of leadership? Remember this: When no man could serve as Joshua’s assistant, God was still there to guide him and advise him and listen to his problems. The same God who helped Joshua is still available for you today. Why not pray and take your problems to Him?
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Please let all those in leadership turn to You for comfort, for guidance, and for reassurance. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
Burunche's Blog 
March 7, 2022 at 10:15 pm
Thank you, well said