Joshua19chapter 19

Joshua 19:10

Sarid, not yet identified, was evidently a leading topographical point on the south frontier of Zebulun. The boundary passed westward until it touched the Kishon, near “Tell Kaimon” (Jos 12:22 note), and thence, turned northward, leaving Carmel, which belonged to Asher, on its west. The territory of Zebulun accordingly would not anywhere reach to the Mediterranean, though its eastern side abutted on the sea of Galilee, and gave the tribe those “outgoings” attributed to it in the Blessing of Moses (Deu 33:18). Daberath (Jos 19:12) is probably “Deburieh.”

Joshua 19:11

“Toward the sea - The lot of this tribe was washed by the midland sea on the west, and by the sea of Tiberias on the east, answering Jacob's prophecy, Zebulun shall be an haven of ships; trading ships on the great sea, and fishing ships on the sea of Galilee.”

Joshua 19:12

“And turned from Sarid eastward,.... This describes the southern border, going on from west to east: towards the sunrising, unto the border of Chislothtabor; this Jerom places in the tribe of Issachar, it bordered on both tribes; and he says (l), that in his time there was a little village called Chaselus, eight miles from Diocaesarea, at the foot of Mount Tabor in the plains: and then goeth out to Daberath; which also was a city in the tribe of Issachar, given to the Levites, Jos 21:”

Joshua 19:13

“And from thence passeth on along on the east to Gittahhepher,.... Which was the native place of Jonah the prophet, 2Ki 14:25; and where Jerom says (r) his grave was shown, and was a small village in his time two miles from Sippore, then called Diocaesarea: to Ittahkazin; of this place we have no account elsewhere, but it was not far from the former: and goeth out to Remmonmethoar to Neah; where the eastern border ended.”

Joshua 19:13

“Gittah (or Gath)- hepher, the birthplace of the prophet Jonah 2Ki 14:25, is probably the modern village of El-Meshhad, where the tomb of the prophet is still shown, a short way from Nazareth, on the road to Tiberias. Remmon-methoar to Neah - Read “and goeth out to Remmon, which reacheth to Neah.” (See the margin.) Rimmon, a Levitical city Jos 21:35; 1Ch 6:77 is probably the modern “Rummaneh,” in the plain of “El Buttauf,” about six miles north of Nazareth.”

Joshua 19:14

Hannathon, more properly Channathon, has been supposed by some to be the Cana of Galilee of the New Testament, and Jiphthah-el is probably the present “Jefat”; the “Jotapata” of Roman times, which was so long and valiantly defended by Josephus against the legions of Vespasian. The “Valley” is the “Wady Abilin”; and Bethlehem Jos 19:15 is the present miserable village of “Beit-Lahin.”

Joshua 19:15

“Twelve cities - Only five have been mentioned, and the names in the verses preceding are apparently not names of Zebulonite cities, but merely of points in or near the boundary line. It would therefore appear that seven names have disappeared from the text, and perhaps also the definition of the western frontier.”

Joshua 19:15

“Beth-lehem - Not that where Christ was born, which was in Judah, but another. Twelve cities - There are more numbered here, but the rest either were not cities properly so called, or were not within this tribe, but only bordering upon it, and belonging to other tribes.”

Joshua 19:17

“The fourth lot came out to Issachar - It is remarkable, that though Issachar was the eldest brother, yet the lot of Zebulun was drawn before his lot; and this is the order in which Jacob himself mentions them, Gen 49:13, Gen 49:14, though no reason appears, either here or in the place above, why this preference should be given to the younger; but that the apparently fortuitous lot should have distinguished them just as the prophetic Jacob did, is peculiarly remarkable.”

Joshua 19:18

“Jezreel - This city, according to Calmet, was situated in an open country, having the town of Legion on the west, Bethshan on the east, on the south the mountains of Gilboa, and on the north those of Hermon. Shunem - This city was rendered famous by being the occasional abode of the prophet Elisha, and the place where he restored the son of a pious woman to life. 2Ki 4:”

Joshua 19:19

“And Hapharaim,.... The first of these is by Jerom (y) called Aphraim, a city of the tribe of Issachar; and adds, there is at this day a village called Affarea, six miles from Legion to the north: and Shion; of Seon or Soen, the same with Shion here, he says (z), there was a village of this name shown in his time near Mount Tabor: and Anaharath, of which we have no account elsewhere. (y) Ut supra, (De loc. Heb.) fol. 88. I. (z) lbid. fol. 94. K.”

Joshua 19:20

“And Rabbith,.... The first of these Jerom calls (a) Rabboth in the tribe of Issachar: and Kishion, as Masius notes, seems to given name to the river Kishon near it; some take it to be the same with Kedesh, 1Ch 6:72, and Abez, of which no mention is made elsewhere. (a) De loc. Heb. fol. 94. B.”

Joshua 19:21

“And Remeth,.... Remeth seems to be the same with Jarmuth, Jos 21:29; and with Ramoth, 1Ch 6:73, and Engannim seems to be the same with Anem in 1Ch 6:73, there were several of this name, which seem to have been places full of gardens, and well watered; for the word signifies a fountain of gardens.”

Joshua 19:21

“En-gannim - i. e. “fountain of gardens;” also a Levitical city Jos 21:29, and called Ahem 1Ch 6:73, the modern “Jenin,” a place on the main road from Jerusalem to Nazareth, just where it enters the plain of Jezreel. Many of the places enumerated in these verses are not known. Tabor Jos 19:22 is perhaps not the famous mountain, but the town on it of the same name 1Ch 6:77, given up to the Levites. Beth-shemesh (perhaps “Bessum”) is not the same as Beth-shemesh of Judah Jos 15:10, nor of Naphtali Jos 19:38.”

Joshua 19:22

“And the coast reacheth to Tabor,.... Tabor was the name of a mountain in those parts; it is generally supposed to be the mountain on which our Lord was transfigured, though it is not sufficiently evident; See Gill on Jer 46:18. There was a city of this name near it, 1Ch 6:77, and which is meant here, and which either gave unto or received name from the mount.”

Joshua 19:22

“Beth-shemesh - The house or temple of the sun; there were several cities or towns of this name in Palestine; an ample proof that the worship of this celestial luminary had generally prevailed in that idolatrous country.”

Joshua 19:25

“And their border was Helkath,.... Helkath seems to be the same with Hukok, 1Ch 6:75; and according to Masius it lay ten or twelve miles above Ptolemais: and Hali, of which we read nowhere else. and Beten is by Jerom (h) called Bathne, and was in his time a village by the name of Bethebem, eight miles from Ptolemais to the east.”

Joshua 19:25

“Helkath, a Levitical town Jos 21:31, is probably Yerka, a village about seven or eight miles north-west of Acre, in a Wady of the same name. Alammelech was in the “Wady Melik,” which joins the Kishon from the northeast, not far from the sea. Shihor-libnath - i. e. “black-white.” The two words are now generally admitted to be the name of a river, probably the modern “Nahr Zerka,” or Blue River, which reaches the sea about 8 miles south of Dor, and whose name has a correspondence both to black and white.”

Joshua 19:26

“Carmel - The vineyard of God; a place greatly celebrated in Scripture, and especially for the miracles of Elijah; see 1 Kings 18:19-40. The mountain of Carmel was so very fruitful as to pass into a proverb. There was another Carmel in the tribe of Judah, (see Jos 15:55), but this, in the tribe of Asher, was situated about one hundred and twenty furlongs south from Ptolemais, on the edge of the Mediterranean Sea. Calmet observes that there was, in the time of Vespasian, a temple on this mountain, dedicated to a god of the same name.”

Joshua 19:26

“Carmel west-ward - Or, Carmel by the sea, to distinguish it from Carmel in the tribe of Judah. This was a place of eminent fruitfulness, agreeable to the prophecy concerning Asher, Gen. xlix, 20.”

Joshua 19:27

“Cabul on the left hand - That is, to the north of Cabul, for so the left hand, when referring to place, is understood among the Hebrews.”

Joshua 19:28

“Unto great Zidon - The city of Sidon and the Sidonians are celebrated from the remotest antiquity. They are frequently mentioned by Homer. See the note on Jos 11:8.”

Joshua 19:28

“Kenah - Namely, Kenah the greater, in the upper Galilee; not Kenah the less, which was in the lower Galilee. Zidon - Called great for its antiquity, and riches, and glory.”

Joshua 19:29

“The strong city Tyre - I suspect this to be an improper translation. Perhaps the words of the original should be retained: And the coast turneth to Ramah and to the city, מבצר צר mibtsar tsor. Our translators have here left the Hebrew, and followed the Septuagint and Vulgate, a fault of which they are sometimes guilty. The former render the place ἑως πολεως οχυρωματος των Τυριων, unto the fortified city of the Tyrians.”

Joshua 19:29

“To Tyre - Exclusively, for this city was no part of the land given them. But this was not the same city we read of afterwards. For that was built on an island, this on the continent.”

Joshua 19:30

“Twenty and two cities - There are nearly thirty cities in the above enumeration instead of twenty-two, but probably several are mentioned that were but frontier towns, and that did not belong to this tribe, their border only passing by such cities; and on this account, though they are named, yet they do not enter into the enumeration in this place. Perhaps some of the villages are named as well as the cities.”

Joshua 19:32

“It was in the lot of this tribe, near the waters of Merom, that Joshua fought and routed Jabin, ch. xi. In this tribe stood Capernaum and Bethsaida, on the north end of the sea of Tiberias, in which Christ did so many mighty works; and the mountain (as is supposed) on which Christ preached, Matt. v. 1 .”

Joshua 19:33

“From Allon to Zaanannim - Render “from the oak forest at Zaanannim.” From Jdg 4:11 it appears that this oak or oak-forest was near Kedesh. Adami, Nekeb - Render “Adami of the Pass.” Possibly the ancient “Deir el Ahmar” (“red cloister”), which derives its name from the color of the soil in the neighborhood, as perhaps Adami did. The spot lies about 8 miles northwest of Baalbek.”

Joshua 19:34

“And to Judah upon Jordan - It is certain that the tribe of Naphtali did not border on the east upon Judah, for there were several tribes betwixt them. Some think that as these two tribes were bounded by Jordan on the east, they might be considered as in some sort conjoined, because of the easy passage to each other by means of the river; but this might be said of several other tribes as well as of these.”

Joshua 19:35

“The number of the fortified cities of Naphtali is remarkable, though it does not tally with the catalogue. It was no doubt good policy to protect the northern frontier by a belt of fortresses, as the south was protected by the fenced cities of Judah. Hammath, a Levitical city (compare Jos 21:32; 1Ch 6:76), is not to be confounded with the Hamath on the northeastern frontier of the land Num 13:21. The name (from a root signifying “to be warm”) probably indicates that hot springs existed here; and is perhaps rightly traced in Ammaus, near Tiberias.”

Joshua 19:36

“And Adamah,.... Adamah is different from Adami, Jos 19:33; and may seem to confirm the notion of some, that Nekeb there is an epithet of it, and so distinguishes it from Adamah here: and Ramah; of Ramah, as there were several places of this name; see Gill on Jos 19:29, and Hazor was a royal city, of which; see Gill on Jos 11:1.”

Joshua 19:37

“And Kedesh,.... This is Kedesh in Galilee, in Mount Naphtali, to distinguish it from others of the same name; it was one of the cities of refuge, Jos 20:7. Jerom says (m) in his day it was called Cidissus, and was twenty miles from Tyre by Paneas; See Gill on Jos 12:22. and Edrei is a different place from one of that name in the kingdom of Og, Num 21:33, and Enhazor, of which we read nowhere else. (m) Ut supra, (De loc. Heb.) fol. 90. B.”

Joshua 19:38

“Nineteen cities - But if these cities be separately enumerated they amount to twenty-three; this is probably occasioned by reckoning frontier cities belonging to other tribes, which are only mentioned here as the boundaries of the tribe. See on Jos 19:30 (note).”

Joshua 19:39

“This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Naphtali,.... Which Josephus (o) thus describes;"the country to the east, as far as Damascus the city, and upper Galilee, the Naphtalites took, unto Mount Lebanon, and the fountains of Jordan, which flow out of the mount, reaching the northern border of the city Arce:" according to their families; which was divided among them, according to the number of their families: the cities and their villages; before enumerated. (o) Antiqu. l. 5. c. 1. sect. 22.”

Joshua 19:41

“Zorah, and Eshtaol - See the note on Jos 15:33. Ir-shemesh - The city of sun; another proof of the idolatry of the Canaanites. Some think this was the same as Beth-shemesh.”

Joshua 19:41

“Of their inheritance - Which is here described only by its cities, not its borders, which are in part the same with Judah's, and their inheritance is in good part taken out of Judah's too large portion; as appears from divers of the cities here mentioned, which are also reckoned in Judah's portion.”

Joshua 19:42

“And Shaalabbin,.... The first of these is the same with Shaalbim, Jdg 1:35; and which Jerom (r) calls Selab, in the tribe of Dan; and which he says was in his day shown a large village on the borders of Sebaste, by the name of Selaba. and Ajalon is famous for the standing still of the moon in its valley while Joshua pursued his enemies; see Gill on Jos 10:12, and Jethlah, of which we read nowhere else. (r) De loc. Heb. fol. 94. K.”

Joshua 19:42

“Shaalabbin - The foxes. Of this city the Amorites kept constant possession. See Jdg 1:35. Ajalon - There was a place of this name about two miles from Nicopolis or Emmaus, on the road to Jerusalem. - Calmet.”

Joshua 19:43

“And Elon,.... Of Elon no mention is made elsewhere: and Thimnathah is a different place from Timnah in the tribe of Judah, Jos 15:10. Jerom (s) speaks of the Thamnitic country, so called from the village Thamna, which seems to be this: and Ekron was one of the five principalities of the Philistines, and never possessed by the Israelites; it first fell by lot to the tribe of Judah, and afterwards given to the tribe of Dan, Jos 15:45. (s) De loc. Heb. fol. 88. E.”

Joshua 19:45

“And Jehud,.... Of Jehud no mention is made elsewhere: and Beneberak signifies sons of lightning; see Mar 3:17. Jerom (x) speaks of tills as the name of two places, Bane in the tribe of Dan, and Barach in the same tribe, and which was in his day near Azotus. This place was famous in later times among the Jews for being a place where one of their noted Rabbins, R.”

Joshua 19:46

“And Mejarkon, and Rakkon,.... Of the two first of these we read no where else. with the border before Japho; Japho is the same with Joppa, now called at this day Jaffa, a port in the Mediterranean sea, famous for being the place where Jonah took shipping; see Gill on Jon 1:3; and where the Apostle Peter resided some time; see Gill on Act 9:36; and See Gill on Act 9:”

Joshua 19:47

“The words “too little” are an insertion of the King James Version Render rather, “the border of the children of Dan was extended.” The Hebrew appears to mean “the children of Dan enlarged their border because they had not room enough.” The reason of this was that the Danites, a numerous tribe (Num 26:5 note), found themselves Jdg 1:34-35 cooped up among the hills by the powerful and warlike Amorites.”

Joshua 19:49

“The children of Israel - That is, they are said to give it, because the whole land was given to Joshua, and Eleazar, and the princes, as joint trustees, acting in the name, and for the good of the people: so that even Joshua could take nothing without their gift.”

Joshua 19:50

“And indeed we said above that even our Lord Jesus Christ asks us for a place he may build and in which he may live and that we ought to become so clean of heart, and so sincere of mind, so holy in body and spirit, that he may both deign to accept this place in our soul and to build it and dwell in it. And who do you think among all the people are so acceptable to God that they are worthy to be chosen for this?”

Joshua 19:50

“Timnath-serah - Called Timnath-heres in Jdg 2:9, where we find that the mountain on which it was built was called Gaash. It is generally allowed to have been a barren spot in a barren country.”

Joshua 19:50

“But the gift was not left to the spontaneous feelings of a grateful people. It was conferred "according to the word of the Lord"--probably an unrecorded promise, similar to what had been made to Caleb (Jos 14:9).”

Joshua 19:50

“The word of The Lord - As God had promised, or commanded; either formerly, or at this time by Eleazar. He built - That is, repaired and enlarged it, in which sense Nebuchadnezzar is said to have built Babylon, Dan. iv, 30.”

Joshua 19:51

“At the door of the tabernacle - All the inheritances were determined by lot, and this was cast before the Lord - every thing was done in his immediate presence, as under his eye; hence there was no murmuring, each having received his inheritance as from the hand of God himself, though some of them thought they must have additional territory, because of the great increase of their families.”