Joshua 1:4
in Joshua 1Your territory shall extend from the wilderness and Lebanon to the great River Euphrates—all the land of the Hittites—and west as far as the Great Sea.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
From the wilderness, and this Lebanon, even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your border.
KJV
From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast.
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This verse in Joshua 1
Commentary
10 notes on this verseFrom the wilderness and this Lebanon - Joshua appears to be standing with his face towards the promised land, and pointing out the different places, or their situation, with his hand, This Lebanon, etc. The utmost of their limits should be from the desert of Arabia Petraea on the South to Lebanon on the North: and from the Euphrates on the East to the Mediterranean Sea on the West. The Israelites did not possess the full extent of this grant till the days of David. See 2Sa 8:3, etc., and 2Ch 9:
This site's exposition
the sole of your foot
on Joshua 1:3-4
The grant repeats Deuteronomy 11:24 nearly word for word, with the Euphrates in both. Clarke reads the grant as a limit touched later in the monarchy. Henry reads the land still remaining at 13:1 as pointing past the letter to the kingdom of the Messiah.
This site's exposition
all the land of the Hittites
Barnes reads the wilderness as the Arabian desert on the south, with Lebanon the northern limit. He places the Hittites in northern Canaan and takes their name here for the Canaanites in general, as at 1 Kings 10:29. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown place them in the south.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
What is the special excellence of Joshua? His generalship, and the distribution of the inheritance, and the taking possession of the Holy Land.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
To the patriarchs it was promised, I will give it; but, now that the fourth generation had expired, the iniquity of the Amorites was full, and the time had come for the performance of the promise, it is actually conveyed, and they are put in possession of that which they had long been in expectation of: "I do give it, enter upon it, it is all your own; nay (
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From the wilderness,....
If their church was enlarged, though their nation was not multiplied, it cannot be said that the promise was of no effect. And, if this promise had not its full accomplishment in the letter, believers might thence infer that it had a further meaning, and was to be fulfilled in the kingdom of the Messiah, both that of grace and that of glory.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
now therefore arise, go over this Jordan--Joshua's mission was that of a military leader. This passage records his call to begin the work, and the address contains a literal repetition of the promise made to Moses (De 11:24, 25;
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2 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
all the land of the Hittites--These occupied the southern extremities and were the dominant tribe of Canaan. Their superior power and the extent of their dominions are attested by the mention of them under the name of Khita, on the Assyrian inscriptions, and still more frequently on the Egyptian inscriptions of the eighteenth and nineteenth Dynasties.
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A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Lebanon is spoken of as “this Lebanon,” because visible from the neighborhood in which Israel was encamped. (Compare Deu 3:8-9.) “The wilderness” of the text is the Desert of Arabia, which forms the southern, as Lebanon does the northern, limit of the promised land. The boundaries on the east and west are likewise indicated; and the intervening territory is described generally as “all the land of the Hittites.” The Hittites are properly the inhabitants of northern Canaan and Phoenicia (see Exo 3:8 note), but the name appears to be used here for the Canaanites in general, as in 1Ki 10:29. On the boundaries of the promised land compare Deu 11:24; Gen 15:18.
The words behind it
18 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| מֵהַמִּדְבָּר֩ | mehamidbar | from the wilderness | H4057 → | 270 times |
| וְהַלְּבָנ֨וֹן | vehalevanon | and <the> Lebanon | H3844 → | 71 times |
| הַזֶּ֜ה | hazeh | <the> this | H2088 → | 1180 times |
| וְֽעַד־ | vead- | and to | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| הַנָּהָ֧ר | hanahar | the river | H5104 → | 119 times |
| הַגָּד֣וֹל | hagadol | <the> great | H1419 → | 526 times |
| נְהַר־ | nehar- | [the] river of | H5104 → | 119 times |
| פְּרָ֗ת | perat | Euphrates | H6578 → | |
| כֹּ֚ל | kol | all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| אֶ֣רֶץ | ʾeretz | [the] land of | H776 → | 2504 times |
| הַֽחִתִּ֔ים | hachitim | the Hittites | H2850 → | 48 times |
| וְעַד־ | vead- | and to | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| הַיָּ֥ם | haiyam | the sea | H3220 → | 396 times |
| הַגָּד֖וֹל | hagadol | <the> great | H1419 → | 526 times |
| מְב֣וֹא | mevo' | [the] setting of | H3996 → | |
| הַשָּׁ֑מֶשׁ | hashamesh | the sun | H8121 → | 134 times |
| יִֽהְיֶ֖ה | yihyeh | it will be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| גְּבוּלְכֶֽם׃ | gevulekhem | territory your | H1366 → | 240 times |
מֵהַמִּדְבָּר֩from the wilderness
mehamidbarH4057 →270 times
וְהַלְּבָנ֨וֹןand <the> Lebanon
vehalevanonH3844 →71 times
הַזֶּ֜ה<the> this
hazehH2088 →1180 times
וְֽעַד־and to
vead-H5704 →1261 times
הַנָּהָ֧רthe river
hanaharH5104 →119 times
הַגָּד֣וֹל<the> great
hagadolH1419 →526 times
נְהַר־[the] river of
nehar-H5104 →119 times
פְּרָ֗תEuphrates
peratH6578 →
כֹּ֚לall
kolH3605 →5413 times
אֶ֣רֶץ[the] land of
ʾeretzH776 →2504 times
הַֽחִתִּ֔יםthe Hittites
hachitimH2850 →48 times
וְעַד־and to
vead-H5704 →1261 times
הַיָּ֥םthe sea
haiyamH3220 →396 times
הַגָּד֖וֹל<the> great
hagadolH1419 →526 times
מְב֣וֹא[the] setting of
mevo'H3996 →
הַשָּׁ֑מֶשׁthe sun
hashameshH8121 →134 times
יִֽהְיֶ֖הit will be
yihyehH1961 →3559 times
גְּבוּלְכֶֽם׃territory your
gevulekhemH1366 →240 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Deuteronomy 1:7Resume your journey and go to the hill country of the Amorites; go to all the neighboring peoples in the Arabah, in the hill country, in the foothills, in the Negev, and along the…
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 11:24
Every place where the sole of your foot treads will be yours. Your territory will extend from the wilderness to Lebanon, and from the Euphrates River to the Western Sea.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Joshua 10:40
So Joshua conquered the whole region—the hill country, the Negev, the foothills, and the slopes, together with all their kings—leaving no survivors. He devoted to destruction everything that breathed, just as the LORD, the…
- Deuteronomy 11:24
Through
Deuteronomy 11:24Every place where the sole of your foot treads will be yours. Your territory will extend from the wilderness to Lebanon, and from the Euphrates River to the Western Sea.
it leads to
- Joshua 14:9
On that day Moses swore to me, saying, ‘Surely the land on which you have set foot will be an inheritance to you and your children forever, because you have wholly followed the LORD…
- Exodus 23:31
And I will establish your borders from the Red Sea to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the desert to the Euphrates. For I will deliver the inhabitants into your hand, and you…
- Genesis 15:18–21
On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I have given this land—from the river of Egypt to the great River Euphrates—
- 1 Kings 4:21
And Solomon reigned over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. These kingdoms offered tribute and served Solomon all the days of…
- Joshua 14:9
Through
Exodus 23:31And I will establish your borders from the Red Sea to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the desert to the Euphrates. For I will deliver the inhabitants into your hand, and you…
it leads to
- Genesis 15:18
On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I have given this land—from the river of Egypt to the great River Euphrates—
- Joshua 21:44
And the LORD gave them rest on every side, just as He had sworn to their fathers. None of their enemies could stand against them, for the LORD delivered all their enemies into their…
- Genesis 15:18
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies13
On this verse
About Joshua
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Gregory of Nazianzus, ON BASIL THE GREAT, ORATION 43.72; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.