Commentaria in Josue
Chapter 19. Synopsis of the Chapter
By lot is given, verse 1, to the tribe of Simeon its portion of Chanaan, and to the tribe of Zabulon, verse 10, next Issachar, verse 17, then Aser, verse 24, and Nephthali, verse 32, and Dan, verse 40. Finally, verse 49, to Josue himself is given Thamnath-sare, which he had asked.
1. And the second lot came forth for the children of Simeon by their kindreds: and their inheritance 2. was in the midst of the possession of the children of Juda: Bersabee, and Sabee, and Molada, 3. and Hasersual, Bala, and Asem, 4. and Eltholad, Bethul, and Harma, 5. and Siceleg, and Bethmarchaboth, and Hasersusa, 6. and Bethlebaoth, and Sarohen: thirteen cities, and their villages. 7. Ain, and Remmon, and Athar, and Asan: four cities, and their villages. 8. All the villages round about these cities as far as Baalath-beer Ramath toward the south quarter. This is the inheritance of the children of Simeon according to their kindreds. 9. In the possession and lot of the children of Juda: because it was greater; and therefore the children of Simeon had their possession in the midst of their inheritance. 10. And the third lot fell to the children of Zabulon by their kindreds: and the border of their possession was made as far as Sarid. 11. And it goeth up from the sea and Merala, and cometh to Debbaseth, as far as the torrent which is over against Jeconam. 12. And it returneth from Sared eastward to the borders of Ceseleth-thabor: and goeth out to Dabereth, and ascendeth toward Japhie, 13. and from thence it passeth on to the east side of Gethhepher and Thacasin: and goeth out to Remmon, Amthar and Noa. 14. And it compasseth it on the north to Hanathon: and the goings out thereof are the valley of Jephthahel, 15. and Catheth and Naaluel and Semron and Jedala and Bethlehem: twelve cities, and their villages. 16. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Zabulon by their kindreds, the cities and villages of them. 17. The fourth lot came out to Issachar by his kindreds. 18. And his inheritance was Jezrael, and Casaloth, and Sunem, 19. and Hapharaim, and Seon, and Anaharath, 20. and Rabboth, and Cesion, Abes, 21. and Rameth, and Engannim, and Enhadda, and Bethpheses. 22. And the border thereof cometh to Thabor, and Sehesima, and Bethsames, and the goings out thereof shall be at the Jordan: sixteen cities, and their villages. 23. This is the possession of the children of Issachar by their kindreds, the cities and their villages. 24. And the fifth lot fell to the tribe of the children of Aser by their kindreds: 25. and their border was Halcath, and Chali, and Beten, and Axaph, 26. and Elmelech, and Amaad, and Messal; and it reacheth to Carmel of the sea, and Sihor and Labanath. 27. And it returneth toward the east to Beth-dagon: and passeth to Zabulon and the valley of Jephthahel northward to Beth-emec and Nehiel. And it goeth out to the left to Cabul, 28. and Abran, and Rohob, and Hamon, and Cana, as far as the great Sidon. 29. And it returneth to Horma as far as the strong city of Tyre, and as far as Hosa: and the goings out thereof shall be to the sea from the portion of Achziba, 30. and Amma and Aphec and Rohob: twenty-two cities, and their villages. 31. This is the possession of the children of Aser by their kindreds, the cities and their villages. 32. The sixth lot fell to the children of Nephthali by their families: 33. and their border began from Heleph and Elon to Saananim, and Adami, which is Neceb, and Jebnael as far as Lecum: and the goings out thereof as far as the Jordan, 34. and the border returneth westward to Azanoth-thabor, and from thence goeth out to Hucuca, and passeth into Zabulon to the south, and into Aser to the west, and into Juda at the Jordan toward the rising of the sun: 35. and the strongest cities, Assedim, Ser, and Emath, and Reccath, and Cenereth, 36. and Edema, and Arama, Asor, 37. and Cedes, and Edrai, Enhasor, 38. and Jeron, and Magdalel, Horem and Bethanath, and Bethsames: nineteen cities, and their villages. 39. This is the possession of the tribe of the children of Nephthali by their kindreds, the cities and villages of them. 40. And the seventh lot came out to the tribe of the children of Dan by their families: 41. and the border of their possession was Saraa and Esthaol, and Hirsemes, that is, the city of the sun. 42. Selebin, and Aialon, and Jethela, 43. Elon, and Themna, and Acron, 44. Elthece, Gebbethon, and Balaath, 45. and Jud, and Bane, and Barach, and Gethremmon, 46. and Mejarcon, and Arecon, with the border which looketh toward Joppe, 47. and it is concluded with that end. And the children of Dan went up, and fought against Lesem, and took it, and put it to the sword, and possessed it, and dwelt in it, calling its name Lesem Dan, from the name of Dan their father. 48. This is the possession of the tribe of the children of Dan by their kindreds, the cities and villages of them. 49. And when they had made an end of dividing the land by lot to every one by their tribes, the children of Israel gave a possession to Josue the son of Nun in the midst of them, 50. according to the commandment of the Lord, the city which he asked, Thamnath-saraa, in mount Ephraim: and he built up the city, and dwelt in it. 51. These are the possessions which Eleazar the priest, and Josue the son of Nun, and the princes of the families and tribes of the children of Israel gave by lot in Silo, before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of the testimony, and they divided the land.
1. AND THEIR INHERITANCE (of the Simeonites) WAS IN THE MIDST OF THE POSSESSION OF THE CHILDREN OF JUDA.—R. Solomon asserts that the Simeonites were passed over in the casting of lots of the twelve tribes, because Jacob, cursing Simeon, had said of him and Levi: “I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel,” Genesis 49:7; wherefore the Simeonites were without inheritance, but the other tribes cast a lot as to which should receive them into itself; and the lot fell on the tribe of Juda: this tribe therefore received them within itself, but grudgingly and under compulsion, and therefore expelled them from itself under David, and he gathers this from 1 Paralipomenon 4:31. But these are mere inventions, indeed errors repugnant to Holy Scripture, which here expressly asserts that to the Simeonites, as to the other tribes, their portion in Chanaan fell by lot. That they are here said to have received the lot in the midst of the children of Juda, understand thus: that their lot was conterminous with the lot of the tribe of Juda and let into it; and that the tribe of Juda, having too wide spaces of land to cultivate all and defend against wild beasts, ceded part of it to the tribe of Simeon. For this tribe was smaller than the others, and less numerous. For in the last census there were numbered in it only 22200. Moreover the oracle of Jacob does not favour R. Solomon, but intends something else, as I showed on Genesis 49:7. So Masius and others.
11. AS FAR AS THE TORRENT WHICH IS OVER AGAINST JECONAM.—Masius probably thinks this torrent is that near the limits of the Sidonians, which historians call Pagida or Belus, which carries sand from which the best glass is made, Pliny testifying, book 5, chapter 19, and book 36, chapter 26; Josephus, book 2 of the Jewish War, chapter 9; Tacitus, book 5; Strabo, book 16; and William of Tyre, book 13 of the Holy War, chapter 3.
13. AMTHAR.—So also the Septuagint take the Hebrew word ha-mtoar as a proper name of a city. Symmachus, however, takes it as a common noun and as an epithet of Remmon; whence he translates, famous Remmon. The Chaldean, Masius, Vatablus, Pagninus, Arias, R. David and Rabbi Solomon translate: which turns about or bends round to Noa.
26. AND IT REACHETH TO CARMEL OF THE SEA.—“Of the sea” is added because there were two mounts Carmel in the Holy Land, one in the tribe of Aser lying by the Mediterranean sea, the other in the tribe of Juda, of which Nabal, husband of Abigail, was an inhabitant.
27. BETH-DAGON,—that is, house of Dagon, because in this city Dagon was worshipped in the form of a fish, or rather of a Siren. Whence Serarius on Judges chapter 16, Question 23, is of opinion that Dagon was Venus, of whom more on 1 Kings 5:2.
35. CENERETH.—From this city the lake of Genesareth, or sea of Galilee lying beside it, took its name. Masius and Arias think that Cenereth is that which was afterwards called Tiberias in honour of Tiberius Caesar. Others will have it to be Capharnaum.
47. AND THE CHILDREN OF DAN WENT UP, AND FOUGHT AGAINST LESEM.—This was done after the death of Josue, as is related at length in Judges chapter 18 and following. Hence it is plain that this book was not written by Josue; or rather that by him who arranged and published it many things were inserted and added to it.
49. THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL GAVE A POSSESSION TO JOSUE.—Note here, and admire, the modesty of the leader Josue; for he who first divided lots to all others received his own last. Again, he would not have a lot cast for himself as for the others, but accepted what was given by the people. Josue was indeed a type of Jesus Christ, who, though he was the first of all, indeed the Alpha and Omega, for us was made the last of men, Isaias 53:3.
50. ACCORDING TO THE COMMANDMENT OF THE LORD.—This commandment, verse 50, is not expressed in Numbers 14:24, but is here supplied.
Hence, therefore, it is clear that God commanded that to Josue be given that portion of land which he himself should desire. For if God there commanded Hebron to be given to Caleb, why not to his companion Josue, who surpassed Caleb, and was leader and prince of the people? And Caleb sufficiently hints this when here, chapter 14, verse 6, he says to Josue: “Thou knowest what the Lord spoke to Moses”
THE CITY WHICH HE ASKED: THAMNATH-SARAA IN MOUNT EPHRAIM.—Josue asked this city, both that he might dwell among his fellow-tribesmen in his own tribe of Ephraim, and for the sake of modesty. For this city Thamnath was surnamed “Saraa” from the aridity and uselessness of the place: Thamnath-saraa in Hebrew is the same as portion that overflows, or useless; or, as others say, image of superfluity or of stench; or, as Pagninus, thou shalt number the remainder; as if Josue occupied what was left over and useless to all others; as St. Louis, St. Hedwig, St. Elizabeth, out of zeal for humility and devotion, often ate the leavings of the table of the poor whom they fed. Josue, therefore, last of all, chose a worse and uncultivated city, situated among mountainous and rough places, and left to leaders and magistrates a notable example of continence and poverty, and did what is admonished by Ecclesiasticus chapter 32:1: “Have they made thee ruler? Be not lifted up; be among them as one of them. Take care of them, and so sit down, and when thou hast done all thy duty (that is, finished), take thy place.” Certainly St. Jerome in the Epitaph of St. Paula writes that she, when she visited the tomb of Josue, wondered that he, the distributor of all possessions, had chosen for himself mountainous and stony places. And in this matter Josue was a type of Jesus Christ, who, when he was rich and the King of glory, for us willed to become less and poorer, that he might enrich us by his poverty and exalt us by his lowliness. So Origen, homily 24; Theodoret, Question 17; Masius, Arias and others.
Let princes and the counsellors of princes, prefects and governors note and imitate this example, as in our own age Thomas More, Chancellor of England, did, who from his earliest age discharged great offices in the commonwealth, and yet, though he had a large household, throughout his life did not increase his annual income beyond seventy gold pieces, as Stapleton relates in his Life, chapters 3 and 7.
AND HE BUILT UP THE CITY,—that is, restored, enlarged, adorned the city already built.
51. AND THEY DIVIDED THE LAND,—that is, they caused it to be divided, they finished the division. For in Hebrew it is, and they finished dividing the land. The Septuagint, reading with other points, by metathesis, vaielechu instead of vaiechallu, that is, and they finished, translate, and they went away from dividing the land, to inhabit and cultivate it. All therefore comes to the same.