The History of the Old Testament Methodized, Chapter 4 · Section 110 – Section 114
SECT. CX.
WE return now to the Tribe of Judah, whoſe lot (as we have ſhewn) falling to them in the richeſt and beſt part of Canaan, an eminent Perſon of this Tribe, namely, Caleb (deſcended of Kenaz, 1 Chron. 4.13, 15.) attended with the chief Men and Elders of Judah, made his Addreſs to Joſhua, and ſpake to him after this manner; Thou maiſt remember the thing that the Lord ſpake to Moſes, the Man of God, at Kadeſh-Barnea concerning thee and me, when we returned thither from ſearching the Land; namely, that we only of all thoſe that were above twenty years old at that time ſhould ſee this good Land, [Numb. 14.30.] I was forty years old when I was ſent by Moſes to ſpy out the Land,(p)The Iſraelites after this wandring 38 years in the Wilderneſs, this muſt needs be the ſeventh year ſince they came into Canaan. and I brought him word again as it was in my heart, I told him faithfully what I thought of the Land, and did neither for fear nor favour of any man ſpeak otherwiſe than I thought in my Conſcience. My Brethren that went up with me (viz. ten of them,) made the hearts of the people melt and faint within them, by telling them of the invincible ſtrength of the Canaanites; but I wholly followed the Lord my God (as thou alſo didſt) and ſhewed my Obedience to him faithfully, and perſwaded the people without fear to enter into the Land, reſting upon the Promiſes and powerful Aſſiſtance of the Almighty. And Moſes ſware to me on that day, (to wit, by the motion and direction of God,) ſaying, Surely the Land whereon thy feet have trodden ſhall be thine Inheritance, and thy Childrens for ever, (namely, ſome ſpecial part of it, and particularly that wherein Hebron (q)And this place of the Land was given him rather than any other, becauſe when the other Spies had ſeen thoſe Giants, the Anakims, Numb. 13.23. near Hebron, and had thereupon diſcouraged the people, Caleb reſolutely oppoſed theſe his faint-hearted Brethren, and when they objected the invincible ſtrength of the place and people, He encouraged the Iſraelites, and told them they might (with God's help) eaſily vanquiſh them. And hereupon it ſeems there was ſome particular promiſe made to him concerning this Inheritance, Joſh. 15.13.is ſituate,) becauſe thou haſt wholly followed the Lord my God. Thus Moſes ſware to me. And now behold the Lord hath kept me alive theſe forty and five years ſince He ſpake this word unto Moſes, ſo that I am now fourſcore and five years old, and yet I am as ſtrong this day as I was on the day Moſes ſent me; As my ſtrength was then, ſo is it now, both for War, or any other buſineſs. Thus the Lord hath wonderfully preſerv'd my life and ſtrength, and reſerv'd me as it were to enjoy that portion of Land which was then promiſed me. Give me therefore I pray thee this mountainous Country where Hebron and Debir are ſituate, and if the Lord will pleaſe to be with me (as I truſt He will) I make no doubt but that I ſhall be able to drive out theſe Anakims, and get this portion for an Inheritance to me and my Children, as the Lord graciouſly promiſed me. Joſhua readily granted his Requeſt, and bleſſing him, gave him Hebron for an Inheritance; that is, the Country and Territory in which Hebron and Debir were ſituate with the Towns belonging to them. It is plain that Hebron and Debir were taken by Joſhua and the Iſraelites in their Expedition againſt thoſe five Kings that had joyned their Forces together to beſiege Gibeon, as we may ſee Ch. 10.36, 37, 38. He then took Hebron, and cut off many of the Anakims from the Mountains about it; but in proceſs of time (the Iſraelites as it ſeems not leaving Garriſons in thoſe Towns) the Inhabitants that got away, and eſpecially the remaining Anakims did again ſieze upon Hebron, and repoſſeſs it. Wherefore Joſhua would not permit Caleb alone, without the aſſiſtance of ſome of his own Tribe, to go up and aſſault it, but he himſelf went with his Army and took it, and he utterly deſtroyed the Anakims, and their Fortreſſes, and cleared the Country of them, ſaving only that there remained ſome of them in Gaza, Gath and Aſhdod, Cities of the Philiſtines. There theſe Giants remained many years after. For Goliah was of Gath, [1 Sam. 17.14.] and thoſe four huge Giants mentioned 2 Sam. 21.16, &c. were all of the Philiſtines. Joſhua having taken Hebron, gave it to Caleb, namely the Land and Villages thereunto adjoyning, reſerving the City it ſelf and the Suburbs thereof for the Prieſts, and to be a City of Refuge, Joſh. 21.11, 12. Hebron being thus retaken, 'tis probable Joſhua ſent a great Brigade of his Army under the Command of Caleb (who had been very active with the aſſiſtance of thoſe of his own Tribe, as it ſeems before in ſlaying the three Sons of Anak, Sheſhai, Ahiman and Talmai, and driving their Adherents out of the Coaſts of Hebron,) to take in Debir, where He, to excite the valour of his Souldiers, promiſed to give his conſent, *See Judges 1.12. We cannot hence infer that he might lawfully force upon his Daughter what Husband he pleaſed. But this He ſpeaks as taking it for granted that his Daughter would be guided by him.that he that took it ſhould have his Daughter Achſah to wife. Hereupon Othniel the Son of Kenaz, (younger Brother to Caleb) took it. It was ſurely by ſome ſpecial inſtinct and direction of Gods Spirit that Caleb gave unto Othniel this occaſion of innobling his Valour and Vertue in the ſight of the people, He intending afterwards to raiſe him up after Caleb's death to be their Judge and Deliverer, ſee Judges 3.9. Othniel thus obtaining Achſah for his wife, Caleb gave with her a good Dowry of Land. 'Tis true Caleb had Sons, [ſee 1 Chron. 4.13.] and they might not give away any part of their Inheritance from their Sons to their Daughters, ſee Numb. 27.8, 9. therefore the Land which Caleb now gave his Daughter was given her only as a Dowry for term of life, or till the year of Jubilee. But it ſeems ſhe was not content with the portion her Father now gave her, and therefore moved her Husband (as they were riding away from her Father's houſe) to make ſuit to her Father for another Field to be added to what he had already given her. But when ſhe perceived that he was loth to do it, or perſwaded her rather to do it her ſelf, ſhe went back, and alighting off from her Aſſe, addreſſed her ſelf to make that Requeſt to her Father, who ask'd her, What ſhe would have? She anſwered, Give me, I pray thee, a Bleſſing; that is, another Gift or Boon with thy fatherly bleſſing upon it, Gen. 33.11. Thou haſt given me a Southland, give me alſo I pray thee Springs of Water, intimating that the portion he had given her was dry, and not well watered; the Southern-parts of Judah's portion being dry and barren, or at leaſt the Southern parts of Caleb's portion were ſuch. And therefore ſhe deſires him to give her Springs of Water; that is, ſome portion of Land that was well watered. Hereupon out of his great love to her, He gave her ſome Springs, or watered Grounds on each ſide of the Land he had before given her, both above it and below it.
But though Caleb thus cleared his particular portion, yet the Children of Judah though they took ſome part *The Northern and greateſt part of the City of Jeruſalem was in Benjamin's lot, but the Southern (wherein was the Fort Sion) was in Judah's lot.of the City of Jeruſalem and burnt it, Judg. 1.8. yet the Fort of Sion (which was the chief ſtrength of the City) was not then taken by them; but the Jebuſites forced the Iſraelites to let them there dwell with them, for a long time after, and there they were when this ſtory was written,(r)Whereby it appears that this ſtory was not written by Ezra, ſeeing he lived many years after David. and were not caſt out till David's time, 2 Sam. 5.6, 7. Had the Children of Judah done their endeavour, and not been wanting to themſelves, they might have caſt them out ſooner; but failing in their duty, and growing ſlothful and faint-hearted; by theſe and their other ſins they provoked God to withdraw his gracious aſſiſtance from them, and ſo then indeed they could not drive them out, according to that, Judg. 2.20, 21. becauſe this people has tranſgreſſed my Covenant, therefore I will not henceforth drive out any from before them of the Nations which Joſhua left when he died. And it was not only thus with the Children of Judah, but the Ephraimites alſo did not drive out the Canaanites out of Gezer, a City in their Tribe, [Joſh. 16.10.] but ſuffered them to live there, only paying them ſome Tribute (expreſly againſt God's Command, Deut. 7.2.) and there they continued till Solomons time, when Pharaoh King of Egypt expelled them out, and gave the City for a Preſent to his Daughter, Solomon's wife, 1 Kings 9.16. And thus it was alſo with the Manaſſites, Ch. 17.12, 13. who could not for the ſame Reaſons drive out the Canaanites out of their lot, but they would dwell with them; yet they afterwards made them Tributary, and with that they contented themſelves through Sloth, Cowardize, and Covetouſneſs, as their Brethren the Ephraimites had done.
Joſh. Ch. 14. from 6. to the end.
Joſh. Ch. 10. verſ. 21, 22.
Joſh. Ch. 15. from verſ. 13. to 20.
Joſh. Ch. 1. from verſ. 9. to 16.
SECT. CXI.
THe Iſraelites having drawn theſe three lots before-mentioned, which fell upon Judah, Ephraim, and half the Tribe of Manaſſeh, they drew no more at this time. It ſeems the other ſeven Tribes, that were yet to have their lots, perceiving what a large circuit of Land was given to Judah, they began to apprehend that there would not be left an equal ſhare for them; and therefore pretending there could not be any equal diviſion made till the remote parts of the Land which were yet in the Enemies poſſeſſion were better known to them, they deſired ſome ſtay of the Work till they had further prevailed, and might know the Land they were to divide better then yet they could do.
SECT. CXII.
THis Year being the ſeventh from the firſt, wherein they began to till the Ground in Canaan, was the firſt Sabbatical year which was kept among them, they being by Joſhua [who was a Type of Chriſt] now brought into this place of Reſt, which was a Type and Figure of that eternal Sabbath and Reſt which the true Jeſus was to bring the people of God into, Heb. 4.9. And from hence alſo the Year of Jubilee, which happened every fiftieth year, is to be reckoned, ſee Levit. 25. from 8. to 14.
SECT. CXIII.
UPon the fifteenth day of the ſeventh month the Iſraelites kept the Feaſt of Tabernacles in Booths made of boughs of Trees, according to the Law, Levit. 23.39, 40. and much more ſolemnly than was afterwards uſed in the times of the Judges or Kings, ſee Neh. 8.17.
SECT. CXIV.
HItherto both Camp and Tabernacle had remained at Gilgal; Now by God's appointment they remove to Shiloth, a City in the South of Ephraim's lot. This was the Place that God choſe to place his Name there, [Deut. 12.5. and from 8. to 12. Jer. 7.12.] that is, his Tabernacle where he would be worſhipped, and have his Name ſolemnly called upon. And therefore marching to Shiloh, there they fixed the Tabernacle of the Congregation after the Land thereabout was wholly ſubdued to them, and the Canaanites that dwelt further off were ſo ſtricken with terrour from the Lord, that they durſt not moleſt them. At Shiloth the Tabernacle and Ark of the Covenant continued 328 years, till the death of Eli, 1 Sam. 1.3, 9, 24.
Joſhua, Ch. 18. verſ. 1.