joshua 13-14

Read Joshua 13-14 at Bible Gateway.

One of the paragraphs of God’s paragraph divisions in today’s reading forms a chiastic structure with an interesting central axis:

Jos 14:1-5 {p}
1A: Jos 14:1-3a, As the LORD commanded Moses, Israel inherited the land;
1B: Jos 14:3b, The Levites had no inheritance among them;
CENTRAL AXIS: Jos 14:4a, The children of Joseph were two tribes;
2B: Jos 14:4b, They gave no part to the Levites in the land;
2A: Jos 14:5, As the LORD commanded Moses, so Israel divided the land.

The central axis, the portion of Scripture that has neon flashing lights around it, is the children of Joseph. This is interesting. Why this? Then when we begin reading the next paragraph according to God’s paragraph divisions, the first thing we read is the children of Judah. So the first paragraph of chapter 14 (which introduces the 9-1/2 tribes inheriting the land) is about the children of Joseph + inheriting the land, then the next paragraph is about the children of Judah + inheriting the land.

This is not the first time we have seen Joseph and Judah together in Scripture, highlighted. Of all the children of Jacob, the final chapters of Genesis only tell the story of two: Joseph, and Judah. Jacob splits the promise and blessing of Abraham into two, and confers firstborn status with its double portion inheritance onto Joseph (and Ephraim, whom Jacob makes Joseph’s firstborn, Gen 48); and leadership status in ruling the family onto Judah (Gen 49:8-12).

Then the two spies out of the twelve, who witness for the LORD without compromise, are the two from the tribes of Ephraim, and Judah (Joshua and Caleb, Num 14:6-9). Now here again, Scripture is placing neon flashing lights around Joseph, and Judah. Let us just tuck this bit of trivia in the back of our brains, and pay attention as we go through Scripture for the explanation.

For further study: I noticed today two repeating elements, which I believe will reveal a chiastic structure. I saw the second element first, as is often the case, because then you realize it is a repeat:

Jos 11:23b, Then the land rested from war.
Jos 14:15b, Then the land had rest from war.

Can you fill in the chiastic structure? God’s paragraph divisions help reveal it (The Hebrew Bible in English). What is the central axis, and why is Scripture placing neon flashing lights around that passage?

Finding Messiah: The prophetic book of Joshua, which prophesies of the second coming of Messiah Yeshua as He conquers all His enemies in His land, prophesied today that Israel inherited the land God had promised to give her. God kept His promise! It brought to mind this verse:

“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.” Mat 5:5

Canaanites possess the world we live in, don’t they? Before Messiah returns, we are to occupy ourselves with making disciples out of them, so that they are Gentiles no longer, but are grafted in to the olive tree of Israel, and become Israelites. But a day is coming when those who will not bow the knee will be driven out, and the meek – not proud, not haughty, not arrogant, not oppressive, not self- serving, but those who in humility esteem others better than themselves (Phi 2:3), for such are the true Israelites, the true people of God, His true worshipers who worship Him in Spirit and in truth – will inherit it instead. Then the earth will have rest from war, under its king, Messiah Yeshua, for 1000 years!