The remaining six lots: Simeon within the inheritance of Judah, then Zebulun, Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and Dan; and last of all Israel gives an inheritance to Joshua — Timnath-serah in the hill-country of Ephraim.
Tap any Hebrew word to reveal its root, value, and meanings.
And the second lot came out for Simeon, even for the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their families; and their inheritance was in the midst of the inheritance of the children of Judah.
verse value 4295
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 64 letters. The shortest word is "and·he·went·out" (וַיֵּצֵ֞א, 4 letters) and the longest is "sons·of·Simeon" (בְנֵֽי־שִׁמְע֖וֹן, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 528: sons·of·Simeon, their·inheritance. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "from·Simeon" (לְשִׁמְע֔וֹן). The root בן appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "sons·of·Simeon" (root בן, 156x in Joshua); "and·it·was" (root היה, 150x in Joshua); "to·tribe·of" (root מטה, 58x in Joshua). First appearance of the root שמעון ("from·Simeon") in Joshua. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·their·clans', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 5 words. Full calculation: וַיֵּצֵ֞א [and·he·went·out] (107) + הַגּוֹרָ֤ל [lot] (244) + הַשֵּׁנִי֙ [second] (365) + לְשִׁמְע֔וֹן [from·Simeon] (496) + לְמַטֵּ֥ה [to·tribe·of] (84) + בְנֵֽי־שִׁמְע֖וֹן [sons·of·Simeon] (528) + לְמִשְׁפְּחוֹתָ֑ם [to·their·clans] (904) + וַֽיְהִי֙ [and·it·was] (31) + נַחֲלָתָ֔ם [their·inheritance] (528) + בְּת֖וֹךְ [in·midst·of] (428) + נַחֲלַ֥ת [possession] (488) + בְּנֵי־יְהוּדָֽה [sons·of·Judah] (92) = 4295.
Rashi
And the second lot came out. Second for Benjamin, for Benjamin's lot was first of the seven tribes of which Joshua said to his messengers: divide it into seven parts, for already Judah and Joseph had taken, as it is said there (above 18:5): Judah shall stand upon his border southward, etc. From here onward it counts and goes on, seven lots.
Metzudat David
“Within, etc.” The inheritance of Judah was absorbed within the boundary mentioned above.
And they had for their inheritance Beer-sheba with Sheba, and Moladah;
verse value 1680
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 29 letters. The shortest word is "to·them" (לָהֶ֖ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "in·their·inheritance" (בְּנַחֲלָתָ֑ם, 6 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "in·their·inheritance" (בְּנַחֲלָתָ֑ם), "well·Sheba" (בְּאֵֽר־שֶׁ֥בַע), "and·seven" (וְשֶׁ֖בַע). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·was" (root היה, 150x in Joshua); "to·them" (root הם, 63x in Joshua); "in·their·inheritance" (root נחלה, 50x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·their·inheritance', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: וַיְהִ֥י [and·it·was] (31) + לָהֶ֖ם [to·them] (75) + בְּנַחֲלָתָ֑ם [in·their·inheritance] (530) + בְּאֵֽר־שֶׁ֥בַע [well·Sheba] (575) + וְשֶׁ֖בַע [and·seven] (378) + וּמוֹלָדָֽה [and·Moladah] (91) = 1680.
Radak
Be'er Sheva and Sheva. One city:
Metzudat David
“Be’er Sheva and Sheva.” It is one city, and it was called by both names:
Malbim
Beersheba. (See above 16:28). And it was still Beersheba that belonged to Judah (1 Kings 19:3), yet it is not mentioned among the borders of the land.
And Sheva. It is not mentioned there, nor in I Chronicles (4:28). And Moladah. (See above 16:26):
Verse structure: 3 words, 17 letters. The shortest word is "and·Bethul" (וּבְת֖וּל, 5 letters) and the longest is "and·Eltolad" (וְאֶלְתּוֹלַ֥ד, 7 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Bethul" (וּבְת֖וּל). 3 unique roots are used. Full calculation: וְאֶלְתּוֹלַ֥ד [and·Eltolad] (477) + וּבְת֖וּל [and·Bethul] (444) + וְחׇרְמָֽה [and·Hormah] (259) = 1180.
Malbim
"Eltolad." (There, 30), and in Chronicles, Tolad:
"Bethul." It is the Chesil mentioned there (ibid., ibid.), and in Chronicles, Bethuel:
"Hormah." (ibid. and ibid.):
Verse structure: 4 words, 24 letters. Verse gematria: 1755 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "and·Hazar-" (וַחֲצַ֥ר, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·Beth-marcaboth" (וּבֵית־הַמַּרְכָּב֖וֹת, 11 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Beth-marcaboth" (וּבֵית־הַמַּרְכָּב֖וֹת), "Susah" (סוּסָֽה). 4 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·Beth-marcaboth" (root בית, 65x in Joshua); "and·Hazar-" (root חצר, 36x in Joshua). Full calculation: וְצִֽקְלַ֥ג [and·Ziklag] (229) + וּבֵית־הַמַּרְכָּב֖וֹת [and·Beth-marcaboth] (1091) + וַחֲצַ֥ר [and·Hazar-] (304) + סוּסָֽה [Susah] (131) = 1755.
Malbim
"Ziklag." (There and there), and see what was written above regarding this:
"Beth-marcaboth and Hazar-susim." This is not mentioned in the inheritance of Judah, and in Chronicles, Beth-marcaboth and Hazar-susim:
and Beth-lebaoth, and Sharuhen; thirteen cities with their villages:
verse value 3321
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 33 letters. The shortest word is "and·house·of" (וּבֵ֥ית, 4 letters) and the longest is "three·ten" (שְׁלֹשׁ־עֶשְׂרֵ֖ה, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "Lebaoth" (לְבָא֖וֹת), "and·Sharuhen" (וְשָׁרוּחֶ֑ן). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "cities" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua); "and·house·of" (root בית, 65x in Joshua); "and·their·villages" (root חצר, 36x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·Sharuhen', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: וּבֵ֥ית [and·house·of] (418) + לְבָא֖וֹת [Lebaoth] (439) + וְשָׁרוּחֶ֑ן [and·Sharuhen] (570) + עָרִ֥ים [cities] (320) + שְׁלֹשׁ־עֶשְׂרֵ֖ה [three·ten] (1205) + וְחַצְרֵיהֶֽן [and·their·villages] (369) = 3321.
Malbim
"Beth-lebaoth and Sharuhen." It is [the same as] Lebaoth and Shilhim (there, 32), and in Chronicles it says instead of this, Beth-birei and Sha'arayim, for by then the language had changed even more:
"Thirteen cities." And in their enumeration, you find fourteen. It is strained to say that Beersheba and Sheba are one city, for you see that his manner is to list three cities in each verse, and the surplus is counted in the final verse. If so, it should have said "Beersheba and Sheba and Moladah and Hazar-shual" in one verse, as is indeed the case in the Book of Chronicles. And according to what I have proven above (15:32), "Beit-lebaoth" and "Sheruhen" were one city, meaning "Beit-lebaoth" and "that which is before the city." And with this he says above "and Shilhim," the language of "Your shoots are a garden of pomegranates" (Song of Songs 4:13), the house of the shoots before the city. And here he said "and Sheruhen," because afterward there were no fields there, and it was the surplus space of the city. And at the time when the Book of Chronicles was written, gates were made there before the city, so he said "and gates." And behold, what is counted, Ziklag, among the cities of Simeon, was so only until the days of David, for afterward he gave Ziklag to the kings of Judah, as it is written in I Samuel (26:6). And with this you will understand what is said in Chronicles (there, 4:31): "These were their cities until the reign of David."
Ain, Rimmon, and Ether, and Ashan; four cities with their villages;
verse value 2490
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 30 letters. The shortest word is "eye" (עַ֥יִן, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·their·villages" (וְחַצְרֵיהֶֽן, 7 letters). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "cities" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua); "and·their·villages" (root חצר, 36x in Joshua); "eye" (root עין, 24x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·Ashan', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: עַ֥יִן [eye] (130) + רִמּ֖וֹן [Rimmon] (296) + וָעֶ֣תֶר [and·Ether] (676) + וְעָשָׁ֑ן [and·Ashan] (426) + עָרִ֥ים [cities] (320) + אַרְבַּ֖ע [four] (273) + וְחַצְרֵיהֶֽן [and·their·villages] (369) = 2490.
Metzudat David
"En-Rimmon." These are two towns: one is En, and the other is Rimmon.
Malbim
"Ain, Rimmon." (Above, there, 32):
"Ether and Ashan." (ibid., 42), and in Chronicles it lists Etam, Ain, Rimmon, Toven, and Ashan. "Etam" is "Ether," and "Toven" is an additional city that was built later:
and all the villages that were round about these cities to Baalath-beer, as far as Ramah of the South. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their families.
verse value 5607
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 68 letters. The shortest word is "that" (אֲשֶׁ֤ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·all·the·villages" (וְכׇל־הַחֲצֵרִ֗ים, 9 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·all·the·villages" (וְכׇל־הַחֲצֵרִ֗ים), "around" (סְבִיבוֹת֙), "to·Baalath" (עַד־בַּ֥עֲלַת). 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 271x in Joshua); "sons·of·Simeon" (root בן, 156x in Joshua); "the·cities" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'south-country', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְכׇל־הַחֲצֵרִ֗ים [and·all·the·villages] (409) + אֲשֶׁ֤ר [that] (501) + סְבִיבוֹת֙ [around] (480) + הֶעָרִ֣ים [the·cities] (325) + הָאֵ֔לֶּה [these] (41) + עַד־בַּ֥עֲלַת [to·Baalath] (576) + בְּאֵ֖ר [well] (203) + רָ֣אמַת [Ramath] (641) + נֶ֑גֶב [south-country] (55) + זֹ֗את [this] (408) + נַחֲלַ֛ת [possession] (488) + מַטֵּ֥ה [staff] (54) + בְנֵֽי־שִׁמְע֖וֹן [sons·of·Simeon] (528) + לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָֽם [by·their·clans] (898) = 5607.
Metzudat David
"Ramat Negev." A high and elevated place on the southern border.
Malbim
"Until Baalath." That is to say, the surrounding villages of the cities that extended as far as Baalah were villages called Be'er Ramath-negeb. Therefore, in Chronicles, it says only "until Baalah" alone:
Out of the allotment of the children of Judah was the inheritance of the children of Simeon, for the portion of the children of Judah was too much for them; therefore the children of Simeon had inheritance in the midst of their inheritance.
verse value 3349
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 68 letters. The shortest word is "great" (רַ֣ב, 2 letters) and the longest is "sons·of·Judah" (בְּנֵֽי־יְהוּדָה֙, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 528: sons·of·Simeon, their·inheritance. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "for·it·was" (כִּֽי־הָיָ֞ה), "great" (רַ֣ב). The root בן appears 4 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "son" (root בן, 156x in Joshua); "for·it·was" (root היה, 150x in Joshua); "from·them" (root הם, 63x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Simeon', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 9 words.
Rashi
It was too much for them. More than was fitting for them.
Radak
A large portion of it. Their share was greater than what was due to them, for they had conquered much of the land. And the sons of Simeon went up with them to wage war, as it is written in the Book of Judges: “And Judah said to Simeon his brother…”
Metzudat David
"Mechevel" (from the tract). From the district that was initially allotted to the tribe of Judah, it was subsequently given to the tribe of Simeon as an inheritance.
"Ki hayah." For the inheritance initially allotted to the children of Judah was greater than what was due to them; therefore, the children of Simeon inherited within their midst.
Metzudat Zion
מֵחֶבֶל (mechevel, from the region). A matter of district.
And the third lot came up for the children of Zebulun according to their families; and the border of their inheritance was to Sarid.
verse value 3288
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 50 letters. The shortest word is "and·went·up" (וַיַּ֙עַל֙, 4 letters) and the longest is "by·their·clans" (לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֑ם, 7 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "to·Sarid" (עַד־שָׂרִֽיד). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·sons·of" (root בן, 156x in Joshua); "and·it·was" (root היה, 150x in Joshua); "border" (root גבול, 84x in Joshua). First appearance of the root זבולן ("Zebulun") in Joshua. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'by·their·clans', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיַּ֙עַל֙ [and·went·up] (116) + הַגּוֹרָ֣ל [lot] (244) + הַשְּׁלִישִׁ֔י [third] (655) + לִבְנֵ֥י [to·sons·of] (92) + זְבוּלֻ֖ן [Zebulun] (95) + לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֑ם [by·their·clans] (898) + וַיְהִ֛י [and·it·was] (31) + גְּב֥וּל [border] (41) + נַחֲלָתָ֖ם [their·inheritance] (528) + עַד־שָׂרִֽיד [to·Sarid] (588) = 3288.
Metzudat David
"Until Sarid." The city standing at the end of the border of the Land of Israel, in the northwest corner.
Malbim
"And it came to pass." The border of Zebulun was at the northwestern corner of the Land of Israel, and it began from a point in the northwest of the Land of Israel, where the city of Sarid was located.
And their border went up westward, even to Maralah, and reached to Dabbesheth; and it reached to the brook that is before Jokneam.
verse value 2789
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 51 letters. The shortest word is "that" (אֲשֶׁ֖ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·Maralah" (וּמַרְעֲלָ֖ה, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 159: and·reached, and·reached. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "to·the·sea" (לַיָּ֛מָּה), "and·Maralah" (וּמַרְעֲלָ֖ה), "hump" (בְּדַבָּ֑שֶׁת). The root פגע appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 271x in Joshua); "to·the·brook" (root איל, 135x in Joshua); "upon·face" (root פנים, 91x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'hump', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְעָלָ֨ה [and·rise] (111) + גְבוּלָ֧ם [their·border] (81) + לַיָּ֛מָּה [to·the·sea] (85) + וּמַרְעֲלָ֖ה [and·Maralah] (351) + וּפָגַ֣ע [and·reached] (159) + בְּדַבָּ֑שֶׁת [hump] (708) + וּפָגַע֙ [and·reached] (159) + אֶל־הַנַּ֔חַל [to·the·brook] (124) + אֲשֶׁ֖ר [that] (501) + עַל־פְּנֵ֥י [upon·face] (240) + יׇקְנְעָֽם [Jokneam] (270) = 2789.
Metzudat David
"And their border shall go up." From Sarid, on the western side, from north toward south.
To the sea. To the sea, and from there to Mar'ela, etc.:
Malbim
And it went up. He calculated the western side from north to south:
He went up to the sea. To the sea, and on this side he touched Dabbesheth, and he touched the stream that lies before Jokneam, for Jokneam belonged to Zebulun (below 21:34), and the stream was in the west of Jokneam, and this stream was the end of this boundary at the southwestern corner of Zebulun. (And some say that it is the Kishon stream):
And it turned from Sarid eastward toward the sunrising to the border of Chisloth-tabor; and it went out to Dobrath, and went up to Japhia.
verse value 4194
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 52 letters. Verse gematria: 4194 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "and·it·turned" (וְשָׁ֣ב, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·Daberath" (אֶל־הַדָּבְרַ֖ת, 7 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "from·Sarid" (מִשָּׂרִ֗יד), "upon·border" (עַל־גְּב֥וּל), "Chesulloth" (כִּסְלֹ֖ת). 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "upon·border" (root גבול, 84x in Joshua); "and·rise" (root עלה, 60x in Joshua); "and·he·went·out" (root יצא, 52x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Tabor', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְשָׁ֣ב [and·it·turned] (308) + מִשָּׂרִ֗יד [from·Sarid] (554) + קֵ֚דְמָה [eastward] (149) + מִזְרַ֣ח [place·of·sunrise] (255) + הַשֶּׁ֔מֶשׁ [sun] (645) + עַל־גְּב֥וּל [upon·border] (141) + כִּסְלֹ֖ת [Chesulloth] (510) + תָּבֹ֑ר [Tabor] (602) + וְיָצָ֥א [and·he·went·out] (107) + אֶל־הַדָּבְרַ֖ת [to·Daberath] (642) + וְעָלָ֥ה [and·rise] (111) + יָפִֽיעַ [Japhia] (170) = 4194.
Rashi
Kesloth-tabor. I say that this is an expression of kesalim (flanks/loins), 'flancs' in Old French. Not at its height and not at its foot, but on its slope, and near its middle, close to the rear side and away from its front side — the way the flanks are situated on an animal. And in the place where it says (below verse 34): Aznoth-tabor [the ears of Tabor], that is near its head, in the place of the ears.
Metzudat David
"And it shall return from Sarid." And the boundary shall return from Sarid, to go from the west toward the east along the northern border, and it shall go along the border of Keslot Tabor, etc.
Malbim
"And it turned." Now he calculates the northern boundary from west to east:
“On the border of Keslot Tabor.” Here the line ends. And from there it went out toward the south, running eastward from north to south to Daberath, which belonged to Issachar, for there it bordered with Issachar, which was on its eastern side; both Tabor and Daberath belonged to Issachar. And from there it went up to Japhia, also running from north to south.
And from thence it passed along eastward to Gath-hepher, to Ethkazin; and it went out at Rimmon-methoar to Neah.
verse value 3667
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 46 letters. The shortest word is "passed" (עָבַר֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "east" (מִזְרָ֔חָה, 5 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·from·there" (וּמִשָּׁ֤ם), "to·Gath" (גִּתָּ֥ה), "chief" (קָצִ֑ין). 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "passed" (root עבר, 82x in Joshua); "and·he·went·out" (root יצא, 52x in Joshua); "and·from·there" (root שם, 31x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'chief', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 4 words. Full calculation: וּמִשָּׁ֤ם [and·from·there] (386) + עָבַר֙ [passed] (272) + קֵ֣דְמָה [eastward] (149) + מִזְרָ֔חָה [east] (260) + גִּתָּ֥ה [to·Gath] (408) + חֵ֖פֶר [Hepher] (288) + עִתָּ֣ה [Eth] (475) + קָצִ֑ין [chief] (250) + וְיָצָ֛א [and·he·went·out] (107) + רִמּ֥וֹן [Rimmon] (296) + הַמְּתֹאָ֖ר [the·one·marked·out] (646) + הַנֵּעָֽה [Neah] (130) = 3667.
Rashi
Eastward, to the east of Gath-hepher. From the east of Gath-hepher. There is the city of Jonah the son of Amittai (II Kings 14:25).
Eth-kazin. The name of the city is Eth-kazin.
That stretched to Neah. This refers to Neah; that is, from there the border extended to Neah. And so Targum Yonatan rendered: 'and it went out to Rimmon, and from there it curved to Neah.'
Radak
“Gath-hepher.” This is Gath-hepher, from which Jonah son of Amittai the prophet came, as it is said of him: “who was from Gath-hepher” (2 Kings 14:25).
"The one that curves [around]." As its Targum [renders it]: "that turns/curves around" [i.e., the boundary that bends].
Metzudat David
"And from thence. And from Japhia it passed southward on the east side of Gath-hepher, and it was therefore of the inheritance of Zebulun:"
"Eth-kazin." He means that from the east of Gath-hepher, it passed to Eth-kazin, which is the name of a place.
"[Which] curved to Neah." [Meaning] it curved around Neah.
Metzudat Zion
הַמְּתֹאָר (ha-meto'ar, that which curves around). That which turns/circles around.
Malbim
And from there he passed eastward. This means that on the eastern side the boundary passed through a city named Gath-hepher (this is the city of the prophet Jonah), and a city [called] Eth-kazin. And he went out. From there he went out toward the east, to the city of Ramon, and he described it from three of its sides, and he returned from the east to the west to the city of Neah. (And they called Ramon the one that is described, for it was surrounded by the boundary of Zebulun all around, since it protruded from the boundary like a horn toward the east.)
And the border turned about it on the north to Hannathon; and the goings out thereof were at the valley of Iphtahel;
verse value 2821
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 39 letters. Notable word values: "valley" (גֵּ֖י) = 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). Verse gematria: 2821 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "valley" (גֵּ֖י, 2 letters) and the longest is "his·limits" (תֹּצְאֹתָ֔יו, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "Hannathon" (חַנָּתֹ֑ן). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·they·shall·be" (root היה, 150x in Joshua); "border" (root גבול, 84x in Joshua); "north" (root צפון, 26x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Hannathon', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְנָסַ֤ב [and·shall·turn] (118) + אֹתוֹ֙ [him] (407) + הַגְּב֔וּל [border] (46) + מִצְּפ֖וֹן [north] (266) + חַנָּתֹ֑ן [Hannathon] (508) + וְהָיוּ֙ [and·they·shall·be] (27) + תֹּצְאֹתָ֔יו [his·limits] (907) + גֵּ֖י [valley] (13) + יִפְתַּח־אֵֽל [Iphtahel] (529) = 2821.
Metzudat David
"And it went around it." This boundary encircled Rimmon on its north side, [namely] Hannathon, which stood to the north of Rimmon. Therefore, Rimmon, Hannathon, and Neah were part of the territory of Zebulun.
"And their borders shall be." The end of the boundary of the breadth terminates at the Valley of Yiftah-El, which stood on the northern border of Asher.
Malbim
"And he went around." "He went around the city of Neah" means that he encircled it from two sides, forming a shape like the letter dalet. And Neah was located outside the boundary line. He proceeded from the northern side of Chanaton (and Chanaton was outside the border), and here the southern side is counted from east to west.
And its outlets were, in the valley of Yiftach El. This breadth ends here:
and Kattath, and Nahalal, and Shimron, and Idalah, and Beth-lehem; twelve cities with their villages.
verse value 3804
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 47 letters. The shortest word is "bread" (לָ֑חֶם, 3 letters) and the longest is "two·ten" (שְׁתֵּים־עֶשְׂרֵ֖ה, 8 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Kattath" (וְקַטָּ֤ת), "and·Nahalal" (וְנַהֲלָל֙), "and·Shimron" (וְשִׁמְר֔וֹן). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "cities" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua); "and·house·of" (root בית, 65x in Joshua); "and·their·villages" (root חצר, 36x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'bread', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 3 words. 6 of the verse's 9 words begin with the letter ו. Full calculation: וְקַטָּ֤ת [and·Kattath] (515) + וְנַהֲלָל֙ [and·Nahalal] (121) + וְשִׁמְר֔וֹן [and·Shimron] (602) + וְיִדְאֲלָ֖ה [and·Idalah] (56) + וּבֵ֣ית [and·house·of] (418) + לָ֑חֶם [bread] (78) + עָרִ֥ים [cities] (320) + שְׁתֵּים־עֶשְׂרֵ֖ה [two·ten] (1325) + וְחַצְרֵיהֶֽן [and·their·villages] (369) = 3804.
Radak
And Bethlehem. It is not the Bethlehem of Judah, for you will find cities called by the same name in two different places, as we have written. And so we found: "Bethlehem of Judah" [is mentioned as] "from Bethlehem of Judah." It appears that it was one [and the same place].
Metzudat David
And "Kattath, etc."—this means that together with Kattath, etc., there were twelve [cities], for in this verse five towns are counted, and seven of those mentioned in the boundary description, and the remainder belonged to the sons of the tribe on its side.
Malbim
And there he went inside and traveled by way of Katath (which is Kitron, mentioned in Judges 1:30) to Bethlehem, and from there it extended opposite the first boundary, which is the stream that lies before Jokneam. Behold, the borders of Zebulun have come from its four directions:
Twelve. They are: Shered, Maalah, Yaqneam, Yaphia, Gath-hepher, Eth-kazin, Ramon, and the five in verse 15. And regarding Dabbesheth, it is written "touched" [vayifga], indicating that he did not enter it. And regarding Daberath, I have already explained that it belonged to the portion of Issachar. Likewise, Gei Yiftach-el: it was a valley, not a city.
This is the inheritance of the children of Zebulun according to their families, these cities with their villages.
verse value 2692
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 39 letters. The shortest word is "this" (זֹ֛את, 3 letters) and the longest is "sons·of·Zebulun" (בְּנֵי־זְבוּלֻ֖ן, 8 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "sons·of·Zebulun" (בְּנֵי־זְבוּלֻ֖ן). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "sons·of·Zebulun" (root בן, 156x in Joshua); "the·cities" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua); "these" (root אלה, 51x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·their·clans', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: זֹ֛את [this] (408) + נַֽחֲלַ֥ת [possession] (488) + בְּנֵי־זְבוּלֻ֖ן [sons·of·Zebulun] (157) + לְמִשְׁפְּחוֹתָ֑ם [to·their·clans] (904) + הֶעָרִ֥ים [the·cities] (325) + הָאֵ֖לֶּה [these] (41) + וְחַצְרֵיהֶֽן [and·their·villages] (369) = 2692.
The fourth lot came out for Issachar, even for the children of Issachar according to their families.
verse value 3328
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 37 letters. Verse gematria: 3328 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "went·out" (יָצָ֖א, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·their·clans" (לְמִשְׁפְּחוֹתָֽם, 8 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "for·Issachar" (לְיִ֨שָּׂשכָ֔ר), "fourth" (הָרְבִיעִ֑י). The root יששכר appears 2 times in this verse. 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·sons·of" (root בן, 156x in Joshua); "went·out" (root יצא, 52x in Joshua); "lot" (root גורל, 26x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'fourth', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: לְיִ֨שָּׂשכָ֔ר [for·Issachar] (860) + יָצָ֖א [went·out] (101) + הַגּוֹרָ֣ל [lot] (244) + הָרְבִיעִ֑י [fourth] (297) + לִבְנֵ֥י [to·sons·of] (92) + יִשָּׂשכָ֖ר [Issachar] (830) + לְמִשְׁפְּחוֹתָֽם [to·their·clans] (904) = 3328.
Malbim
Regarding Issachar: The inheritance of Issachar was to the north of Ephraim and to the east of Manasseh. In the protrusion that extended to Ephraim in its western and northern direction, up to Michmethath, was southwest of Issachar (as stated above), and Michmethath was across from Shechem, which is on Mount Ephraim (Joshua 17:7), and opposite Mount Ephraim in the valley was the Valley of Jezreel, as is proven above (ibid., verse 16). And this is what the verse says:
And their border was Jezreel, and Chesulloth, and Shunem;
verse value 1364
Insights
Verse structure: 5 words, 28 letters. The shortest word is "and·it·was" (וַיְהִ֖י, 4 letters) and the longest is "Jezreel" (יִזְרְעֶ֥אלָה, 7 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "Jezreel" (יִזְרְעֶ֥אלָה), "and·Chesulloth" (וְהַכְּסוּלֹ֖ת), "and·Shunem" (וְשׁוּנֵֽם). 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·was" (root היה, 150x in Joshua); "their·border" (root גבול, 84x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'their·border', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 3 words. Full calculation: וַיְהִ֖י [and·it·was] (31) + גְּבוּלָ֑ם [their·border] (81) + יִזְרְעֶ֥אלָה [Jezreel] (323) + וְהַכְּסוּלֹ֖ת [and·Chesulloth] (527) + וְשׁוּנֵֽם [and·Shunem] (402) = 1364.
Metzudat David
"And their border was." The border went through Izre'el, and it was adjacent to the inheritance of Menasheh, for the Valley of Izre'el belonged to Menasheh, as it is written above (verse 16). And Chesulloth: from Izre'el it went to Chesulloth, etc.
Malbim
"And their border was at Jazreel." This is the southern border of Issachar on its western side. The cities of Jazreel and Chesulloth stood at the southwestern corner of its border. There, the measuring line turned from south to north along its western side, encompassing the places mentioned in the verses (19, 20, 21). And when it came along the northern side, running from west to east, then:
Verse structure: 3 words, 17 letters. Verse gematria: 1376 is divisible by 86, the value of Elohim. The shortest word is "and·Shion" (וְשִׁיאֹ֖ן, 5 letters) and the longest is "and·Hapharaim" (וַחֲפָרַ֥יִם, 6 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Hapharaim" (וַחֲפָרַ֥יִם), "and·Shion" (וְשִׁיאֹ֖ן), "and·Anaharath" (וַאֲנָחֲרַֽת). 3 unique roots are used. Full calculation: וַחֲפָרַ֥יִם [and·Hapharaim] (344) + וְשִׁיאֹ֖ן [and·Shion] (367) + וַאֲנָחֲרַֽת [and·Anaharath] (665) = 1376.
Verse structure: 3 words, 16 letters. The shortest word is "and·Ebez" (וָאָֽבֶץ, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·Rabbith" (וְהָרַבִּ֥ית, 6 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Rabbith" (וְהָרַבִּ֥ית), "and·Kishion" (וְקִשְׁי֖וֹן), "and·Ebez" (וָאָֽבֶץ). 3 unique roots are used. Full calculation: וְהָרַבִּ֥ית [and·Rabbith] (623) + וְקִשְׁי֖וֹן [and·Kishion] (472) + וָאָֽבֶץ [and·Ebez] (99) = 1194.
and Remeth, and En-gannim, and En-haddah, and Beth-pazzez;
verse value 1716
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 26 letters. Verse gematria: 1716 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "sharp" (חַדָּ֖ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·En-gannim" (וְעֵין־גַּנִּ֛ים, 8 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Remeth" (וְרֶ֧מֶת), "and·En-gannim" (וְעֵין־גַּנִּ֛ים), "sharp" (חַדָּ֖ה). The root עין appears 2 times in this verse. 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·house·of" (root בית, 65x in Joshua); "and·En-gannim" (root עין, 24x in Joshua). Full calculation: וְרֶ֧מֶת [and·Remeth] (646) + וְעֵין־גַּנִּ֛ים [and·En-gannim] (239) + וְעֵ֥ין [and·En-] (136) + חַדָּ֖ה [sharp] (17) + וּבֵ֥ית [and·house·of] (418) + פַּצֵּֽץ [Pazzez] (260) = 1716.
and the border reached to Tabor, and Shahazim, and Beth-shemesh; and the goings out of their border were at the Jordan; sixteen cities with their villages.
verse value 5925
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 71 letters. The shortest word is "sun" (שֶׁ֔מֶשׁ, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·Shahazumah" (וְשַׁחֲצִ֙ימָה֙, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "at·Tabor" (בְּתָב֤וֹר), "and·Shahazumah" (וְשַׁחֲצִ֙ימָה֙). The root גבול appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·they·shall·be" (root היה, 150x in Joshua); "cities" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua); "border" (root גבול, 84x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Jordan', dividing the verse into phrases of 11 and 3 words.
Metzudat David
And Beth-shemesh. This is not the Beth-shemesh mentioned in the inheritance of Naphtali (verse 38), which is situated to the north of Issachar, nor is it the one that was on the border of Judah (above 15:10). Rather, it says, "Their border was along two borders," meaning the northern and the southern, both of which extended to the Jordan.
Malbim
"The border touches Tabor." (Opposite Keslot-Tabor, which is in the portion of Zebulun, as stated above, v. 12.) And it can also be said that there was a city there, as it is written in I Chronicles 6:62: "Tabor and its surrounding pasturelands."
"And their borders came out to the Jordan." This means that the two borders from the two sides, north and south, both terminated at the Jordan. We will clarify below that Issachar’s territory did not actually extend all the way to the Jordan itself; rather, the borders from both sides met each other there, as was the case with Joseph. And what lay immediately adjacent to the Jordan belonged to Naphtali, as will be explained.
This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Issachar according to their families, the cities with their villages.
verse value 3434
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 37 letters. The shortest word is "this" (זֹ֗את, 3 letters) and the longest is "sons·of·Issachar" (בְנֵי־יִשָּׂשכָ֖ר, 8 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "sons·of·Issachar" (בְנֵי־יִשָּׂשכָ֖ר). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "sons·of·Issachar" (root בן, 156x in Joshua); "the·cities" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua); "staff" (root מטה, 58x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'by·their·clans', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 2 words. Full calculation: זֹ֗את [this] (408) + נַחֲלַ֛ת [possession] (488) + מַטֵּ֥ה [staff] (54) + בְנֵי־יִשָּׂשכָ֖ר [sons·of·Issachar] (892) + לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֑ם [by·their·clans] (898) + הֶעָרִ֖ים [the·cities] (325) + וְחַצְרֵיהֶֽן [and·their·villages] (369) = 3434.
And the fifth lot came out for the tribe of the children of Asher according to their families.
verse value 2275
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 33 letters. Verse gematria: 2275 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "and·he·went·out" (וַיֵּצֵא֙, 4 letters) and the longest is "to·their·clans" (לְמִשְׁפְּחוֹתָֽם, 8 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "the·fifth" (הַחֲמִישִׁ֔י). 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "sons·of·Asher" (root אשר, 271x in Joshua); "to·tribe·of" (root מטה, 58x in Joshua); "and·he·went·out" (root יצא, 52x in Joshua). Full calculation: וַיֵּצֵא֙ [and·he·went·out] (107) + הַגּוֹרָ֣ל [lot] (244) + הַחֲמִישִׁ֔י [the·fifth] (373) + לְמַטֵּ֥ה [to·tribe·of] (84) + בְנֵי־אָשֵׁ֖ר [sons·of·Asher] (563) + לְמִשְׁפְּחוֹתָֽם [to·their·clans] (904) = 2275.
And their border was Helkath, and Hali, and Beten, and Achshaph;
verse value 1178
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 26 letters. The shortest word is "and·it·was" (וַיְהִ֖י, 4 letters) and the longest is "their·border" (גְּבוּלָ֑ם, 5 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "Helkath" (חֶלְקַ֥ת), "and·Hali" (וַחֲלִ֖י), "and·Beten" (וָבֶ֥טֶן). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·was" (root היה, 150x in Joshua); "their·border" (root גבול, 84x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'their·border', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיְהִ֖י [and·it·was] (31) + גְּבוּלָ֑ם [their·border] (81) + חֶלְקַ֥ת [Helkath] (538) + וַחֲלִ֖י [and·Hali] (54) + וָבֶ֥טֶן [and·Beten] (67) + וְאַכְשָֽׁף [and·Achshaph] (407) = 1178.
Metzudat David
"And their border was." The border went along the western extremity, from south to north, to Helkath, etc.
Malbim
"And their border was..." The border that was adjacent to the border of Manasseh (as stated above, 17:11) and west of the border of Issachar. Initially, he calculated the southern side from east to west (at the boundary with Manasseh): Helkath and Hali were there, and the beginning of the southern border was at Helkath, which stood at the southeastern corner of Asher.
"And Beten and Achshaph." All these cities, up to Mishal, stood in the southern district, in the order in which they are written here, from east to west.
and Allam-melech, and Amad, and Mishal; and it reached to Carmel westward, and to Shihor-libnath.
verse value 2219
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 40 letters. The shortest word is "and·reached" (וּפָגַ֤ע, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·in·Shihor" (וּבְשִׁיח֖וֹר, 7 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Amad" (וְעַמְעָ֖ד), "and·Mishal" (וּמִשְׁאָ֑ל), "at·Carmel" (בְּכַרְמֶל֙). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "sea" (root ים, 40x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·Mishal', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 5 words. 5 of the verse's 8 words begin with the letter ו. Full calculation: וְאַֽלַמֶּ֥לֶךְ [and·Allammelech] (127) + וְעַמְעָ֖ד [and·Amad] (190) + וּמִשְׁאָ֑ל [and·Mishal] (377) + וּפָגַ֤ע [and·reached] (159) + בְּכַרְמֶל֙ [at·Carmel] (292) + הַיָּ֔מָּה [sea] (60) + וּבְשִׁיח֖וֹר [and·in·Shihor] (532) + לִבְנָֽת [Libnath] (482) = 2219.
Metzudat David
And it struck. The boundary struck Carmel, which is located in the west:
Malbim
And it touched Carmel on the sea side. And when the boundary ended at the Great Sea, it ended at Carmel on the southern side, and Shihor Libnath, which is by the sea, was on the northern side of Asher. It turns out that the southern border of Asher extended to the sea near Carmel, and on the western side it was by the sea from Carmel to Shihor Libnath. And commentators have written that Shihor Libnath is the name of a river, and to distinguish it from the river of Egypt, which is simply called Shihor, this one is called Shihor Libnath. It is known today by the name (Belus), and there they used to make glass, as is recorded in the Chronicles of the Kingdom of Tyre, and perhaps it was called Libnath on account of white glass.
And it turned toward the sunrising to Beth-dagon, and reached to Zebulun and to the valley of Iphtahel northward at Beth-emek and Neiel; and it went out to Cabul on the left hand,
verse value 4115
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 70 letters. The shortest word is "and·turned" (וְשָׁ֨ב, 3 letters) and the longest is "in·Zebulun" (בִּ֠זְבֻל֠וּן, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 412: house·of, house·of. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "Dagon" (דָּגֹן֒), "and·in·valley·of" (וּבְגֵ֨י), "and·Neiel" (וּנְעִיאֵ֑ל). The root בית appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "house·of" (root בית, 65x in Joshua); "and·he·went·out" (root יצא, 52x in Joshua); "and·turned" (root שוב, 35x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·Neiel', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 3 words.
Metzudat David
And he returned. The border, returning from the west toward the east at the northern corner, went to Beth-dagon:
“Of Zebulun.” In the border of Zebulun, which was to its north:
"And the Valley of Iphtah-el, northward." [This means] to the north of the Valley of Iphtah-el; and so it would then be from the inheritance of Asher, and opposite it the breadth of the border of Zebulun ended, as is written above.
"Beth-emek." From the Valley of Iphtah-el, the border came to Beth-emek, etc.
"On the left [i.e., to the north]." [This means] to the north of Cabul; and so it would then belong to Asher.
Malbim
"And it turned back." From Shihor Libnath, which stood in the northwest corner, the boundary turned back from west to east, and this marks the northern border of Asher, which turned from Shihor to Beth Dagon. And afterward, it touched Zebulun, who were to the north of Asher, and this is what it says, "and the Valley of Iphtah-el toward the north," meaning that it stood to the north of the border of Asher. And it has already been explained (verse 14) that the Valley of Iphtah-el was at the southern border of Zebulun and was there a neighbor to Asher. And afterward, Beth Emek and Neiel, which were also on that same line from west to east.
"And it went out." After Neiel, the boundary line went from south to north until the northernmost end of the Land of Israel, where Kabul was, and this is what is meant by "on the left," meaning on the left side of the Land of Israel (and according to this interpretation, the line passed opposite the entire eastern border of Zebulun). And some say that Kabul is a single city that Solomon gave to Hiram, and they called it the land of Kabul, named after the city of Kabul, the capital (1 Kings 9:12). (28) "And Ebron." And there, in the north of the Land of Israel, it passed Ebron and Rehob to Greater Sidon, which were also part of Asher, as it is stated, "Asher did not drive out the inhabitants of Akko and the inhabitants of Sidon" (Judges 1:31), and Akko is in the north of the Land of Israel, as explained at the beginning of Tractate Gittin, and it is not the Sidon adjacent to Tyre, but rather another Sidon.
and Ebron, and Rehob, and Hammon, and Kanah, even to great Zidon.
verse value 1256
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 28 letters. The shortest word is "until" (עַ֖ד, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·Ebron" (וְעֶבְרֹ֥ן, 5 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Ebron" (וְעֶבְרֹ֥ן), "and·Hammon" (וְחַמּ֣וֹן), "and·Kanah" (וְקָנָ֑ה). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "until" (root עד, 50x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·Kanah', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְעֶבְרֹ֥ן [and·Ebron] (328) + וּרְחֹ֖ב [and·Rehob] (216) + וְחַמּ֣וֹן [and·Hammon] (110) + וְקָנָ֑ה [and·Kanah] (161) + עַ֖ד [until] (74) + צִיד֥וֹן [Sidon] (160) + רַבָּֽה [great] (207) = 1256.
Metzudat David
"And Ebron." From the left [north] of Cabul, [the border] came to Ebron, etc.
And the border turned to Ramah, and to the fortified city of Tyre; and the border turned to Hosah; and the goings out thereof were at the sea from Hebel to Achzib;
verse value 3169
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 64 letters. The shortest word is "and·turned" (וְשָׁ֤ב, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·until·city" (וְעַד־עִ֖יר, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 308: and·turned, and·turned. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "the·Ramah" (הָרָמָ֔ה), "and·until·city" (וְעַד־עִ֖יר), "fortress·of·Tyre" (מִבְצַר־צֹ֑ר). The root שוב appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·they·will·be" (root היה, 150x in Joshua); "and·until·city" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua); "border" (root גבול, 84x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'fortress·of·Tyre', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 9 words. Full calculation: וְשָׁ֤ב [and·turned] (308) + הַגְּבוּל֙ [border] (46) + הָרָמָ֔ה [the·Ramah] (250) + וְעַד־עִ֖יר [and·until·city] (360) + מִבְצַר־צֹ֑ר [fortress·of·Tyre] (622) + וְשָׁ֤ב [and·turned] (308) + הַגְּבוּל֙ [border] (46) + חֹסָ֔ה [Hosah] (73) + (ויהיו) [and·they·will·be] (37) + וְהָי֧וּ [and·they·shall·be] (27) + תֹצְאֹתָ֛יו [his·limits] (907) + הַיָּ֖מָּה [sea] (60) + מֵחֶ֥בֶל [from·cord] (80) + אַכְזִֽיבָה [Achzib] (45) = 3169.
Rashi
Fortified city of Tyre. Walled cities are called 'tuqpa' [i.e., strength, in Aramaic].
Tyre. A term of rock.
From the region of Achzivah. From the district of Achzivah, from the lot of Kziv.
Radak
"A fortified city of Tyre" – a fortress that was on a high rock.
Metzudat David
"And the border shall return": From Tzidon the Great, the border returned from the north toward the south, to the Ramah, etc.
"And the border shall turn about to Hosah": From the fortress city of Tzor, the border turned back from the east toward the west, to Hosah.
"Mehebel, Achzib." For from Hosah the border came to Mehebel, Achzib, and from there the border ended at the Great Sea.
Metzudat Zion
מִבְצָר צוּר (mivtzar tsur, a rock fortress). A fortress built on a rock.
Malbim
"And the border shall return." It ends at Sidon, which is the northernmost point of the boundary, so that Sidon lies at the northeastern corner of Asher's territory. The border then proceeds from north to south, demarcating the eastern side of Asher's land, extending to Ramah and to the fortified city of Tyre, which is located at the southeastern corner of Asher (the fortified city of Tyre belonged to Naphtali). The fortified city of Tyre is not the great Tyre situated on the seashore, for that city had not yet been built at that time, as is well known. And some explain that the 'fortress' means it was built upon a rock, a high cliff.
"And the border shall go round to Chasah." From there, the border began to turn from east to west, and went to Chasah, which was on the western side, and from there to the district of Achzib.
"And from the district of Achzib its boundaries went out to the sea." This means that it went to Helkath and from there to Carmel toward the sea. Thus he has explained the borders of Asher on its four sides.
"And Ummah." From Achzib and onward, there were still these cities:
"Twenty-two cities." They are: four in verse 25 — Allammelech, Amad, and Mishal, Beth-dagon, Beth-emek, Neiel, Cabul; and five in verse 28 — and Ramah, Hosah, Achzib (for the fortified city of Tyre belonged to Naphtali); and three in verse 30.
Ummah also, and Aphek, and Rehob; twenty and two cities with their villages.
verse value 2589
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 33 letters. The shortest word is "and·Ummah" (וְעֻמָ֥ה, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·their·villages" (וְחַצְרֵיהֶֽן, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Ummah" (וְעֻמָ֥ה), "and·Aphek" (וַאֲפֵ֖ק). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "cities" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua); "and·their·villages" (root חצר, 36x in Joshua); "and·two" (root שנים, 23x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·Rehob', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 4 words. 5 of the verse's 7 words begin with the letter ו. Full calculation: וְעֻמָ֥ה [and·Ummah] (121) + וַאֲפֵ֖ק [and·Aphek] (187) + וּרְחֹ֑ב [and·Rehob] (216) + עָרִ֛ים [cities] (320) + עֶשְׂרִ֥ים [twenty] (620) + וּשְׁתַּ֖יִם [and·two] (756) + וְחַצְרֵיהֶֽן [and·their·villages] (369) = 2589.
Metzudat David
"And Ummah, and Aphek, and Rehob." The intent is to say that, together with these three cities which did not stand on the border, he had twenty-two cities: these three and nineteen of those that stood on the border, and the remainder belonged to the tribe adjacent to him.
This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Asher according to their families, these cities with their villages.
verse value 3146
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 39 letters. Verse gematria: 3146 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "this" (זֹ֗את, 3 letters) and the longest is "by·their·clans" (לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֑ם, 7 letters). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "sons·of·Asher" (root אשר, 271x in Joshua); "the·cities" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua); "staff" (root מטה, 58x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'by·their·clans', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 3 words. Full calculation: זֹ֗את [this] (408) + נַחֲלַ֛ת [possession] (488) + מַטֵּ֥ה [staff] (54) + בְנֵֽי־אָשֵׁ֖ר [sons·of·Asher] (563) + לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֑ם [by·their·clans] (898) + הֶעָרִ֥ים [the·cities] (325) + הָאֵ֖לֶּה [these] (41) + וְחַצְרֵיהֶֽן [and·their·villages] (369) = 3146.
The sixth lot came out for the children of Naphtali, even for the children of Naphtali according to their families.
verse value 3182
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 37 letters. Verse gematria: 3182 is divisible by 86, the value of Elohim. The shortest word is "went·out" (יָצָ֖א, 3 letters) and the longest is "by·their·clans" (לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָֽם, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 570: Naphtali, Naphtali. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "sixth" (הַשִּׁשִּׁ֑י). The root בן appears 2 times in this verse. 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·sons·of" (root בן, 156x in Joshua); "went·out" (root יצא, 52x in Joshua); "lot" (root גורל, 26x in Joshua). First appearance of the root נפתלי ("Naphtali") in Joshua. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'sixth', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 3 words. Full calculation: לִבְנֵ֣י [to·sons·of] (92) + נַפְתָּלִ֔י [Naphtali] (570) + יָצָ֖א [went·out] (101) + הַגּוֹרָ֣ל [lot] (244) + הַשִּׁשִּׁ֑י [sixth] (615) + לִבְנֵ֥י [to·sons·of] (92) + נַפְתָּלִ֖י [Naphtali] (570) + לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָֽם [by·their·clans] (898) = 3182.
Metzudat David
"To the sons of Naphtali, according to their families." [This portion] is divided among the sons of Naphtali, to each family and family.
And their border was from Heleph, from Elon-beza-anannim, and Adami-nekeb, and Jabneel, to Lakkum; and the goings out thereof were at the Jordan.
verse value 2483
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 61 letters. Verse gematria: 2483 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "and·it·was" (וַיְהִ֣י, 4 letters) and the longest is "in·Zaanannim" (בְּצַעֲנַנִּ֗ים, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 31: and·it·was, and·it·was. 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "from·Heleph" (מֵחֵ֨לֶף), "from·Elon" (מֵאֵל֜וֹן), "in·Zaanannim" (בְּצַעֲנַנִּ֗ים). The root היה appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·was" (root היה, 150x in Joshua); "their·border" (root גבול, 84x in Joshua); "Jordan" (root ירדן, 70x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·Lakkum', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 3 words. Full calculation: וַיְהִ֣י [and·it·was] (31) + גְבוּלָ֗ם [their·border] (81) + מֵחֵ֨לֶף [from·Heleph] (158) + מֵאֵל֜וֹן [from·Elon] (127) + בְּצַעֲנַנִּ֗ים [in·Zaanannim] (312) + וַאֲדָמִ֥י [and·Adami] (61) + הַנֶּ֛קֶב [the·Nekeb] (157) + וְיַבְנְאֵ֖ל [and·Jabneel] (99) + עַד־לַקּ֑וּם [to·Lakkum] (250) + וַיְהִ֥י [and·it·was] (31) + תֹצְאֹתָ֖יו [his·limits] (907) + הַיַּרְדֵּֽן [Jordan] (269) = 2483.
Metzudat David
"And their border was." Their border extended along the southern flank, from west to east, from Heleph, etc.
Malbim
"And their border was." Behold, wherever there remained any portion of the Land of Israel after the division mentioned above, it belonged to the tribe of Naphtali (with the exception of Dan, which took its portion in the west). Now, along the Jordan, the entire width of the Land of Israel opposite the Jordan remained, for we have already explained (16:7) that the eastern border of Joseph's territory met the other in a diagonal line near the waters of Jericho and did not reach the Jordan. Likewise, the eastern border of Benjamin, although it ascended from the Jordan to the shoulder of Jericho from the north, nevertheless extended only from Jericho onward. This is as our Sages of blessed memory stated (Sifrei on Numbers, Chapter 1) that the produce of Jericho was not allotted to the tribes, and Benjamin did not take it until the days of David or Solomon, when the Temple was built in its portion. Similarly, Issachar, which took its portion after Benjamin, and whose border lines reached the Jordan, did not extend all the way to the Jordan itself. Thus, the entire width of the Land of Israel on the eastern side, adjacent to the Jordan, remained for Naphtali (see what is written above, 16:6). With this, you will understand what is stated here that Naphtali met Judah at the Jordan, eastward toward the rising sun. According to this, the length of the land of Naphtali on the eastern side was the entire length of the Jordan, and opposite it, on the western side, their border ran from Heleph, from Elon-bezaanannim, to Lakkum. All this was in the area of the western side, while on the eastern side, its boundaries were the Jordan, for the Jordan demarcated the eastern expanse.
Cross-references: Genesis 12:6; Genesis 35:8; Joshua 24:26; Judges 9:6; I Samuel 10:3
And the border turned westward to Aznoth-tabor, and went out from thence to Hukok; and it reached to Zebulun on the south, and reached to Asher on the west, and to Judah at the Jordan toward the sunrising.
verse value 4497
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 77 letters. The shortest word is "and·turned" (וְשָׁ֨ב, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·in·Judah" (וּבִ֣יהוּדָ֔ה, 7 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "Aznoth-tabor" (אַזְנ֣וֹת), "Tabor" (תָּב֔וֹר), "to·Hukkok" (חוּקֹ֑קָה). The root ים appears 2 times in this verse. 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·in·Asher" (root אשר, 271x in Joshua); "border" (root גבול, 84x in Joshua); "Jordan" (root ירדן, 70x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·Hukkok', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 10 words.
Radak
“Aznot Tavor.” And above, in the portion of Zebulun, it says “Keslot Tavor,” and it had two names for a specific purpose known to them.
Metzudat David
“And the border shall go toward the sea.” The border returned from the east toward the west at the northern extremity, and came to Aznot Tabor.
"From the south." From the south of Zebulun, which is the north of Naphtali.
"From the west [i.e., from the sea]." From the west of Naphtali, and it is the east of Asher.
"And in Judah, the Jordan." At the border of Judah, it encountered the Jordan, which stands in the east. For the northern border of Judah ends at the southern extremity of the Jordan, and to Naphtali belonged the entire Jordan as an inheritance. Therefore, it encountered the border of Judah at the end of the Jordan. The same logic applies to all the tribes whose borders extended to the Jordan. However, the verse comes to teach that even though the inheritance of Judah was at the southern end, nevertheless, it also encountered it.
Malbim
"And it turned back." On the northern side, its boundary went from east to west and came to Aznoth-tabor. "And it went out." And it went out even further to the north side until it reached the north of the Land of Israel, where Hukkok was. Now, Zebulun ascended on its northern side from Sarid to the border of Chisloth-tabor, and from there went south along Daberath, which divides Issachar (as stated above, verse 12). Therefore, the section to the left of the line that went straight to Chisloth-tabor up to the very north of the Land of Israel remained vacant, as did the section from Daberath to the north of the Land of Israel. And to this section the border of Issachar descended, taking all that remained from the north of Zebulun up to the north of the Land of Israel. By this you will understand what is stated here that it met Zebulun from the south. Now, we have explained (verses 27–28) that in the inheritance of Asher, there was a strip on the east of Zebulun up to the north of the Land of Israel, and this border, from Ramah to the fortified city of Tzor, ran from north to south. Both Ramah and the fortified city of Tzor belonged to Naphtali (verses 35–36). Therefore, when the border of Naphtali went westward through Ramah and the fortified city of Tzor from south to north, Asher was to the west of Naphtali. This is what it means when it says that it met Asher from the west. According to this, it must be said that the cities mentioned in the northern border of Asher in the north of the Land of Israel were not in the extreme north; rather, there was still a strip belonging to Naphtali beyond them, through which their border descended and encircled Zebulun on its north. Otherwise, you would not find that the border would go to the north of Zebulun without interruption.
And the fortified cities were Ziddim-zer, and Hammath, and Rakkath, and Chinnereth;
verse value 2887
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 27 letters. The shortest word is "Zer" (צֵ֔ר, 2 letters) and the longest is "Ziddim" (הַצִּדִּ֣ים, 5 letters). 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·cities·of" (וְעָרֵ֖י), "fortification" (מִבְצָ֑ר), "Ziddim" (הַצִּדִּ֣ים). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·cities·of" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'fortification', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְעָרֵ֖י [and·cities·of] (286) + מִבְצָ֑ר [fortification] (332) + הַצִּדִּ֣ים [Ziddim] (149) + צֵ֔ר [Zer] (290) + וְחַמַּ֖ת [and·Hammath] (454) + רַקַּ֥ת [Rakkath] (700) + וְכִנָּֽרֶת [and·Chinnereth] (676) = 2887.
Rashi
And their fortified cities. These belonged to Naphtali: Ziddim, Zer.
Metzudat David
"And the fortified towns." This means: "And these are the fortified towns of Naphtali: Ziddim," etc.
Verse structure: 3 words, 15 letters. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Adamah" (וַאֲדָמָ֥ה). 3 unique roots are used. First appearance of the root אדמה ("and·Adamah") in Joshua. Full calculation: וַאֲדָמָ֥ה [and·Adamah] (56) + וְהָרָמָ֖ה [and·Ramah] (256) + וְחָצֽוֹר [and·Hazor] (310) = 622.
and Iron, and Migdal-el, and Horem, and Beth-anath, and Beth-shemesh; nineteen cities with their villages.
verse value 4665
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 48 letters. The shortest word is "Horem" (חֳרֵ֥ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·Migdal-el" (וּמִגְדַּל־אֵ֔ל, 7 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Iron" (וְיִרְאוֹן֙), "and·Migdal-el" (וּמִגְדַּל־אֵ֔ל), "and·Beth-anath" (וּבֵית־עֲנָ֖ת). The root בית appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "cities" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua); "and·Beth-anath" (root בית, 65x in Joshua); "and·their·villages" (root חצר, 36x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'sun', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְיִרְאוֹן֙ [and·Iron] (273) + וּמִגְדַּל־אֵ֔ל [and·Migdal-el] (114) + חֳרֵ֥ם [Horem] (248) + וּבֵית־עֲנָ֖ת [and·Beth-anath] (938) + וּבֵ֣ית [and·Beth] (418) + שָׁ֑מֶשׁ [sun] (640) + עָרִ֥ים [cities] (320) + תְּשַֽׁע־עֶשְׂרֵ֖ה [nine·ten] (1345) + וְחַצְרֵיהֶֽן [and·their·villages] (369) = 4665.
Metzudat David
Nineteen. This means that together with the fortified towns, he had nineteen: sixteen fortified towns, plus three of those that stood on the border, and the remainder belonged to the tribe adjacent to him.
Malbim
Nineteen cities. Fifteen of them are the prominent ones among the fortified cities, and Adami-nekeb, Jabneel, Lakkum, and Hukkokah — these make nineteen. For Heleph and Elon are names of places, not cities.
This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Naphtali according to their families, the cities with their villages.
verse value 3174
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 37 letters. The shortest word is "this" (זֹ֗את, 3 letters) and the longest is "sons·of·Naphtali" (בְנֵֽי־נַפְתָּלִ֖י, 8 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "sons·of·Naphtali" (בְנֵֽי־נַפְתָּלִ֖י). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "sons·of·Naphtali" (root בן, 156x in Joshua); "the·cities" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua); "staff" (root מטה, 58x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'by·their·clans', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 2 words. Full calculation: זֹ֗את [this] (408) + נַחֲלַ֛ת [possession] (488) + מַטֵּ֥ה [staff] (54) + בְנֵֽי־נַפְתָּלִ֖י [sons·of·Naphtali] (632) + לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֑ם [by·their·clans] (898) + הֶֽעָרִ֖ים [the·cities] (325) + וְחַצְרֵיהֶֽן [and·their·villages] (369) = 3174.
The seventh lot came out for the tribe of the children of Dan according to their families.
verse value 1840
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 30 letters. The shortest word is "went·out" (יָצָ֖א, 3 letters) and the longest is "by·their·clans" (לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֑ם, 7 letters). 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·tribe·of" (root מטה, 58x in Joshua); "went·out" (root יצא, 52x in Joshua); "lot" (root גורל, 26x in Joshua). First appearance of the root דין ("sons·of·Dan") in Joshua. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'by·their·clans', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: לְמַטֵּ֥ה [to·tribe·of] (84) + בְנֵי־דָ֖ן [sons·of·Dan] (116) + לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֑ם [by·their·clans] (898) + יָצָ֖א [went·out] (101) + הַגּוֹרָ֥ל [lot] (244) + הַשְּׁבִיעִֽי [seventh] (397) = 1840.
And the border of their inheritance was Zorah, and Eshtaol, and Ir-shemesh;
verse value 2635
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 31 letters. The shortest word is "sun" (שָֽׁמֶשׁ, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·Eshtaol" (וְאֶשְׁתָּא֖וֹל, 7 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "Zorah" (צׇרְעָ֥ה), "and·Eshtaol" (וְאֶשְׁתָּא֖וֹל), "and·Ir" (וְעִ֥יר). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·was" (root היה, 150x in Joshua); "and·Ir" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua); "border" (root גבול, 84x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'their·inheritance', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיְהִ֖י [and·it·was] (31) + גְּב֣וּל [border] (41) + נַחֲלָתָ֑ם [their·inheritance] (528) + צׇרְעָ֥ה [Zorah] (365) + וְאֶשְׁתָּא֖וֹל [and·Eshtaol] (744) + וְעִ֥יר [and·Ir] (286) + שָֽׁמֶשׁ [sun] (640) = 2635.
Rashi
Zorah and Eshtaol. They were from [the territory of] Judah (above 15:33), and Dan's lot fell near them.
Metzudat David
"Zorah and Eshtaol." It is possible that these [cities] were not those located within the border of Judah, and the inheritance of Dan was in the northwestern corner of Judah.
Malbim
"And it was the boundary of their inheritance." Dan took the western portion of Benjamin's inheritance, for Benjamin took only the eastern portion of the length from east to west, while the western portion — together with what entered into Judah's portion on its north — caused Benjamin's boundary to be shortened on the western side.
Verse structure: 3 words, 18 letters. The shortest word is "and·Ithlah" (וְיִתְלָֽה, 5 letters) and the longest is "and·Shaalabbin" (וְשַׁעֲלַבִּ֥ין, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Shaalabbin" (וְשַׁעֲלַבִּ֥ין), "and·Ithlah" (וְיִתְלָֽה). 3 unique roots are used. Full calculation: וְשַׁעֲלַבִּ֥ין [and·Shaalabbin] (468) + וְאַיָּל֖וֹן [and·Aijalon] (103) + וְיִתְלָֽה [and·Ithlah] (451) = 1022.
Verse structure: 3 words, 17 letters. The shortest word is "and·Baalath" (וּבַעֲלָֽת, 5 letters) and the longest is "and·Eltekeh" (וְאֶלְתְּקֵ֥ה, 6 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Eltekeh" (וְאֶלְתְּקֵ֥ה), "and·Gibbethon" (וְגִבְּת֖וֹן), "and·Baalath" (וּבַעֲלָֽת). 3 unique roots are used. Full calculation: וְאֶלְתְּקֵ֥ה [and·Eltekeh] (542) + וְגִבְּת֖וֹן [and·Gibbethon] (467) + וּבַעֲלָֽת [and·Baalath] (508) = 1517.
Radak
“Gibbethon and Baalath.” This is not the Baalah mentioned above in the inheritance of the sons of Judah, for that one is spelled Baalah with a he, whereas this one is spelled Baalath with a tav. And our Sages of blessed memory said that both are the same place. They raised a difficulty from the verses and resolved it by saying that the houses belonged to Judah and the fields to Dan.
Verse structure: 3 words, 18 letters. Verse gematria: 1100 is divisible by 50, the years to the Jubilee (yovel). The shortest word is "and·Jehud" (וִיהֻ֥ד, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·Bene-berak" (וּבְנֵֽי־בְרַ֖ק, 7 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Jehud" (וִיהֻ֥ד), "and·Bene-berak" (וּבְנֵֽי־בְרַ֖ק), "and·Gath-rimmon" (וְגַת־רִמּֽוֹן). 3 unique roots are used. Full calculation: וִיהֻ֥ד [and·Jehud] (25) + וּבְנֵֽי־בְרַ֖ק [and·Bene-berak] (370) + וְגַת־רִמּֽוֹן [and·Gath-rimmon] (705) = 1100.
and Me-jarkon, and Rakkon, with the border over against Joppa.
verse value 1122
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 28 letters. The shortest word is "and·Me" (וּמֵ֥י, 3 letters) and the longest is "with·the·border" (עִֽם־הַגְּב֖וּל, 7 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "and·Me" (וּמֵ֥י), "Me-jarkon" (הַיַּרְק֖וֹן), "and·Rakkon" (וְהָרַקּ֑וֹן). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "with·the·border" (root גבול, 84x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·Rakkon', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: וּמֵ֥י [and·Me] (56) + הַיַּרְק֖וֹן [Me-jarkon] (371) + וְהָרַקּ֑וֹן [and·Rakkon] (367) + עִֽם־הַגְּב֖וּל [with·the·border] (156) + מ֥וּל [opposite] (76) + יָפֽוֹ [Joppa] (96) = 1122.
Metzudat David
“With the border, etc.” This means that those cities were part of the inheritance of Dan, along with the border opposite Jaffa.
And the border of the children of Dan was too strait for them; so the children of Dan went up and fought against Leshem, and took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and possessed it, and dwelt therein, and called Leshem, Dan, after the name of Dan their father.
verse value 4953
Insights
Verse structure: 22 words, 99 letters. Verse gematria: 4953 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "in·her" (בָ֔הּ, 2 letters) and the longest is "border·of·sons·of·Dan" (גְבוּל־בְּנֵי־דָ֖ן, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 412: her, her, her. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "border·of·sons·of·Dan" (גְבוּל־בְּנֵי־דָ֖ן), "with·Leshem" (עִם־לֶ֜שֶׁם), "to·Leshem" (לְלֶ֙שֶׁם֙). The root לשם appears 2 times in this verse. 18 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "border·of·sons·of·Dan" (root גבול, 84x in Joshua); "from·them" (root הם, 63x in Joshua); "and·they·went·up" (root עלה, 60x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·them', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 19 words.
Rashi
And the coast of the children of Dan went out from them. Here they took a little, and there also fell to them a lot in another place far from their boundary, and the other tribes separate in between.
And they fought against Leshem. After a time, in the days of Othniel son of Kenaz, and in the days of Micah's idol, as it is said in the book of Judges (18:2).
Leshem. It is Laish mentioned in the book of Judges (18:14).
Radak
And the boundary of the children of Dan went out from them. Less than them, because the land did not suffice for their portion, and they were compelled to go to Leshem, which is the Laish mentioned in the Book of Judges, and to conquer it. And Leshem was from their lot, only that it was not conquered together with the other tribes, and they conquered it at a later time, in the days of Micah's idol. And one may interpret that Leshem was not part of the land that was divided into seven portions; rather, the children of Dan received all the lot that fell to them, but they were numerous, and their portion was not sufficient for the houses of their fathers that were in the tribes. And they went out to a distant land, outside the portions of the tribes, and they scouted it out, and the land was good, and they went there and captured it. And it was the end of the boundary of the Land of Israel that was theirs in those days, as it is said, "From Dan to Beersheba." And in the words of our Sages of blessed memory, Rabbi Yitzchak said: This Leshem is Paimis. And it is taught in a Baraita: The Jordan flows from the cave of Paimis. And they said: Rabbi Yochanan said: Why is it called Jordan? Because it descends from Dan.
Metzudat David
"And the border of the children of Dan went out from them." This means that the border of the inheritance of Dan came out in the lot less than was due to them, and it did not suffice for them; therefore, afterward they went up to war against Leshem. This is Laish, mentioned in the Book of Judges (18:7), which was outside the border of the Land of Israel and not within its border. (And it was in the northeastern corner, opposite the inheritance of Naphtali, for our Sages of blessed memory said (Bekhorot 55a): the Jordan is called by that name because it descends from Dan, and that is Leshem. And does the Jordan not begin in the northeastern corner? And this is what the verse says (1 Kings 5:5): "From Dan even to Beersheba," meaning from one end of the Land of Israel to its other end on the diagonal, for Dan was in the northeastern corner, and Beersheba was in the southwestern corner, for it was from the inheritance of Simeon that they took it in that corner.)
Metzudat Zion
וַיִּרְשׁוּ (va-yirshu, and they possessed). From the word possession.
Malbim
"And they went out." This means that since the tribe of Dan inherited their portion at the end of the Land of Israel, near the border, they were unable to displace the Amorites (as stated in Judges 1:34). And this is what the verse says: "And the border of the children of Dan went out from them." This means that they did not inherit their allotted border, for the Amorites would not let them come down into the valley. This is explained in Judges 18, where it states that their inheritance had not fallen to them until that day among the tribes of Israel. The intent is that their inheritance did not fall within the midst of the tribes, but rather at the western edge, on the border. Therefore, the children of Dan went up and fought against Leshem, which is in the east of the Land of Israel. This occurred during the days of the rule of the Judges, and it is Laish, mentioned there.
When they had made an end of distributing the land for inheritance by the borders thereof, the children of Israel gave an inheritance to Joshua the son of Nun in the midst of them;
verse value 3588
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 56 letters. Verse gematria: 3588 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "inheritance" (נַחֲלָ֛ה, 4 letters) and the longest is "to·divide·the·land" (לִנְחֹל־אֶת־הָאָ֖רֶץ, 10 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "to·divide·the·land" (לִנְחֹל־אֶת־הָאָ֖רֶץ). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "sons·of·Israel" (root בן, 156x in Joshua); "Joshua" (root יהושע, 125x in Joshua); "and·they·gave" (root נתן, 86x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·her·boundaries', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 6 words. Full calculation: וַיְכַלּ֥וּ [and·finished] (72) + לִנְחֹל־אֶת־הָאָ֖רֶץ [to·divide·the·land] (815) + לִגְבוּלֹתֶ֑יהָ [to·her·boundaries] (486) + וַיִּתְּנ֨וּ [and·they·gave] (472) + בְנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֧ל [sons·of·Israel] (603) + נַחֲלָ֛ה [inheritance] (93) + לִיהוֹשֻׁ֥עַ [Joshua] (421) + בִּן־נ֖וּן [son·of·Nun] (158) + בְּתוֹכָֽם [in·their·midst] (468) = 3588.
Metzudat David
"To allot." To allot [the land] by means of the lot:
To its boundaries. According to the boundaries mentioned above:
Malbim
"And they finished dividing" (Vayechulu lanachol). This is the first division that occurred by lot, as we have already explained (above, chapter 14) that there were two divisions: a) By lot, which determined the boundary of each tribe, and regarding this it says here, "And they finished dividing"; b) By the division according to the headcount, which Joshua performed according to the multitude or fewness of the tribe, and regarding this it says in verse 51, "And they finished dividing the land." And immediately after the lots, prior to the division according to the number of heads, a portion was given to Joshua. And he explains that:
according to the commandment of Hashem they gave him the city which he asked, even Timnath-serah in the hill-country of Ephraim; and he built the city, and dwelt therein.
verse value 5457
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 60 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֜ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "to·him" (ל֗וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "Timnath-serah" (אֶת־תִּמְנַת־סֶ֖רַח, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 686: the·city, the·city. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "asked" (שָׁאָ֔ל), "Timnath-serah" (אֶת־תִּמְנַת־סֶ֖רַח), "and·he·built" (וַיִּבְנֶ֥ה). The root עיר appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 271x in Joshua); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 217x in Joshua); "the·city" (root עיר, 138x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Ephraim', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 4 words. Full calculation: עַל־פִּ֨י [upon·peh] (190) + יְהֹוָ֜ה [Hashem] (26) + נָ֣תְנוּ [they·gave] (506) + ל֗וֹ [to·him] (36) + אֶת־הָעִיר֙ [the·city] (686) + אֲשֶׁ֣ר [that] (501) + שָׁאָ֔ל [asked] (331) + אֶת־תִּמְנַת־סֶ֖רַח [Timnath-serah] (1559) + בְּהַ֣ר [in·mountain·of] (207) + אֶפְרָ֑יִם [Ephraim] (331) + וַיִּבְנֶ֥ה [and·he·built] (73) + אֶת־הָעִ֖יר [the·city] (686) + וַיֵּ֥שֶׁב [and·dwelt] (318) + בָּֽהּ [in·her] (7) = 5457.
Ralbag
And after this it is mentioned that they gave to Joshua son of Nun the city that he asked. And this was by the word of God, to testify that there was no partiality in the matter of the inheritance of the land.
Metzudat David
“By the word of the Lord.” They inquired through the Urim and Thummim, and in accordance with their response, they gave him the city he had requested, which was Timnath-serah.
Malbim
“According to the word of the Lord they gave it to him.” Therefore, this [grant] was coupled with the lottery, which was also according to the word of the Lord, and they did not wait until the second division, which was according to Joshua, at which time Joshua himself had the power to give it to him. And this is what is stated in Bava Batra 121a: “Only by lottery shall they divide the land” — Joshua and Caleb are excluded. For even though the private division according to the skull [i.e., per capita] was not by lottery (and on this basis the Raavad, in Sefer HaShitta Mekubetzes on Bava Batra 121a, raised a difficulty against his own view that only the tribal boundaries were determined by lottery, but not the private allotments: if so, why was it necessary to exclude Joshua and Caleb, who were private individuals?), nevertheless, before the second division was carried out to determine how much would be allotted per skull, it was not possible to advance and give to Joshua and Caleb without a division. Therefore, it was necessary that it be done according to the word of the Lord, and thus it would have been reasonable to assume that this would be done by lottery. However, the verse explains that “they gave him the city which he requested,” and this cannot be accomplished by lottery, but only through a prophet. Likewise, Caleb took Hebron according to his request, prior to the private division.
These are the inheritances, which Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers’houses of the tribes of the children of Israel, distributed for inheritance by lot in Shiloh before Hashem, at the door of the tent of meeting. So they made an end of dividing the land.
verse value 6451
Insights
Verse structure: 22 words, 100 letters. Notable word values: "these" (אֵ֣לֶּה) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "these" (אֵ֣לֶּה, 3 letters) and the longest is "sons·of·Israel" (בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֨ל, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 36: these, tent. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Joshua. Unique to this verse in Joshua (hapax): "the·inheritances" (הַנְּחָלֹ֡ת), "the·fathers" (הָאָב֣וֹת), "by·tribes·of" (לְמַטּוֹת֩). 22 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 271x in Joshua); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 217x in Joshua); "sons·of·Israel" (root בן, 156x in Joshua). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'meeting', dividing the verse into phrases of 19 and 3 words.
Rashi
Which they divided. Which they caused to inherit.
Radak
And the heads of the fathers [are] for the tribes. Like the "fathers of the tribes," meaning the heads of the paternal houses for each tribe and each tribe. And our Sages of blessed memory relied on this verse for [the principle that] an expropriation by the court is a valid expropriation [hefker beit din hefker] (referring to the courts that were in the Land of Israel). They said: "And what is the relevance of 'heads' in connection with 'fathers'? It is to tell you: Just as the fathers bequeath their property to whomever they wish, so too the heads bequeath the people's property to whomever they wish."
Metzudat David
They allotted. They gave [it] to Israel as an inheritance, by lot:
And the heads of the fathers’ houses of the tribes. The heads of the ancestral houses of the tribes of the children of Israel:
"By lot." This refers back to the beginning of the verse, to say: "These are the inheritances which they allotted by lot."
"And they finished dividing"—they completed the division of the land by lot.
Malbim
"And they finished dividing." It was explained in verse 50:
Rashi
Metzudat David