Outline of Chapter 19:

       vv.   1–9      The territory assigned to Simeon

       vv.  10–16    The boundaries and cities of Zebulun

       vv.  17–23    The boundaries and cities of Issachar

       vv.  24–31    The boundaries and cities of Asher

       vv.  32–39    The boundaries and cities of Naphtali

       vv.  40–48    The cities of Dan

       vv.  49–51    The inheritance of Joshua/conclusion of land distribution

Charts:

       v.    48          Joshua 19:47–48 in the Greek and Hebrew

I ntroduction: In Joshua 19, we complete the distribution of land to the remaining six tribes. You will recall that Moses was told to have Joshua and Eleazar cast lots and then to adjust the assignment of territory as per the population of the various tribes. Simeon will be the first tribe dealt with in this chapter and Simeon will be given some territory in Judah and some cities found within Judah. This is not a contradiction to find certain cities originally assigned to Judah and then assigned to Simeon. This is an adjustment, which God ordered to be done. After Simeon is given his land and cities, then the same will be done for Zebulun, Issachar, Asher, Naphtali and Dan. What will follow in the next two chapters will be the cities of refuge and the cities which will be given over to the Levites. For many of you, this will be a grocery list of cities, and, for that reason, I did not go into half the detail that Keil and Delitzsch did. However, if geography is your interest, then consult their Old Testament commentary for more information. Whereas I might comment on the present-day location of a third of the cities listed herein, they probably deal with twice that many, and generally in much greater detail, citing the reasons why one site would be preferred over another.

J. Vernon McGee summarizes the distribution of land as follows: Because the land allotted to Judah was more than it needed, the southern portion was given to Simeon. The tribe of Zebulun received a portion of land that was landlocked in lower Galilee. The inheritance of Issachar went from Mount Tabor on the west to the southern part of the sea of Galilee. It also included territory in the coastal region from north of Mount Carmel to the approximate area of Tyre and Sidon. The tribe of Naphtali settled in the area of eastern Upper and Lower Galilee. The territory of Dan was located between Benjamin and the Mediterranean Sea. Later some of the Danites migrated northward and settled near the northern part of Naphtali.

There is a slight change in Joshua’s style in this chapter; which I didn’t catch until I had almost finished with Zebulun’s territory. He became a bit more economical. Rather than list the borders of a particular tribe and then list its cities, many of which were named when naming the borders of the land; he names the cities as he moves along the borders and does not name them a second time.

The Territory Assigned to Simeon

Joshua 15:26–32, 42 I Chron. 4:28–32

The first verb is the Qal imperfect of yâtsâ (א ָצ ָי ) [pronounced yaw-TZAWH], which means to go out, to come out, to come forth. Strong's #3318 BDB #422.

We know that the second verb has the subject lot, as inheritance is in the feminine singular and the verb and lot are both in the masculine singular. Although the details are not given, apparently, after the survey of the land was done and Joshua had the information in his hands, it was decided to take some land from Judah and throw it back into the lots to be distributed. There is no indication whether this was the result of long and arduous debate or whether Joshua simply made an executive decision. The two tribes of Joshua and Simeon seemed to begin well. Then Judah said to Simeon his brother, “Come up with me into the territory allotted me, that we may fight against the Canaanites; and I will in turn will go with you into the territory allotted you.” (Judges 1:3).

Zodhiates comments: Simeon’s allotment was in the extreme south in the territory which was already given to Judah, because Judah was not large enough to fill all of her land. This had consequences for later times. During the period of the divided monarchy, although the tribe of Simeon was politically a part of the ten tribes of Israel, the tribe’s proximity to Judah led to its eventual assimilation into Judah.

Barnes’ quote on Simeon, given back in Num. 33, bears repeating: The tribe of Simeon, which would according to the order of birth come next [after Reuben], is not named [in Moses’s blessing of the tribes in Duet. 33]. This omission is explained by reference to the words of Jacob concerning Simeon (Gen. xlix. 7). This tribe with Levi was to be “scattered in Israel.” The fulfilment of this prediction was in the case of Levi so ordered as to carry with it honour and blessing; but no such reversal of punishment was granted to Simeon. Rather had this latter tribe added new sins to those which Jacob denounced. Accordingly, though very numerous at the Exodus, it had surprisingly diminished before the death of Moses (cp. Num. i:22, 23 with Num. xxxvi. 12–14); and eventually is found territory adequate for its wants within the limits of another tribe, Judah.

It is uncertain whether the land given to the tribe of Simeon was a contiguous piece of land or whether there were gaps where men from Judah lived. The first 13 or 14 cities are in the Negev; two of the next four towns are in the Negev and two are in the Shephelah. From the parallel passage in Judah, it sounds as though there is space between the cities in Simeon, but that cannot be determined for certain because we do not know where most of the towns are.

What Barnes gives us is the key to understanding the tribe of Simeon and the tribe of Levi. The Israelites themselves would be scattered throughout the world without a nation of their own (the nation Israel today is not the true nation Israel, despite the fact that there are a few Jews living there). When the church is raptured, many Jews will believe in Jesus Christ and become evangelists and many will not believe in Jesus Christ. Levi is scattered throughout Israel in order to provide spiritual blessing to all Israel. They represent those Israelites who are scattered throughout the nations and who will, someday, through their evangelism, become a blessing to the entire world. Simeon represents those Israelites who will not believe and who will be assimilated into the world and suffer the consequences of rejecting Jesus Christ as savior. Their being assimilated into the world does not mean that they are not seen as Jews during the tribulation; they are assimilated insofar as rejecting the gospel and they will die with the unbelievers, burning in hell forever. This does not mean that Simeon will not have a part in the evangelism of the world during the tribulation. What is occurring here is representative of the future of all of Israel; not just the tribe of Simeon. Like the other tribes, 12,000 from the tribe of Simeon will come forth to evangelize the world during the tribulation (Rev. 7:7). And I looked, and observed, the Lamb standing on Mount Zion; and with Him 144,000 having His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads (Rev. 14:1). This fulfills the prophecy of Jacob in Gen. 49:5–7: “Simeon and Levi are brothers; their swords are implements of violence. Let my soul not enter into their council. Let not my glory be united with their assembly, because in their anger the executed men and in their self-will, they hamstrung oxen. Cursed is their anger, for it is fierce and their wrath, for it is implacable. I will disperse them in Jacob, and I will scatter them in Israel.” The difference between the two tribes is that the cursing of Levi was turned into blessing.

In general, the area of Judah which was given over to Simeon was the area in the Negev and along the southern border. Fourteen of the towns were in the Negev and four partially in the Negev and partly in the valley. Beersheba was covered back in Gen. 21 or 26.

Now, the city of Sheba does not occur in Joshua 15. Therefore, there are three explanations for the occurrence of Sheba in this verse: (1) Sheba should be Shema, which we dealt with in Joshua 15:26 (along with Moladah). The NAB and NJB also translate it that way. This would be in agreement with the number of cities given in v. 6. (2) The REB suggests that there should not be a Shema or a Sheba—that the repetition of sheba is a scribal error. (3) The NKJV and NIV place Sheba in parentheses, making it explanatory—Beer-sheba was also known as Sheba. In partial support of explanation #3 is the fact that under the cities named in I Chron. 4:24–32, there is no mention of a Sheba or a Shema. Keil and Delitzsch write that off as a copyist’s error, saying that it should be there. Furthermore, in Gen. 26:33, we read: So he [Jacob] called it Shibah; therefore the name of the city is Beer-sheba to this day. And both the Massoretic text and the Septuagint list these three cities here. No commentator which I personally study considers Sheba to be a separate city.

Hazar-shual was covered in Joshua 15:28, Balah (or, Baalah) and Ezem in 15:29, Eltolad and Hormah in v. 30. Bethuel is probably the uncorrupted version of Bethul (Joshua 19:4), Bethel (1Sam. 30:27); and Chesil (Joshua 15:30); and was therefore covered back in Joshua 15:30.

Ziklag was covered in Joshua 15:31; Lebaoth in v. 32; Beth-marcaboth is probably Madmannah in v. 31; Sharuhen is likely Shilhim (v. 32); Hazar-susah is probably Sansannah in v. 31 as well. All of these cities were covered back in Joshua 15.

Keil and Delitzsch claim there are four cities here and they place Ain and Rimmon in the Negev and Ether and Ashan in the Shephelah. However, we have three cities here and not four. No doubt that text in this chapter, and throughout out much of this portion of Joshua, was corrupted very early on—perhaps as early as the period of the Judges. However, the Greek text gives us four cities: Eremmon, and Thalcha, and Jether, and Asan; four cities and their villages. Other translations list the four cities Ain, Rommon, Ether, and Ashan (e.g., NRSV, REB, NJB and the NIV). There is no wâw conjunction between Ain and Rimmon. I don’t know if you will recall, but back in Joshua 15:32, one of our problems was the city (or, cities) Ain and Rimmon. Almost everyone had a different opinion of this (these) city (cities). They were two cities, they were two cities which became one, they were one city with a wâw conjunction thrown between them either as a copyist’s error or a copyist’s correction, which wasn’t. In comparing this reading to the one in Joshua 15:32, we can come to no solid conclusions.

The cities Ether and Ashan were both covered in Joshua 15:42 as cities in the Shephelah. This would imply that Rimmon (or, En-rimmon) of the Negev and Ether and Ashan were fairly close to one another. For ZPEB, this was a clear example of transference, where two cities were placed on the wrong list. As for Thalcha—we have no clue.

Baalath-beer is only mentioned here and was perhaps the shrine of a goddess. It should probably be distinguished from Balah in v. 3. We have examined Ramah in the past, but not this Ramah. The Greek text differs here, one reading Baalath-beer-ramôth. My Greek text reads Balek going to Bameth. Keil and Delitzsch render this as far as Baalath-beer, the Ramah of the south [the Negev]. Best guess is that this is Ramoth of the Negev (1Sam. 30:27). It may also be known simply as Baal (I Chron. 4:33) and possibly as Bealoth (Joshua 15:24). This doesn’t tell us much, as these cities are all to be found on laundry lists, and little else is mentioned. Bealoth (or, Baalath) means mistresses, possessors. Baal means god, owner.

Following the second occurrence of Judah, we have the adjective ra^bv (ב ַר ) [pronounced rah^bv] means many, much, great. This is followed by the mîn preposition, which means from, out from, away from. I realize that does not make a great deal of sense; however, according to BDB, with the min preposition, it means too much for (Joshua 19:9 1Kings 19:7; Prov. 26:10 is hopelessly corrupt) or greater than (Deut. 7:1, 17 9:12 20:1). Strong's #7227 BDB #912.

The Boundaries and Cities of Zebulun

Zebulun is south of Asher and Naphtali (the two northern most tribes west of the Jordan) and north of west Manasseh and Issachar. NIV: To this tribe went a portion of lower Galilee west of the Sea of Galilee and in the vicinity of NT Nazareth. Zebulun is pretty much landlocked between the various tribes, north of the Valley of Jezreel and smack dab between the Sea of Galilee and the Mediterranean Sea. This does not appear to match with the words of Jacob. “Zebulun shall dwell at the seashore and he will be a haven for ships, and his flank toward Sidon.” (Gen. 49:13). What we do have is the Kishom River goes along the southern boundary of Zebulun and head out toward the sea. I think what we have to do is take Jacob’s prophecy for what it was—the last few words of a man to his family. Jacob took what he knew about his sons and spoke his peace—whether it was inspired is debatable. So far in history, he appears to be clearly wrong about Zebulun and on several others (e.g., Asher and Naphtali), the prophecies make little or no sense. On the other hand, when we studied this verse originally, we were able to make some sense of it; albeit, just not the sense that we would commonly take from the words which were used.

I guess that I have two problems at this point. The first problem is let’s just say that what Jacob said was not inspired by God the Holy Spirit. There is nothing in the context of Gen. 49 which states that. He did seem to be right on target now and again, but his prophecies were sometimes vague and some bordered on meaningless. It was almost as though he were speaking to his sons based upon what he knew about them personally and then, for some of them, couldn’t think of much to say, so he just made up things which sounded good. We are talking about an old man here who was not a spiritual giant. My problem is this: God the Holy Spirit did record this in God’s Word and it is a lengthy piece of dialogue. When there are one or two things recorded which a person said, then all God’s Word guarantees is that this is what they really said—or this was the essence of what they said. God’s Word does not guarantee that there is any inspiration to be attached to everything which was said in the Bible. Satan told the woman in the garden, “You will not surely die.” (Gen. 3:4b). Satan was lying; the Bible merely records that this is what he said. On the other hand, when you have an extended piece of dialogue like this spoken from the ancestor of every Jew on this earth and spoken to the fathers of the tribes of every Jew on this earth, you would think that we could attach some meaning and even inspiration to what is being said, otherwise, why record it in God’s Word?

The second problem is if we take what was said in Gen. 49 as prophecy. It is difficult to take the common reading or the common understanding of some of what Jacob said and apply it to the appropriate tribe. In some cases, the common understanding is nebulous.

Sarid may be originally Sadud and to be found at Tell Shadûd on the northern edge of the Plain of Esdraelon about five miles southwest of Nazareth. Barnes: Sarid, not yet identified, was evidently a leading topographical point on the south frontier of Zebulun. The boundary passed westward until it touched the Kishon, near Tell Kaimon..., and thence turned northward, leaving Carmel, which belonged to Asher, on its west. The territory of Zebulun accordingly would not anywhere reach to the Mediterranean, though its eastern side abutted on the sea o Galilee, and gave the tribe those “outgoings” attributed to it in the Blessing of Moses (Deut. xxxiii. 18). Keil and Delitzsch are adamant that Sarid is the center of the southern boundary of Zebulun, as the directions go in a westerly direction in v. 11 and an easterly one in v. 12. Keil and Delitzsch note Knobel’s opinion that this is not a town or a city, but that it means incision, hole and therefore actually refers to the southern opening of the deep and narrow wady which come down from the basin of Nazareth, and is about an hour to the south-east of Nazareth, between two steep mountains.

This verse begins with and so goes up their boundary...; and then we have the lâmed preposition, which means to, for; followed by the masculine singular of yâm (ם ָי) [pronounced yawm], which referred to the largest body of water in the vicinity. Therefore, it can refer to the sea or to a lake. However, it is also used for the direction in which the sea is from the speaker; and throughout much of the Bible, we can take that as to the west. Strong’s #3220 BDB #410.

Mareal is mentioned only here; the KJV and ASV both have Maralah. Keil and Delitzsch give this an extensive discussion on p. 140 of vol. 2. Dabbesheth, which means lump, is also found only here. It is probably on a mountain or a hill, given the name. Perhaps they are not cities but landmarks or well-known areas (at that time). In this verse we also have ׳al (ל ַע ) [pronounced ahl ], which means, primarily, upon, against, above. When ׳al is used in connection with something geographical, particularly water; it has the connotation of contiguity or proximity; so here, it means by. Strong's #5920, #5921 BDB #752. This is followed by the masculine plural construct of pânîym (םי ̣נ ָ ) [pronounced paw-NEEM], which means face. This word is in the plural, referring to the several features of the face. With ׳al, it means facing, in front of, before (as in preference to), in addition to, overlooking. Strong’s #6440 BDB #815. We covered Jokneam in Joshua 12:22.

We have three verbs in this verse which are often translated the same or similarly, but they are all different. The first is the Qal perfect of shûw^bv (בש ) [pronounced shoo^bv]; which means to turn back, to return, to turn around. Strong's #7725 BDB #996. The second verb is the Qal perfect of yâtsâ (א ָצ ָי ) [pronounced yaw-TZAWH], which means to go out, to come out, to come forth. Strong's #3318 BDB #422. The third is the Qal perfect of ׳âlâh (ה ָל ָע ) [pronounced ģaw-LAWH], which means to climb, to ascend, to rise. Strong's #5927 BDB #748. These are all very simple, very common verbs, most of which we have seen a number of times.

Chisloth-tabor is found only here and MacMillan places it in Issachar. ZPEB and The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia both identify it with Chesulloth, which is in the list of cities belonging to Zebulun (Joshua 19:18). It has been guessed that this is the modern-day Iksâl, which is two miles southeast of Nazareth. Another suggests that it is located more to the north.

Daberath probably means pasture land. It is west of Mount Tabor and falls into Issachar’s territory (I Chron. 6:72), although it is used in this verse to mark out the boundaries of Zebulun. Furthermore, this city was given over to the Levites (Joshua 21:28). It has been suggested that Barak defeated Sisera here (Judges 4); however, this city is not mentioned in that chapter. ZPEB suggests that it may be identified with modern Deburiyeh.

There are two people named Japhia in Scripture, neither of which would be associated with this city. It is found only here. ZPEB identifies it with Yafa, which is about 1.5 miles southwest of Nazareth. Josephus fortified it in the Roman war. Keil and Delitzsch eliminate the present-day Hepha (or Haifa or Khaifa), which is on the Mediterranean near Carmel; as well as Jafa, since the boundary was running eastwards, and cannot possibly have turned back again towards the west and run from Deburieh beyond Sarid. If the positions assigned to Chisloth-tabor and Dabrath are correct, Japhia must be sought for on the east of Deburieh.

Gath, by itself, means winepress; and there were at least four or five different Gath’s known apart from the Bible. Although most of the time when we here of the town of Gath, we should think of one of the five cities of the Philistines, this may not always be the case. Gath-hepher is the hometown of Jonah (2Kings 14:25). ZPEB identifies it with Khirbet ez-Zurra, which is 3 miles northeast of Nazareth. Nearby is a village Meshhed, which is the traditional site of Johnah’s tomb. There has been archeological evidence which indicates this place was occupied during the time of Jonah and Jerome visited this tomb during his lifetime. Barnes tells us that the tomb can still be found a short way from Nazareth, on the road to Tiberias.

Eth-kazin is mentioned only here. I don’t know if it is just assumed that these cities, unless otherwise mentioned, simply belong to Zebulun. Herein, we are only looking at the borders of Zebulun, not its cities. However, that indicates a change in Joshua’s style. He is being more economical. He is listing both the borders and the cities of Zebulun, which will be made clear in the next two verses.

We already realize that there are several Rimmon’s in Scripture, both people and cities. This city was given over to the Levites, which is mentioned in I Chron. 6:77 and this city is probably identical to the city Demnah found in Joshua 21:35 (the confounding of the d and r in the Hebrew has been mentioned previously). It is identified in ZPEB is being six miles north-northeast of Nazareth at the modern Rummaneh. Keil and Delitzsch concur with ZPEB.

Neah is found only here and the verb found with it is uncertain, indicating that the text is quite weak here.

Hannathon is found only here, but the Amarna Tablets, from the 14^th century b.c. mentions it twice; and Tiglath-pileser III (747–727 b.c.) mentions it once. Iphtahel is a valley on the northern border of Zebulun and is mentioned only here and in v. 27 in the description of the border of Asher.

I have mentioned the Amarna Tablets before and it is about time that I gave you a better idea as to what they actually were. Therefore, let’s examine the Amarna Tablets—finished!

Kattath is mentioned only here and possibly equivalent to Kitron mentioned in Judges 1:30. Nahalal is probably Nahalol found in Judges 1:30. These are both cities wherein dwelt Canaanites that the tribe of Zebulun was unable to dispossess so they enslaved them instead. I said unable, but we are not given the full story. Knowing that slave trade in our country was once a very active concern, it would not take much of an imagination to think that the Israelites might have enslaved the Canaanites for their labor rather than destroy them. This would make perhaps more economic sense.

Shimron was covered in Joshua 11:1. Idalah is mentioned only here and is guessed to be a mile southwest of Bethlehem. It is Iralah in some manuscripts. Bethlehem means house of food (or, bread) and this Bethlehem of Zebulun is not the Bethlehem that you are thinking of. That is in Judah. The judge Ibzan of Judges 12:8–10 is said to be from Bethlehem and it is guessed that this is the Bethlehem referred to, although Josephus apparently disagrees. This town is some seven miles northwest of Nazareth and some remains have been found indicating its importance as a town in earlier times.

Barnes: Only five [cities] have been mentioned, and the names in the verses preceding are apparently not names of Zebulonite cities, but merely of points in or near the boundary line. It would therefore appear that seven names have disappeared from the text, and perhaps also the definition of the western frontier. Keil and Delitzsch go into great detail here, supporting what Barnes wrote, and concluding that a verse has dropped out here, as in Joshua 15:59 and 21:36.

I imagine after Judah and the sons of Joseph, Joshua’s hand began to get tired from recording all of this. What is interesting is that some of the related material is found over in I Chronicles.

You may or may not notice that in later verses, the formula seems to be This an inheritance of tribe of the sons of..., however, here it is simply This an inheritance of sons of Zebulun. As a matter of fact, the Septuagint and the Vulgate read as do the other passages.

The Boundaries and Cities of Issachar

This next portion of land was given by lot over to the tribe of Issachar, who was born to Jacob and Leah, the handmaiden of Rachel. Issachar was her firstborn and Rachel had Jacob father this child so that it would be as though it were her child, as Rachel had still not given birth yet. They were southwest of the Sea of Galilee with Beth Shan in the south, the Jezreel Valley on the west, and Mount Tabor at their northern border. In this passage, their border is not given, but only the cities named. Joshua perhaps is being a little less verbose, and depending upon the fact that he has already laid out the boundaries for the surrounding territories, so that there would be no reason to repeat those here.

The Jezreel Plain is the most fertile area of the territory of Issachar. We will cover the city of Jezreel in 1Sam. 29. Chesulloth we covered a few verses back. Anaharath is found only here, located in the Valley of Jezreel approximately two miles south of En-dor. Hapharim (or, Hapharaim) is another town mentioned only here; however, Shishak has this in his list of conquered cities in Palestine circa 918 b.c. One of its suggested locations is 10 miles northwest of Bethlehem. Shion is found only here and is thought by ZPEB to be about fourteen miles southeast of Mount Tabor. Anaharath occurs only here and is though to be located where the modern-day en-Na’urab is today, in the Valley of Jezreel, two miles south of En-dor.

Shunem is a town about which we know considerably more. It was located three miles north of Jezreel near Mount Gilboa at the foot of Little Hermon. It is at almost the most northern portion of Issachar at the border of Issachar and Zebulun. Thutmose III (1490–1436 b.c.) compiled a list of cities which he had conquered and had dominion over, and Shunem was included on that list. In fact, there were a number of areas throughout Palestine which were under Egyptian control at that time. The sudden weakening of Egypt and her leadership when Moses led his people out also allowed the Israelites to move into Palestine and take the land. Shunem also appears on the Amarna letters where it was said to have been overthrown by Lab’aya early on in the 14^th century b.c. The city was rebuilt shortly thereafter under Biridiya, also mentioned in the Amarna letters. Saul opposed the Philistines in this area. Saul had hoped to occupy Mount Gilboa and this battle led to the death of Saul on Mount Gilboa (1Sam. 28:4). Abishag was a nurse who cared for David prior to his death. She was called a Shunammite, which is the feminine form of Shunem. Adonijah tried to marry her in hopes of strengthening his claim to the rulership of Israel (2Kings 2:13–22). Finally, Elisha stayed at Shunem frequently at the home of a woman whose son Elisha predicted would be born. This was the famous young man whom Elisha also restored life to. Elisha went through Shunem on his way to Samaria. The modern Solem probably marks the site of ancient Shunem. Today, Shunem is identified with Solam (or, Sulem), which is a small and poor village on the slope of Little Hermon.

Rabbith is very likely Daberath, which is mentioned in Joshua 21:28 and I Chron. 6:72 as a Levitical town. LXX β lists it as Daberoth. Ebez is mentioned only here. Kishion is probably the same as Kedesh in I Chron. 6:72, making it a Levitical town (this was covered in the Doctrine of the Three Kedesh’s back in Joshua 12:22). Remeth is thought to be the same as Ramoth, which is found in I Chron. 6:73 as a Levitical city and that it is identical to Jarmuth in Joshua 21:29. Keil and Delitzsch go into quite a bit of detail as to its location and why Knobel is probably wrong in his identification of Remeth. En-gannim, which means fountain of gardens, is mentioned in Joshua 21:29 as a Levitical city. ZPEB points out that it is probably the same as Anem in I Chron. 6:73, which is attributed to a Scribal corruption of the name. Barnes is more emphatic than ZPEB on this point, and mentions that it would be identified with the modern-day Jenin, found along the road between Jerusalem and Nazareth at the entrance of the Plain of Jezreel. En-haddah is found only here. Beth-pazzez is found only here and located somewhere near Mount Tabor.

Mount Tabor plays a moderately prominent role in Jewish history; at least more than most of these cities. The first problem is semi-obvious—Is this a city at the foot of Mount Tabor or is it just a boundary marker? ZPEB does not have a different listing for a city and the language used here seems to indicate that the border doesn’t include a city, but touches this landmark. Keil and Delitzsch list it as a city and not as the mountain, and cite the fact that there are remains of old walls, ruins, arches and houses found on Mount Tabor; and round the summit there are the foundations of a thick wall built of large and to a great extent fluted stones. If this is the case, then we have fifteen and not sixteen cities. Be that as it may, ZPEB places Mount Tabor in the Valley of Jezreel, 10 miles southwest of the Sea of Galilee. It is thought by most to be a mountain on the border of Issachar and Zebulun, and therefore identified as Jebel et-Tur (mount of height). Although it rises only 1,843 ft. above sea level, it is a prominent feature of the landscape. It is rather steep, somewhat symmetrical, and has a rounded top. From the summit one has a lovely view in all directions. From it, one can see the city of Nazareth, Mount Carmel, the Sea of Galilee and the Jordan River, and this mountain overlooks the Valley of Jezreel. It is possible that Moses referred to this mountain prophetically in Deut. 33:18–19, when he wrote: And of Zebulun he said, “Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going forth, and Issachar, in your tents. They will call peoples to the mountain; there they will offer righteous sacrifices for they will draw out the abundance of the seas and the hidden treasures of the sand.”

Mount Tabor will play a role in the drama of Deborah, Barak and Sisera, in Judges 4. We find it mentioned again in Judges 8:18. We find Mount Tabor mentioned in poetry (Psalm 89:12 Hos. 5:1). God speaks of Mount Tabor in Jer. 46:18: “As I live,” declares the King, Whose name is Jehovah of hosts, “Surely, one will come up like Tabor among the mountains or like Carmel by the sea.”

In between the testaments, ZPEB gives this history of Mount Tabor: Atabyrium, the city which Antiochus the Great took in 218 b.c., was apparently on Mt. Tabor since Polybius describes it as a “conical hill” near Scythopolis (Beth-shan, Hist. V, 70, 6). The Jews under Janaeus took the mountain in 105 b.c., but lost it to the Romans under Pompey in 70 b.c. (Josephus, Antiquities, XIII. xv. 4).

What Mount Tabor is most famous for is being identified, but not positively, with the Mount of Transfiguration. That tradition was well established by  a.d. 326 when Helena, the mother of Constantine, built the first Christian shrine on its summit. The hill suffered the vicissitudes of war which destroyed older shrines and made way for new ones. The Crusaders maintained it after their arrival in the Holy Land until Saladin’s victory at the Horns of Hattim in 1187. The Muslims made a fort of the mountain twenty-five years later, but that was shortly destroyed and the summit was relatively empty until the 19^th century when the Greek Orthodox built a monastery and the Franciscans a basilica of the transfiguration of the top. That basilica has three sections—one for Jesus, one for Moses, and one for Elijah. All that being said, it is possible that the Tabor mentioned here is a city located somewhere near Mount Tabor and given over to the Levites (I Chron. 6:77).

Shahazumah is on the northern boundary of Issachar and it might be in the dual, and therefore mean two high places, two hills or double hill. Modern El Kerm is suggested as an identification because of it suitable location on the divide between the watersheds of Issachar and Naphtali. Beth-shemesh is the name of at least three cities found in Naphtali (Joshua 19:38), Judah (Joshua 15:10) and here in Issachar (and mentioned only in this verse). My desire was to place Beth-shemesh as a border town between Issachar and Naphtali, which almost works, except that it appears that the Beth-shemesh in Naphtali about 25 miles northwest of the Beth-shemesh of Issachar. Barnes suggests that Beth-shemesh here should be Bessum, but does not indicate why.

And this ends the territory allotted to the third remaining tribe in this chapter.

The Boundaries and Cities of Asher

Asher is an almost parallelogram-shaped country bordered by the Mediterranean