Joshua 13

Land Yet to Be Conquered

¹Now Joshua was old and well advanced in years. The LORD said to him, “You are old and advanced in years, and there remains yet very much land to be possessed.

²“This is the land that still remains: all the regions of the Philistines, and all the Geshurites;

³from the Shihor, which is before Egypt, even to the border of Ekron northward, which is counted as Canaanite; the five lords of the Philistines; the Gazites, and the Ashdodites, the Ashkelonites, the Gittites, and the Ekronites; also the Avvim,

⁴on the south; all the land of the Canaanites, and Mearah that belongs to the Sidonians, to Aphek, to the border of the Amorites;

⁵and the land of the Gebalites, and all Lebanon, toward the sunrise, from Baal Gad under Mount Hermon to the entrance of Hamath;

⁶all the inhabitants of the hill country from Lebanon to Misrephoth Maim, even all the Sidonians. I will drive them out from before the children of Israel. Just allocate it to Israel for an inheritance, as I have commanded you.

⁷Now therefore divide this land for an inheritance to the nine tribes and the half-tribe of Manasseh.”

Inheritance East of the Jordan

⁸With him the Reubenites and the Gadites received their inheritance, which Moses gave them, beyond the Jordan eastward, even as Moses the servant of the LORD gave them:

⁹from Aroer, that is on the edge of the valley of the Arnon, and the city that is in the middle of the valley, and all the plain of Medeba to Dibon;

¹⁰and all the cities of Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon, to the border of the children of Ammon;

¹¹and Gilead, and the border of the Geshurites and Maacathites, and all Mount Hermon, and all Bashan to Salecah;

¹²all the kingdom of Og in Bashan, who reigned in Ashtaroth and in Edrei (who was left of the remnant of the Rephaim); for Moses attacked these, and drove them out.

¹³Nevertheless the children of Israel didn’t drive out the Geshurites, nor the Maacathites: but Geshur and Maacath live within Israel to this day.

¹⁴Only he gave no inheritance to the tribe of Levi. The offerings of the LORD, the God of Israel, made by fire are his inheritance, as he spoke to him.

¹⁵Moses gave to the tribe of the children of Reuben according to their families.

¹⁶Their border was from Aroer, that is on the edge of the valley of the Arnon, and the city that is in the middle of the valley, and all the plain by Medeba;

¹⁷Heshbon, and all its cities that are in the plain; Dibon, Bamoth Baal, Beth Baal Meon,

¹⁸Jahaz, Kedemoth, Mephaath,

¹⁹Kiriathaim, Sibmah, Zereth Shahar in the mount of the valley,

²⁰Beth Peor, the slopes of Pisgah, Beth Jeshimoth,

²¹all the cities of the plain, and all the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon, whom Moses struck with the chiefs of Midian, Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba, the princes of Sihon, who lived in the land.

²²The children of Israel also killed Balaam the son of Beor, the soothsayer, with the sword, among the rest of their slain.

²³The border of the children of Reuben was the bank of the Jordan. This was the inheritance of the children of Reuben according to their families, the cities and its villages.

²⁴Moses gave to the tribe of Gad, to the children of Gad, according to their families.

²⁵Their border was Jazer, and all the cities of Gilead, and half the land of the children of Ammon, to Aroer that is near Rabbah;

²⁶and from Heshbon to Ramath Mizpeh, and Betonim; and from Mahanaim to the border of Debir;

²⁷and in the valley, Beth Haram, Beth Nimrah, Succoth, and Zaphon, the rest of the kingdom of Sihon king of Heshbon, the Jordan’s bank, to the uttermost part of the sea of Chinnereth beyond the Jordan eastward.

²⁸This is the inheritance of the children of Gad according to their families, the cities and its villages.

²⁹Moses gave an inheritance to the half-tribe of Manasseh. It was for the half-tribe of the children of Manasseh according to their families.

³⁰Their border was from Mahanaim, all Bashan, all the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, and all the villages of Jair, which are in Bashan, sixty cities.

³¹Half Gilead, Ashtaroth, and Edrei, the cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan, were for the children of Machir the son of Manasseh, even for the half of the children of Machir according to their families.

³²These are the inheritances which Moses distributed in the plains of Moab, beyond the Jordan at Jericho, eastward.

³³But Moses gave no inheritance to the tribe of Levi. The LORD, the God of Israel, is their inheritance, as he spoke to them.

Previous Joshua 12

Next Joshua 14

As Joshua reaches old age, God acknowledges that much of the Promised Land remains unconquered, including Philistine territories and northern regions. Despite the incomplete conquest, God commands Joshua to proceed with dividing the land among the nine and a half tribes who will settle west of the Jordan. The chapter then details the inheritance already given by Moses to the two and a half tribes (Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh) who chose to settle east of the Jordan, providing specific territorial boundaries and noting that the Levites received no land inheritance but were sustained by offerings.

Context

This chapter transitions from the conquest narratives of chapters 1-12 to the detailed land distribution accounts that will dominate chapters 13-21.

Key Themes

Outline

1-7
Unconquered Land and Division Command God tells aging Joshua that much land remains unconquered but commands him to divide it among the tribes anyway.
8-14
Eastern Tribes' Inheritance Overview Summary of the inheritance Moses gave to Reuben, Gad, and half-Manasseh east of Jordan, noting the Levites' special status.
15-23
Reuben's Territory Detailed Specific boundaries and cities allocated to the tribe of Reuben in the Transjordan region.
24-28
Gad's Territory Detailed Detailed description of the land and cities given to the tribe of Gad.
29-31
Half-Manasseh's Territory The inheritance of the half-tribe of Manasseh in Bashan and Gilead.
32-33
Moses' Distribution Summary Concluding summary of Moses' land distribution with reminder of Levi's unique inheritance.

Land Yet to Be Conquered

13:1–13:7

narrative speech solemn

God speaks to the aging Joshua about the remaining unconquered territories, including Philistine and Canaanite lands. Despite Joshua's advanced age, God promises to drive out the remaining inhabitants and commands the division of the land among the nine and a half tribes.

person_contrast

God's threefold repetition of Joshua's advanced age in verses 1-2 creates dramatic tension between human limitation and divine promise, emphasizing that conquest depends on God's power rather than human strength.

Inheritance East of the Jordan

13:8–13:33

narrative narration solemn

Details the territorial inheritance given to the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh east of the Jordan River, as previously allocated by Moses. The Levites receive no territorial inheritance but are sustained by offerings to the Lord.

person_contrast

Moses appears 13 times in this single chapter—more than any other Joshua passage—emphasizing his enduring authority over territorial boundaries even after death.

Insight Character Study

Moses appears 13 times in this single chapter—more than any other Joshua passage—emphasizing his enduring authority over territorial boundaries even after death.

Cross-References

Connected passages across Scripture

Joshua 13:3 5 references

Lexicals 5

1 Samuel 6:16 Lexical

When the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day.

4 shared words

Judges 3:3 Lexical

the five lords of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites who lived on Mount Lebanon, from M…

4 shared words

Joshua 15:11 Lexical

and the border went out to the side of Ekron northward; and the border extended to Shikkeron, and passed along to Mount…

Joshua 13

Land Yet to Be Conquered

Inheritance East of the Jordan

Land Yet to Be Conquered

Inheritance East of the Jordan

Insights

Cross-References

Joshua 13:3 5 references

Joshua 13:5 3 references

Joshua 13:7 5 references

Joshua 13:8 5 references

Joshua 13:9 5 references

Joshua 13:10 5 references

Joshua 13:11 4 references

Joshua 13:12 5 references

Joshua 13:13 4 references

Joshua 13:14 1 reference

Joshua 13:15 1 reference

Joshua 13:16 5 references

Joshua 13:20 3 references

Joshua 13:21 5 references

Joshua 13:22 2 references

Joshua 13:23 5 references

Joshua 13:24 1 reference

Joshua 13:25 5 references

Joshua 13:27 5 references

Joshua 13:28 5 references

Joshua 13:29 5 references

Joshua 13:30 5 references

Joshua 13:31 5 references

Joshua 13:32 5 references

Joshua 13:33 1 reference

Interlinear

Historical Context