a ( i.e.) Of Exiraim, and the half Tribe of Manaſih, which are here pur togetherin cne ; not becauſe they had bur or:e Lor, for E- Phraim had one hers, wv. 5 and Manaſſeh another, 7oſ. 17. 1. but be- cauie in theſe firſt Verſes heſp@ks of them in common, and of the South-border, which ſeems to be the ſame, either wholly or in a great part: and then he comes to the particular deicription of their ſeveral portions. It is here farther remarkable, that God to diſpoſed of theſe Lots, that they came forth in decent and due order; 7Ju- aaks firſt, to whom the Sovereignty was promiſed; and then Joſephs, who tucceeded Reuben in the cther Priviledge of the Birth-right, the double portion, 1 Chron, 5. 1, 2- b Of which ſee 2 King. 2. rg, 20, 21, 22, © The Wildernets of Berh-aven, as appears by COmPa= ring Joſ. 18. 12+ which ſpeaks of the very ſame border which was on the South of Ephraim, and on the North of Benjamin:
2 And goeth out from Beth-el to* Luz 4, and paſſeth , Jud
along unto the borders of Archi, to Ataroth,
d Or, from Bethe!-luzzh, as the LXX, here join the words; for Bethel was ancicntly called Luz, Gen- 28. 19. and 48. 3. Though ſome think this was another Luz, ſpoken of Judg. 1. 26. Others make Bethet and Luz two neighbouring Towns, which afterwards being more built and inhabited, became one, as oft hath happened.
3 And goeth down weſtward to the coaſt of Faph- leti, unto the coaſt of Beth- horon the nether e, and to
Gezer : and the goings out thereof are at the ſea. e Of the two Beth-horons, ſee Joſh. 10. 10, 11.
4 So the children of Foſeph, Manaſleh f, and E-
phraim, took their inheritance g.
f (7. e ) Half Manaſſeh, by a Synecdoche g (3. e. ) Their ſeveral Portions which here tollow, Some think that they had but one Lot between them, and therefore they are now ſaid to take their inheri« - tance, to wit, by dividing it between them according to the di- rettion of Joſhua and Eleazar, &c. For that Phraſe teing uſed of them, and not, to my remembrance, of any other Tribes, may ſeem to have ſome peculiar ſignification, which doth not agree to the other Tribes: Burt there being mention of a peculiar Lot taken vut for #4anaſſeh, Joſh. 19. 1. ſhews that their ſeveral inheritances fell ro them, as the reſt did to the other Tribes, even by ſeveral Lots :
and it is faid of them, that they reok ther inheritance, a = uanh
[4
* Chi 17. 9
|
—W-.
*Gen. FI. and 46. 20, t Gen. 23. Nu 32. 39,«
* Num! 26.29,
* Numi 26. 33: and 27, and 36.
[3
- $M PA”;
4
hap. XVI -
7Tudzh had done before them, becauſe the Tribes of Judah and Joſeph did take their inheritances before the rel; and it was fit they ſhould do ſo, for the ſecurity of the main Camp, and the body of the people which were at G/{z2l. See To. 18. 5. ;
5 © And the border of the children of Epraim, ac- cording to their families, was 1hus: even the border of their inheritance on the eaſt-ſide þ, was from Ara- roth-addar unto Beth-horon the uppers
g ( 7. e. ) The North-eaft tide It is no wonder, if ſome of theſe Deſcriptions are dark and doubtful to us at this diſtance of time and place ; there having been ſo many alterations made in places, and ſo many circumſtances, being now altogether undiſcoverable. Bur this is evident to every man of common ſenſe, that this and all the deſcriptions here mentioned, were then certain and evident to the Iſraelites, becauſe theſe were the foundation of their preſent practice, and of all the poſſeſſions which then they took, and peaceably poſſefled in ſucceeding Ages+ |
6 And the border went out toward the ſea z, to Mickmethah on the north-ſide, and the border went abour eaſtward unto Taanath-ſhiloh, and paſſed by it on the eaſt to Janohah : |
i The Mid-land fea, towards the Weſt,
7 And it went down from Janohah te Ataroth, and to Naarath, and came to Jericho k, and went out ar Jordan«
k Not to the City of Jericho, which belongel to Benjamins Lot, Joſh. 18. 21. but to its Te:ritory,
$ The border went up from Tappuah weſtward un- to the river Kanah ; and the goings out thereof were at the ſea, This*s the inheritarice of the tribe of the children of Ephraim by their famiiies.
9 And the * ſeparate cities / for the children of E- phraim were among the inheritance of the children of
Manaſſeh, all the cities with their villages.
[ ( 5, e.) Beſides thoſe{Cities which were within Ephraims bounds, he had ſome other Cities, to which all their Territories were an- nexed out of Manaſſih: Portion, becauſe his Tribe was all here, ar.d was larger than Mmaſſc/%
10 And they * drafe out the Canaanites that dwelt in Gezer 2»; but the Canaariices dwell among the
Ephramites unto this day, and ſerve under tribute ». m Nor were they driven our til] Solomons time, 1 Kings 9g. 16. As feof. 17. 13. 1 Kings 9. 16. CH AP. XF
The inheritance of Manaſſeh : and its Borders, 1-== 11» They could not drive out the Comaan'tes, but made them tributary, 12, \'3. The Chil- dren of. Joſeph complain, that their Borders are too narrow : Jjbus pro-
miſes them the ſubauing of the Canaanites, 14 —— 18. Here was alſo a lot for the tribe of Manafſek ( for y he as the * firſt born of Joſeph a ) to it, for 5s T Machir 6, the firſt born c of Manalleh, the facher of
tGen.5o, Gilead 4: becauſe he was a man of war e, therefore he
23 Num. had Gilead and Baſhan f.
32.39,40 a The ſenſe is, though Ephraim was to be more potent and num-=- rous, yet Manaſch was the Firſt-born, and had the priviſeuge of rhe Ficſt-born, which wastranſlated to Joſeph, to wir, a double pork;- on ; and therefore though this were bu: half the Tribe of Manaſſeh, yet they are not made Inmates to Epraim, bur have adiftivct Lot of their own, as their Brethren, or other 6a!f Tribe had beyond Jordan, b The only Son of Mimnaſſih, who therefore' is here, and Judg.-5. 14+ pur for the whole Tribe. c So even onely Sons are ſomerimes called, as Mat. 1. 25. See Exod. 4. 22. 4 Or, and the Fa-
F Chaps 17» %
*Gen.41.
20 $HU 4
| Michmethth, that th before Shechem, and the border
Chap. XVI! ; Ww ” . p . i | E (5. e.) Ekazar, or Joſbns, with the conſent of the Princes ap-
pointed for that work.
5 And therefell ten portions to Manaſſch, beſide the land of Gilead, and- Baſhan, which were on the other ſide Jordan : |