The Pulpit Commentary — Joshua — Section 337

Thi• is neit,her Beth-shemesh of Judah nor cabeee (see 1 Mace, x. 75, 76; and 2 Mace. o{ Issachar (see ver. 22). iv. 21). He meution in tho New Testa- Ver. 39.-The Inherit.a.nee or the tribe of ment as the place where St. Peter'a vision the children or Na.phtali Of Naphtali, occun-ed will be known to nil. The no.ma beyond the not too heroic leader Barak, we signifies "benuty," though Joppo. does not he1tr nothing in the aft.er history of Israel, seem to be distinguished abovo all other until the fulfilment of the prophecy in places in Palestine by the beauty of its Isa. ix. 1, 2. Galilee, the scene of the situation. But according to Movers, Jo.pho great.er part of our Lord 'e teaching and signifies in Phcenicio.n, " high plo.ce." It is miracles. was dhided between Iseacba.r, certninl;v built on a range of terraces above Asher, Zebulon, and Nnphtali. The majority the sea, but the term " high place" would of the places mentioned in the Gospels were seem unsuitable. The soil is very produc- within the borders of Zebulon. But as we tive, a.nd it is "the only hru·bour in Centro.I learn that our Lord penetrated as far as Palestine " (Ritter). " the coasts of Ca,sarea Philippi," in the Ver. 47.-Went out too llttle for them. extreme north of Pa.Jestine, He must have The Hebrew is, went out fro11, the111 ; i.e., preached also in the cities of Naphtali. either went out beyond their own borders, Naphto.li sent a goodly number of warriors or went out too small e. distance to be suffi- to welcome Da.tid as '' ldng over a.II Israel " cient for them. The first is the explanation (1 Cbron. xii. 34). The inheritance of of Me.sius ("extra. se migrasee"), the second Ne.phtali was in the main fertile, but there ,:,f Ja.rchi. Houbiga.nt suggests for 11(1~1 we.s e. large mountain district, known e.s the "e.nditwentout" t'!,{!l "e.ndit was narrow." mountaio region of Ne.pbtali (eh. xx. 7). Some of the mountains rose to the height But the LXX. has the same reading as our- of more tbe.n 3,000 feet. selves, and the explanation given above is Ver. 41.-Zor&h a.nd Esht.&ol On the quite consistent with the fa.et. The border border between J ude.h a.nd Da.n, but aban- of Dan did " go out " far beyond the borders doned by the tribe of Judah to the De.nitee originally assigned to the tribe, in fact to (see Judg. xiii. 2, 25). "The wild and im- the extreme northern limit of Pe.lestine. passable wa.dies, the steep, hard, rocky hills, The account of the ta.king of Laish, or Leshem, is given more fully in Judg. xviii. their wildernesses of mastic, clear spriogs, The inheritance assigned to Dan was ex- and frequent caves a.nd precipices, a.re the tremely eme.11, but it was also extremely fastnesses in which Samson we.s born, a.nd from whicb be descended ioto the plain to fertile. harry the Philistines (Lieut. Conder io Pal. Ver. 48.-This 1s the Inheritance of the Exp!. Fund, Qua.rt. Paper, Jan., 1874). children of Dan. We read little of Dan in Robioson identifies Zorab with Surat. Ir- the after history of Israel. Samson is the only hero this tribe produced, and his shemesh. Another sign of sun-worship. exploits were limited to a very narrow area., lr-sbemesb is " the city of the sun." a.nd his in.fluen~e apparently to hie own Ver, 42.-Aija.lon, or Aja.Ion (see ch.x.12). tribe. One of the Letitica.l cities. Ver. 49.-When they had me.de an end Ver. 43.-Ekron (see eh. xiii. 3). The LX.X., both here a.Iid in ver. 51, reads , er. 44.--Gibbethon. A Leviticel city, e.s was e.lso Eltekeh (see eh. xxi. 23). It was ~::,';,~. they went. The last thing Joshua the same city as that mentioned as " be- thought of was himself. It we.e only w):ien longing to the Philistines" in 1 Kings xv. hie work was done, and Israel had received 27; xvi. 15, 17. her allotted territory, that Joshua. thoug~t Ver. 45.--Ge.thrlmmon. Also e. Levitice.l it right to take his own inheritance. Calvin city (see eh. xxi. 24; 1 Chron. vi. 69). Me- remarks that it was " e. striking proof of the ja.rkon. The waters of the J a.rkon. moderation of this servant of God " that he ,er. 46.-Before. Or opposite. Japho. The " thought not of hie own interest until that Jappa of the New Testament, a.nd the of the community wa.e secured." modern J e.ffa. It is ce.lled J opp a in Ver. 50.-The city which he asked. He 2 Chron. ii. 16, in Ezra. iii. 7, a.nd in the asked for a city, certainly. But the la.w of book of Jonah (eh. i. 3), in a.II which places the inheritance was not t.- bo set a.side for.' it is mentioned a.a a. famous see.port, a him any more than !or the meanest in Israel. position it still ma.iotains, being still, as it Timnath-serah was in hie own tribe. Tlm- was of old, the port of Jerusalem. The nath-serah. Ca.lied Tha.mne. by Josephus Lxx_ and Vulgate have Joppa here, and it and the LXX., a.nd Timnath-heree, or 'rin- is =fortunate that our translators, in this math of the sun by e. transposition of tho instance only, should have adhered to the letters, in Judges ii. 9. Ro.bbi Solomon Hebrew form. Joppa appears to have been Ja.rchi gives e. singular reason for the Je.ttel &n important city in the time of the Mac- name. It ea.me to be ao called because there  Oil, XIX, 1-61.j THE BOOK OF JOSIIUA. 285