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Scriptural Text [& Editorial]
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Commentary & Explanation
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Footnotes ~ References ~ JST
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CHAPTER 17
Manasseh and Ephraim both receive an additional inheritance—Ephraim
to drive out Canaanites from the hill country.
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1 THERE was also a lot for the
tribe of aManasseh; for he was the firstborn of
Joseph; to wit, for bMachir the firstborn of
Manasseh, the father of Gilead: because he was a man of war, therefore he had
Gilead and Bashan.
2 There was also a lot for the rest of the
children of aManasseh by their families; for the children
of Abiezer, and for the children of Helek, and for the children of Asriel, and for the children of Shechem, and for the children of Hepher, and for the children of Shemida: these were the male children of Manasseh the son of Joseph by their families.
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3 ¶ But Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, had no sons, but daughters: and these are the names of his daughters, Mahlah, and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.
4 And they came near before aEleazar
the priest, and before Joshua the son of Nun, and before the princes, saying,
The LORD commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among our brethren.
Therefore according to the commandment of the LORD he gave them an
inheritance among the brethren of their father.
5 And there fell ten portions to Manasseh, beside the land of Gilead and Bashan, which were on the other side Jordan;
6 Because the daughters of Manasseh had an inheritance among his sons: and the rest of Manasseh's sons had the land of Gilead.
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7 ¶ And the acoast of
Manasseh was from Asher to Michmethah, that lieth before
Shechema; and the
border went along on the right hand unto the inhabitants of En-tappuah.
8 Now Manasseh had the land of Tappuah: but
Tappuah on the border of Manasseh belonged to the children of
Ephraima;
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8a Tappuah on the border of Manasseh
belonged to the children of Ephraim While much or the
majority of the land of Tappuah was alloted to Manasseh, it would seem that
a certain portion of Tappuah which was on the border of Ephraim was indeed
alloted to Ephraim. This might be one consideration for the burial site of
Joshua in Timnath-serah in Mount Ephraim on the north side of the hill of
Gaash, 'his inheritance in its border'.
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9 And the coast descended unto the river Kanah, southward of the river: these cities of Ephraim are among the cities of Manasseh: the coast of Manasseh also was on the north side of the river, and the outgoings of it were at the sea:
10 Southward it was Ephraim's, and
northward it was Manasseh's, and the sea is his border; and they met
together in Asher on the north, and in Issachar on the
easta.
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11 And Manasseh had in Issachar and in Asher Beth-shean and her towns, and Ibleam and her towns, and the inhabitants of Dor and her towns, and the inhabitants of Endor and her towns, and the inhabitants of Taanach and her towns, and the inhabitants of Megiddo and her towns, even three countries.
12 Yet the children of Manasseh could not drive out the inhabitants of those cities; but the Canaanites would dwell in that land.
13 Yet it came to pass, when the children of Israel
were waxen strong, that they put the Canaanites to
atribute; but did not utterly drive them out.
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14 And the children of Joseph spake unto
Joshuaa,
saying, Why hast thou given me but one lot and one portion to
inherit, seeing I am a agreat people, forasmuch
as the LORD hath blessed me
hitherto?b
15 And Joshua answered them, If thou be a
great people, then get thee up to the wood country, and
acut down for thyself there in the land of the Perizzites
and of the bgiants, if mount Ephraim be too narrow for
thee.
16 And the children of Joseph said, The hill is not
enough for us: and all the Canaanites that dwell in the land of the valley
have achariots of iron, both
they who are of Beth-shean and her towns, and they who
are of the valley of Jezreel.
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14a the children of Joseph spake unto
Joshua The reference here to 'the children of Joseph' is to be
taken to be the sons of Ephraim, to whom the blessing of the firstborn was
given in lieu Reuben due to Reuben's sin. Collectively they are 'Ephraim' and
this explains why the personal pronous 'me' is used in the rest of the verse.
14b Why hast thou given me but one lot
and and one portion to inherit, seeing I am a great people, forasmuch as the
LORD hath blessed me hitherto? The blessing of the LORD upon
Ephraim was to be he who provided for his brethren both physically and
spiritually as the firstborn of Israel. Ephraim would do this as assited by
Manasseh. Yet according to the law of the firstborn Ephraim was given only
one lot in Israel or the promised land in the east. So where is Ephraim's
second lot as Joshua will later promise Ephraim that he will inherit to
enable him to provide for the spiritual and eternal will being of the house
of Israel? That land of Joseph is none other than America as explained and
set out in the Book of Mormon.
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17 And Joshua spake unto the house of Joseph,
even to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, Thou art a great
people, and hast great power: thou shalt not have one lot
onlya:
18 But the mountain shall be thine; for it is
a awood, and thou shalt cut it
down: and the outgoings of it shall be thine: for thou shalt drive out the
Canaanites, though they have iron bchariots, and though they be strong.
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