Joshua 12 is the twelfth

chapter Chapter or Chapters may refer to: Books * Chapter (books), a main division of a piece of writing or document * Chapter book, a story book intended for intermediate readers, generally age 7–10 * Chapters (bookstore), Canadian big box bookstore ...

of the

Book of Joshua The Book of Joshua is the sixth book in the Hebrew Bible and the Old Testament, and is the first book of the Deuteronomistic history, the story of Israel from the conquest of Canaan to the Babylonian captivity, Babylonian exile. It tells of the ...

in the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' Old Testament The Old Testament (OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew and occasionally Aramaic writings by the Isr ...

of the

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

. According to Jewish tradition the book was attributed to

Joshua Joshua ( ), also known as Yehoshua ( ''Yəhōšuaʿ'', Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: ''Yŏhōšuaʿ,'' Literal translation, lit. 'Yahweh is salvation'), Jehoshua, or Josue, functioned as Moses' assistant in the books of Book of Exodus, Exodus and ...

, with additions by the high priests

Eleazar Eleazar (; ) or Elazar was a priest in the Hebrew Bible, the second High Priest, succeeding his father Aaron after he died. He was a nephew of Moses. Biblical narrative Eleazar played a number of roles during the course of the Exodus, from ...

and

Phinehas According to the Hebrew Bible, Phinehas (also spelled Phineas, ; , ''Phinees'', ) was a priest during the Exodus. The grandson of Aaron and son of Eleazar, the High Priests (), he distinguished himself as a youth at Shittim with his zeal again ...

.Gilad, Elon
Who Really Wrote the Biblical Books of Kings and the Prophets?
''Haaretz'', June 25, 2015. Summary: The paean to King Josiah and exalted descriptions of the ancient Israelite empires beg the thought that he and his scribes lie behind the Deuteronomistic History. However, modern scholars view it as part of the Deuteronomistic History, which spans the books of Deuteronomy to

2 Kings The Book of Kings (, '' Sēfer Məlāḵīm'') is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Kings) in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. It concludes the Deuteronomistic history, a history of ancient Israel also including ...

, which are attributed to nationalistic and devotedly Yahwistic writers who were active during the time of the reformer Judean king

Josiah Josiah () or Yoshiyahu was the 16th king of Judah (–609 BCE). According to the Hebrew Bible, he instituted major religious reforms by removing official worship of gods other than Yahweh. Until the 1990s, the biblical description of Josiah’s ...

in 7th century BCE. This chapter records the list of kings defeated by the

Israelites Israelites were a Hebrew language, Hebrew-speaking ethnoreligious group, consisting of tribes that lived in Canaan during the Iron Age. Modern scholarship describes the Israelites as emerging from indigenous Canaanites, Canaanite populations ...

under the leadership of

Moses In Abrahamic religions, Moses was the Hebrews, Hebrew prophet who led the Israelites out of slavery in the The Exodus, Exodus from ancient Egypt, Egypt. He is considered the most important Prophets in Judaism, prophet in Judaism and Samaritani ...

and

. It is part of a section about the conquest of Canaan which comprises Joshua 5:13–12:24.

Text

This chapter was originally written in the

Hebrew language Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and remained in regular use as a first language unti ...

. It is divided into 24 verses.

Textual witnesses

Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

are of the

Masoretic Text The Masoretic Text (MT or 𝕸; ) is the authoritative Hebrew and Aramaic text of the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible (''Tanakh'') in Rabbinic Judaism. The Masoretic Text defines the Jewish canon and its precise letter-text, with its vocaliz ...

tradition, which includes the

Codex Cairensis The Codex Cairensis (also: ''Codex Prophetarum Cairensis'', ''Cairo Codex of the Prophets'') is a Hebrew manuscript containing the complete text of the Hebrew Bible's Nevi'im (Prophets). It has traditionally been described as "the oldest dated He ...

(895),

Aleppo Codex The Aleppo Codex () is a medieval bound manuscript of the Hebrew Bible. The codex was written in the city of Tiberias in the tenth century CE (circa 920) under the rule of the Abbasid Caliphate, and was endorsed for its accuracy by Maimonides. ...

(10th century), and Codex Leningradensis (1008). Extant ancient manuscripts of a translation into

Koine Greek Koine Greek (, ), also variously known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek, Septuagint Greek or New Testament Greek, was the koiné language, common supra-regional form of Greek language, Greek spoken and ...

known as the

Septuagint The Septuagint ( ), sometimes referred to as the Greek Old Testament or The Translation of the Seventy (), and abbreviated as LXX, is the earliest extant Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible from the original Biblical Hebrew. The full Greek ...

(originally was made in the last few centuries BCE) include

Codex Vaticanus The Codex Vaticanus ( The Vatican, Bibl. Vat., Vat. gr. 1209), is a manuscript of the Greek Bible, containing the majority of the Old Testament and the majority of the New Testament. It is designated by siglum B or 03 in the Gregory-Aland numb ...

(B;

\mathfrak

^B; 4th century) and

Codex Alexandrinus The Codex Alexandrinus (London, British Library, Royal MS 1. D. V-VIII) is a manuscript of the Greek Bible,The Greek Bible in this context refers to the Bible used by Greek-speaking Christians who lived in Egypt and elsewhere during the early ...

(A;

\mathfrak

^A; 5th century).

Analysis

The narrative of the Israelites conquering the land of Canaan comprises verses 5:13 to 12:24 of the Book of Joshua and has the following outline: :A. Jericho (5:13–6:27) :B. Achan and Ai (7:1–8:29) :C. Renewal at Mount Ebal (8:30–35) :D. The Gibeonite Deception (9:1–27) :E. The Campaign in the South (10:1–43) :F. The Campaign in the North and Summary List of Kings (11:1–12:24) ::1. Victory over the Northern Alliance (11:1-15) :::a. The Northern Alliance (11:1-5) :::b. Divine Reassurance (11:6) :::c. Victory at Merom (11:7-9) :::d. Destruction of Hazor (11:10–11) :::e. Summation of Obedience and Victory (11:12–15) ::2. Summaries of Taking the Land (11:16-12:24) :::a. Taking the Land (11:16-20) :::b. Extermination of the Anakim (11:21-22) :::c. Narrative Pivot: Taking and Allotting (11:23) :::d. Capture of Land and Kings (12:1-24) ::::i. East of the Jordan (12:1-6) ::::ii. West of the Jordan (12:7-24) Chapter 12 provides the closing the account of Israel's conquest of the territory in both Transjordan (verses 1–6) and Cisjordan (verses 7–24), as 'the promises land', which comprises lands allocated to all tribes of Israel.

Kings defeated east of the Jordan (12:1–6)

This section recalls once again the victories in

Transjordan Transjordan may refer to: * Transjordan (region), an area to the east of the Jordan River * Oultrejordain, a Crusader lordship (1118–1187), also called Transjordan * Emirate of Transjordan, British protectorate (1921–1946) * Hashemite Kingdom o ...

(cf. Joshua 1:12-15; Numbers 21; Deuteronomy 2–3), especially mentioning that the ''herem'' ("ban" or holy war) was applied there first (Deuteronomy 2:34; 3:6). The two defeated kings in Transjordan were

Sihon Sihon was an Amorite king mentioned in the Hebrew Bible, king of Ashtaroth, who refused to let the Israelites pass through his country. Chronicled in Numbers, he was defeated by Moses and the Israelites at the battle of Jahaz. He and Og were said ...

Heshbon Heshbon (also Hesebon, Esebon, Esbous, Esbus; , , ''Ḥešbōn'', ) were at least two different ancient towns located east of the Jordan River in what is now the Kingdom of Jordan, historically within the territories of ancient Ammon. The Bronz ...

and Og of

Bashan Bashan (; ; or ''Basanitis'') is the ancient, biblical name used for the northernmost region of Transjordan during the Iron Age. It is situated in modern-day Jordan and Syria. Its western part, nowadays known as the Golan Heights, was occupied b ...

. Sihon's territory extended from the

river Arnon The Wadi Mujib (), also known as Arnon Stream (Hebrew: נַחַל ארנון), is a river in Jordan. The river empties into the Dead Sea circa below sea level. In ancient times, the river served as the northern boundary of the kingdom of Moa ...

—running from the east into the

Dead Sea The Dead Sea (; or ; ), also known by #Names, other names, is a landlocked salt lake bordered by Jordan to the east, the Israeli-occupied West Bank to the west and Israel to the southwest. It lies in the endorheic basin of the Jordan Rift Valle ...

, and forming the northern boundary of

Moab Moab () was an ancient Levant, Levantine kingdom whose territory is today located in southern Jordan. The land is mountainous and lies alongside much of the eastern shore of the Dead Sea. The existence of the Kingdom of Moab is attested to by ...

— northwards along the east bank of the

Jordan River The Jordan River or River Jordan (, ''Nahr al-ʾUrdunn''; , ''Nəhar hayYardēn''), also known as ''Nahr Al-Sharieat'' (), is a endorheic river in the Levant that flows roughly north to south through the Sea of Galilee and drains to the Dead ...

to its next major tributary, the

Jabbok The Zarqa River (, ''Nahr az-Zarqāʾ'', lit. "the River of the Blue ity) is the second largest tributary of the lower Jordan River, after the Yarmouk River. It is the third largest river in the region by annual discharge and its watershed enc ...

(where Jacob had wrestled with God; Genesis 32:22–32), including a stretch of the Arabah well to the north of the Jabbok, east of "Chinneroth" (=

Sea of Galilee The Sea of Galilee (, Judeo-Aramaic languages, Judeo-Aramaic: יַמּא דטבריא, גִּנֵּיסַר, ), also called Lake Tiberias, Genezareth Lake or Kinneret, is a freshwater lake in Israel. It is the lowest freshwater lake on Earth ...

), and eastwards to the Ammonites' borderland. Og's territory lay to the north and east of Sihon's, with two major cities, Ashtaroth and Edrei, in the east of the Sea of Galilee. By taking both territories, Moses took all the Transjordan from the Arnon (river) to (mount) Hermon, then distributed it to the tribes of Reuben and Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh (cf. Numbers 32: Deuteronomy 2–3).

Verse 1

:''Now these are the kings of the land whom the people of Israel defeated and took possession of their land beyond the Jordan toward the sunrise, from the Valley of the Arnon to Mount Hermon, with all the Arabah eastward:'' The Transjordanian territory of Israel is defined by the Arnon river ( Seil el-Mojib (Wadi Mujib) in the south and

Mount Hermon Mount Hermon ( / ALA-LC: ('Mountain of the Sheikh', ), , ) is a mountain, mountain cluster constituting the southern end of the Anti-Lebanon mountain range. Its summit straddles the Lebanon–Syria border, border between Syria and Lebanon a ...

in the north.

Kings defeated west of the Jordan (12:7–24)

This section lists Joshua's conquests in the territory west of the Jordan, against the nations which were there (Deuteronomy 1:7; 7:1; Joshua 11:16–17), to continue the land possession and promise fulfillment that Moses had started. The conquered area is reported to span from Baal-gad in the north and Mount Halak in the south (cf. Joshua 11:17), followed by the list of the defeated kings of cities, roughly followed the progress of the conquest: first, Jericho and Ai, then the southern alliance under the king of Jerusalem, and the northern alliance under the king of Hazor. Among some new city names —Geder, Hormah, Arad, Adullam, Tappuah, Hepher, Aphek, Lasharon, Taanach, Megiddo, Kedesh, Jokneam, Tirzah— Arad, on the southern borders of Judah, is known with its temple to YHWH, and Megiddo was an important fortress on the north-south route, guarding the 'entrance to the plain of Esdraelon'. "Bethel" in verse 16 (not listed in

) is mentioned in verse 9, but the city of Bethel is recorded to fall to the 'house of Joseph' in Judges 1:22–25, 'after the death of Joshua' (Judges 1:1). The recurrence of the 'kings' implies the significance of YHWH's empowerment of Joshua, who is not a king, to defeat the kings of Canaan.

Verses 7–8

:''And these are the kings of the land whom Joshua and the people of Israel defeated on the west side of the Jordan, from Baal-gad in the Valley of Lebanon to Mount Halak, that rises toward Seir (and Joshua gave their land to the tribes of Israel as a possession according to their allotments, in the hill country, in the lowland, in the Arabah, in the slopes, in the wilderness, and in the Negeb, the land of the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites):'' ESV The geographical description matches those in Joshua 11:17, but here it is presented in order from north to south.

Notes

References

Sources

* * * * * * * * * *

External links

* Judaism, Jewish translations: *
Yehoshua - Joshua - Chapter 12 (Judaica Press)
Hebrew text and English translation [with Rashi's commentary] at Chabad.org *

translations: *
''Online Bible'' at GospelHall.org
(ESV, KJV, Darby, American Standard Version, Bible in Basic English) *
Joshua chapter 12. Bible Gateway
{{DEFAULTSORT:Joshua 12 Book of Joshua chapters, 12