Joshua 16:2

"The lot came out for the children of Joseph from the Jordan at Jericho, at the waters of Jericho on the east, even the wilderness, going up from Jericho through the hill country to Bethel."

Key Reflection

This passage describes how the lot determined territorial divisions for the tribes of Joseph's descendants, symbolizing a divine allocation of land as a metaphor for spiritual inheritance and God’s providential care guiding their settlement. The journey from Jericho through the hill country to Bethel reflects both physical travel and a spiritual pilgrimage towards a place of worship and covenant fulfillment.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

Of Archi -(Read “of the Archite,” also a designation of David’s friend Hushai (2 Samuel 15:32;2 Samuel 16:16, etc.). The word is derived from ErechGenesis 10:10. But whether there was in the neighborhood of Bethel a place bearing this Babylonian name, or whether a colony from the East had settled in this spot and brought the name with them, is unknown. Ataroth -CalledJoshua 16:5;Joshua 18:13Ataroth-adar (= “crowns of fame or greatness”) perhaps to distinguish it from two other places bearing the same name but, situated on the other side of Jordan, in the territory of GadNumbers 32:34.

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