約書亞記18:1-28

18:1 以色列的全會眾都聚集在示羅，把會幕設立在那裡，那地已經被他們制伏了。
18:2 以色列人中其餘的七個支派還沒有分給他們地業。
18:3 約書亞對以色列人說：「耶和華－你們列祖的上帝所賜給你們的地，你們耽延不去得，要到幾時呢？
18:4 你們每支派當選舉三個人，我要打發他們去，他們就要起身走遍那地，按著各支派應得的地業寫明（或譯：畫圖），就回到我這裡來。
18:5 他們要將地分做七分；猶大仍在南方，住在他的境內。約瑟家仍在北方，住在他的境內。
18:6 你們要將地分做七分，寫明了拿到我這裡來。我要在耶和華─我們上帝面前，為你們拈鬮。
18:7 利未人在你們中間沒有分，因為供耶和華祭司的職任就是他們的產業。迦得支派、流便支派，和瑪拿西半支派已經在約旦河東得了地業，就是耶和華僕人摩西所給他們的。」
18:8 劃地勢的人起身去的時候，約書亞囑咐他們說：「你們去走遍那地，劃明地勢，就回到我這裡來。我要在示羅這裡，耶和華面前，為你們拈鬮。」
18:9 他們就去了，走遍那地，按著城邑分做七分，寫在冊子上，回到示羅營中見約書亞。
18:10 約書亞就在示羅，耶和華面前，為他們拈鬮。約書亞在那裡，按著以色列人的支派，將地分給他們。
18:11 便雅憫支派，按著宗族拈鬮所得之地，是在猶大、約瑟子孫中間。
18:12 他們的北界是從約旦河起，往上貼近耶利哥的北邊；又往西通過山地，直到伯‧亞文的曠野；
18:13 從那裡往南接連到路斯，貼近路斯（路斯就是伯特利），又下到亞他綠‧亞達，靠近下伯‧和崙南邊的山；
18:14 從那裡往西，又轉向南，從伯‧和崙南對面的山，直達到猶大人的城基列‧巴力（基列‧巴力就是基列‧耶琳）；這是西界。
18:15 南界是從基列‧耶琳的儘邊起，往西達到尼弗多亞的水源；
18:16 又下到欣嫩子谷對面山的儘邊，就是利乏音谷北邊的山；又下到欣嫩谷，貼近耶布斯的南邊；又下到隱‧羅結；
18:17 又往北通到隱‧示麥，達到亞都冥坡對面的基利綠；又下到流便之子波罕的磐石；
18:18 又接連到亞拉巴對面，往北下到亞拉巴；
18:19 又接連到伯‧曷拉的北邊，直通到鹽海的北汊，就是約旦河的南頭；這是南界。
18:20 東界是約旦河。這是便雅憫人按著宗族，照他們四圍的交界所得的地業。
18:21 便雅憫支派按著宗族所得的城邑就是：耶利哥、伯‧曷拉、伊麥‧基悉、
18:22 伯‧亞拉巴、洗瑪臉、伯特利、
18:23 亞文、巴拉、俄弗拉、
18:24 基法‧阿摩尼、俄弗尼、迦巴，共十二座城，還有屬城的村莊；
18:25 又有基遍、拉瑪、比錄、
18:26 米斯巴、基非拉、摩撒、
18:27 利堅、伊利毘勒、他拉拉、
18:28 洗拉、以利弗、耶布斯（耶布斯就是耶路撒冷）、基比亞、基列，共十四座城，還有屬城的村莊。這是便雅憫人按著宗族所得的地業。

 

  The whole assembly of the Israelites gathered at Shiloh and set up the tent of meeting there. The country was brought under their control, ² but there were still seven Israelite tribes who had not yet received their inheritance.

³ So Joshua said to the Israelites: “How long will you wait before you begin to take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has given you? ⁴ Appoint three men from each tribe. I will send them out to make a survey of the land and to write a description of it, according to the inheritance of each. Then they will return to me. ⁵ You are to divide the land into seven parts. Judah is to remain in its territory on the south and the tribes of Joseph in their territory on the north. ⁶ After you have written descriptions of the seven parts of the land, bring them here to me and I will cast lots for you in the presence of the Lord our God. ⁷ The Levites, however, do not get a portion among you, because the priestly service of the Lord is their inheritance. And Gad, Reuben and the half-tribe of Manasseh have already received their inheritance on the east side of the Jordan. Moses the servant of the Lord gave it to them.”

⁸ As the men started on their way to map out the land, Joshua instructed them, “Go and make a survey of the land and write a description of it. Then return to me, and I will cast lots for you here at Shiloh in the presence of the Lord.” ⁹ So the men left and went through the land. They wrote its description on a scroll, town by town, in seven parts, and returned to Joshua in the camp at Shiloh. ¹⁰ Joshua then cast lots for them in Shiloh in the presence of the Lord, and there he distributed the land to the Israelites according to their tribal divisions.

¹¹ The first lot came up for the tribe of Benjamin according to its clans. Their allotted territory lay between the tribes of Judah and Joseph:

¹² On the north side their boundary began at the Jordan, passed the northern slope of Jericho and headed west into the hill country, coming out at the wilderness of Beth Aven. ¹³ From there it crossed to the south slope of Luz (that is, Bethel) and went down to Ataroth Addar on the hill south of Lower Beth Horon.

¹⁴ From the hill facing Beth Horon on the south the boundary turned south along the western side and came out at Kiriath Baal (that is, Kiriath Jearim), a town of the people of Judah. This was the western side.

¹⁵ The southern side began at the outskirts of Kiriath Jearim on the west, and the boundary came out at the spring of the waters of Nephtoah. ¹⁶ The boundary went down to the foot of the hill facing the Valley of Ben Hinnom, north of the Valley of Rephaim. It continued down the Hinnom Valley along the southern slope of the Jebusite city and so to En Rogel. ¹⁷ It then curved north, went to En Shemesh, continued to Geliloth, which faces the Pass of Adummim, and ran down to the Stone of Bohan son of Reuben. ¹⁸ It continued to the northern slope of Beth Arabah^[a] and on down into the Arabah. ¹⁹ It then went to the northern slope of Beth Hoglah and came out at the northern bay of the Dead Sea, at the mouth of the Jordan in the south. This was the southern boundary.

²⁰ The Jordan formed the boundary on the eastern side.

These were the boundaries that marked out the inheritance of the clans of Benjamin on all sides.

²¹ The tribe of Benjamin, according to its clans, had the following towns:

Jericho, Beth Hoglah, Emek Keziz, ²² Beth Arabah, Zemaraim, Bethel, ²³ Avvim, Parah, Ophrah, ²⁴ Kephar Ammoni, Ophni and Geba—twelve towns and their villages.

²⁵ Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth, ²⁶ Mizpah, Kephirah, Mozah, ²⁷ Rekem, Irpeel, Taralah, ²⁸ Zelah, Haeleph, the Jebusite city (that is, Jerusalem), Gibeah and Kiriath—fourteen towns and their villages.

This was the inheritance of Benjamin for its clans.

 

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    在約旦河西的土地要分給以色列10個支派，其中三個比較積極的支派已經佔領好他們的土地，卻仍有七個派還沒有根據地，所約書亞鼓勵他們要積極的去得地為業，並且讓他們去勘查土地，並且劃出地圖之後，將這些未得知地畫分成七分，以拈鬮的方式分配土地！而在這裡有記明便雅憫支派要得那些土地，下一章也會說到其他支派分到哪裡。

 

    而從這樣的記載中感受到以色列人進入迦南地之後，仍然有許「多未竟之事」，讓人覺得約書亞心中的缺憾！這就像我們也面對到人生有許多事要去完成，卻不見得全如所願！人的生命中常常有這樣的問題，若不想到耶穌基督已經得勝了，我們真的會失去生活的勇氣，隨波逐流的過日子，正如這七個支派已進入應許之地，卻無法得地為業！

 

    基督徒不好好堅定信仰，確信上帝的應許，也會落到這樣的境遇！求主幫助我們，我們要確信主耶穌必定再來，新天新帝必降臨，上帝國必定實現！因為，我們面對新和舊世界的消長，唯有靠聖靈的光照，才不會迷惑不知！