Strategy is required as the land allotment continues – this time for Benjamin.
Joshua 18: Allotment of the Remaining Land
1 Then the whole congregation of the people of Israel assembled at Shiloh and set up the tent of meeting there. The land lay subdued before them.
2 There remained among the people of Israel seven tribes whose inheritance had not yet been apportioned.
3 So Joshua said to the people of Israel, "How long will you put off going in to take possession of the land, which the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you?
4 Provide three men from each tribe, and I will send them out that they may set out and go up and down the land. They shall write a description of it with a view to their inheritances, and then come to me.
5 They shall divide it into seven portions. Judah shall continue in his territory on the south, and the house of Joseph shall continue in their territory on the north.
6 And you shall describe the land in seven divisions and bring the description here to me. And I will cast lots for you here before the LORD our God.
7 The Levites have no portion among you, for the priesthood of the LORD is their heritage. And Gad and Reuben and half the tribe of Manasseh have received their inheritance beyond the Jordan eastward, which Moses the servant of the LORD gave them."
8 So the men arose and went, and Joshua charged those who went to write the description of the land, saying, "Go up and down in the land and write a description and return to me. And I will cast lots for you here before the LORD in Shiloh."
9 So the men went and passed up and down in the land and wrote in a book a description of it by towns in seven divisions. Then they came to Joshua to the camp at Shiloh,
10 and Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD. And there Joshua apportioned the land to the people of Israel, to each his portion.
The Inheritance for Benjamin
11 The lot of the tribe of the people of Benjamin according to its clans came up, and the territory allotted to it fell between the people of Judah and the people of Joseph.
12 On the north side their boundary began at the Jordan. Then the boundary goes up to the shoulder north of Jericho, then up through the hill country westward, and it ends at the wilderness of Beth-aven.
13 From there the boundary passes along southward in the direction of Luz, to the shoulder of Luz (that is, Bethel), then the boundary goes down to Ataroth-addar, on the mountain that lies south of Lower Beth-horon.
14 Then the boundary goes in another direction, turning on the western side southward from the mountain that lies to the south, opposite Beth-horon, and it ends at Kiriath-baal (that is, Kiriath-jearim), a city belonging to the people of Judah. This forms the western side.
15 And the southern side begins at the outskirts of Kiriath-jearim. And the boundary goes from there to Ephron, to the spring of the waters of Nephtoah.
16 Then the boundary goes down to the border of the mountain that overlooks the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, which is at the north end of the Valley of Rephaim. And it then goes down the Valley of Hinnom, south of the shoulder of the Jebusites, and downward to En-rogel.
17 Then it bends in a northerly direction going on to En-shemesh, and from there goes to Geliloth, which is opposite the ascent of Adummim. Then it goes down to the stone of Bohan the son of Reuben,
18 and passing on to the north of the shoulder of Beth-arabah it goes down to the Arabah.
19 Then the boundary passes on to the north of the shoulder of Beth-hoglah. And the boundary ends at the northern bay of the Salt Sea, at the south end of the Jordan: this is the southern border.
20 The Jordan forms its boundary on the eastern side. This is the inheritance of the people of Benjamin, according to their clans, boundary by boundary all around.
21 Now the cities of the tribe of the people of Benjamin according to their clans were Jericho, Beth-hoglah, Emek-keziz,
22 Beth-arabah, Zemaraim, Bethel,
23 Avvim, Parah, Ophrah,
24 Chephar-ammoni, Ophni, Geba---twelve cities with their villages:
25 Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth,
26 Mizpeh, Chephirah, Mozah,
27 Rekem, Irpeel, Taralah,
28 Zela, Haeleph, Jebus (that is, Jerusalem), Gibeah and Kiriath-jearim---fourteen cities with their villages. This is the inheritance of the people of Benjamin according to its clans.
Things to think about…
1. Seven tribes from the twelve (eleven really since Levi had no land inheritance), still needed to take their inheritance. What does Joshua do? He asks three men from each of these seven tribes to go and map out the rest of the land and report back to him. They then cast lots to see which tribe gets which part. Strategic planning is an essential part of any successful church building program. We see Jesus doing the same thing as He enters some parts of Israel and reveals Himself when ‘His time had come’. Note that the Levites did not have any land allotted to them – the priesthood was their inheritance, Josh 18:7. We are a royal priesthood and Christ is our inheritance. Don’t get too comfortable with worldly wealth.
2. Benjamin means ‘son of my right hand’. This was a name of blessing given by his father Jacob. Benjamin would inherit the land right next to Judah. They would be next to the ‘blessed’ tribe from whom would come the Messiah. Note that Benjamin inherited Jebus (Jerusalem), vs 28 – the city of peace. But it was far from that. It would only be when David took the throne that this city would be retaken. Even today Jerusalem does not fully know peace. Continue to pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
3. Note also that Bethel is part of Benjamin, Josh 18:17 and was where Jacob had his dream of ascending and descending angels. It was here that the Lord confirmed his covenant with him, Gen 20. This is where Jacob declared that this was the house of God (Bethel), the gateway of heaven and he renamed it from Luz to Bethel. This promise would finally be fulfilled after 440 years of captivity and wilderness wandering.
Vision statement for CBC
CBC’s Vision :- To be a growing biblical church community, significantly influencing our city and beyond, through intentional outreach, fulfilling our mission.
Life groups Wednesdays. Ric Benson group Wednesday night 6:30pm.
Pastor Jay has started the young adult’s life group looking at “what is a cult” Sunday week.
Prayer Points
1. Pray about the boldness to live for Christ knowing we have full assurance in our faith.
2. Keep praying for Anna and the Playgroup, pray for more families to be reached.
3. Conflict in Israel and Ukraine.
4. Church finances to cover all expenses. Budget presently not being met.
5. Pray for Kids@Church, Life groups. Young Adults
6. Mathys has a prayer time at church on Monday and Wednesday afternoons, 5:30pm in the church cafe. He would be happy for you to join him and to send prayer requests.
7. That we be bold in our witnessing for Christ. Pray for a heart to see those around you to be saved. Pray for the blessing over the new pastoral care and hosting program.
8. Growth, conversions, joy in the Word and Spirit to remain and increase.
Praise Points
1. Great message and worship time on Sunday. Pray for new visitors to CBC.
2. Great discussion on the antichrist with the young adults. A few joined from tic tok.
3. Praise the Lord for new mums at Playgroup. Pray it grows each week.
4. Tad’s health getting better all the time.
5. Joy, peace and grace we see at CBC. Thankyou Lord
Announcements
1. Playgroup 9:30-11am on Friday.
2. Members meeting 26th May after church.
3. Young Adults study after church Sunday week – “What is a cult?”.
4. Monday evening prayer with Mathys on the café 5:30-6pm
5. Life Groups Wednesday 6:30pm at church.
6. Kids@Church every Sunday.
7. Church bank details bsb:- 704 913 and Acc number:- 4000 4388 1
8. Tune in again this week on our YouTube page. Subscribe to the CBC channel Chuwar Baptist YouTube channel.
Catechism questions for May...
Q. 20. How do you know that you have a soul? A. Because the Bible tells me so.
