Joshua 22:23-34

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Joshua 22:21-29

We may suppose there was a general convention called of the princes and great men of the separate tribes, to give audience to these ambassadors; or perhaps the army, as it came home, was still encamped in a body, and not yet dispersed; however it was, there were enough to represent the two tribes and a half, and to give their sense. Their reply to the warm remonstrance of the ten tribes is very fair and ingenuous. They do not retort their charge, upbraid them with the injustice and unkindness... read more

Matthew Henry

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Joshua 22:30-34

We have here the good issue of this controversy, which, if there had not been on both sides a disposition to peace, as there was on both sides a zeal for God, might have been of ill consequence; for quarrels about religion, for want of wisdom and love, often prove the most fierce and most difficult to be accommodated. But these contending parties, when the matter was fairly stated and argued, were so happy as to understand one another very well, and so the difference was presently compromised.... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Joshua 22:23

That we have built us an altar, to turn from following the Lord ,.... That is, we desire, as we deserve, to be cut to pieces, and not saved, if it should appear to be our view, in building this altar, to revolt from the pure worship of God: or if to offer thereon burnt offering, or meat offering, or if to offer peace offerings ; even to the Lord himself: they declare that as they had no design to apostatize from God, and worship idols, so it was not their intention to offer any kind of... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Joshua 22:24

And if we have not rather done it for fear of this thing ,.... So far they suggest were they from doing this, in order to turn from the pure worship of God, and introduce idolatrous worship, that it was to guard against everything of that kind for the future; and through fear of it, and anxiety and distress of mind, lest some time or another there should be any temptation to it in their posterity, had they built this altar: saying, in time to come your children might speak unto our... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Joshua 22:25

For the Lord hath made Jordan a border between us and you ,.... And by it separated them from them, as if they were a distinct people; not that this was really the case, but so they feared it would be represented in time to come; for though Jordan was the border of the land of Canaan, strictly so called, eastward, Numbers 34:12 ; yet it did not exclude the land of the two tribes and a half from being part of the land of promise; for the Amorites, which before inhabited it, and were driven... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Joshua 22:26

Therefore we said ,.... One to another, in order to prevent the apostasy of our children from God, their departure from his worship, and going into idolatry: let us now prepare to build us an altar ; get materials ready, and set about it instantly, without any delay, while the thing dwells upon our minds: not for burnt offering, nor for sacrifice ; not for offerings of any kind required by the law, neither for sin offerings nor trespass offerings, nor any other not named. read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Joshua 22:27

But that it may be a witness between us and you, and our generations after us ,.... That we are one people, worship one God, and serve at one altar, of which this built was a resemblance, and would put them in mind of it: that we might do the service of the Lord before him ; in the tabernacle, and at the altar, in the place where he had chosen to put his name and dwell: with our burnt offerings, and with our sacrifices, and with our peace offerings ; to be brought at stated... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Joshua 22:28

Therefore said we ,.... To prevent any such usage of our children, and that they might have a ready answer to give: that it shall be, when they should so say unto us, or to our generations, in time to come ; as above suggested, that they were a separate people from them, and had no interest in the Lord, nor right to his altar, nor concern in his worship: that we may say again ; in reply, that is, our posterity: behold the pattern of the altar of the Lord, which our fathers... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Joshua 22:29

God forbid that we should rebel against the Lord ,.... Against the command of the Lord, who ordered one altar to be made, to which all sacrifices were to be brought from the several parts of the land of Israel, and there to be offered on it; or "against the Word of the Lord,'as the Targum, Christ typified both by the altar and the sacrifices on it; and who is but one, one priest, one sacrifice, one altar, one Mediator and Saviour: and turn this day from following the Lord ; apostatize... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Joshua 22:30

And when Phinehas the priest ,.... For he was, being the son of Eleazar the high priest, so the word "priest", Joshua 22:13 ; is to be joined, not to Eleazar but to Phinehas: and the princes of the congregation ; the ten princes, who were sent by the congregation of Israel, one out of each tribe: and heads out of the thousands of Israel ; these are the same with the princes, and this belongs to their title, who were heads of the Chiliarchs, or those who were rulers of thousands in... read more

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