Old/New Testament

Chapter 16

The Tribe of Ephraim.^{[a] 1} The allotment for the descendants of Joseph ran from the Jordan by Jericho, east of the waters of Jericho, and ran up into the hill country of Bethel. ² It went from Bethel (that is, Luz) over to the boundary of the Arkites in Ataroth. ³ It then descended westward to the territory of the Japhletites up to the territory of lower Beth-horon and on to Gezer, ending at the sea. ⁴ Manasseh and Ephraim, the sons of Joseph, received their inheritance.

⁵ This is the territory of the Ephraimites, divided according to its clans. The boundary of the inheritance went from Ataroth-addar in the east to upper Beth-horon ⁶ and it continued on to the sea. From Micmethath in the north it curved eastward to Taanath-shiloh, passing by it to the east of Janoah. ⁷ It went down from Janoah to Ataroth and Naarah, arriving at Jericho and then ending at the Jordan. ⁸ From Tappuah the boundary reached eastward to the Kanah River and from there it went to the sea. This was the inheritance of the tribe of the Ephraimites, divided according to its clans. ⁹ It included all of the cities that were set aside for the Ephraimites in the inheritance of the Manassehites, the cities and their dependent towns. ¹⁰ They did not drive out the Canaanites who were living in Gezer. The Canaanites live among the Ephraimites up to the present and they serve them doing forced labor.

Chapter 17

The Tribe of Manasseh. ¹ This was the allotment for the tribe of Manasseh, who was the firstborn of Joseph, that is, of Machir, who was the firstborn of Manasseh, and he was also the father of the Gileadites because he had received Gilead and Bashan since he was a mighty warrior. ² This was the allotment for the rest of the Manassehites, the clans of the descendants of Abiezer, Helek, Asriel, Shechem, Hepher, and Shemida. These are the other male descendants of Manasseh, the son of Joseph, according to their clans.

^3 [b]Now Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh had no sons, only daughters. These are the names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. ⁴ They went to Eleazar, the priest, to Joshua, the son of Nun, and the elders and said, “The Lord commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among our brothers.” He therefore gave them an inheritance among the brothers of their father, just as the Lord had commanded.

⁵ Manasseh’s portion consisted of ten parcels of land besides Gilead and Bashan, which were on the east side of the Jordan, ⁶ for the daughters of Manasseh received an inheritance along with the sons. The land of Gilead belonged to the rest of the descendants of Manasseh. ⁷ The territory of the Manassehites ran from Asher to Micmethath east of Shechem. The boundary then ran south from there, so it included the people living at En-tappuah. ⁸ (Manasseh had received the land around Tappuah, which lay on the boundary with Manasseh, but Tappuah itself belonged to the Ephraimites.) ⁹ The boundary then continued on south to the Wadi Kanah. There were some towns that belonged to Ephraim among the towns of Manasseh, but Manasseh’s boundary ran along the north side of the river, ending at the sea. ¹⁰ To the north, the land belonged to Ephraim, while to the south the land belonged to Manasseh. Its boundary ended at the sea, bordering Asher on the north and Issachar on the east.

¹¹ Within Asher and Issachar, Manasseh also possessed Beth-shan and the towns that were dependent upon it, Ibleam and the towns dependent upon it, the inhabitants of Dor and the towns dependent upon it, the inhabitants of Endor and the towns dependent upon it, the inhabitants of Taanach and the towns dependent upon it, and the inhabitants of Megiddo and the towns dependent upon it. (These are three mountainous areas.)

¹² Yet, the Manassehites were not able to occupy these cities, for the Canaanites were determined to continue to live in that land. ¹³ When the Israelites grew stronger, they did subject the Canaanites to forced labor, but they did not drive them out completely. ^14 [c]The descendants of Joseph said to Joshua, “Why have you given us only one allotment, one portion as our inheritance. We are quite numerous, for the Lord has blessed us.” ¹⁵ But Joshua answered them, “If you are too numerous for the hill country of Ephraim, then go up into the forest and clear land for yourselves in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim.” ¹⁶ The descendants of Joseph replied, “The hill country is too small for us, and the Canaanites who live in the plains have iron chariots, both the ones living in Beth-shean and the towns dependent upon it and those living in the Valley of Jezreel.” ¹⁷ Joshua said to the descendants of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh, “You are a numerous and very powerful people. You will have more than one allotment. ¹⁸ The forested hill country will also be yours. Cut it down, and it will be yours right to its fringes. The Canaanites might have iron chariots and be strong, but you can drive them out.”

Chapter 18

^1 [d]The whole assembly of the Israelites gathered together at Shiloh and they set up the tent of meeting there. The land had been brought under their control, ² but there were still seven tribes among the Israelites who had not yet received their inheritance.

Inheritance for the Remaining Seven Tribes. ³ Joshua said to the Israelites, “How long will you wait before you go in to take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given you? ⁴ Choose three men from each of your tribes. I will send them to arise and go through the land, describing it according to each of their inheritances. They will then return to me. ⁵ They will divide it into seven portions. Judah will continue to live in its territory to the south, and the descendants of Joseph will continue to live in their territory to the north. ⁶ You will write down a description of the seven portions of the land and bring it to me. I will cast lots for you here before the Lord, our God. ⁷ The Levites will have no portion among you, for the priesthood of the Lord is their inheritance. Gad, Reuben, and one of the halves of the tribe of Manasseh have already received their inheritance on the other side of the Jordan, to the east, from Moses, the servant of the Lord.”

⁸ So the men arose and went on their way. Joshua commanded them to write a description of the land saying, “Go and travel through the land, writing a description of it. Return to me here so that I can cast lots for you before the Lord in Shiloh.”

⁹ The men traveled through the land, writing a description of its cities, divided into seven portions, in a book. They then came back to Joshua in the camp at Shiloh. ¹⁰ Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the Lord. Joshua divided the land among the Israelites there, dividing it according to their allotments.

¹¹ The Tribe of Benjamin. The lot for the tribe of Benjamin, divided according to its clans, was selected. The territory for their allotment lay between the Judahites and the descendants of Joseph. ^12 [e]On the north their boundary started at the Jordan, going up the northern slope of Jericho and out west into the hill country until it exited in the Desert of Beth-aven. ¹³ From there the boundary traveled on toward Luz, passing on the southern side of Luz (that is, Bethel). The boundary then ran down to Ataroth-addar, near the hill that lay to the south of Lower Beth-horon. ¹⁴ From the hill that lay facing Beth-horon on the south, the boundary extended around the west side to the south. It ended at Kiriath-baal (that is, Kiriath-jearim), a city of Judahites. This was the western side.

¹⁵ The southern side of the boundary began at the outskirts of Kiriath-jearim and extended to the west, reaching the spring of the water of Nephtoah. ¹⁶ The boundary extended to the foot of the hill that lay over the Valley of Ben-hinnom, north of the Valley of Rephaim. It continued through the Valley of Hinnom on the southern slope of the city of the Jebusites until it reached En-rogel. ¹⁷ It then passed on north to En-shemesh, continued on to Geliloth which faced the Pass of Adummim, and ran up to the stone of Bohan, the son of Reuben. ¹⁸ It continued along the northern slope of the Arabah, continuing down into the Arabah itself. ¹⁹ The boundary then passed along the northern side of Beth-hoglah, ending at the northern bay of the Salt Sea which is at the southern part of the Jordan. This was their southern boundary. ²⁰ The Jordan was their boundary on the east. This was the inheritance of the Benjaminites with the boundaries that surround it, divided according to its clans.

²¹ The cities of the tribe of the Benjaminites, divided according to its clans, were: Jericho, Beth-hoglah, Emek-keziz, ²² Beth-arabah, Zemaraim, Bethel, ²³ Avvim, Parah, Ophrah, ²⁴ Chephar-ammoni, Ophni, and Geba. There were twelve cities, along with their dependent towns. ²⁵ There were also Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth, ²⁶ Mizpah, Chephirah, Mozah, ²⁷ Rekem, Irpeel, Taralah, ²⁸ Zela, Haeleph, Jebus (that is, Jerusalem), Gibeah, and Kiriath. There were fourteen cities with their dependent towns. This was the inheritance of the Benjaminites, divided according to its clans.

Chapter 2

The Birth of Jesus.^{[a] 1} In those days, a decree was issued by Caesar Augustus that a census should be taken throughout the entire world. ² This was the first such registration, and it took place when Quirinius^[b] was governor of Syria.

³ Everyone traveled to his own town to be enrolled. ⁴ Joseph therefore went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David. ⁵ He went to be registered together with Mary, his betrothed, who was expecting a child. ⁶ While they were there, the time came for her to have her child, ⁷ and she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger,^[c] because there was no room for them in the inn.

⁸ In the nearby countryside there were shepherds living in the fields and keeping watch over their flock throughout the night. ⁹ Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them. They were terror-stricken, ¹⁰ but the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for I bring you good news of great joy for all the people. ¹¹ For this day in the city of David there has been born to you a Savior who is Christ, the Lord.

¹² “This will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.” ¹³ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,

¹⁵ The Visit of the Shepherds. After the angels had departed from them to heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Come, let us go to Bethlehem to see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.” ¹⁶ And so they set off in haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.

¹⁷ When they saw the child, they recounted the message that had been told them about him. ¹⁸ All who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. ¹⁹ As for Mary, she treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰ And the shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, just as they had been told.

²¹ The Circumcision and Naming of Jesus.^[e]On the eighth day, when the time for the child’s circumcision had arrived, he was given the name Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived in the womb.

²² Jesus Is Presented in the Temple. When the days for their purification were completed according to the Law of Moses, they brought the child up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, ²³ as it is prescribed in the Law of the Lord: “Every firstborn male shall be consecrated to the Lord,” ²⁴ and to offer a sacrifice in accordance with what is stated in the Law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”