Joshua 22
Joshua Sends Home the Eastern Tribes
22:1 Then Joshua summoned the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh
These were the two-and-a-half tribes who chose land on the wrong side of the Jordan.
22:2 and told them: “You have carried out all the instructions of Moses the Lord’s servant, and you have obeyed all I have told you.
The Transjordan Tribes had fought valiantly, just as they had promised.
22:3 You have not abandoned your fellow Israelites this entire time, right up to this very day. You have completed the task given you by the Lord your God.
They stayed away from their families for seven consecutive years to help the other ten tribes defeat the Canaanites.
22:4 Now the Lord your God has made your fellow Israelites secure, just as he promised them. So now you may turn around and go to your homes in your own land which Moses the Lord’s servant assigned to you east of the Jordan.
General Joshua ordered them to return home with honor.
22:5 But carefully obey the commands and instructions Moses the Lord’s servant gave you. Love the Lord your God, follow all his instructions, obey his commands, be loyal to him, and serve him with all your heart and being!”
General Joshua reminded the departing soldiers that they were to obey the Mosaic Law. They were to show their love for God by being obedient to the Law. Christians show their love of God by studying and applying Bible doctrine at the deepest level.
22:6 Joshua rewarded them and sent them on their way; they returned to their homes. 22:7 (Now to one half-tribe of Manasseh, Moses had assigned land in Bashan; and to the other half Joshua had assigned land on the west side of the Jordan with their fellow Israelites.) When Joshua sent them home, he rewarded them, 22:8 saying, “Take home great wealth, a lot of cattle, silver, gold, bronze, iron, and a lot of clothing. Divide up the goods captured from your enemies with your brothers.”
Joshua divided the plunder with them and sent them back across the Jordan River. The plunder was also to be divided among those who stayed at home to take care of the land and cattle. Those at home supporting the war were just as important as those who were fighting in the war.
22:9 So the Reubenites, Gadites, and half-tribe of Manasseh left the Israelites in Shiloh in the land of Canaan and headed home to their own land in Gilead, which they acquired by the Lord’s command through Moses.
The Transjordan Tribes returned to their homes.
Civil War is Averted
22:10 The Reubenites, Gadites, and half-tribe of Manasseh came to Geliloth near the Jordan in the land of Canaan and built there, near the Jordan, an impressive altar.
The Jordan was 5-13 miles wide with mountains that sometime reached over 2000 feet. The Transjordan Tribes built an altar on the western side of the Jordan to remind them of their unity with the other nine tribes. They were all receivers of the Abrahamic Covenant.
22:11 The Israelites received this report: “Look, the Reubenites, Gadites, and half-tribe of Manasseh have built an altar at the entrance to the land of Canaan, at Geliloth near the Jordan on the Israelite side.”
The news spread quickly that the Transjordan Tribes had built an altar without the knowledge of the other tribes.
22:12 When the Israelites heard this, the entire Israelite community assembled at Shiloh to launch an attack against them.
The one true altar was already built at Shiloh. The other tribes saw this as apostasy. They saw this as a rebellion against God, because it was a violation of the Mosaic Law to set up a second altar of sacrifice.
22:13 The Israelites sent Phinehas, son of Eleazar, the priest, to the land of Gilead to the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. 22:14 He was accompanied by ten leaders, one from each of the Israelite tribes, each one a family leader among the Israelite clans.
Before war was declared, Phinehas and ten leaders were sent to find out more details.
22:15 They went to the land of Gilead to the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, and said to them: 22:16 “The entire community of the Lord says, ‘Why have you disobeyed the God of Israel by turning back today from following the Lord? You built an altar for yourselves and have rebelled today against the Lord.
Phinehas reminded the Transjordan Tribes that they had violated the Mosaic Law.
22:17 The sin we committed at Peor was bad enough. To this very day we have not purified ourselves; it even brought a plague on the community of the Lord.
Phinehas reminded the Transjordan Tribes that just as the entire nation of Israel was punished for the sin of Peor (Numbers 25), the nation would be judged again for their rebellious act.
22:18 Now today you dare to turn back from following the Lord! You are rebelling today against the Lord; tomorrow he may break out in anger against the entire community of Israel.
Phinehas reminded the Transjordan Tribes that they needed to repent or God would judge the entire nation once again for their sin.
22:19 But if your own land is impure, cross over to the Lord’s own land, where the Lord himself lives, and settle down among us. But don’t rebel against the Lord or us by building for yourselves an altar aside from the altar of the Lord our God.
Phinehas suggested that if the Transjordan Tribes felt that their land was impure, they could find them all land on the other side of the Jordan. This was a generous offering for the other ten tribes to make.
22:20 When Achan son of Zerah disobeyed the command about the city’s riches, the entire Israelite community was judged, though only one man had sinned. He most certainly died for his sin!’”
Phinehas reminded the Transjordan Tribes that when Achan sinned, the entire nation was judged. Achan committed the sin unto death.
22:21 The Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh answered the leaders of the Israelite clans:
The Transjordan Tribes answered these accusations.
22:22 “El, God, the Lord! El, God, the Lord! He knows the truth! Israel must also know! If we have rebelled or disobeyed the Lord, don’t spare us today!
The Transjordan Tribes began their defense by praising God with three different names.“El” is the Hebrew word אֵל֩ (el), meaning the mighty God. “God” is אֱלֹהִ֨ים (elohim), meaning the triune Creator God. “Lord” is the Hebrew word יְהוָ֜ה (Jehovah or Yahweh), meaning the covenant-keeping, promise-keeping God.
The Transjordan Tribes answered the accusation by claiming that God knew the truth of their motives. If they had rebelled, then they called Jehovah to judge them by exterminating them.
22:23 If we have built an altar for ourselves to turn back from following the Lord by making burnt sacrifices and grain offerings on it, or by offering tokens of peace on it, the Lord himself will punish us.
Their defense was that if the altar was built in rebellion of God, then God Himself will punish them.
22:24 We swear we have done this because we were worried that in the future your descendants would say to our descendants, ‘What relationship do you have with the Lord God of Israel?
The memorial was not built as a second altar to burn offerings. It was built to remind future generations that even though geography separated the Transjordan Tribes from the other nine tribes, that they were still in unity with God.
22:25 The Lord made the Jordan a boundary between us and you Reubenites and Gadites. You have no right to worship the Lord.’ In this way your descendants might cause our descendants to stop obeying the Lord.
The Jordan River did not separate the unity of the twelve tribes.
22:26 So we decided to build this altar, not for burnt offerings and sacrifices,
The altar was not built as a place to burn sacrifices. Only God could choose the one place for sacrifices. The present location of sacrifice at that time was Shiloh.
22:27 but as a reminder to us and you, and to our descendants who follow us, that we will honor the Lord in his very presence with burnt offerings, sacrifices, and tokens of peace. Then in the future your descendants will not be able to say to our descendants, ‘You have no right to worship the Lord.’
This was a memorial to all generations that the Transjordan Tribes had a right to cross the Jordan and worship at Shiloh.
22:28 We said, ‘If in the future they say such a thing to us or to our descendants, we will reply, “See the model of the Lord’s altar that our ancestors made, not for burnt offerings or sacrifices, but as a reminder to us and you.”’
This memorial was unnecessary, because God had ordained in the Law that all Israelite males were to appear at the sanctuary three times a year (Ex. 23:17).
22:29 Far be it from us to rebel against the Lord by turning back today from following after the Lord by building an altar for burnt offerings, sacrifices, and tokens of peace aside from the altar of the Lord our God located in front of his dwelling place!”
Their motives were admirable. There was a lot of emotion involved in defeating the Canaanites and the final crossing over the Jordan River to return home. However, building this altar would turn out to be a dangerous move for Israel. During the time of the Judges, other tribes would begin to build separate altars as well. This would eventually weaken the spiritual strength and the military unity of the nation.
22:30 When Phinehas the priest and the community leaders and clan leaders who accompanied him heard the defense of the Reubenites, Gadites, and the Manassehites, they were satisfied.
The other ten tribes were satisfied, but there is no mention of them asking Jehovah His advice.
22:31 Phinehas, son of Eleazar, the priest, said to the Reubenites, Gadites, and the Manassehites, “Today we know that the Lord is among us, because you have not disobeyed the Lord in this. Now you have rescued the Israelites from the Lord’s judgment.”
The tribes agreed that there was no harm in erecting this altar. It was still a violation of the Mosaic Law. They compromised the Mosaic Law. The seeds of civil war had been planted.
22:32 Phinehas, son of Eleazar, the priest, and the leaders left the Reubenites and Gadites in the land of Gilead and reported back to the Israelites in the land of Canaan.
Israel received a report of the incident.
22:33 The Israelites were satisfied with their report and gave thanks to God. They said nothing more about launching an attack to destroy the land in which the Reubenites and Gadites lived.
Israel accepted the compromise.
22:34 The Reubenites and Gadites named the altar, “Surely it is a Reminder to us that the Lord is God.”
The altar was given a name that praised God, but the damages would later be felt.