Joshua 11:21

21. At that time During the war, the long time mentioned in Joshua 11:18. The Anakim were a race of giants in Southern Palestine. Some escaped to the Philistines and became the progenitors of Goliath. See references in margin, especially Numbers 13:22; Numbers 13:33. On Hebron and Debir see notes on Joshua 10:3; Joshua 10:38. Anab is probably identical with the place of this name which Dr. Robinson discovered about ten miles south of Hebron. But this could hardly be said to be in the mountains of Judah, where Joshua 15:48; Joshua 15:50, also locates it.

[ Mountains of Judah and… Israel The words Judah and Israel in this passage do not, as some critics have assumed, betray the hand of a writer who lived after the nation was divided into two rival kingdoms bearing these names. The use of these expressions may easily have grown out of facts existing in Joshua’s time. The tribe of Judah first received its allotment, comprising nearly all Palestine south of Jerusalem, and some time elapsed before the rest of Israel especially seven of the tribes (Joshua 18:2) received their allotments. It was therefore perfectly natural at that early time to apply the names here used respectively to the southern and northern parts of the great mountain range of Palestine. The central part of this range, where the sons of Joseph early received their portion, (chaps. 16, 17,) was sometimes called Mount Ephraim. Joshua 17:15.]