Joshua 13:6

6. Misrephoth-maim See chap. Joshua 11:8, note.

Them will I drive out God’s promises of good to man are all grounded on the implied condition of his obedience and faithful co-operation. This promise never was fulfilled, through the failure of the Hebrew nation to maintain an all-conquering faith in their divine Ally.

Divide thou it The pronoun it is to be referred to the land in the first verse, and the intervening verses are to be read parenthetically. Without a special command, Joshua, who supposed that all the land must be first conquered, would not have dared to allot territory still held by the enemy.

By lot A difficulty here arises. The land was to be apportioned by lot, and yet, according to Numbers 26:53-56, it was also to be divided according to the size of the tribes. The best solution of this difficulty is the supposition that the lot only determined the relative location of each portion, (Numbers 33:54,) while the extent and bounds were to be fixed by a board of commissioners. See Joshua 14:1, note. The manner of the lot is unknown, but probably there were two urns, one containing the names of the tribes, and the other the location of the portions; then by drawing one card or pebble from each urn, the question would be decided by the divine Providence, which directed the lots. The lot thus publicly drawn would allay jealousies and prevent disputes. As the result was in exact harmony with Jacob’s prophecy in his dying hour two hundred and fifty years before, and in striking fulfilment of Moses’ prediction just before his death, it would confirm the Israelites’ faith in Jehovah, who had inspired these predictions, and so guided the lots as to secure their accomplishment.