Whose Land Is It Anyway?
Reading Joshua 16 through 18 feels a bit like looking at a map with detailed instructions: boundaries, city names, tribal territories. It's the kind of section that’s easy to skim. Not much action, no dramatic speeches or miracles—just borders being drawn. Still, as I sat with it, I started to wonder why so much attention was given to these divisions.
A Place to Call Home (Or at Least a Plot to Clear)
The Israelites have entered the land they’ve been aiming for, and now comes the task of settling it. That means figuring out who lives where. It's a very practical step, but also one that seems loaded with meaning. Having a portion of land—being told, "this is your space"—seems to carry emotional and even existential weight.
It’s a pattern that shows up far beyond the pages of Joshua. We draw property lines, decorate rooms, name towns and streets. We attach identity to place. For the tribes in Joshua, the land wasn’t just a physical space. It was tied to history, family, and future. It answered the question of belonging.
More Land, Please?
And yet, even in this organized division, there are tensions. The descendants of Joseph ask for more land, feeling that what they've received isn’t enough. Joshua’s response? Clear the forested hill country and make space for yourselves. There’s something interesting in that exchange—something about expectations, about what we believe we're owed versus what we’re willing to work for.
The Art of Not Moving In
Later, Joshua calls out the remaining tribes for delaying. The land is available, but some haven’t moved in. The hesitation isn’t explained, but it's noted. Is it fear? Uncertainty? Lack of motivation? It’s not hard to think of moments in modern life when something is technically within reach, but we hold back from stepping into it.
The One-Tent Town of Shiloh
One small moment also stood out: the gathering at Shiloh, where the tent of meeting is set up. This becomes a kind of center, a reference point for all the division happening around it. While the land is being split up, there’s still a shared space that seems to anchor the process.
Lines on a Map, Questions in the Mind
These chapters may not offer tidy lessons, but they do raise some questions worth considering. Why do we care so much about what belongs to us? What shapes our sense of place or fairness? When do boundaries help us feel secure, and when do they create distance or tension? And how do we respond when we’re asked to make the most of what we’ve been given, even if it’s not exactly what we expected?
Joshua 16–18 may seem like a list of coordinates and settlements, but under the surface, there’s a lot about human nature—how we organize ourselves, how we define our lives by location, and how complicated it can be to share space.