Paragraph 11:12–15

11:12a

Joshua captured all these kings and their cities: Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

Joshua captured all the cities where the enemy kings had ruled (Contemporary English Version)

Joshua captured: The clause Joshua captured indicates that Joshua and his soldiers defeated the kings and captured their towns. You should follow the word order that is natural in your language.

11:12b

and put them to the sword: The clause put them to the sword indicates that Joshua and his army killed the people in the towns and their kings. This is a Hebrew idiom that was used in 10:32. You should translate it in the same way in both places.

Here is another way to translate this Hebrew idiom:

putting everyone to death (Good News Translation)

He devoted them to destruction: This is the same word as in 11:11a, and you should translate it in the same way.

11:12c

as Moses the LORD’s servant had commanded: The title that is given to Moses the LORD’s servant is the same as in Joshua 1:1, and you should translate it in the same way.

had commanded: Moses commanded the Israelites to defeat and destroy all their enemies in Numbers 33:51–52 and in Deuteronomy 7:2. He did this because Yahweh commanded him to do so.

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Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

13:9a

The area from Aroer: In some languages it may be more natural to add implicit information, for example:

Their land started at Aroer (New Century Version)

Aroer: The term Aroer indicates a town that was along the Arnon River.

on the rim of the Arnon Valley: The clause on the rim of the Arnon Valley indicates that the town of Aroer was on the bank of the Arnon River, in the Arnon River Valley.

Here is another way to translate this clause:

Aroer was on the bank of the Arnon River, in the valley.

Arnon Valley: The term Arnon Valley appeared in 12:1 and you should translate it the same way in both places.

13:9b

along with the city in the middle of the valley: The phrase in the middle of the valley indicates that the town was halfway along the valley. The town is not named.

Here is another way to translate this phrase:

including the town that is halfway along the Arnon River Valley

13:9c

the whole plateau of Medeba: The word plateau indicates a plain. The plateau of Medeba was a high, flat area between the Arnon River in the south and Heshbon in the north. It was 600-700 meters high.

Medeba: The town of Medeba was a Moabite town that the Israelites captured from King Sihon (see Numbers 21:21-32). Today it is the town of Madaba in Jordan, twenty miles south of Amman.

as far as Dibon: The phrase as far as Dibon indicates that the tableland of Medeba stretched from Medeba in the north to Dibon in the south. Dibon was one of the Moabite towns that the Israelites captured. Its name today is Dhiban and it is thirteen miles east of the Dead Sea and three miles north of the Arnon Gorge.

© 2001, 2011, 2020, 2022, 2023 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

14:8a

Although my brothers who went with me: The phrase my brothers refers to ten of the twelve spies. They were also Israelites and Caleb thought of them as brothers.

who went with me: The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as went indicates that the men were going up to a higher place. They started in the wilderness of Kadesh-barnea. which was on the edge of the coastal plain. From there they went up into the hill country. In languages that do not keep track of elevation, it may be more natural to say went, as the Berean Standard Bible does.

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

But the other Israelites who went with me
-or-
But my companions who went with me

14:8b

made the hearts of the people melt with fear: The Hebrew clause that the Berean Standard Bible translates as made the hearts of the people melt with fear is an idiom. It indicates that the people were very afraid. The words the people refer to the Israelite people. A similar expression was used in verse 2:9d. If possible, you should translate this clause in the same way as you did there.

Here are some other ways to translate this idiom:

my companions made the Israelites afraid
-or-
the brothers who went with me said things that terrified the rest of the people

14:8c

I remained loyal to the LORD my God: The Hebrew phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as I remained loyal to the LORD my God is more literally “I fulfilled after Yahweh my God.” This is a Hebrew idiom. It means that Caleb was completely loyal to Yahweh.

Here are some other ways to translate this Hebrew idiom:

I was completely loyal to Yahweh my God.
-or-
I followed Yahweh my God with all my heart.
-or-
I completely trusted the Lord God (Contemporary English Version)

© 2001, 2011, 2020, 2022, 2023 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

15:25

Hazor-hadattah, Kerioth-hezron (that is, Hazor): Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

Hazor-hadattah, Keri-oth-hezron which is also called Hazor
-or-
Hazor-hadattah, Keri-oth-hezron which is now known as Hazor

© 2001, 2011, 2020, 2022, 2023 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

15:57a

Kain, Gibeah, and Timnah:

15:57b

ten cities, along with their villages: Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

In all there were ten towns, and there were villages that surrounded them
-or-
The number of these towns was ten, with the villages that were near them

© 2001, 2011, 2020, 2022, 2023 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

17:16a

“The hill country is not enough for us,” they replied: Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

The people of the Joseph clan answered him, “The hill country is not large enough for us.” (excl.)
-or-
The mountain area is still not wide enough for all of us

17:16b

and all the Canaanites who live in the valley have iron chariots: The clan of Joseph considered the mountain country to be too small for them, but they could not expand into the valley because the Canaanite people already lived there.

iron chariots: A “chariot” is a war cart with two wheels which was pulled by horses. The wheels were reinforced with iron. The Israelites did not have war vehicles. The chariots gave the Canaanites an advantage over the Israelites when they fought each other.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

But all the Canaan people who live in the valleys have war carts made of iron ⌊to use when we fight⌋
-or-
But the Canaanite people who live in the flat area have iron war vehicles. ⌊We (excl.) cannot defeat them⌋

17:16c

both in Beth-shean with its towns and in the Valley of Jezreel: The town of Beth-shean was mentioned in Joshua 17:11. You should translate it the same way here.

Valley of Jezreel: The Valley of Jezreel was a large valley shaped like a triangle. It separated the hill country of the clan of Manasseh from the Galilee region.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

not only the people who live in Beth-shean and the villages around it, but also those who live in the Valley of Jezreel
-or-
This includes those who live in the town of Beth-shean and its surrounding villages, and those who live in Jezreel Valley

General Comment on verse 17:16

It may be clearer to reorder the parts of this verse. For example,

16a The people of the Joseph clan said, “It is true that there is not enough space for us in the hill country. 16b But all the Canaan people who live in the plain 16c including those who live in town of Beth-shean and the villages around it, and those who live in the Valley of Jezreel 16b have chariots made of iron.

© 2001, 2011, 2020, 2022, 2023 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

19:2

and included Beersheba (or Sheba), Moladah: The towns listed in verses 2–6 were in the south part of the land that belonged to the clan of Judah.

Beersheba: There is also an interpretation issue with the word Beersheba.

(1) Sheba is another name for the town of Beersheba. For example:

Beersheba (or Sheba), Moladah (New International Version)

(Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, NET Bible, Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures, New American Standard Bible, God’s Word, Revised English Bible, King James Version)

(2) Sheba is a different town. It is not the same town as Beersheba. For example:

Beersheba, Sheba, Moladah (English Standard Version)

(English Standard Version, Revised Standard Version, New Revised Standard Version, New Living Translation (2004), Good News Translation)

It is recommended that you follow option (1) along with many English versions. There is a similar list of the towns that belonged to the clan of Simeon in 1 Chronicles 4:28. That list does not include the town of Sheba. Moreover, if Sheba is counted as an independent town in this list, the total number of towns would come to fourteen, rather than thirteen, as stated in verse 6. Because of this, many Bible scholars consider the term Sheba to be an alternative name for the town of Beersheba.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

They received the following towns as its permanent possession: Beersheba, which is also called Sheba, and Moladah
-or-
The land that was assigned to them included the following towns: Beersheba, or Sheba, and Moladah

Sheba: There is a textual issue with the word Sheba.

(1) The text should say Sheba. This follows the Masoretic Text.

(Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, NET Bible, Revised Standard Version, English Standard Version, Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures, New American Standard Bible, God’s Word, Good News Translation, King James Version)

(2) The text should say Shema. This follows the Septuagint, and it also agrees with Joshua 15:26.

(New American Bible, Revised Edition, New Jerusalem Bible, Contemporary English Version)

It is recommended that you follow option (1). This is the reading of most English versions, and is supported by many commentaries.

© 2001, 2011, 2020, 2022, 2023 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

19:34a

Then the border turned westward to Aznoth-tabor: This verse describes the west border of Naphtali’s land. The town of Aznoth-tabor was at the foot of Mount Tabor.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

The western boundary extended through Aznoth-Tabor (Translation for Translators)
-or-
To the west the border turned to Aznoth-tabor

19:34b

and ran from there to Hukkok: The town of Hukkok was somewhere on the western border of Naphtali’s land.

touching Zebulun on the south side: The phrase touching Zebulun on the south side indicates that the southwestern border of Naphtali’s land was next to the clan of Zebulun’s land. The southeast border of Naphtali’s land was next to the land of the clan of Issachar.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

as far as Hukkok. It extended to the borders of the tribe of Zebulun at the south (Translation for Translators)
-or-
and went on northward to the town of Hukkok. The border touched the clan of Zebulun’s land in the south

19:34c

Asher on the west: The phrase Asher on the west indicates that the west border touched the border of the clan of Asher’s land.

and Judah at the Jordan on the east: There is a textual issue in this part of the verse. The word Judah is in the Hebrew text but is not in the Septuagint.

(1) The text is Jordan on the east.

(New International Version, NET Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, New American Bible, Revised Edition, Revised English Bible, New Living Translation (2004), Good News Translation)

(2) The text includes the word Judah. For example:

and Asher on the west, and Judah on the east at the Jordan (Revised Standard Version)

(Berean Standard Bible, Revised Standard Version, New American Standard Bible, English Standard Version, God’s Word, Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures, King James Version)

It is recommended that you follow option (1) along with many English versions. The border of the clan of Judah did not touch the border of the clan of Naphtali.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

to the border of the tribe of Asher on the west, and the Jordan River at the east (Translation for Translators)
-or-
The border touched the clan of Asher’s land on the west and the Jordan River on the east

© 2001, 2011, 2020, 2022, 2023 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.