New International Version The southern side began at the outskirts of Kiriath Jearim on the west, and the boundary came out at the spring of the waters of Nephtoah. New Living Translation The southern boundary began at the outskirts of Kiriath-jearim. From that western point it ran to the spring at the waters of Nephtoah, English Standard Version And the southern side begins at the outskirts of Kiriath-jearim. And the boundary goes from there to Ephron, to the spring of the waters of Nephtoah. Berean Standard Bible On the south side the border began at the outskirts of Kiriath-jearim and extended westward to the spring at the Waters of Nephtoah. Berean Literal Bible And the south side is at the end of Kiriath-jearim, and the border extended on the west and went out to the spring at the Waters of Nephtoah. King James Bible And the south quarter was from the end of Kirjathjearim, and the border went out on the west, and went out to the well of waters of Nephtoah: New King James Version The south side began at the end of Kirjath Jearim, and the border extended on the west and went out to the spring of the waters of Nephtoah. New American Standard Bible Then the south side was from the edge of Kiriath-jearim, and the border went westward and went to the fountain of the waters of Nephtoah. NASB 1995 Then the south side was from the edge of Kiriath-jearim, and the border went westward and went to the fountain of the waters of Nephtoah. NASB 1977 Then the south side was from the edge of Kiriath-jearim, and the border went westward and went to the fountain of the waters of Nephtoah. Legacy Standard Bible Then the south side was from the edge of Kiriath-jearim, and the border went out westward and went out to the fountain of the waters of Nephtoah. Amplified Bible The southern side was from the edge of Kiriath-jearim, and the border went on westward and went to the source of the waters of Nephtoah. Berean Annotated Bible On the south side the border began at the outskirts of Kiriath-jearim (city of forests) and extended westward to the spring at the Waters of Nephtoah (opening). Christian Standard Bible The south side began at the edge of Kiriath-jearim, and the border extended westward; it went to the spring at the Waters of Nephtoah. Holman Christian Standard Bible The south side began at the edge of Kiriath-jearim, and the border extended westward; it went to the spring at the Waters of Nephtoah. American Standard Version And the south quarter was from the uttermost part of Kiriath-jearim; and the border went out westward, and went out to the fountain of the waters of Nephtoah; Contemporary English Version Benjamin's southern border started at the edge of Kiriath-Jearim and went east to the ruins and on to Nephtoah Spring. English Revised Version And the south quarter was from the uttermost part of Kirjath-jearim, and the border went out westward, and went out to the fountain of the waters of Nephtoah: GOD'S WORD® Translation The southern border begins just outside Kiriath Jearim and goes west, to the springs of Nephtoah. Good News Translation The southern border started on the edge of Kiriath Jearim and went to the Springs of Nephtoah. International Standard Version The southern boundary began at the edge of Kiriath-jearim, proceeding from there to Ephron and then to the spring at the Nephtoah Waters. NET Bible The southern side started on the edge of Kiriath Jearim and extended westward to the spring of the waters of Nephtoah. New Heart English Bible The south quarter was from the farthest part of Kiriath Jearim. The border went out westward, and went out to the spring of the waters of Nephtoah. Webster's Bible Translation And the south quarter was from the end of Kirjah-jearim, and the border went out on the west, and went out to the well of waters of Nephtoah: Majority Text Translations Majority Standard BibleOn the south side the border began at the outskirts of Kiriath-jearim and extended westward to the spring at the Waters of Nephtoah. World English Bible The south quarter was from the farthest part of Kiriath Jearim. The border went out westward, and went out to the spring of the waters of Nephtoah. Literal Translations Literal Standard VersionAnd the south quarter [is] from the end of Kirjath-Jearim, and the border has gone out westward, and has gone out to the fountain of the waters of Nephtoah; Berean Literal Bible And the south side is at the end of Kiriath-jearim, and the border extended on the west and went out to the spring at the Waters of Nephtoah. Young's Literal Translation And the south quarter is from the end of Kirjath-Jearim, and the border hath gone out westward, and gone out unto the fountain of the waters of Nephtoah; Smith's Literal Translation And the south side from the extremity of the City of Forests, and the bound went out to the sea, and went out to the fountain of water of Neptitoah: Catholic Translations Douay-Rheims BibleBut on the south side the border goeth out from part of Cariathiarim towards the sea, and cometh to the fountain of the waters of Nephtoa. Catholic Public Domain Version But to the south, the border goes on from the part of Kiriath-jearim toward the sea, and it continues as far as the Fountain of the waters of Nephtoah. New American Bible The southern boundary began at the limits of Kiriath-jearim and projected to the spring at Nephtoah. New Revised Standard Version The southern side begins at the outskirts of Kiriath-jearim; and the boundary goes from there to Ephron, to the spring of the Waters of Nephtoah; Translations from Aramaic Lamsa BibleAnd the southern boundary was from the end of Koriath-narin, and the border went out to the sea, and went out to the fountain of waters of Naphtali: Peshitta Holy Bible Translated And the side of the south from the end of Quryath Nahrayn, and the border to the sea went out, and it went out into the Spring of waters of Naphtali OT Translations JPS Tanakh 1917And the south side was from the uttermost part of Kiriath-jearim, and the border went out westward, and went out to the fountain of the waters of Nephtoah. Brenton Septuagint Translation And the south side on the part of Cariath-Baal; and the borders shall go across to Gasin, to the fountain of the water of Naphtho. Additional Translations ... Audio Bible (Voice ▾ Musical ▾) Context Benjamin's Inheritance…14On the west side the border curved southward from the hill facing Beth-horon on the south and came out at Kiriath-baal (that is, Kiriath-jearim), a city of the sons of Judah. This was the western side. 15On the south side the border began at the outskirts of Kiriath-jearim and extended westward to the spring at the Waters of Nephtoah. 16Then it went down to the foot of the hill that faces the Valley of Hinnom at the northern end of the Valley of Rephaim and ran down the Valley of Hinnom toward the southern slope of the Jebusites and downward to En-rogel.… Cross References On the south side the border began at the outskirts of Kiriath-jearim 1 Samuel 7:1-2 Then the men of Kiriath-jearim came for the ark of the LORD and took it into Abinadab’s house on the hill. And they consecrated his son Eleazar to guard the ark of the LORD. / And from that day a long time passed, twenty years in all, as the ark remained at Kiriath-jearim. And all the house of Israel mournfully sought the LORD. 2 Samuel 6:2-3 And he and all his troops set out for Baale of Judah to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the Name—the name of the LORD of Hosts, who is enthroned between the cherubim that are on it. / They set the ark of God on a new cart and brought it from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were guiding the new cart, 1 Chronicles 13:5-6 So David assembled all Israel, from the River Shihor in Egypt to Lebo-hamath, to bring the ark of God from Kiriath-jearim. / David and all Israel went up to Baalah of Judah (that is, Kiriath-jearim) to bring up from there the ark of God the LORD, who is enthroned between the cherubim—the ark that is called by the Name. and extended westward to the spring at the Waters of Nephtoah. Joshua 15:9 From the hilltop the border curved to the spring of the Waters of Nephtoah, proceeded to the cities of Mount Ephron, and then bent around toward Baalah (that is, Kiriath-jearim). 2 Chronicles 32:30 It was Hezekiah who blocked the upper outlet of the Spring of Gihon and channeled it down to the west side of the City of David. And Hezekiah prospered in all that he did. 1 Kings 1:33-35 “Take my servants with you,” said the king. “Set my son Solomon on my own mule and take him down to Gihon. / There Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet are to anoint him king over Israel. You are to blow the ram’s horn and declare, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ / Then you shall go up with him, and he is to come and sit on my throne and reign in my place. For I have appointed him ruler over Israel and Judah.” Numbers 34:2-5 “Command the Israelites and say to them: When you enter the land of Canaan, it will be allotted to you as an inheritance with these boundaries: / Your southern border will extend from the Wilderness of Zin along the border of Edom. On the east, your southern border will run from the end of the Salt Sea, / cross south of the Ascent of Akrabbim, continue to Zin, and go south of Kadesh-barnea. Then it will go on to Hazar-addar and proceed to Azmon, … Deuteronomy 3:12-17 So at that time we took possession of this land. To the Reubenites and Gadites I gave the land beyond Aroer along the Arnon Valley, and half the hill country of Gilead, along with its cities. / To the half-tribe of Manasseh I gave the rest of Gilead and all of Bashan, the kingdom of Og. (The entire region of Argob, the whole territory of Bashan, used to be called the land of the Rephaim.) / Jair, a descendant of Manasseh, took the whole region of Argob as far as the border of the Geshurites and Maacathites. He renamed Bashan after himself, Havvoth-jair, by which it is called to this day. … Joshua 15:1-12 Now the allotment for the clans of the tribe of Judah extended to the border of Edom, to the Wilderness of Zin at the extreme southern boundary: / Their southern border started at the bay on the southern tip of the Salt Sea, / proceeded south of the Ascent of Akrabbim, continued on to Zin, went over to the south of Kadesh-barnea, ran past Hezron up to Addar, and curved toward Karka. … Ezekiel 47:13-20 This is what the Lord GOD says: “These are the boundaries by which you are to divide the land as an inheritance among the twelve tribes of Israel; Joseph shall receive two portions. / You are to divide it equally among them. Because I swore with an uplifted hand to give it to your forefathers, this land will fall to you as an inheritance. / This shall be the boundary of the land: On the north side it will extend from the Great Sea by way of Hethlon through Lebo-hamath to Zedad, … Genesis 49:13 Zebulun shall dwell by the seashore and become a harbor for ships; his border shall extend to Sidon. Judges 1:18-19 And Judah also captured Gaza, Ashkelon, and Ekron—each with its territory. / The LORD was with Judah, and they took possession of the hill country; but they could not drive out the inhabitants of the plains because they had chariots of iron. 1 Kings 4:21 And Solomon reigned over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. These kingdoms offered tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life. 2 Chronicles 9:26 He reigned over all the kings from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. Isaiah 33:17 Your eyes will see the King in His beauty and behold a land that stretches afar. Jeremiah 31:17 So there is hope for your future, declares the LORD, and your children will return to their own land. Treasury of Scripture And the south quarter was from the end of Kirjathjearim, and the border went out on the west, and went out to the well of waters of Nephtoah: Nephtoah Joshua 15:9 And the border was drawn from the top of the hill unto the fountain of the water of Nephtoah, and went out to the cities of mount Ephron; and the border was drawn to Baalah, which is Kirjathjearim: Jump to Previous Border Edge End Ephron Extreme Jearim Kiriath Kiriath-Jearim Kir'iath-Je'arim Kirjathjearim Kirjath-Jearim Line Nephtoah Nephto'ah Outskirts Part Point Quarter Side South Southern Spring Uttermost Waters West WestwardJump to Next Border Edge End Ephron Extreme Jearim Kiriath Kiriath-Jearim Kir'iath-Je'arim Kirjathjearim Kirjath-Jearim Line Nephtoah Nephto'ah Outskirts Part Point Quarter Side South Southern Spring Uttermost Waters West WestwardJoshua 18 1. The tabernacle is set up at Shiloh2. The remainder of the land is described, and divided into seven parts 10. Joshua distributes it by lot 11. The lot and border of Benjamin 21. Their cities On the south side the border began at the outskirts of Kiriath-jearim Kiriath-jearim, meaning “City of Forests,” stood on the boundary between Judah and Benjamin and later became the place where the ark remained in the house of Abinadab until David brought it to Jerusalem. Its position marked the beginning of Benjamin’s southern border. 1Sa 7:1-2 Then the men of Kiriath-jearim came for the ark of the LORD… and extended westward to the spring at the Waters of Nephtoah. From Kiriath-jearim, the boundary ran west to the Waters of Nephtoah, a reliable spring near Jerusalem. Natural water sources provided clear and enduring landmarks for defining the tribal territories. Jos 15:9 From the hilltop the border curved to the spring… Persons / Places / Events 1. Kiriath-jearimA city in the territory of Judah, significant in Israel's history as a resting place for the Ark of the Covenant before it was moved to Jerusalem. 2. Spring of the Waters of Nephtoah A water source marking a boundary in the land allotment for the tribe of Benjamin. It signifies the importance of water sources in defining territorial boundaries in ancient Israel. 3. Tribe of Benjamin One of the twelve tribes of Israel, receiving its land allotment in this passage. The tribe is known for its warriors and significant figures like King Saul and the Apostle Paul. Teaching Points The Importance of BoundariesJust as physical boundaries were crucial for the tribes of Israel, spiritual and moral boundaries are essential for Christians today. They help define our identity and guide our actions. Significance of Water Water sources were vital for survival and prosperity in ancient times. Spiritually, water symbolizes life and purification, reminding us of the living water Jesus offers. God's Faithfulness in Allotment The detailed allotment of land to the tribes of Israel reflects God's faithfulness in fulfilling His promises. We can trust God to provide for our needs and guide us in our life's journey. Historical and Spiritual Heritage Places like Kiriath-jearim remind us of our spiritual heritage and the importance of remembering God's past works in our lives. Bible Study Questions and Answers 1. What is the meaning of Joshua 18:15?2. How does Joshua 18:15's boundary description reflect God's order and precision? 3. What can we learn about God's promises from Joshua 18:15's land allocation? 4. How does Joshua 18:15 connect to God's covenant with Abraham in Genesis? 5. How can we apply the concept of boundaries in Joshua 18:15 to our lives? 6. What does Joshua 18:15 teach about God's faithfulness in fulfilling His promises? 7. What is the significance of the southern border described in Joshua 18:15 for Israel's tribes? 8. How does Joshua 18:15 reflect God's promise to the Israelites regarding their land inheritance? 9. What archaeological evidence supports the geographical locations mentioned in Joshua 18:15? 10. What are the top 10 Lessons from Joshua 18? Joshua 18:15 charts the southern boundary of Benjamin from Kiriath-jearim westward to the spring of Nephtoah. Every directional phrase showcases God’s faithfulness: He locates His people precisely, links their land to memories of His presence, and ends the line at living water. The verse is more than a surveyor’s note—it is a testimony that the Lord measures, guards, and blesses every inch entrusted to His children. Parallel Commentaries ... Hebrew On the southנֶ֕גְבָּה (neḡ·bāh) Noun - masculine singular | third person feminine singular Strong's 5045: South country, the Negeb, south side וּפְאַת־ (ū·p̄ə·’aṯ-) Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine singular construct Strong's 6285: Mouth, direction, region, extremity the border הַגְּבוּל֙ (hag·gə·ḇūl) Article | Noun - masculine singular Strong's 1366: A cord, a boundary, the territory inclosed began at the outskirts מִקְצֵ֖ה (miq·ṣêh) Preposition-m | Noun - masculine singular construct Strong's 7097: End, extremity of Kiriath-jearim יְעָרִ֑ים (yə·‘ā·rîm) Noun - proper - feminine singular Strong's 7157: Kiriath-jearim -- 'city of forests', a city given to Judah, then to Benjamin and extended וְיָצָ֤א (wə·yā·ṣā) Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - third person masculine singular Strong's 3318: To go, bring, out, direct and proxim westward יָ֔מָּה (yām·māh) Noun - masculine singular | third person feminine singular Strong's 3220: A sea, the Mediterranean Sea, large river, an artifical basin to אֶל־ (’el-) Preposition Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to the spring מַעְיַ֖ן (ma‘·yan) Noun - masculine singular construct Strong's 4599: A fountain, a source at the Waters מֵ֥י (mê) Noun - masculine plural construct Strong's 4325: Water, juice, urine, semen of Nephtoah. נֶפְתּֽוֹחַ׃ (nep̄·tō·w·aḥ) Noun - proper - feminine singular Strong's 5318: Nephtoah -- a place on the border of Judah and Benjamin Additonal Resources Joshua 18:15 Blue Letter BibleJoshua 18:15 Bible Gateway Joshua 18:15 Bible.com Joshua 18:15 NIV |
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