Joshua 18:3

3 Then Joshua asked them, “How long are you going to wait before taking possession of the remaining land the LORD, the God of your ancestors, has given to you?

Joshua 18:3 Meaning and Commentary

Joshua 18:3

And Joshua said unto the children of Israel
To those of the seven tribes:

how long [are] you slack to go to possess the land which the Lord God
of your fathers hath given you?
not that they might have taken possession of it of themselves, without having it assigned to them by lot; that they did not do this, is not what is complained of, and they stand reproved for; but that when two tribes and a half had received their inheritance, these seemed indifferent to it, showed no inclination and disposition towards it, and much less eagerness to have a settlement, and did not apply to the court for it; which dilatoriness might arise from the present affluence of all good things they enjoyed through the spoils of the enemy; and partly through slothfulness, being tired of the war, and perceiving that they must be involved in it again to dispossess the Canaanites of some of the cities that would fall to their lot; and, perhaps, their slackness might be the more increased, by observing the dissatisfaction of the tribes with the lot they had received, and therefore waited till things were adjusted to greater satisfaction.

Joshua 18:3 In-Context

1 Now that the land was under Israelite control, the entire community of Israel gathered at Shiloh and set up the Tabernacle.

2 But there remained seven tribes who had not yet been allotted their grants of land.

3 Then Joshua asked them, “How long are you going to wait before taking possession of the remaining land the LORD, the God of your ancestors, has given to you?

4 Select three men from each tribe, and I will send them out to explore the land and map it out. They will then return to me with a written report of their proposed divisions of their new homeland.

5 Let them divide the land into seven sections, excluding Judah’s territory in the south and Joseph’s territory in the north.