Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Joshua 16:3
And goeth down westward to the coast of Japhleti, unto the coast of Beth-horon the nether, and to Gezer: and the goings out thereof are at the sea.
3. and goeth down westward ] Hence the boundary passed unto the “coast” of Beth-horon the nether, i.e. the “Lower Beth-horon,” and Gezer, to the Mediterranean Sea at Jaffa.
Japhleti ] is unknown.
Beth-horon ] See above, ch. Jos 10:10-11.
Gezer ] See above ch. Jos 10:33. It probably lay between Beth-horon and Lydda. “The territory assigned to ‘the house of Joseph’ may be roughly estimated at 55 miles from east to west, by 70 from north to south, a portion about equal in extent to the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk combined.”
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Of Japhleti – Rather of the Japhletite. All history of the name is lost.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 3. Beth-horon the nether] This city was about twelve miles from Jerusalem, on the side of Nicopolis, formerly Emmaus. – CALMET. See Clarke on Jos 10:10.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Of the two
Beth-horons, see Jos 10:10,11.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
And goeth down westward to the coast of Japhleti,…. This place is now unknown, though no doubt well known to the sons of Joseph, when this lot fell to them, and its border was described:
unto the coast of Bethhoron the nether: so called to distinguish it from Bethhoron the upper, Jos 16:5; this was about twelve miles from Jerusalem; [See comments on Jos 10:10]; and to Gezer: which was about a day’s journey from Bethhoron, as appears from the passages in the Apocrypha:
“39 So Nicanor went out of Jerusalem, and pitched his tents in Bethhoron, where an host out of Syria met him. 40 But Judas pitched in Adasa with three thousand men, and there he prayed, saying, … 45 Then they pursued after them a day’s journey, from Adasa unto Gazera, sounding an alarm after them with their trumpets.” (1 Maccabees 7)
Jerom c says in his time it was a village called Gazara, four miles from Nicopolis, or Emmaus. It is the same with Gadara, as it is sometimes called by Josephus, who says d, the tribe of Ephraim took in the land from the river Jordan to Gadara; this was a royal city; see
Jos 10:33;
and the outgoings thereof are at the sea: the Mediterranean sea.
c De loc. Heb. fol. 92. A. d Antiqu. l. 5. c. 1. sect. 22.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
3. On Japhleti, or the Japhletite, the note on Archi (Jos 16:2) will also apply. On Beth-horon see at Jos 10:10, and Gezer, Jos 10:33.
The Sea The Mediterranean.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘ And it went down westward to the border of the Japhletites, to the border of Beth-horon the Lower, even to Gezer. And its goings out were at the sea.’
The Japhletites were another Canaanite family group prominent enough for their border to act as a border marker. The border then went on to lower Beth-horon (see Jos 10:10-11), and then to Gezer, which is fifteen kilometres (nine miles) further west, and on to the Great Sea where the border inevitably changed course (‘its goings out’ – see on Jos 15:7).
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Jos 16:3 And goeth down westward to the coast of Japhleti, unto the coast of Bethhoron the nether, and to Gezer: and the goings out thereof are at the sea.
Ver. 3. And to Gezer. ] Where the Canaanites held them till Solomon’s days; but were then slain by Pharaoh, king of Egypt, in favour of his daughter, Solomon’s wife. 1Ki 9:16
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Bethhoron: Eusebius says that the two Beth-horons were twelve miles from Jerusalem, towards Nicopolis or Emmaus: of which the one, called upper Beth-horon, from its situation, was built – rebuiltby Solomon, and the other, called nether Beth-horon, was given to the Levites. Josephus places Beth-oron about 100 furlongs from Jerusalem. Dr. Clarke mentions an Arab village called Bethoor, about twelve miles from Jerusalem, a small distance from Rama, which he supposes, from its situation on a hill, to be Beth-horon the upper. Jos 18:13, 1Ki 9:15-17, 1Ch 7:24, 1Ch 7:28, 2Ch 8:5
Gezer: Probably the of Eusebius, four miles from Nicopolis.
the sea: Num 34:6
Reciprocal: Jos 10:10 – Bethhoron Jos 10:33 – Gezer Jos 16:8 – the sea Jos 17:9 – the outgoings Jos 21:22 – Bethhoron 1Sa 13:18 – Bethhoron 1Ki 9:17 – Bethhoron 1Ch 6:67 – Gezer 1Ch 20:4 – Gezer
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
16:3 And goeth down westward to the coast of Japhleti, unto the coast of Bethhoron the nether, and to Gezer: and the goings out {b} thereof are at the sea.
(b) Of their inheritance.