Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Joshua 15:13
And unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh he gave a part among the children of Judah, according to the commandment of the LORD to Joshua, [even] the city of Arba the father of Anak, which [city is] Hebron.
13 19. The Request of Achsah, Daughter of Caleb
13. And unto Caleb ] This section, from Jos 15:13-19, is repeated with slight alterations almost verbatim in Jdg 1:10-20. The two sections are probably derived from a common source. As occurring here the verses are intended to complete the history of the division of the land amongst the tribes. As Caleb had brought forward his claims to the possession of Hebron, before the casting of the lots commenced, and those claims had been admitted by Joshua, it was quite in order for the author, when giving here the list of the cities assigned to the tribe of Judah, to refer especially to the portion which Caleb had received, not by lot, but in fulfilment of the Divine promise made to him by Moses, and at the same time to record how fully his hopes had been fulfilled of driving out the Anakims, and thus securing the undisputed possession of Hebron and its vicinity to himself and his descendants. Keil’s Commentary.
he gave ] i. e. Joshua, by the command of Jehovah. For “the city of Arba” see above, ch. Jos 14:15.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Jos 15:13-19
To him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife.
Othniels conquest of Debir
I. The spirit which influenced caleb in the disposal of achsah. He sought to unite her to a man–
(1) Honourable for his zeal and energy;
(2) conspicuous for his bravery;
(3) and willing to use his strength in the way of the Lords commandments.
(4) It seems likely also that Caleb sought to unite his daughter to one who was in a social station akin to her own.
The promise was not to the man who should first enter Kirjath-sepher. This may have been the nature of the similar promise at the siege of Jerusalem, under David, although it seems by no means certain that, even in this instance, David did not refer to the captain who should first bring his company into Jebus and smite the garrison. He should be chief captain (2Sa 5:8; 1Ch 11:6). However this may have been, Calebs promise ran, He that smiteth Kirjath-sepher, and taketh it, to him, &c. No man single-handed could smite and take a fortified city; and thus the promise probably refers to the leaders of the army who were under Caleb. This view has also the advantage that it does not exhibit to us an honourable man like Caleb putting up his daughter as the object of a wretched scramble, where a mere accident of a stumble or a wound might decide whose she should be. Possibly there were but few of the commanders under Caleb officially qualified to lead one or more divisions of the army against Debit; and of these Othniel might first have volunteered, or he only might have volunteered to lead the attack. Any way, out of regard for Achsah, Othniel was one who offered to conduct the assault, and he succeeded.
II. The harmony between the father and the daughter.
1. Achsah accorded with her fathers will and with the custom of the age. There can be no doubt but that, at this period, a father was held to have an absolute right to the disposal of his daughters hand (Gen 29:18-28; Exo 21:7-11; 1Sa 17:25, &c.). It does not follow, however, that a father would not consult his daughters wishes.
2. She had confidence in her fathers love, notwithstanding her recognition of his authority. She asked for a larger dowry (Jos 15:19). On leaving her father, to cleave to her husband, we thus find her seeking her husbands interest.
3. Her father cheerfully responded to her request. The confidence which was bold to ask was met by an affection which was pleased to bestow.
III. The honourable character in which this brief history introduces Othniel. He comes before us as a man of courage, willing to risk his life for the woman he loved. He is seen to perhaps even more advantage in not preferring the request which Achsah prompted him to make. He may have refused to comply with his wifes wishes. The history does not actually say this; it merely shows that Achsah made her request herself. Othniel was bold enough to fight; he seems to have been too manly to have allowed himself to ask for this addition to what was probably already a just and good inheritance. He was brave enough to do battle against Debir; he was not mean enough to beg. If Achsah needed a larger dowry, such a request would come better from herself. (F. G. Marchant.)
A chance for ability
There begins the test of talent and force and quality in men. The speech is, Come, now I the palm be to the brave, the crown to him who wins it. Up to a certain point all things seem to be appointed, settled, almost arbitrarily distributed; but then there are chances in life that seem to come afterwards, as it were, amongst ourselves, competitions of a personal and social kind. How early this competitive spirit was developed, and how wonderfully it has been preserved through all history! The spirit of Providence seems to say, in homeliest language, now and again, Here is a chance for you; you had something to begin with, to that you can add more, by pluck, bravery, force–to the war! We need such voices; otherwise we would soon slumber off, and doze away our handful of years, and awake to find that the day had gone. (J. Parker, D. D.)
Thou hast given me a south land; give me also springs of water.
Noble discontent
1. Such noble discontent, such aspiration for higher and better things, should urge us on in the realm of the daily duty. Simply the south land of a measurable and merely respectable discharge of the daily duty should never satisfy us. We should be stirred with a noble discontent far the water springs of the best possible doing it. Thus we transform ourselves from drudges into artists. Thus, too, we compact ourselves in noble character.
2. In the realm of intellectual advance we should be stirred with this noble discontent; we should turn from a merely general and surface and newspaper information toward the springs of water of a thorough and accurate knowledge.
3. In the realm of the best good of the community in which we dwell we should be stirred with a noble discontent. The south land of a merely usual municipal security and order ought not to satisfy us; we should be restless with discontent until the springs of water of a high moral atmosphere and action are predominant.
4. In the realm of Christian experience we ought to be stirred with such noble discontent; we ought to leave behind us the south land of a merely usual and routine experience, and seek the springs of water of the peace and joy and strength of a transfiguring likeness to our Lord (1Co 3:10; 1Co 3:16). (W. Hoyt, D. D.)
The upper springs, and the nether springs.–
The upper and nether springs
I. The upper springs, as they picture forth the joy-sources of the higher nature. My soul thirsteth for God–the living God! Nor need we be disappointed. It is pensive to think that some thirsts, and honest thirsts too, must be disappointed, Not to all are given possibilities equal to their desires. Their ideals are above their realisation! But none need be disappointed in God! Christ has opened up a free and full channel of communication. It pleased the Father that in Him should all fulness dwell. We have read of waters in the East which, copious at some times, are scarce at others. To-day the waters pour forth their freshening streams, irrigate the land, and satisfy the thirst of man and beast; to-morrow the faithless well is dry. Not so with Christ. In Him the waters dwell. But more than this, Christ is not only the fulness of God, He is the available fulness for us.
1. Take fellowship with God. Inspired words used about this are not the language of poetic fiction or overwrought religious feeling. They are the actual experiences of meditative, devout, earnest, inspired men. God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever.
2. Take likeness to God. Who can conceive of a more magnificent ideal than God-life in the soul? Be ye holy as your leather, &c. Be ye followers of God, &c. Herein consists our true life. Not in the mere culture of art-faculty, but in the growth of the moral likeness to God! We become happier as we become more like Him. Less vexed with trifles, less anxious about losses provided they bring gains to the soul, less conformed to the world, more restful in the love of God!
3. Take the service of God. Christ does not call us to His work merely that we may work, that our moral nature may have something to do; the Lord hath need of us. I say this not only dignifies life, it makes it delightful (Joh 4:34). These are upper springs! Co-workers together with God!
4. Take the friends of God. These are yours! We are made for each other! Church life is designed to draw forth common sympathies and common purposes. We are pilgrims to the same shrine; soldiers in the same battlefield; fruit-gatherers in the same vineyard; children of the same Father. Thoughtful Christian friendship is one of the choicest blessings we can enjoy.
5. Take the future of Gods children. I love to think of them at home there. Upper springs coming from the throne of God and the Lamb: They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more. Shall we drink of those upper springs? I hope so! Do we love Christ now? Do we enjoy His service now? If so, when the morning of eternity comes to us, we shall know in a higher sense than we have ever known on earth the meaning of the upper springs.
II. The nether springs, as they illustrate the mere satisfactions of the lower nature. Take care lest all life plays upon the surface! Take care lest all lifes drinking be at the nether springs. I am not now speaking of the grossness of sensualism, but of mere sensationalism. It is possible to live a merely surface life. Let us remember that there are eyes and ears within us, that the invisible world, the world which embraces God and judgment and eternity, is always speaking through many voices to our conscience and heart. Mere earthly aims are nether springs. Some people are always drinking at the springs of position and success. They attempt to please men.
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 13. And unto Caleb – he gave a part] See Clarke on Jos 14:14, &c.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
He gave, i.e. Joshua, as appears by comparing this with Jos 14:6,12,13.
Arba, or Kirjath-arba; not the city, which was the Levites, but the territory of it, Jos 21:13.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
13. unto Caleb he gave a part amongthe children of Judah(See on Jos14:6).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh he gave a part among the children of Judah,…. That is, Joshua gave it to him. This account is inserted before the cities in the lot of the tribe of Judah were enumerated, to show what was to be excepted from them, and which had been given to Caleb previous to the lot:
according to the commandment of the Lord to Joshua; for as he had declared this to Moses, De 1:36; so it seems he also gave the same order to Joshua, who, it is not improbable, might consult the Lord about it when Caleb made his request, Jos 14:12;
[even] the city of Arba the father of Anak, which [city is] Hebron;
[See comments on Jos 14:15].
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
The account of the conquest of the inheritance, which Caleb asked for and received before the lots were cast for the land (Jos 14:6-15), by the extermination of the Anakites from Hebron, and the capture of the fortified town of Debir, is repeated with very slight differences in Jdg 1:10-15, in the enumeration of the different conflicts in which the separate tribes engaged after the death of Joshua, in order to secure actual possession of the inheritance which had fallen to them by lot, and is neither copied from our book by the author of the book of Judges, nor taken from Judges by the author of Joshua; but both of them have drawn it from one common source, upon which the accounts of the conquest of Canaan contained in the book of Joshua are generally founded.
Jos 15:13 As an introduction to the account of the conquest of Hebron and Debir, the fact that they gave Caleb his portion among the sons of Judah, namely Hebron, is first of all repeated from Jos 14:13. impers., they gave, i.e., Joshua (Jos 14:13). The words “ according to the command of Jehovah to Joshua ” are to be explained from Jos 14:9-12, according to which Jehovah had promised, in the hearing of Joshua, to give Caleb possession of the mountains of Hebron, even when they were at Kadesh (Jos 14:12). The “father of Anak” is the tribe father of the family of Anakites in Hebron, from whom this town received the name of Kirjath-arba; see at Num 13:22 and Gen 23:2.
Jos 15:14 Thence, i.e., out of Hebron, Caleb drove ( , i.e., rooted out: cf. , Jdg 1:10) the three sons of Anak, i.e., families of the Anakites, whom the spies that were sent out from Kadesh had already found there (Num 13:22). Instead of Caleb, we find the sons of Judah (Judaeans) generally mentioned in Jdg 1:10 as the persons who drove out the Anakites, according to the plan of the history in that book, to describe the conflicts in which the several tribes engaged with the Canaanites. But the one does not preclude the other. Caleb did not take Hebron as an individual, but as the head of a family of Judaeans, and with their assistance. Nor is there any discrepancy between this account and the fact stated in Jos 11:21-22, that Joshua had already conquered Hebron, Debir, and all the towns of that neighbourhood, and had driven out the Anakites from the mountains of Judah, and forced them back into the towns of the Philistines, as Knobel fancies. For that expulsion did not preclude the possibility of the Anakites and Canaanites returning to their former abodes, and taking possession of the towns again, when the Israelitish army had withdrawn and was engaged in the war with the Canaanites of the north; so that when the different tribes were about to settle in the towns and districts allotted to them, they were obliged to proceed once more to drive out or exterminate the Anakites and Canaanites who had forced their way in again (see the remarks on Jos 10:38-39, p. 86, note).
Jos 15:15-16 From Hebron Caleb went against the Inhabitants of Debir, to the south of Hebron. This town, which has not yet been discovered (see at Jos 10:38), must have been very strong and hard to conquer; for Caleb offered a prize to the conqueror, promising to give his daughter Achzah for a wife to any one that should take it, just as Saul afterwards promised to give his daughter to the conqueror of Goliath (1Sa 17:25; 1Sa 18:17).
Jos 15:17 Othniel took the town and received the promised prize. Othniel, according to Jdg 3:9 the first judge of the Israelites after Joshua’s death, is called , i.e., either “the son of Kenaz (and) brother of Caleb,” or “the son of Kenaz the brother of Caleb.” The second rendering is quite admissible (comp. 2Sa 13:3, 2Sa 13:32, with 1Ch 2:13), but the former is the more usual; and for this the Masorites have decided, since they have separated achi Caleb from ben-Kenaz by a tiphchah. And this is the correct one, as “the son of Kenaz” is equivalent to “the Kenizzite” (Jos 14:6). According to Jdg 1:13 and Jdg 3:9, Othniel was Caleb’s younger brother. Caleb gave him his daughter for a wife, as marriage with a brother’s daughter was not forbidden in the law (see my Bibl. Archol. ii. 107, note 14).
Jos 15:18-19 When Achzah had become his wife (“ as she came,” i.e., on her coming to Othniel, to live with him as wife), she urged him to ask her father for a field. “ A field:” in Jdg 1:14 we find “the field,” as the writer had the particular field in his mind. This was not “the field belonging to the town of Debir” ( Knobel), for Othniel had no need to ask for this, as it naturally went with the town, but a piece of land that could be cultivated, or, as is shown in what follows, one that was not deficient in springs of water. What Othniel did is not stated, but only what Achzah did to attain her end, possibly because her husband could not make up his mind to present the request to her father. She sprang from the ass upon which she had ridden when her father brought her to Othniel. , which only occurs again in Jdg 4:21, and in the parallel passage, Jdg 1:14, is hardly connected with , to be lowly or humble ( Ges.); the primary meaning is rather that suggested by Frst, to force one’s self, to press away, or further; and hence in this case the meaning is, to spring down quickly from the animal she had ridden, like in Gen 24:64. Alighting from an animal was a special sign of reverence, from which Caleb inferred that his daughter had some particular request to make of him, and therefore asked her what she wanted: “ What is to thee? ” or, “ What wilt thou? ” She then asked him for a blessing (as in 2Ki 5:15); “ for,” she added, “ thou hast given me into barren land.” (rendered a south land) is accus. loci; so that negeb is not to be taken as a proper name, signifying the southernmost district of Canaan (as in Jos 15:21, etc.), but as an appellative, “the dry or arid land,” as in Psa 126:4. “ Give me springs of water,” i.e., a piece of land with springs of water in it. Caleb then gave her the “ upper springs and lower springs:” this was the name given to a tract of land in which there were springs on both the higher and lower ground. It must have been somewhere in the neighbourhood of Debir, though, like the town itself, it has not yet been found.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
| Caleb’s Inheritance. | B. C. 1444. |
13 And unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh he gave a part among the children of Judah, according to the commandment of the LORD to Joshua, even the city of Arba the father of Anak, which city is Hebron. 14 And Caleb drove thence the three sons of Anak, Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai, the children of Anak. 15 And he went up thence to the inhabitants of Debir: and the name of Debir before was Kirjath-sepher. 16 And Caleb said, He that smiteth Kirjath-sepher, and taketh it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife. 17 And Othniel the son of Kenaz, the brother of Caleb, took it: and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife. 18 And it came to pass, as she came unto him, that she moved him to ask of her father a field: and she lighted off her ass; and Caleb said unto her, What wouldest thou? 19 Who answered, Give me a blessing; for thou hast given me a south land; give me also springs of water. And he gave her the upper springs, and the nether springs.
The historian seems pleased with every occasion to make mention of Caleb and to do him honour, because he had honoured God in following him fully. Observe,
I. The grant Joshua made him of the mountain of Hebron for his inheritance is here repeated (v. 13), and it is said to be given him. 1. According to the commandment of the Lord to Joshua. Though Caleb, in his petition, had made out a very good title to it by promise, yet, because God had ordered Joshua to divide the land by lot, he would not in this one single instance, no, not to gratify his old friend Caleb, do otherwise, without orders from God, whose oracle, it is probable, he consulted upon this occasion. In every doubtful case it is very desirable to know the mind of God, and to see the way of our duty plain. 2. It is said to be a part among the children of Judah; though it was assigned him before the lot of that tribe came up, yet it proved, God so directing the lot, to be in the heart of that tribe, which was graciously ordered in kindness to him, that he might not be as one separated from his brethren and surrounded by those of other tribes.
II. Caleb having obtained this grant, we are told,
1. How he signalized his own valour in the conquest of Hebron (v. 14): He drove thence the three sons of Anak, he and those that he engaged to assist him in this service. This is mentioned here to show that the confidence he had expressed of success in this affair, through the presence of God with him (ch. xiv. 12), did not deceive him, but the event answered his expectation. It is not said that he slew these giants, but he drove them thence, which intimates that they retired upon his approach and fled before him; the strength and stature of their bodies could not keep up the courage of their minds, but with the countenances of lions they had the hearts of trembling hares. Thus does God often cut off the spirit of princes (Ps. lxxvi. 12), take away the heart of the chief of the people (Job xii. 24), and so shame the confidence of the proud; and thus if we resist the devil, that roaring lion, though he fall not, yet he will flee.
2. How he encouraged the valour of those about him in the conquest of Debir, v. 15, c. It seems, though Joshua had once made himself master of Debir (<i>ch. x. 39), yet the Canaanites had regained the possession in the absence of the army, so that the work had to be done a second time; and when Caleb had completed the reduction of Hebron, which was for himself and his own family, to show his zeal for the public good, as much as for his own private interest, he pushes on his conquest to Debir, and will not lay down his arms till he sees that city also effectually reduced, which lay but ten miles southward from Hebron, though he had not any particular concern in it, but the reducing of it would be to the general advantage of his tribe. Let us learn hence not to seek and mind our own things only, but to concern and engage ourselves for the welfare of the community we are members of; we are not born for ourselves, nor must we live to ourselves.
(1.) Notice is taken of the name of this city. It had been called Kirjath-sepher, the city of a book, and Kirjath-sannah (v. 49), which some translate the city of learning (so the LXX. Polis grammaton), whence some conjecture that it had been a university among the Canaanites, like Athens in Greece, in which their youth were educated; or perhaps the books of their chronicles or records, or the antiquities of the nation, were laid up there; and, it may be, this was it that made Caleb so desirous to see Israel master of this city, that they might get acquainted with the ancient learning of the Canaanites.
(2.) The proffer that Caleb made of his daughter, and a good portion with her, to any one that would undertake to reduce that city, and to command the forces that should be employed in that service, v. 16. Thus Saul promised a daughter to him that would kill Goliath (1 Sam. xvii. 25), neither of them intending to force his daughter to marry such as she could not love, but both of them presuming upon their daughters’ obedience, and submission to their fathers’ will, though it might be contrary to their own humour or inclination. Caleb’s family was not long honourable and wealthy, but religious; he that himself followed the Lord fully no doubt taught his children to do so, and therefore it could not but be a desirable match to any young gentleman. Caleb, in making the proposal, aims, [1.] To do service to his country by the reducing of that important place; and, [2.] To marry a daughter well, to a man of learning, that would have a particular affection for the city of books, and a man of war, that would be likely to serve his country, and do worthily in his generation. Could he but marry his child to a man of such a character, he would think her well bestowed, whether the share in the lot of his tribe were more or less.
(3.) The place was bravely taken by Othniel, a nephew of Caleb, whom probably Caleb had thoughts of when he made the proffer, v. 17. This Othniel, who thus signalized himself when he was young, had long after, in his advanced years, the honour to be both a deliverer and a judge in Israel, the first single person that presided in their affairs after Joshua’s death. It is good for those who are setting out in the world to begin betimes with that which is great and good, that, excelling in service when they are young, they may excel in honour when they grow old.
(4.) Hereupon (all parties being agreed) Othniel married his cousin-german Achsah, Caleb’s daughter. It is probable that he had a kindness for her before, which put him upon this bold undertaking to obtain her. Love to his country, an ambition of honour, and a desire to find favour with the princes of his people, might not have engaged him in this great action, but his affection for Achsah did. This made it intolerable to him to think that any one should do more to win her favour than he would, and so inspired him with this generous fire. Thus is love strong as death, and jealousy cruel as the grave.
(5.) Because the historian is now upon the dividing of the land, he gives us an account of Achsah’s portion, which was in land, as more valuable because enjoyed by virtue of the divine promise, though we may suppose the conquerors of Canaan, who had had the spoil of so many rich cities, were full of money too. [1.] Some land she obtained by Caleb’s free grant, which was allowed while she married within her own tribe and family, as Zelophehad’s daughters did. He gave her a south land, v. 19. Land indeed, but a south land, dry, and apt to be parched. [2.] She obtained more upon her request; she would have had her husband to ask for a field, probably some particular field, or champaign ground, which belonged to Caleb’s lot, and joined to that south land which he had settled upon his daughter at marriage. She thought her husband had the best interest in her father, who, no doubt, was extremely pleased with his late glorious achievement, but he thought it was more proper for her to ask, and she would be more likely to prevail; accordingly she did, submitting to her husband’s judgment, though contrary to her own; and she managed the undertaking with great address. First, She took the opportunity when her father brought her home to the house of her husband, when the satisfaction of having disposed of his daughter so well would make him think nothing too much to do for her. Secondly, She lighted off her ass, in token of respect and reverence to her father, whom she would honour still, as much as before her marriage. She cried or sighed from off her ass, so the LXX. and the vulgar Latin read it; she expressed some grief and concern, that she might give her father occasion to ask her what she wanted. Thirdly, She calls it a blessing, because it would add much to the comfort of her settlement; and she was sure that, since she married not only with her father’s consent, but in obedience to his command, he would not deny her his blessing. Fourthly, She asks only for the water, without which the ground she had would be of little use either for tillage or pasture, but she means the field in which the springs of water were. The modesty and reasonableness of her quest gave it a great advantage. Earth without water would be like a tree without sap, or the body of an animal without blood; therefore, when God gathered the waters into one place, he wisely and graciously left some in every place, that the earth might be enriched for the service of man. See Ps. civ. 10, c. Well, Achsah gained her point her father gave her what she asked, and perhaps more, for he gave her the upper springs and the nether springs, two fields so called from the springs that were in them, as we commonly distinguish between the higher field and the lower field. Those who understand it but of one field, watered both with the rain of heaven and the springs that issued out of the bowels of the earth, give countenance to the allusion we commonly make to this, when we pray for spiritual and heavenly blessings which relate to our souls as blessings of the upper springs, and those which relate to the body and the life that now is as blessings of the nether springs.
From this story we learn, 1. That it is no breach of the tenth commandment moderately to desire those comforts and conveniences of this life which we see attainable in a fair and regular way. 2. That husbands and wives should mutually advise, and jointly agree, about that which is for the common good of their family; and much more should they concur in asking of their heavenly Father the best blessings, those of the upper springs. 3. That parents must never think that lost which is bestowed upon their children for their real advantage, but must be free in giving them portions as well as maintenance, especially when they are dutiful. Caleb had sons (1 Chron. iv. 15), and yet gave thus liberally to his daughter. Those parents forget themselves and their relation who grudge their children what is convenient for them when they can conveniently part with it.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
Caleb’s Campaign, vs. 13-20
Included with the account of Judah’s possession is a brief record of Caleb’s defeat of the giants. Again it is noted that this came to Caleb as a result of the Lord’s promise to him for his faithfulness.
The chief city of the giants was Hebron, which was later the leading city of the tribe of Judah. The giants called it the city of Arba, after their forefather. Of the giant chieftains, the three sons of Anak, it is said that Caleb drove all of them out.
Next to Hebron, and farther south, was Debir, which the giants called Kirjath-sepher, meaning the “city of books.” In return for the successful assault on this city of any of his clansmen Caleb offered the hand of his daughter Achsah in marriage.
The city was captured by Othniel, who claimed the young lady’s hand. Othniel was the descendant of Kenaz, as was Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, the Kennizite. Thus, the implication is that he was the younger brother of Caleb.
Achsah was a shrewd young lady. Her father had given her lands in the and south where water was extremely rare and necessary. Therefore she insisted that Othniel ask her father for springs.
When they came to Caleb it was Achsah who took the initiative, and she received a favorable response. Caleb gave her and her new husband two springs, the upper and the nether (or lower). This account is repeated in Jdg 1:10-15.
Othniel became very prominent in the tribe of Judah, and was the first judge of Israel, following the death of Joshua (Jdg 3:8-11).
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
13. And unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh, etc Were we to judge from the actual state of matters, it would seem ridiculous repeatedly to celebrate an imaginary grant from which Caleb received no benefit while Joshua was alive. But herein due praise is given both to the truth of God, and to the faith of his saint in resting on his promise. Therefore, although sneering men, and the inhabitants of the place itself, if the rumor had reached them, might have derided the vain solicitude of Caleb, and the empty liberality of Joshua, the contempt thus expressed would only have proved them to be presumptuous scoffers. God at length evinced the firmness of his decree by the result, and Caleb, though he saw himself unable to obtain access to the mountain, testified that he was contented with the mere promise of God, the true exercise of faith, consisting in a willingness to remain without the fruition of things which have been promised till the period actually arrive. Moreover, this passage, and others similar to it, teach us that the giants who are usually called Enakim, were so named after their original progenitor, Enac, and that the word is hence of Gentile origin. The time when Caleb routed the sons of Enac we shall see in a short time. This passage also shows us that Caleb, when he brought forward the name of Moses, did not make a mere pretence, or utter anything that was not strictly true; for it is now plainly declared, that Moses had so appointed, in conformity with the command of God.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
Calebs Inheritance Jos. 15:13-19
13 And unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh he gave a part among the children of Judah, according to the commandment of the Lord to Joshua, even the city of Arba the father of Anak, which city is Hebron.
14 And Caleb drove thence the three sons of Anak, Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai, the children of Anak.
15 And he went up thence to the inhabitants of Debir: and the name of Debir before was Kirjath-sepher.
16 And Caleb said, He that smiteth Kirjath-sepher, and taketh it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife.
17 And Othniel the son of Kenaz, the brother of Caleb, took it: and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife.
18 And it came to pass, as she came unto him, that she moved him to ask of her father a field: and she lighted off her ass; and Caleb said unto her, What wouldest thou?
19 Who answered, Give me a blessing; for thou hast given me a south land; give me also springs of water. And he gave her the upper springs and the nether springs.
9.
What is the meaning of the name Kirjath-sepher? Jos. 15:15
Kirjath-sepher is a name meaning a book-city. As the Scripture makes clear, this was the old name of the city of Debir. The city was probably a location of book storage, and thus the name was given to the community. This city was the prize which Caleb offered to the courageous man who would conquer the town. Since Achsah was also to be the bride of this conqueror, it was an honor to be desired. Othniel, son of Kenaz, performed this feat and received the city as a prize for his valor.
10.
What was Othniels relationship to Caleb? Jos. 15:17
Othniel is described as the son of Kenaz. He is also known as Israels first judge (Jdg. 3:9). Since Caleb is described as a Kenezite (Jos. 14:6) some suppose that his ancestor was also Kenaz, but Caleb is definitely described as the son of Jephunneh. It would appear, therefore, that Kenaz was Calebs younger brother and that Othniel was the son of Calebs brother. The Masoretes have decided against this and have concluded that Othniel was Calebs younger brother. Still, it seems better to believe that Kenaz was Calebs brother and that Othniel was Calebs nephew. Such marriages were not uncommon in ancient times; for we notice that Abraham married his half sister, and Nahor, Abrahams brother, married his niece, the daughter of Haran (Gen. 11:29). The marriage of a man with his brothers daughter, however, was not forbidden in the Law.
11.
For what field did Achsah ask? Jos. 15:19
The field for which Achsah asked was not the field which surrounded the town of Debir for this would naturally go with the town. Achsah asked for a specific field which could be cultivated and which was abundantly supplied with springs of water, both an upper and lower spring being mentioned. Caleb granted her request. Thus, Caleb, the faithful judge, who was chosen out of the tribe of Judah was comfortably settled with his family in the midst of the land which was given to Judah.
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(13-19) And unto Caleb . . . This paragraph occurs also in Jdg. 1:10-15, with some slight variations. Which is its original place? In Judges it is connected with the continuation of the conquest of Canaan by the tribe of Judah after Joshuas death, and there we read they slew (literally, smote) Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai. If this is the death, and not merely the defeat of the Anakim (the Hebrew word is not absolutely decisive), we have two stages in the conquest of Hebron describedviz., (l) the expulsion of the Anakim sufficiently for Caleb to occupy the place; and (2) their final defeat and death. It seems hardly possible to make the narrative in Judges 1 a mere repetition of an earlier story, because it is presented as a part of that which happened after Joshuas death. It would seem, then, that the entire conquest of the Anakim was not effected at once, but begun by Caleb and Joshua in Joshuas lifetime, and completed by the tribe of Judah, under the leadership of Caleb, after Joshuas death. It is remarkable that Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai are mentioned as apparently living when the twelve spies went up from Kadesh-barnea (Num. 13:22), forty years before. But it has been thought that the three names were the names of three clans of the Anakim. (See Notes on Jdg. 1:10.)
Upon the whole, it seems most reasonable to conclude that the proceedings by which Caleb secured his inheritance, and fulfilled the promise of Jos. 14:12, have been recorded here for the sake of completeness, though not necessarily belonging to this time.
(15) Kirjath-sepher.City of books.
(17) Othniel the son of Kenaz.Comp. Jdg. 3:9.
(19) A south landi.e., land in the Negeb: a series of rolling hills clad with scanty herbage here and there. Conder does not identify Debir, but others have taken it to be identical with Dewir-ban, about three miles west of Hebron.
The upper springs, and the nether springsi.e., the upper and lower bubblings, or pools of a rivulet in a valley among the hills in this neighbourhood.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
13. Hebron See at Jos 14:12.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘ And to Caleb the son of Jephunneh he gave a portion among the children of Judah, according to the commandment of Yahweh to Joshua, even Kiriath-arba, the father of Anak, the same is Hebron.’
The importance given to this first real settlement of the land comes out in that it is repeated three times (Jos 14:6-15; Jos 15:13-19; Jdg 1:10-15; compare Jos 11:21-23). It was seen as a highlight, and an indicator of what was to come. It was the first major settlement of the land. Caleb, although a Kennizite (Num 32:12), was a recognised prince of Judah (Num 13:3; Num 13:6). We must remember that Israel were made up of many nations (Exo 12:38), incorporated into the tribal system, something not likely to be invented later. Later the Israelites looked back proudly to their ancestry as children of the patriarchs. For details of the giving of this portion see Jos 14:6-15.
“Even Kiriath-arba.” This means ‘the city of four’ or ‘city of Arba’ – see Gen 23:2. LXX described it as ‘the mother-city of the Anakim’. But there is no reason to reject Arba as a name or nickname and it is certainly related to the Anakim in some way, so when we are told here that it was named after a famous ancestor of the Anakim, named Arba, possibly because he had the strength or usefulness of four men (compare Jos 15:13; Jos 21:11 – which suggests that LXX translated ‘father’ as ‘mother’ because it related the latter more to a city) it makes good sense. It was the ancient name of Hebron.
“According to the commandment of YHWH to Joshua.” See Jos 14:13. Joshua would not have acted without YHWH’s command. Compare Deu 1:26.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Caleb’s Possession.
v. 13. And unto Caleb, the son of Jehunneh, he, v. 14. And Caleb drove thence, v. 15. And he went up thence to the inhabitants of Debir; and the name of Debir before was Kirjathsepher, v. 16. And Caleb said, He that smiteth Kirjathsepher and taketh it, to him will I give Achsah, my daughter, to wife, v. 17. and Othniel, the son of Kenaz, the brother of Caleb, took it; and he, v. 18. And it came to pass, as she came unto him, v. 19. Who answered, Give me a blessing; for thou hast given me a south land, v. 20. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Judah according to their families.
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
It should seem as if the Holy Ghost was graciously pleased to hold forth Caleb to the church in the honourable testimony he had before given of him. And here again the same subject is introduced. Them that honour me, saith the Lord, I will honour. 1Sa 2:30 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Jos 15:13 And unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh he gave a part among the children of Judah, according to the commandment of the LORD to Joshua, [even] the city of Arba the father of Anak, which [city is] Hebron.
Ver. 13. And unto Caleb. ] See Jos 14:13 .
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED TEXT): Jos 15:13-19
13 Now he gave to Caleb the son of Jephunneh a portion among the sons of Judah, according to the command of the LORD to Joshua, namely, Kiriath-arba, Arba being the father of Anak (that is, Hebron). 14Caleb drove out from there the three sons of Anak: Sheshai and Ahiman and Talmai, the children of Anak. 15Then he went up from there against the inhabitants of Debir; now the name of Debir formerly was Kiriath-sepher. 16And Caleb said, The one who attacks Kiriath-sepher and captures it, I will give him Achsah my daughter as a wife. 17Othniel the son of Kenaz, the brother of Caleb, captured it; so he gave him Achsah his daughter as a wife. 18It came about that when she came to him, she persuaded him to ask her father for a field. So she alighted from the donkey, and Caleb said to her, What do you want? 19Then she said, Give me a blessing; since you have given me the land of the Negev, give me also springs of water. So he gave her the upper springs and the lower springs.
Jos 15:13-19 This describes the fall of Hebron to Caleb (cf. Jos 11:21-22; Jos 14:13-15; Jos 15:13-19; Jdg 1:16-21).
Jos 15:14 Anak See notes at Jos 11:21.
Jos 15:15 Kiriath-sepher This meant city of scribes (BDB 900, cf. Jdg 1:11-12). Apparently it was the location of a school which trained scribes in writing and recording within the Canaanite culture.
Jos 15:17 Othniel He was Caleb’s younger brother. He later became a judge (cf. Jdg 1:13; Jdg 3:9).
son of Kenza (cf. Jos 14:6; Jos 14:14).
Jos 15:18
NASB, NJBso she alighted from the donkey
NKJV, NRSV,
REVso she dismounted from her donkey
TEVshe got down from her donkey
NJBas she sat on the ass, she broke wind
The VERB’S (BDB 856, KB 1038, cf. Jdg 1:14) meaning is disputed. In Jdg 4:21 it is used of Jael driving the tent peg through Sisera’s head into the ground.
Whatever it meant, it was an idiom for getting someone’s attention (i.e., a noise, a gesture). The KB 1038 has clap one’s hands.
Jos 15:19 This verse describes the bridal gift of Caleb to his daughter (Achsah) and brother (Othniel). Notice the number of times the VERB give (BDB 678, KB 733) is used.
1. Qal IMPERATIVE
2. Qal PERFECT
3 Qal PERFECT
4. Qal IMPERFECT
The Negev (i.e., south country, BDB 616) is very dry. The daughter knew what she was doing! This account is retold at the beginning of Judges (cf. Jos 1:11-15).
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
the LORD. Hebrew. Jehovah. App-4.
Arba Compare note on Jos 14:15.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
63, Rewards of Courage
Jos 15:13-19
Arba was the greatest among the Anakim or giants, Jos 14:15. His three sons were equally formidable, Jos 15:14. But Caleb subdued them through an omnipotent faith, 1Jn 5:4-5. Jesus can give us victory over the Anakim of our hearts; the only condition is faith.
Twice in Scripture we are told this story of Achsah. See Jdg 1:13, etc. With fatherly generosity Caleb gave her the upper and the nether springs. When men are right with God they can distribute living water to others. Let us never rest content with the lower, but aspire to the highest, Joh 3:12, remembering that it is our Fathers good pleasure to give.
Alas for the record of Jos 15:63! Centuries passed till David came and subdued the city, 2Sa 5:6. But there would have been no waiting had Judah gone up in the power of God. See Psa 60:5, etc.
Fuente: F.B. Meyer’s Through the Bible Commentary
Caleb: Jos 14:6-15, Num 13:30, Num 14:23, Num 14:24, Deu 1:34-36
the city of Arba: or, Kirjath-arba, Jos 14:15
Reciprocal: Gen 35:27 – Mamre Num 13:6 – Caleb Num 13:22 – Ahiman Jos 10:36 – Hebron Jos 11:21 – the Anakims Jos 14:13 – gave unto Jos 15:54 – Kirjatharba Jos 21:11 – the city of Arba Jdg 1:9 – afterward Jdg 1:10 – Sheshai Jdg 1:12 – And Caleb Jdg 1:20 – they gave 1Sa 30:14 – Caleb 1Ch 4:15 – Caleb 1Ch 6:55 – Hebron 1Ch 6:56 – the fields
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Dividing the Inheritances
Jos 14:6-15; Jos 15:13-19
INTRODUCTORY WORDS
We have come to a very interesting place in the early history of Israel-even to the dividing of the land, and to the allotting of the inheritances to each tribe, and family.
The sad phase of all of this is given to the student for consideration. It is his to consider those who failed of their inheritances, and of entrance into Canaan.
1. A story of unbelief. We remember how the Children of Israel under Moses had come up to Kadesh-barnea. At that time spies were sent out to bring a report of the land. Ten of the twelve brought a bad report. All of this discouraged the hearts of the elders in Israel, and they refused to go up.
The result was that the Lord swore in His wrath saying, “Surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see that good land, which I sware to give unto your fathers, save Caleb * * and * * Joshua.”
A fuller statement of the unbelief of the elders is given in 1Co 10:1-12. There we read of five things which sprang up from unbelief, and which marred the wilderness journey of those who were turned back from entering into Canaan.
(1) They lusted after evil things. They were not satisfied with the Heavenly manna, the angels’ food which God gave unto them; nor were they satisfied with the meat, the quails, which He gave.
How many there are, today, who lust after evil things and forget the spiritual. They think more of the garlic and onions of Egypt, than they do of the Heavenly Bread. They think more of the red lentil porridge, than they think of the Heavenly Manna. They would rather drink from the wells of men, than to drink the Water of Life which conies from the Riven Rock.
(2) They were idolaters. Our mind goes at once to the golden calf which they worshiped when they sat down to eat and to drink and rose up to play.
(3) They committed fornication; they tempted Christ; they murmured. In all of this they sinned. In one day there fell twenty-three thousand. Another day, they were destroyed by the serpents. Still later they were destroyed of the destroyer.
2. The lesson which we should learn. It is written: “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.”
In line with the warning above, the Holy Spirit has written two chapters in Hebrews reminding us of how the fathers tempted the Holy Ghost and proved Him, and saw His works forty years.
We read that they hardened their hearts in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness. Again we read that the Holy Spirit sware in His wrath and said: “They shall not enter into My rest.” With this historical statement recorded, the Spirit adds: “Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the Living God.”
Thus, as we see those who utterly failed to enter into their Canaan rest and their inheritances, we are reminded that there remaineth a rest unto the children of God, and that into that rest some must enter. The warning, however, is distinctly made, “Let us therefore fear, lest a promise being left us of entering into His rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.”
I. DIVIDING THE PORTIONS AMONG THE TRIBES OF ISRAEL (Jos 14:1-2)
1. Each tribe received something. We have just read how the elders of Moses’ day had failed to receive anything. Their bodies, with the exception of those of Caleb and Joshua, all fell in the wilderness. We now read that thirty years later, each tribe of Israel received an inheritance.
There is a passage in the New Testament which coincides with this: “Then shall every man have praise of God.” Our conclusion is, therefore, that all of the faithful will receive something by way of reward. It is written that a cup of cold water given in the name of a disciple shall receive its reward.
There are many people who vainly imagine that our present life, after we are saved, receives nothing when Christ comes by way of reward. They imagine that all will be alike in Heaven. Not so. Our God is not unfaithful, that He should forget our work and labor of love which we have showed toward His Name, in that we have ministered to the saints, and do minister. Every one of us, therefore, should be occupying with all fidelity till He come.
2. Each tribe received a different portion. When the Lord Jesus Christ comes to reward His saints He will give to every one according as his work shall be.
The nobleman who went into a far country, left his servants to serve and to trade until the time of his return. When he returned he rewarded them according to that which they had gained.
Rewards will be based primarily upon three things. First, the life we have lived. Secondly, the faith we have held; and, thirdly, the work we have done. In all of this, let us seek to be faithful. It was a happy day when Israel had divided unto them their inheritances. It will be a happy day for us when ours are divided unto us.
II. CALEB MAKES HIS CLAIM (Jos 14:6)
1. Rewards are based upon worth. Our key verse says: “And Caleb * * said unto him, Thou knowest the thing that the Lord said unto Moses the man of God concerning me and thee in Kadesh-barnea.”
Caleb is reminding Joshua of the promise which God had made unto Moses concerning himself and Joshua. This promise of rewards was based upon their fidelity to God and their unswerving faith when they returned from espying the land. Caleb said: “I brought him word again as it was in mine heart.” Then he added: “I wholly followed the Lord my God.”
Christians should live their lives, not for present-hour rewards, but for those rewards which Christ will bring with Him when He comes. Christians should serve the Lord, knowing that of the Lord, they shall receive according to that which they do.
In the world we may have tribulation. For the while, it may seem as though there is no reward for faithfulness. However, we need to remember what Paul said in the Spirit: “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the Righteous Judge, shall give me at that day.”
The undershepherd is to feed the flock of God, with the understanding that when the Chief Shepherd shall appear, he shall receive his crown.
2. Rewards are enlarged by faithfulness in the midst of adversity. Caleb stresses the fact that he followed fully, while his brethren who were spies with him, brought back an evil report of the land, and made the heart of the people to melt. It is one thing to be faithful, it is another thing to be faithful in the midst of predominant opposing forces.
There is something about Enoch which magnifies his fidelity and his testimony. He dwelt in the middle of an age which began with Adam, and ended with the Flood. While the apostasy swept the world he was true.
III. CLAIMING THE PROMISES (Jos 14:9)
1. Promises of long standing are still good. The 9th verse has something illuminating in it. Caleb said: “And Moses sware on that day, saying, Surely the land whereon thy feet have trodden shall be thine inheritance, and thy children’s for ever.”
God’s Word is always good. It is forever settled in Heaven. The fact that centuries may pass, or even millenniums, between a promise and its fulfillment, has nothing to do with the certainty of God’s Word.
Our works, which are wrought today, awaith the time of Christ’s Return for their full reward.
The fact that Moses, and Joshua, and David, and Paul, lived so far back in the years, does not mean that they have, therefore, lost every possibility of reward at Christ’s Coming.
When we stand in the Millennial Kingdom we will be able to say, “There hath not failed one good thing of all that God hath spoken.” Every promise of God is yea, and Amen, in Christ Jesus.
Every promise in the Book is mine,
Every chapter, every verse, every line,
‘Tis the promise of His love,
Written from the courts above,
‘Tis a Word that’s all Divine,
In the glory it will shine,
It is mine.
2. Promises must be claimed. It was not unseemly for Caleb to press his claim. It was not uncouth for him to remind Joshua of the words spoken of the Lord, by the lips of Moses.
We not only have the right to claim God’s promises, but we honor God in so doing. If He hath spoken, we show our faith in His Word when we claim the verity of its promise. The truth is that God wants us to put in our claims. He delights in having us place our feet upon His pledges. When we pray, claiming some promise from the pen of the Spirit we honor the Spirit.
There is one thing against which we must guard. That is the misquotations of Scripture, and the misapplication thereof. Satan said to Christ: “It is written.” Christ quickly replied: “It is written again.”
IV. GOD KEEPS CALEB FOR HIS PROMISES (Jos 14:10-11)
1. Caleb was kept alive in order that he might inherit his inheritance. In Jos 14:10 he said: “Behold, the Lord hath kept me alive, as He said, these forty and five years, even since the Lord spake this word unto Moses.” Caleb reminded Joshua that he was forty years old when he had returned with a good report of the land, when he had received the promise of his inheritance. He said that through Divine power he had been kept alive by God until his eighty-fifth year. Yet said he: “I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in.”
2. The inheritance had been kept as securely as Caleb was kept. We love to put it this way: Caleb was kept for his inheritance, and the inheritance was kept for Caleb. Thus it is that God works at both ends of the line.
In the Epistle of Peter we read these words: “An inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in Heaven for you.” The word “reserved” means “kept.” There is hardly anyone who will read this study who will doubt God’s keeping power, so far as our Heavenly inheritance is concerned. He is not only able to keep it, but He will keep is undefiled. There is no danger of a cyclone coming, or of some devastating fire to sweep the Heavenly Mansions from the Glory. They are kept awaiting the day when we shall enter in.
It is in this that the believer greatly rejoices, even though for a season he may be in heaviness through manifold temptations. He rejoices that he is kept for an inheritance which is kept for him, Joshua lived to see the day which proved that he who had been kept entered into an inheritance which had been kept for him. The forty-five years of trial did not mar God’s keeping power.
V. HAVING OBTAINED HELP OF GOD (Jos 14:12-15)
1. He who had helped him hitherto. Caleb stood before Joshua and said in effect: God hath hitherto helped me, and He will not fail me now. Caleb knew that the God of yesterday would prove the God of today. The God that he served was not a God merely who had wrought, but a God who could work.
Would that this vision of the Almighty might grip us at this very hour. Too many of us are living on past glories. We delight in reciting the conquests of yesterday. We live in the victories of the past. Church history, with its stories of the martyrs of the faith, with its messages of great achievements and marvelous blessing, thrill us.
We delight to study the biographies of such men as Paul and Melanchthon, as Luther and Calvin, as Spurgeon and Moody. While we do this, we find that the church of our own day is being swept with apostasy, swayed by unbelief, and engulfed with a deluge of worldliness. Are there no present-day herpes and heroines to stem the tide?
2. He who would still help. Caleb asked for no easy inheritance. To be sure the Lord had brought him into the land. To be sure He had led him through forty-five years, and renewed his strength as the eagle’s. However, the place which he asked for an inheritance was a place which had not yet been fully overcome. Therefore, Caleb said: “If so be the Lord will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the Lord said.”
At forty years of age, Caleb had told the Children of Israel how the Anakims were there, but said he, “Our God is abundantly able.” Caleb, now at eighty-five years of age, had lost none, of his old-time faith. He was still ready for an aggressive warfare, not, however, in his own strength.
He placed his faith in the Lord, and therefore he was ready to fight.
To us one of the beautiful verses of Scripture is Jos 14:13. “And Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb * * Hebron for an inheritance.”
VI. CALEB’S GENEROSITY (Jos 15:16-17)
1. Our minds go to the marriage in the skies. Jos 15:16 says: “And Caleb said, He that smiteth Kirjath-sepher, and taketh it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife.” Then we read: “And Othniel * * took it: and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife.”
(1) Our Lord is Christ the Warrior. Our Lord met Satan and his principalities and powers upon the Cross. There in a battle unto the death, He vanquished them, triumphing over them in it.
(2) Our Lord by virtue of His conquest has been given a wonderful Bride to become His wife. That was a great day when Othniel took Achsah to be his wife. It was a day of feasting and of rejoicing. That will be a more wonderful day when Jesus Christ takes His wife unto Himself. It will be a memorable feast, that will crown that Heavenly Marriage.
We read in Rev 19:1-21, “Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to Him: for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife hath made herself ready.” After describing the beauty of the bride, as she was arrayed in fine linen, clean and white, the angel said unto John, “Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.”
2. Our minds go to the inheritance of the Bride. Caleb gave unto his daughter and unto Othniel a marvelous inheritance. Will God not give unto His Son, and to the Bride of the Lamb, a wonderful inheritance?
In the Book of Revelation we read: “Come hither, I will shew thee the Bride, the Lamb’s Wife.” Then John was carried away, in the Spirit, to a great and high mountain and he saw that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of Heaven from God.
We are entranced as we view the glory of that City. Its light was like unto a stone most precious. The city had a wall great and high. It had twelve gates, and every several gate was one pearl. The street of the City was pure gold. The City had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of the Lord did lighten it and the Lamb was the Light thereof.
VII. THE UPPER AND THE NETHER SPRINGS (Jos 15:18-19)
A Blessing to conserve a blessing. Caleb had given to Othniel not alone his daughter as a reward for his valor, but he had given also a certain land for him to possess. Now, in addition to the land they made another request of Caleb. His daughter said: “Thou hast given me a south land: give me also springs of water. And he gave her the upper springs, and the nether springs.”
It was necessary in order to conserve the fertility of the land to have water wherewith it could be watered. Therefore, the springs were given,-both the upper and the nether springs. Let us consider these two springs in their spiritual significance.
1. The upper springs suggest the believer’s spiritual blessings. We who live down here are blessed with every spiritual blessing in the Heavenly places. The things not seen, take precedence over the things seen; the things which are above, superabound over the things which are beneath.
Saints who are journeying among men delight in setting their affection on the things above, not on the things which are upon the earth.
May we enumerate some of those spiritual blessings which are ours in Christ. These are the waters which flow from the upper springs. In Ephesians chapter 1 we read of the blessings in the Heavenlies as follows:
(1) We are chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.
(2) We are predestinated unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ unto Himself.
(3) We are acclaimed as accepted in the Beloved.
(4) Through Him and His Blood we have redemption and the forgiveness of sins.
(5) In Him we have obtained an inheritance.
(6). In Him, after we believed, we were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, until the Redemption of the purchased possession.
2. The nether springs. These stand for our earthly and temporal blessings. We do not have time to enumerate them. They are, however, all included in one verse of Scripture: “My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in Glory by Christ Jesus.”
AN ILLUSTRATION
Let us not be satisfied with small things. God has a great inheritance for us, A friend of mine, a great preacher who died only a little while ago, once told me this story. He was staying with a friend, and, while dressing, out of his bedroom window he saw a sea gull in the back yard trying to take a bath in a pie dish filled with rain water! The poor bird’s wings were clipped, and it was tamed because of that fact Fancy a sea gull, born to free-wheel over an ocean, and born to circle the moon and the stars, a gull, the child of empires and worlds, trying to feed itself and satisfy itself in a pie dish!
There are thousands of people who arc doing no better than that today. We cannot satisfy our immortal interests, our Divine nature, with the things that we can handle any more than that poor little clipped-wing sea gull could satisfy himself in a pie dish.-From The Beauty of Jesus, by Gipsy Smith.
Fuente: Neighbour’s Wells of Living Water
The writer probably included the record of Caleb’s success in driving out the Canaanites in his area to highlight the effect of faith in the settling of the land. Othniel (Jos 15:17) was one of Israel’s prominent judges (Jdg 3:9), probably the first whom God raised up in Israel after Joshua’s death. He was Caleb’s younger brother (Heb. ’ah, cf. Jdg 1:13; Jdg 3:9) and bore the spiritual characteristics of his sibling. Some translators and commentators believed Othniel was Caleb’s nephew, but this seems unlikely.
"Acsah’s request for the springs is reminiscent of Rebekah’s meeting with Isaac (Gen 24:61-67) in which she also (1) approaches riding on an animal; (2) descends; (3) makes a request; and (4) receives the desired result from the person whom she approaches. Both accounts involve an inheritance of the blessing that God had promised to Abraham. This is probably the reason for the inclusion of this particular note." [Note: Hess, p. 245.]