Double Portion for Manasseh

Описание: Ever wonder why Manasseh had two allotments in the division of the land? There is a reason. They quite literally came to Joshua and asked for it.

Machir, the firstborn of Manasseh, bore Gilead, his firstborn. Machir was a man of war, conquering Gilead and Bashan, so that land was given to him and his family. That land of the giants was and still is a land people fought over to obtain. The Golan Heights was recently repossessed by Israel after the fall of Assad in Syria. This place has great significance, and would be the home of the prophet Elijah.

The rest of Manasseh came to Joshua and cast the lot. The Sons of Helek, Asriel, Shechem, Hepher, Shemida, and the daughters of Zelophehad all received their inheritance. Their land was a vast territory west of the Jordan. From Jericho to Joppa by the Mediterranean, up to Mount Carmel and across to the bottom of the Sea of Galilee, back down the Jordan, this was a large area. Towns inside their land include Beth Shean, Ibleam, En-dor, Taanach, Megiddo, and Napheth.

The Caananites who were still dwelling in the land persisted in their own cities. Manasseh could not drive them out, but once they were strong enough, they made them forced laborers. Like the other tribes, this disobedience would have long term negative effects.

The sons of Joseph came and asked why they only had one lot and portion, since they were a numerous people. So Joshua told them, ‘If you are a numerous people, go up to the forest and clear a place for yourself there in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim, since the hill country of Ephraim is too narrow for you.’ They then complained that the Canaanites who lived in the valley had iron chariots.

Joshua firmly told them that if they wished for more territory, they would have to go and possess it. The hill country was theirs, the forest too, all the way up to its furthest borders. They would have to drive out the Canaanites - and they would - even though they had iron chariots and were strong.

They did possess that land. Ephraim and Manasseh would be the core of the northern kingdom of Israel after it split in the days of King Rehoboam. They would be conquered by Assyria, then sent into exile for their sins and disobedience. Those tribes were never lost, but would return from exile when God brought the other back. The people who remained in the land would intermarry with other exiles brought into their land and become what the Jews labeled as Samaritans. This is why the Samaritans would claim to worship the God of Jacob, though their practices differed slightly than the Jews.