Joshua 14:5
So the Israelites did as the LORD had commanded Moses, and they divided the land.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The narrator records the Israelites acting at the moment of territorial distribution in Canaan, immediately following the accounting of tribal lineages and the death of Moses.
The words — The Hebrew כֵּן (ken) translates to "so" or "thus," signaling immediate execution, while צִוָּה (tzi.Vah) means "he had commanded," anchoring the action to prior divine instruction.
The thread — This execution of Mosaic directives regarding land allocation parallels the Levitical city distribution in Joshua 21:2 and the initial territorial instructions delivered on the plains of Moab in Numbers 35:1.
Why it lands — The text states that the Israelites divided the land exactly as commanded; the reader must acknowledge that inheritance and territorial boundaries are established through strict compliance with divine instruction rather than human negotiation.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
As the Lord commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did, and they divided the land.
Cross-references
- Joshua 21:2 at Shiloh in the land of Canaan and said to them, “The LORD commanded through Moses that we be given cities in which to live, together with pasturelands for our livestock.”
- Numbers 35:1 Again the LORD spoke to Moses on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho: