5 “As the Lord commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did, and they divided the land. 6 Then the children of Judah drew nigh unto Joshua in Gilgal, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said unto him: Thou knowest the thing that the Lord spake unto Moses the man of God concerning me and concerning thee in Kadesh-barnea. 7 Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land; and I brought him word again as it was in mine heart. 8 Nevertheless my brethren that went up with me made the heart of the people melt; but I wholly followed the Lord my God. 9 And Moses sware on that day, saying, Surely the land whereon thy foot hath trodden shall be an inheritance to thee and to thy children forever, because thou hast wholly followed the Lord my God. 10 And now, behold, the Lord hath kept me alive, as He spake, these forty and five years, from the time that the Lord spake this word unto Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness; and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old. 11 As yet 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, and to go out and to come in. 12 Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the Lord spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakim were there, and cities great and fenced; it may be that the Lord will be with me, and I shall drive them out, as the Lord spake. 13 And Joshua blessed him; and he gave 14 Hebron unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh for an inheritance. 15 Therefore Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, unto this day; because that he wholly followed the Lord, the God of Israel. Now the name of Hebron beforetime was Kirjath-arba; which Arba was the greatest man among the Anakim. And the land had rest from war.”
Golden Text.—“He wholly followed the Lord.” Verse 14.
Special Helps.—“Patriarchs and Prophets,” Ch. 48, pp. 511-515.
Suggestive Questions.
(1) What command to Moses was carried out after the people came into Canaan? Verse 5. Note 1. (2) By whom came to Joshua at Gilgal? What did Caleb say to Joshua? Verse 6. Note 2. (3) To what former service did Caleb refer? What did he say of his report of that service? Verse 7. Note 3. (4) What did he say of the report of his fellow spies? And what of himself? Verse 8. Note 4. (5) What promise had Moses made to Caleb? Why? Verse 9. Note 5. (6) What testimony did Caleb give concerning the Lord’s care? What was his age as he appeared before Joshua at Gilgal? Verse 10. (7) What did he say of his strength? Verse 11. Note 6. (8) Then what plea did he make? And what expression of faith did he utter? Verse 12. (9) How did Joshua receive the petition of Caleb? Verse 13. Note 7. (10) What does the record say of Caleb’s success in his undertaking? Verse 14. (11) By what other name was Hebron known? What followed the settlement of Caleb in his new possession? Verse 15.
Notes.
1. The division of the land took place about five years after the crossing of the Jordan, reckoning from Caleb’s statement of his age, in verses 7 and 10. The twelfth chapter of Joshua gives a list of the kings and places that had been overcome in battle. The Lord had previously told Moses whom to appoint as a commission to divide the land, namely, Eleazar the priest, Joshua, and a prince of each tribe. See Num. 34:16-29.
2. Caleb, being himself one of the commissioners to divide the land, could have made his plea without others to assist him, especially as Joshua was personally cognizant of the facts in his case. But it was necessary that his tribe should know for themselves that he, as commissioner, had not used his office for his own benefit. So he made his claim and received his award openly.
3. The report brought by Caleb at the time referred to was a conscientious, as well as a brave one. He and Joshua had stood out faithfully for the truth in the face of the majority report and popular clamor.
4. “I wholly followed the Lord.” This was not mere self-praise on Caleb’s part. The Lord had at the time given the same testimony concerning him. Num. 14:24. Like the patriarch Enoch, he had the testimony that he pleased God. Heb. 11:5.
5. Moses, also, was a witness to Caleb’s faithfulness in every emergency, thus the Lord, Moses, and Joshua were three witnesses to Caleb’s claim.
6. Caleb’s strength and vigor had been preserved while all the men of his generation, excepting himself and Joshua, were dead. This was the direct result of his faithfulness, his temperate living being of course a means by which he was preserved. Moses, at the age of 120 years, was in the same condition of physical health and strength, but he had to die, as an object lesson to the people and to future generations, because on one occasion he failed to give God the glory for a notable miracle in the presence of the people. God gives temporal blessing for the glory of His name and the furtherance of His cause. Otherwise it is of only temporal benefit.
7. An opportunity was now given to Caleb to demonstrate the faith he had expressed forty-five years before, that they were able to possess the land occupied by the giants. Num. 13:30. He was still ready to go against them with only his own immediate followers. And he succeeded, too, (Joshua 15:13-17), because he “wholly followed the Lord, the God of Israel.” In this lies the secret of all success.
