Joshua 22:13

And the children of Israel sent unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh, into the land of Gilead, Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest,

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(13) Phinehas . . . and (14) ten princes.—According to the constitution established by Moses, a government by priests and judges. Phinehas in particular was well suited to the office of “defender of the faith” (see Numbers 25).

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

22:10-20 Here is the care of the separated tribes to keep their hold of Canaan's religion. At first sight it seemed a design to set up an altar against the altar at Shiloh. God is jealous for his own institutions; we should be so too, and afraid of every thing that looks like, or leads to idolatry. Corruptions in religion are best dealt with at first. But their prudence in following up this zealous resolution is no less commendable. Many an unhappy strife would be prevented, or soon made up, by inquiries into the matter of the offence. The remembrance of great sins committed formerly, should engage us to stand on our guard against the beginnings of sin; for the way of sin is down-hill. We are all concerned to reprove our neighbour when he does amiss, lest we suffer sin upon him, Le 19:17. The offer made that they should be welcome to come to the land where the Lord's tabernacle was, and settle there, was in the spirit of true Israelites.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Gathered themselves together - The various tribes had already dispersed to their homes, and were now summoned together again.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

Jos 22:11-29. Contention Thereupon.

11-29. and the children of Israel heard say—Fame speedily spread intelligence of what the trans-jordanic tribes had done. The act being suspected of some idolatrous design, the tribes rose in a mass, and repairing to the tabernacle at Shiloh, resolved to declare war against the two tribes and a half as apostates from God. On calmer and more mature consideration, however, they determined, in the first instance, to send a deputation consisting of the son of the high priest, and ten eminent persons from each tribe, to make inquiry into this rumored rebellion against God (De 13:13-15). The quality of the deputies evinced the deep solicitude that was felt on the occasion to maintain the purity of the divine worship throughout Israel. In the presumptive belief that the two tribes and a half had really built an altar, the deputies expressed astonishment at their so soon falling into such a heinous crime as that of violating the unity of divine worship (Ex 20:24; Leviticus 17:8, 9; De 12:5-13). They reminded their eastern brethren of the disastrous consequences that were entailed on the nation at large by the apostasy at Peor and by the sin of Achan, and finally exhorted them, if they felt the want of the tabernacle and altar and repented of their rash choice in preferring worldly advantages to religious privileges, to remove to the western side of the Jordan, where all the tribes would form a united and obedient community of worshippers.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

No text from Poole on this verse.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And the children of Israel,.... In the land of Canaan:

sent unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh, unto the land of Gilead; they were possessed of, and had now returned unto and dwelt in; hither they sent an embassy to them, to inquire into the truth of what they had heard, and the reason of it, before they went to war with them, or proclaimed it, or took any further steps towards it; and which they were obliged to do by the above law, when there was any suspicion of idolatry, and any good ground and reason for it, Deuteronomy 13:14; and at the head of this deputation was

Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest; a man zealous for the Lord of hosts, and his glory, of which there is an instance in Numbers 25:7; and so a fit person to be employed in this affair, who would be faithful, bold, and zealous, as well as capable of giving advice and counsel to both parties, if needful.

Geneva Study Bible

And the children of Israel sent unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh, into the land of Gilead, Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest,

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

13. And the children of Israel sent] The holy jealousy which inspired them did not induce them to proceed hastily, or without proper enquiry. They resolved to send a deputation to ascertain the meaning of what had been done.

Phinehas] In Hebrew Pinchas, in the Apocryphal Books Phinees, was the son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron (Exodus 6:25). While yet a youth he had been memorable for his zeal and energy at the critical moment of the sin of Peor at Shittim, and appeased the Divine wrath and put a stop to the plague which was destroying the nation (Numbers 25:7). For this he received the special approbation of Jehovah, and the promise that the priesthood should remain in his family for ever (Numbers 25:10-13). This seems to have raised him to a very high position in the nation, and he figures rather than his father as the leading member of the hierarchy;—(a) In the conflict with Midian (Numbers 31:6), (b) in this dispute with the Reubenites, (c) in the war with the Benjamites (Jdg 20:28) he is the chief oracle and adviser. The memory of the zealous priest was very dear to the Jews. He is specially commemorated in one of the Psalms (Psalm 106:30-31), and the priests who returned from the captivity are enrolled in the official lists as the sons of Phinehas (Ezra 8:2; 1Es 5:5). In his Egyptian name he bore the last trace of the sojourn of the nation in “the land of Ham.” His tomb, a place of great resort to Jews and Samaritans, is shewn at Awertah, 4 miles south-east of Nablus.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 13. - Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest. Their messenger was well chosen. He was the representative of the high priest, whose duty it was to call attention to all infringements of the law. He had proved his own fiery zeal for the purity of Israelitish faith and life by his conduct at a critical moment of his countrymen's history, when Balaam's miserable intrigues had brought the Israelites to the brink of destruction (Numbers 25:7). Such an envoy, if the trans-Jordanic tribes had indeed disobeyed God's command, was well qualified to bring them to a sense of their sin. Once again we find him in his proper position, at the head of the children of Israel (Judges 20:28), and that was when they were once more assembled to avenge the atrocious crime of the men of Gibeah. Joshua 22:13

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

The congregation therefore sent Phinehas, the son of the high priest and his presumptive successor in this office, with ten princes, one from each tribe (not the tribe-princes, but a head of the fathers' houses of the families of Israel), to Gilead, to the two tribes and a half, to call them to account for building the altar.