Joshua 18:8-23: a reflection

8The men arose and went. Joshua commanded those who went to survey the land, saying, “Go walk through the land, survey it, and come again to me. I will cast lots for you here before the LORD in Shiloh.” 9The men went and passed through the land, and surveyed it by cities into seven portions in a book. They came to Joshua to the camp at Shiloh. 10Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD. There Joshua divided the land to the children of Israel according to their divisions. 11The lot of the tribe of the children of Benjamin came up according to their families. The border of their lot went out between the children of Judah and the children of Joseph. 12Their border on the north quarter was from the Jordan. The border went up to the side of Jericho on the north, and went up through the hill country westward. It ended at the wilderness of Beth Aven. 13The border passed along from there to Luz, to the side of Luz (also called Bethel), southward. The border went down to Ataroth Addar, by the mountain that lies on the south of Beth Horon the lower. 14The border extended, and turned around on the west quarter southward, from the mountain that lies before Beth Horon southward; and ended at Kiriath Baal (also called Kiriath Jearim), a city of the children of Judah. This was the west quarter. 15The south quarter was from the farthest part of Kiriath Jearim. The border went out westward, and went out to the spring of the waters of Nephtoah. 16The border went down to the farthest part of the mountain that lies before the valley of the son of Hinnom, which is in the valley of Rephaim northward. It went down to the valley of Hinnom, to the side of the Jebusite southward, and went down to En Rogel. 17It extended northward, went out at En Shemesh, and went out to Geliloth, which is opposite the ascent of Adummim. It went down to the stone of Bohan the son of Reuben. 18It passed along to the side opposite the Arabah northward, and went down to the Arabah. 19The border passed along to the side of Beth Hoglah northward; and the border ended at the north bay of the Salt Sea, at the south end of the Jordan. This was the south border. 20The Jordan was its border on the east quarter. This was the inheritance of the children of Benjamin, by the borders around it, according to their families. 21Now the cities of the tribe of the children of Benjamin according to their families were Jericho, Beth Hoglah, Emek Keziz, 22Beth Arabah, Zemaraim, Bethel, 23Avvim, Parah, Ophrah,

The land still needs to be divided among the remaining tribes, and Joshua sends men to do careful work: go, walk through the land, survey it, and write down a description of it, then come back to me. The men go and diligently map the territory, dividing it into portions and recording it in a book. Then Joshua casts lots before the Lord at Shiloh to determine which tribe receives which portion. Careful human effort and trust in God's providence work together.

Notice the combination. The land was thoroughly surveyed, real work done to map and describe it, and then the actual allotment was left to the lot, cast before the Lord, which Israel understood as an expression of God's own choosing. Neither the human effort nor the divine decision was skipped. They did their diligent part, walking the land and writing it down, and then they entrusted the outcome to God. Diligence and dependence together.

This is a healthy pattern for facing decisions and dividing responsibilities in your own life. It is not a choice between careful effort and trusting God; it is both. Do your part diligently, gather the information, survey the situation, plan wisely, and then entrust the outcome to God, casting your lot before him in prayer. God honors both the diligence and the dependence. Work as carefully as those surveyors, and then trust the Lord with the allotment, believing that the portion he assigns is right.

Lord, your people surveyed the land carefully and then cast lots before you, joining diligent effort with trust in your providence. Teach me that same pattern. Help me to do my part with care, to plan and work diligently, and then to entrust the outcome to you rather than to my own control. I do my part; I leave the allotment in your hands, trusting that the portion you assign is right. Amen.