Today we begin Joshua Chapter 18.
To read the Complete Jewish Bible, click HERE.
To read the King James version, click HERE.
“The entire community of the people of Israel assembled themselves together at Shiloh and set up the tent of meeting there, after the land had been subdued before them.”-Joshua 18:1
Verse 1 of Joshua Chapter 18 is jam-packed with all kinds of pertinent information.
First, recall that central headquarters for operations up until now was situated in Gilgal.
Gilgal was where the Wilderness Tabernacle had been located…
…which means it was the very place where the Levitical priests lived and oversaw all of the sacrificial rituals in addition to taking care of the sacred tent.
It was also the place where the Ark of the Covenant was located and this was during the time when the Shekinah Glory dwelled there.
Later on, we’ll find out that Gilgal ended up falling into Benjamin’s territory.
Now, all of a sudden, without any advance notification nor any special reason given, we’re told that Shiloh had become the central government and religious headquarters for all of Israel.
Keep in mind, we really don’t know how much time had passed from Joshua Chapter 17 to Chapter 18.
At the least, it would have been a couple of years.
At this time, Joshua’s army was still active and the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh and Judah had won a series of victories against pockets of rebellious Canaanites who desperately tried to hold on to their cities until they were driven out.
Needless to say, we know for a fact that that at this time enough of the land was under control so that the Tent of Meeting could be transported to another more convenient location that was central to all the tribes of Israel.
Finally, there’s another interesting little tidbit I want to make sure you don’t overlook.
Shiloh was located in the territory of Ephraim!
Ephraim, no doubt, had lobbied like crazy to make sure Israel’s religious power center would be moved to their neck of the woods.
Because if the truth be told, although Shiloh was in a central location, there were actually other locations that were much more convenient and much more central to all of the tribes.
For example, I’m talking about the Shefelah or even some of the areas situated in the low foothills.
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