Then the Israelites received the report: “Behold, the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh have built an altar on the border of the land of Canaan, at Geliloth near the Jordan on the Israelite side.”
Parallel translations
- WEB The children of Israel heard this, “Behold, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh have built an altar in the border of the land of Canaan, in the region around the Jordan, on the side that belongs to the children of Israel.”
- KJV And the children of Israel heard say, Behold, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh have built an altar over against the land of Canaan, in the borders of Jordan, at the passage of the children of Israel.
- NKJV Now the children of Israel heard someone say, “Behold, the children of Reuben, the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh have built an altar on the frontier of the land of Canaan, in the region of the Jordan—on the children of Israel’s side.”
- NASB But the sons of Israel heard a report: “Behold, the sons of Reuben, the sons of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh have built an altar at the frontier of the land of Canaan, in the region of the Jordan, on the side belonging to the sons of Israel.”
- NLT The rest of Israel heard that the people of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh had built an altar at Geliloth at the edge of the land of Canaan, on the west side of the Jordan River.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The western tribes hear that an altar has been built at the Jordan's border. It conveys the rising suspicion of unfaithfulness.
Overview
Word spreads quickly that the eastern tribes have erected an altar near the Jordan. To the rest of Israel this seemed to threaten the unity of worship centered at the tabernacle. The report shows how easily misunderstanding can arise and how seriously Israel took faithfulness in worship.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Deut 13:12–14If, regarding one of the cities the LORD your God is giving you to inhabit, you hear it said
- John 1:28All this happened at Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
- Lev 17:8–9Tell them that if anyone from the house of Israel or any foreigner living among them offers a burnt offering or a sacrifice
- Josh 2:7So the king’s men set out in pursuit of the spies along the road to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as they had gone out, the gate was shut.
- Deut 12:5–7Instead, you must seek the place the LORD your God will choose from among all your tribes to establish as a dwelling for His Name, and there you must go.
- John 20:12and she saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and the other at the feet.
- Judg 12:5The Gileadites captured the fords of the Jordan leading to Ephraim, and whenever a fugitive from Ephraim would say, “Let me cross over,” the Gileadites would ask him, “Are you an Ephraimite?” If he answered, “No,”
- John 20:1Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.
- Josh 3:14–16So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carried the ark of the covenant ahead of them.
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Joshua — the same name as Jesus, 'the LORD saves' — leads God's people into their inheritance, a shadow of the greater Joshua who brings us into the true rest and the promised land that remains.
How Joshua 22:11 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.