JOS 17:9 Parallel Verse View

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Text critical issues=none Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal Speaker(s)=Narrator (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

BrLXX Καὶ καταβήσεται τὰ ὅρια ἐπὶ φάραγγα Καρανὰ ἐπὶ Λίβα κατὰ φάραγγα Ἰαριὴλ· τερέμινθος τῷ Ἐφραῒμ ἀναμέσον πόλεως Μανασσῆ· καὶ ὅρια Μανασσῆ ἐπὶ τὸν βοῤῥᾶν εἰς τὸν χειμάῤῥουν· καὶ ἔσται αὐτοῦ ἡ διέξοδος θάλασσα
(Kai katabaʸsetai ta horia epi faranga Karana epi Liba kata faranga Yariaʸl; tereminthos tōi Efraim anameson poleōs Manassaʸ; kai horia Manassaʸ epi ton boɽɽan eis ton ⱪeimaɽɽoun; kai estai autou haʸ diexodos thalassa)

BrTr And the borders shall go down to the valley of Carana southward by the valley of Jariel, (there is a turpentine tree belonging to Ephraim between that and the city of Manasse:) and the borders of Manasse are northward to the brook; and the sea shall be its termination.

ULT And the border went down, to the wadi of Kanah. Southward of the wadi, these cities, were to Ephraim, in the midst of the cities of Manasseh. And the border of Manasseh, was from the north of the wadi, and its goings out were seaward.

UST The border extended south to the brook of Kanah. All the cities south of that stream belonged to the tribe of Ephraim. The border of Manasseh was on the north side of the brook of Kanah. It extended to the Great Sea.

BSB & MSB From there the border continued southward to the Brook of Kanah. There were cities belonging to Ephraim among the cities of Manasseh, but the border of Manasseh [was] on the north side of the brook and ended at the Sea.[fn]

17:9 That is, the Mediterranean Sea, also called the Great Sea; also in verse 10

OEB The frontier went down to the south of the Kanah Valley these towns belonged to Ephraim among the towns of Manasseh, then ran along the north side of the valley as far as the sea,

WEBBE & WMBB The border went down to the brook of Kanah, southward of the brook. These cities belonged to Ephraim amongst the cities of Manasseh. The border of Manasseh was on the north side of the brook, and ended at the sea.

NET The border then descended southward to the Valley of Kanah. Ephraim was assigned cities there among the cities of Manasseh, but the border of Manasseh was north of the valley and ended at the sea.

LSV And the border has come down [to] the Brook of Kanah, southward of the brook; these cities of Ephraim [are] in the midst of the cities of Manasseh, and the border of Manasseh [is] on the north of the brook, and its outgoings are at the sea.

FBV From there the boundary ran down to the valley of Kenah. South of the valley some of the towns belonged to Ephraim among the towns of Manasseh. The boundary ran along the north side of the valley and ended at the sea.

T4T The border of the land allotted to the tribe of Manasseh extended south to Kanah Gorge. From there it extended west along the north side of the gorge and ended at the Mediterranean Sea.

LEB Then the border goes down to the wadi[fn] of Kanah to the south of the wadi. These cities belong to Ephraim among the cities of Manasseh. The border of Manasseh is north of the wadi, and _⌊it ends_⌋[fn] at the sea.

17:9 A valley that is dry most of the year, but contains a stream during the rainy season

17:9 Literally “the goings out of it were”

BBE And the limit goes down to the stream Kanah, to the south of the stream: these towns were Ephraim's among the towns of Manasseh; Manasseh's limit was on the north side of the stream, ending at the sea:

Moff The frontier went down to the south of the brook of Kanah these towns belonged to Ephraim among the towns of Manasseh , then ran along the north side of the brook as far as the sea,

JPS And the border went down unto the brook of Kanah, southward of the brook, by cities which belonged to Ephraim among the cities of Manasseh; but the border of Manasseh was on the north side of the brook; and the goings out thereof were at the sea:

ASV And the border went down unto the brook of Kanah, southward of the brook: these cities belonged to Ephraim among the cities of Manasseh: and the border of Manasseh was on the north side of the brook, and the goings out thereof were at the sea:

DRA And the border goeth down to the valley of the reeds, to the south of the torrent of the cities of Ephraim, which are in the midst of the cities of Manasses: the border of Manasses is on the north side of the torrent, and the outgoings of it are at the sea:

YLT And the border hath come down [to] the brook of Kanah, southward of the brook; these cities of Ephraim [are] in the midst of the cities of Manasseh, and the border of Manasseh [is] on the north of the brook, and its outgoings are at the sea.

Drby And the border descended to the torrent Kanah, south of the torrent. These cities were Ephraim's among the cities of Manasseh. And the territory of Manasseh was on the north side of the torrent, and ended at the sea.

RV And the border went down unto the brook of Kanah, southward of the brook: these cities belonged to Ephraim among the cities of Manasseh: and the border of Manasseh was on the north side of the brook, and the goings out thereof were at the sea:

SLT And the bound went down to the torrent Kanah, south to the torrent. These cities to Ephraim in the midst of the cities of Manasseh: and the bound of Manasseh from the north to the torrent, and its outgoings shall be the sea.

Wbstr And the border descended to the river Kanah, southward of the river. These cities of Ephraim are among the cities of Manasseh: the border of Manasseh also was on the north side of the river, and the limits of it were at the sea:

KJB-1769 And the coast descended unto the river Kanah, southward of the river: these cities of Ephraim are among the cities of Manasseh: the coast of Manasseh also was on the north side of the river, and the outgoings of it were at the sea:[fn]

17.9 river Kanah: or, brook of reeds

KJB-1611 And the coast descended vnto the [fn]riuer Kanah, Southward of the riuer: these cities of Ephraim are among the cities of Manasseh: the coast of Manasseh also was on the North side of the riuer, and the outgoings of it were at the Sea.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from capitalisation and punctuation and footnotes)

17:9 Or, brooke of reeds.

Bshps And the coaste descended vnto the riuer Canah southwarde, euen to the riuer: These cities of Ephraim, are among ye cities of Manasses. The coaste of Manasses went also on the northside to the riuer, and the endes of it go out at the sea:
(And the coast descended unto the river Canah southward, even to the river: These cities of Ephraim, are among ye/you_all cities of Manasses. The coast of Manasses went also on the north_side to the river, and the ends of it go out at the sea:)

Gnva Also this border goeth downe vnto the riuer Kanah Southward to the riuer: these cities of Ephraim are among the cities of Manasseh: and the border of Manasseh is on the Northside of the riuer, and the endes of it are at the Sea,
(Also this border goeth/goes down unto the river Kanah Southward to the river: these cities of Ephraim are among the cities of Manasseh: and the border of Manasseh is on the North_side of the river, and the ends of it are at the Sea,)

Cvdl Then commeth it downe to Nahelkana towarde the south syde of the ryuer cities, which are Ephraims amonge the cities of Manasse. But from the north is the border of Manasse by the ryuer, and goeth forth by the see syde,
(Then cometh/comes it down to Nahelkana toward the south side of the river cities, which are Ephraims among the cities of Manasse. But from the north is the border of Manasse by the river, and goeth/goes forth by the seaside,)

Wycl And the terme of the valey of place of rehedis goith doun in the south of the stronde of the citees of Effraym, that ben in the myddis of the citees of Manasses. The terme of Manasses is fro the north of the stronde, and the goyng out therof goith to the see;
(And the term of the valley of place of reeds goeth/goes down in the south of the stream/river of the cities of Ephraim, that been in the midst of the cities of Manasses. The term of Manasses is from the north of the stream/river, and the going out thereof goeth/goes to the sea;)

Luth Danach kommt sie herab gen Nahal-Kana gegen mittagwärts zu den Bachstädten, die Ephraims sind, unter den Städten Manasses; aber von Mitternacht ist die Grenze Manasses am Bach und endet sich am Meer,
(Thereafter/Then comes they/she/them down to/toward brook_Kanah to/against midday to/for the towns_by_streams, the Ephraim’s are, under the cities Manasses; but from midnight is the border/boundary Manasses in/at/on_the stream(n) and ends(v) itself/yourself/themselves in/at/on_the sea,)

ClVg Descenditque terminus vallis arundineti in meridiem torrentis civitatum Ephraim, quæ in medio sunt urbium Manasse: terminus Manasse ab aquilone torrentis, et exitus ejus pergit ad mare:
(And_he_descended terminus valley reed-bed in/into/on south torrent of_cities Ephraim, which in/into/on in_the_middle are of_cities Manasseh: terminus Manasseh away north torrent, and exits his/her continues to the_sea:)

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 16:1–17:18 The clans of Ephraim and Manasseh received their land

This section describes the boundaries of the land given to Ephraim and to Manasseh, and the towns within each of their lands.

17:9b

There were cities belonging to Ephraim among the cities of Manasseh,

Some towns that belonged to the clan of Ephraim were south of the river among the towns that belonged to the clan of Manasseh.
Some towns of the clan of Ephraim were south of the streambed in land that belonged to the clan of Manasseh.

17:9a-b

From there the border continued southward to the Brook of Kanah. There were cities belonging to Ephraim among the cities of Manasseh: There is an interpretation issue in this verse. Scholars do not agree on how the word southward relates to the parts of this verse.

It relates to the phrase the cities in verse 9b. For example:
These cities, to the south of the brook… (ESV) (ESV, RSV, NABRE, NJPS, NLT, GNT, CEV, KJV)
It relates to the term border in verse 9a. For example:
Then the boundary continued south to the Kanah Ravine (NIV) (BSB, NIV, NET, GW)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) along with the majority of English versions and some commentaries.Woudstra, p. 266. The border of Manasseh went south of the Kanah River for some distance. However, there were some towns belonging to the clan of Ephraim that were within the borders of the land assigned to Manasseh.

Here is another way to translate this part of the verse:

Some towns that belonged to the clan of Ephraim were south of the river, among the towns that belonged to the clan of Manasseh

17:9a

From there the border continued southward to the Brook of Kanah.

Then the border descended to the southwest to the Kanah River.
The border then continued downhill to the Kanah streambed.

From there the border continued southward to the Brook of Kanah: You should translate the phrase the Brook of Kanah the same way as you translated it in Joshua 16:8.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

Then the border descended to the southwest to the Kanah River

The border then continued south downhill to the Kanah streambed

17:9c

but the border of Manasseh was on the north side of the brook and ended at the Sea.

The border of the clan of Manasseh’s land continued west on the north side of the river as far as the Mediterranean Sea.
The boundary line of Manasseh’s land was on the north side of the streambed, and it ended at the Mediterranean Sea.

but the border of Manasseh was on the north side of the brook and ended at the Sea: Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

The border of Manasseh’s land continued westward on the north side of the river and ended at the Mediterranean Sea

Then the boundary line of Manasseh’s land went along the northern side of the river, and it ended at the Mediterranean Sea

BMM BibleMapper.com Maps:

Poster Map of the Tribe of Manasseh (West) and Its Surroundings, circa 1200 B.C.

Though Manasseh’s descendants formed only half the tribe of Joseph (the other half being Ephraim) and its population was surpassed by Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Dan, and Asher (Numbers 26) at the time of their entry in Canaan, Manasseh occupied one of the largest allotments among the tribes of Israel, rivaling even the royal tribe of Judah. Half of Manasseh’s allotted territory was located technically outside the Promised Land of Canaan in the region commonly referred to as the Transjordan (“across the Jordan”), which was seized from King Og as the Israelites approached Canaan from the southeast and prepared to enter the land (Numbers 32:33; Deuteronomy 3:13; Joshua 13; see “Israel Defeats Og and Sihon” map). The other half of its territory (often referred to as West Manasseh) lay in the central region of the Promised Land, and the tribe of Manasseh, sometimes referred to by the name of Machir, Manasseh’s son, was involved in several key events in the early life of Israel. They participated in the victory of Deborah and Barak over Sisera (Judges 5:14; see “Deborah and Barak Defeat Sisera” map) as well as the victory of Gideon (who was from Manasseh) over the Midianites (Judges 7:23; see “Gideon Defeats the Midianites” map). After Gideon died, his son Abimelech briefly made himself king over Shechem and also attacked the town of Thebez in the territory of Manasseh (Judges 9). Manassites were among those who joined David before the battle at Mount Gilboa and also among those who came to make him king at Hebron (1 Chronicles 12; see “The Battle at Mount Gilboa” map and “David and Ish-bosheth” map). Many Manassites were also among those who humbled themselves and accepted Hezekiah’s invitation to attend the Passover in Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 30:11).

West Manasseh’s boundaries eventually stretched from the Mediterranean Sea to the Jordan River, and that is how they are drawn on virtually all maps of the tribe’s territory. But this author is convinced that a careful reading of Joshua 16-17 (particularly Joshua 17:7-12) indicates that, technically speaking, Manasseh’s initial allotment included only the western portion of their full allotment, that is, the land to the west of Tappuah, Shechem, and En-gannim and to the south of Asher (see “Poster Map of the Tribe of Zebulun and Its Surroundings circa 1200 B.C.” map and its discussion regarding southern Asher), as shown on this map (see also 1 Kings 4:10). But the tribe of Joseph (that is, Manasseh and Ephraim) complained to Joshua that their allotted territory in Canaan was not large enough for their growing populations (Joshua 17:14-18). So Joshua responded: “If you are a numerous people, go up to the forest, and clear ground there for yourselves in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim” (Joshua 17:15). Then it appears that the tribe of Joseph complained further that even this additional hill country would not be enough, yet they were not confident that they could take land from the Canaanites in the Jezreel Valley (Joshua 17:16). But Joshua assured them, “Since you are so large and strong, you will be given more than one portion. The forests of the hill country will be yours as well. Clear as much of the land as you wish, and take possession of its farthest corners. And you will drive out the Canaanites from the valleys, too, even though they are strong and have iron chariots” (Joshua 17:17-18, NLT). This additional allotment–the forested hill country of the Perizzites and the Rephaim–was likely the mountainous region just north of Shechem and the surrounding towns of Tirzah, Thebez, and Bezek. This is supported by Jacob’s comment in Genesis 34:30 that Simeon and Levi had made him “odious to the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites and the Perizzites” when they slaughtered the men of Shechem for assaulting their sister. Judges 1:4-5 also references a battle fought against the Canaanites and the Perizzites at Bezek. Prior to the Israelites’ entry into Canaan, Perizzites apparently lived in the hill country near Bethel and Ai as well (Genesis 13:7). The Rephaim, while predominantly associated with the lands across the Jordan River (Genesis 14:5; Deuteronomy 2:11-20; 3:11-13), apparently also lived in Canaan, because the Israelites wiped out many Anakim, who were descendants of the Rephaim, as they were conquering Judah (Deuteronomy 2:11; Joshua 11:21-22; 14:12-15). It should also be noted that Ephraim was included in this promise of an additional lot as well (Joshua 17:17), and the stories of Gideon and Jephthah indicate that by their time Ephraim, not Manasseh, was progressively gaining control over the lower Jordan Valley as far north as Zaphon (Judges 7:23-24; 12:1). Manasseh also began to occupy territory belonging to the surrounding Israelite tribes, including the towns and surrounding villages of Beth-shan, Ibleam, Dor, Endor, Taanach, and Megiddo, though they never fully drove out the Canaanites living there (Joshua 17:11-12; Judges 1:27-28; 1 Chronicles 7:29). As a result, the territory occupied by Manasseh and Ephraim by the completion of the book of Joshua and Judges is notably larger than the land originally allotted to them.

Joshua also records that Manasseh’s tribal allotment was further divided among ten clans of Manasseh, including the families of the daughters of Zelophehad (Joshua 17:1-6). During the Israelites’ wandering in the wilderness, Moses granted Zelophehad’s daughters, whose father had no sons, the right to inherit land, though this was not the normal practice in Israel (Numbers 27). The discovery of the Samaria Ostraca in the palace of Ahab in 1910 has enabled scholars to deduce the likely area in which several of these clans settled within Manasseh’s territory, including Noah, Shemida, Abiezer, Asriel, Shechem, Helek, Hoglah, and Tirzah. This author also suspects that the location of the clan of Mahlah may be preserved in the name of the ruins at Khirbat al Milkh (identified as Abel-meholah on this map) and the nearby stream of Wadi el Maleh. Likewise, this author also suspects the location of the clan of Milcah may be preserved in name of the ruins at Khirbat Malihim and the nearby spring of `Ein el Ma`lqa.

Tribal Allotments of the Promised Land

After the Israelites had conquered portions of the Promised Land and Joshua had grown old, the Lord directed him to divide the rest of the land among the tribes of Israel as their inheritance (Joshua 13-20). The eastern tribes had already been allotted their land under Moses’ leadership (Numbers 32), but they continued to help the other tribes drive out the Canaanites from land west of the Jordan River. The Lord also instructed the Israelites to designate several cities of refuge, where someone could flee for protection from an avenger if they accidentally killed someone (Numbers 35; Joshua 20).