Instruction for Apportioning Canaan
34 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Command the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When you enter the land of Canaan, this is the land that shall fall to you as an inheritance, even the land of Canaan according to its borders. 3 Your southern [a]sector shall [b]extend from the wilderness of Zin along the side of Edom, and your southern border shall [c]extend from the end of the Salt Sea eastward.4 Then your border shall turn direction from the south to the ascent of Akrabbim and [d]continue to Zin, and its [e]termination shall be to the south of Kadesh-barnea; and it shall [f]reach Hazaraddar and [g]continue to Azmon. 5 The border shall turn direction from Azmon to the brook of Egypt, and its termination shall be at the sea.
6 ‘As for the western border, you shall have the Great Sea, that is, its [h]coastline; this shall be your west border.
7 ‘And this shall be your north border: you shall draw your border line from the Great Sea to Mount Hor. 8 You shall draw a line from Mount Hor to the [i]Lebo-hamath, and the termination of the border shall be at Zedad; 9 and the border shall proceed to Ziphron, and its termination shall be at Hazar-enan. This shall be your north border.
10 ‘For your eastern border you shall also draw a line from Hazar-enan to Shepham, 11 and the border shall go down from Shepham to Riblah on the east side of Ain; and the border shall go down and reach to the [j]slope on the east side of the Sea of Chinnereth. 12 And the border shall go down to the Jordan and its termination shall be at the Salt Sea. This shall be your land according to its borders all around.’”
13 So Moses commanded the sons of Israel, saying, “This is the land that you are to apportion by lot among you as a possession, which the Lord has commanded to give to the nine and a half tribes. 14 For the tribe of the sons of Reuben have received theirs according to their fathers’ households, and the tribe of the sons of Gad according to their fathers’ households, and the half-tribe of Manasseh have received their possession. 15 The two and a half tribes have received their possession across the Jordan opposite Jericho, eastward toward the sunrising.”
16 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 17 “These are the names of the men who shall apportion the land to you for inheritance: Eleazar the priest and Joshua the son of Nun. 18 You shall take one leader of every tribe to apportion the land for inheritance. 19 These are the names of the men: of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh. 20 Of the tribe of the sons of Simeon, Samuel the son of Ammihud. 21 Of the tribe of Benjamin, Elidad the son of Chislon. 22 Of the tribe of the sons of Dan a leader, Bukki the son of Jogli. 23 Of the sons of Joseph: of the tribe of the sons of Manasseh a leader, Hanniel the son of Ephod. 24 Of the tribe of the sons of Ephraim a leader, Kemuel the son of Shiphtan. 25 Of the tribe of the sons of Zebulun a leader, Elizaphan the son of Parnach. 26 Of the tribe of the sons of Issachar a leader, Paltiel the son of Azzan. 27 Of the tribe of the sons of Asher a leader, Ahihud the son of Shelomi. 28 Of the tribe of the sons of Naphtali a leader, Pedahel the son of Ammihud.” 29 These are those whom the Lord commanded to apportion the inheritance to the sons of Israel in the land of Canaan.
It’s pretty amazing that God had already marked out the boundaries of their new homeland before they ever set foot in it. This was to make it very clear which people they were to drive out or destroy, but it also made it clear where they were to stop.
God had a plan for their homeland, but he also has a plan for each of our lives. It’s not some vague thing, but he knows exactly what he can do with our lives if we are willing and submit our lives to that plan.
Don’t shortchange your life by ignoring His plan. Submit to him, and look to him for guidance every day.