Joshua 11:17

_EVEN FROM THE MOUNT HALAK, THAT GOETH UP TO SEIR, EVEN UNTO BAALGAD IN THE VALLEY OF LEBANON UNDER MOUNT HERMON: AND ALL THEIR KINGS HE TOOK, AND SMOTE THEM, AND SLEW THEM._ From the mount Halak (Hebrew, the smooth mountain), that goeth up to Seir - an irregular line of white naked hills, about 80 feet high, and 7 or 8 geographical miles in length, that cross the whole Ghor, 8 miles south of the Dead Sea; probably 'the ascent of Akrabbim' (Robinson). UNTO BAAL-GAD IN THE VALLEY OF LEBANON - the city or temple of the god of Fortune or Destiny, in Baalbec. х_ BªBIQ`AT_ (H1237) (the valley of Lebanon, under Hermon) - i:e., in the plain of Coele-Syria]. This place, where, judging from the name, the god Fortune, one of the many forms of Baal, was worshipped by the ancient Syrians, formed the limit of Joshua's conquests on the north. Dr. Robinson thinks that 'from Baal-gad to Mount Halak, t...

15-23 Never let the sons of Anak be a terror to the Israel of God, for their day to fall will come. The land rested from war. It ended not in a peace with the Canaanites, that was forbidden, but in a peace from them. There is a rest, a rest from war, remaining for the people of God, into which they shall enter, when their warfare is accomplished. That which was now done, is compared with what had been said to Moses. God's word and his works, if viewed together, will be found mutually to set each other forth. If we make conscience of our duty, we need not question the performance of the promise. But the believer must never put off his armour, or expect lasting peace, till he closes his eyes in death; nay, as his strength and usefulness increase, he may expect more heavy trials; yet the Lord will not permit any enemies to assault the believer till he has prepared him for the battle. Chris...

Verse Joshua 11:17. _FROM THE MOUNT HALAK_] All the mountainous country that extends from the south of the land of Canaan towards _Seir_ unto _Baal-gad_, which lies at the foot of Mount Libanus or Hermon, called by some the mountains of _Separation_, which serve as a limit between the land of Canaan and that of Seir; see Joshua 12:7. _THE VALLEY OF LEBANON_] The whole extent of the plain which is on the south, and probably north, of Mount Libanus. Calmet conjectures that _Coelesyria_ is here meant....

THE MOUNT HALAK - See the margin and reference. The name serves to mark the southern limit of Joshua’s conquests. It suits equally well several of the ranges near the south border of Palestine, and it is uncertain which of them is the one here indicated. Baal-gad Joshua 12:7; Joshua 13:5 is probably Paneas, the Caesarea Philippi of later times. The name means “troop or city of Baal,” or a place where Baal was worshipped as the giver of “good luck.” Compare Isaiah 65:11. It was probably the same as Baal-Hermon (Jdg 3:3; 1 Chronicles 5:23

EXPOSITION THE PROSECUTION OF THE WAR.— JOSHUA 11:1 AND IT CAME TO PASS. The political constitution of Palestine was, humanly speaking, the cause of its overthrow. The division of the country into a host of petty states, and the consequent want of cohesion and concert, made its conquest a comparatively easy task. Had the kings of the north rallied round the standard set up in Central Palestine by Adoni-zedek, a far more formidable opposition would have been offered to Joshua at Gibeon. Calvin takes us, however, at once to the fountain head, and remarks how God fitted the burden to those who had to bear it. In spite of the great things God had done to them, they might have been driven to despair (and every one knows how weak their faith was) by the ove

[EVEN] FROM THE MOUNT HALAK, THAT GOETH UP UNTO SEIR,.... Or the "smooth" and "bald" mountain, which had no trees on it, as some interpret it, observed by Kimchi; it was a mount on the borders of Edom, to which the land of Canaan reached on that side: EVEN UNTO BAALGAD, IN THE VALLEY OF LEBANON, UNDER MOUNT HERMON; and so describes the northern part of the land conquered by Joshua: AND ALL THEIR KINGS HE TOOK, AND SMOTE THEM, AND SLEW THEM; both in the southern and northern parts of the land....

FURTHER CONQUESTS CHAPTER 11 _ 1. Jabin and his confederacy (Joshua 11:1)_ 2. The divine encouragement (Joshua 11:6) 3. The victory (Joshua 11:7) 4. The obedience of Joshua (Joshua 11:15) 5. The continued conflict with the kings (Joshua 11:16) The Kings of the north formed the second confederacy, headed by Jabin, King of Hazor. Jabin means “understanding” and Hazor, “an enclosure.” He with other kings, and with them “much people even as the sand that is upon the seashore in multitude, with horses and chariots

JOSHUA 11. DEFEAT OF JABIN AND HIS COALITION. Jabin, king of Hazor, gathers a vast army of Canaanites at the Waters of Merom (locality uncertain, p. 32). The coalition was utterly defeated, the king was slain, and his city burnt. In Judges 4, a king of the same name and the same city appears, who for twenty years mightily oppressed the children of Israel. Joshua's victory here seems to be inconsistent with the account given of Jabin in Judges 4. The original story of Barak's campaign (Judges 5) has no reference to Jabin, but only to Sisera. The prose narrative (Judges 4) combines the war against Sisera with that against Jabin, and makes the former the general of the latter. It is noticeable that the terms of the short narrative in which the battle is here described are very vague and general, and 8, with its statement that the Israelites pursued their enemies as far as Zidon in the N. an...

General Retrospect of the Conquest of Palestine 16. _So Joshua took_ The sacred writer pauses to survey and sum up the conquests of the Israelitish leader. _the hills_ The country is contemplated under a sevenfold division, (i) the cities; (ii) the south country; (iii) the land of Goshen (comp. Joshua 10:41); (iv) the valley; (v) the plain; (vi) the mountain of Israel; (vii) the valley of the same....

_A Summary of Joshua's Campaigns Joshua 11:16-23_ 16 _So_ Joshua took all that land, the hills, and all the south country, and all the land of Goshen, and the valley, and the plain, and the mountain of Israel, and the valley of the same; 17 Even from the mount Halak, that goeth up to Seir, even unto Baal-gad in the valley of Lebanon under mount Hermon: and all their kings he took, and smote them, and slew them. 18 Joshua made war a long time with all those kings. 19 There was not a city that made peace with the children of Israel, save the Hivites the inhabitants of Gibeon: all other they took in battle. 20 For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts, that they should come against Israel in battle, that he might destroy them utterly, and that they might have no favor, but that he might destroy them, as the Lord commanded Moses. 21 And at that time came Jo