Joshua 14:5

Modern

So the Israelites did as the LORD had commanded Moses, and they divided the land.

Traditional

As the Lord commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did, and they divided the land.

Literal

As YHWH had commanded Moses, so the sons of Israel did, and they divided the land.

Latin

Sicut præceperat Dominus Moysi, ita fecerunt filii Israël, et diviserunt terram.

Hebrew

English

So the Israelites did as the LORD had commanded Moses, and they divided the land.

The allotment of land to the tribes on the west side of the Jordan describes what God intended for each tribe to possess.
The one narrating the story begins this section with Caleb receiving land and ends with Joshua receiving land (14:6–15; 19:49–51). Only Caleb and Joshua had shown faith in God that Israel could conquer the land (Numbers 13:30; 14:6–9).

As he had promised, God brought Israel into the land. Joshua then focused on dividing the land among Israel's tribes.
The tribal allowances made the covenant of the Israelites with God real. It showed the fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Since God owned the land, giving it to the tribes was a gift. God gave them the land to live in and guided its distribution.
In these lists of tribal allowances, the author describes some borders in great detail, allowing them to be mapped. With others, they are less plainly defined.

Theme notes and profiles

Joshua 21:2
…at Shiloh in the land of Canaan and said to them, “The LORD commanded through Moses that we be given cities in which to live, together with pasturelands for our livestock.”
Numbers 35:1–2
Again the LORD spoke to Moses on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho:

Israel: Patriarch, son of Isaac, father of twelve tribes Moses: Prophet who led Israel out of Egypt