Numbers 34:10
And ye shall point out your east border from Hazar-enan to Shepham:
Original Language Analysis
לִגְב֣וּל
border
H1366
לִגְב֣וּל
border
Strong's:
H1366
Word #:
3 of 7
properly, a cord (as twisted), i.e., (by implication) a boundary; by extension the territory inclosed
קֵ֑דְמָה
your east
H6924
קֵ֑דְמָה
your east
Strong's:
H6924
Word #:
4 of 7
the front, of place (absolutely, the fore part, relatively the east) or time (antiquity); often used adverbially (before, anciently, eastward)
Historical Context
Ancient boundary marking involved physical monuments (stone cairns or pillars) at key points. Surveying the land required tribes to send representatives who would establish clear territorial limits. This prevented future disputes and confirmed each tribe's inheritance. The process combined divine gift with human responsibility.
Questions for Reflection
- What spiritual 'land' has God promised you that remains unsurveyed and unclaimed through prayerless passivity?
- How does the requirement to 'point out' boundaries challenge the idea that blessing comes without active faith?
- In what ways must believers today both receive Christ's finished work and actively appropriate His promises?
Related Resources
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Analysis & Commentary
And ye shall point out your east border from Hazar-enan to Shepham—The command to 'point out' uses the Hebrew ta'u (תָּאוּ, 'mark out/designate'), requiring active participation in God's gift. Israel must physically survey and claim what God promised. Shepham's location (possibly near the Sea of Galilee's eastern shore) marks where the northern boundary turns southward.
Divine promise requires human response. God grants inheritance, but His people must 'arise and walk through the land' (Genesis 13:17). Faith without works is dead—promises require obedient appropriation (James 2:17).