The Meaning of Joshua 22:9 Explained

Joshua 22:9

KJV: And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh returned, and departed from the children of Israel out of Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to go unto the country of Gilead, to the land of their possession, whereof they were possessed, according to the word of the LORD by the hand of Moses.

YLT: And the sons of Reuben, and the sons of Gad, and the half of the tribe of Manasseh, turn back and go from the sons of Israel out of Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to go unto the land of Gilead, unto the land of their possession, in which they have possession, according to the command of Jehovah, by the hand of Moses;

Darby: And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh returned, and departed from the children of Israel out of Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to go to the country of Gilead, into the land of their possession, of which they had become possessed, according to the word of Jehovah through Moses.

ASV: And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh returned, and departed from the children of Israel out of Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to go unto the land of Gilead, to the land of their possession, whereof they were possessed, according to the commandment of Jehovah by Moses.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And the children  of Reuben  and the children  of Gad  and the half  tribe  of Manasseh  returned,  and departed  from the children  of Israel  out of Shiloh,  which [is] in the land  of Canaan,  to go  unto the country  of Gilead,  to the land  of their possession,  whereof they were possessed,  according to the word  of the LORD  by the hand  of Moses. 

What does Joshua 22:9 Mean?

Context Summary

Joshua 22:1-20 - Averting War Between Brethren
There was generous appreciation of services rendered as Joshua dismissed the warriors. Something like "Well-done, good and faithful servant," rings through His words. But he takes care to remind them that the tenure of their lands depends wholly on their obedience. This will explain the brief and transient existence of the trans-Jordanic tribes.
The altar was probably erected on the east of the Jordan. It was "over against" the land of Canaan, and was perhaps a facsimile of that at Shiloh. The prompting motive was to cement the union between themselves and the other tribes. But that end would have been better served had they obeyed the divine command in assembling annually with them. You can secure unity, not by external symbols, but by spiritual affinity and fellowship. [source]

Chapter Summary: Joshua 22

1  The two tribes and a half with a blessing are sent home,
10  They build the altar of testimony in their journey
11  The Israelites are offended thereat
21  They vindicate their conduct, and give them good satisfaction

What do the individual words in Joshua 22:9 mean?

So returned and departed the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh from the sons of Israel at Shiloh which [is] in the land of Canaan to go to the country of Gilead the land of their possession which had obtained they according to the word of Yahweh by the hand of Moses
וַיָּשֻׁ֣בוּ וַיֵּלְכ֡וּ בְּנֵי־ רְאוּבֵ֨ן וּבְנֵי־ גָ֜ד וַחֲצִ֣י ׀ שֵׁ֣בֶט הַֽמְנַשֶּׁ֗ה מֵאֵת֙ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל מִשִּׁלֹ֖ה אֲשֶׁ֣ר בְּאֶֽרֶץ־ כְּנָ֑עַן לָלֶ֜כֶת אֶל־ אֶ֣רֶץ הַגִּלְעָ֗ד אֶ֤רֶץ אֲחֻזָּתָם֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר נֹֽאחֲזוּ־ בָ֔הּ עַל־ פִּ֥י יְהוָ֖ה בְּיַד־ מֹשֶֽׁה

וַיָּשֻׁ֣בוּ  So  returned 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: שׁוּב  
Sense: to return, turn back.
וַיֵּלְכ֡וּ  and  departed 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: הָלַךְ  
Sense: to go, walk, come.
בְּנֵי־  the  sons 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
רְאוּבֵ֨ן  of  Reuben 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: רְאוּבֵן  
Sense: the eldest son of Jacob by Leah.
וּבְנֵי־  and  the  sons 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
גָ֜ד  of  Gad 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: גָּד  
Sense: seventh son of Jacob by Zilpah, Leah’s handmaid, and full brother of Asher.
וַחֲצִ֣י ׀  and  the  half 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: חֲצִי 
Sense: half.
שֵׁ֣בֶט  tribe 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: שֵׁבֶט  
Sense: rod, staff, branch, offshoot, club, sceptre, tribe.
הַֽמְנַשֶּׁ֗ה  of  Manasseh 
Parse: Article, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: מְנַשֶּׁה  
Sense: the eldest son of Joseph and progenitor of the tribe of Manasseh.
בְּנֵ֣י  the  sons 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל  of  Israel 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יִשְׂרָאֵל  
Sense: the second name for Jacob given to him by God after his wrestling with the angel at Peniel.
מִשִּׁלֹ֖ה  at  Shiloh 
Parse: Preposition-m, Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: שִׁילֹו 
Sense: a city in Ephraim and temporary home of the Ark of the Covenant and the Tabernacle, the place where Samuel grew up.
אֲשֶׁ֣ר  which  [is] 
Parse: Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
בְּאֶֽרֶץ־  in  the  land 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: אֶרֶץ  
Sense: land, earth.
כְּנָ֑עַן  of  Canaan 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: כְּנַעַן 
Sense: the 4th son of Ham and the progenitor of the Phoenicians and of the various nations who peopled the seacoast of Palestine.
לָלֶ֜כֶת  to  go 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: הָלַךְ  
Sense: to go, walk, come.
אֶ֣רֶץ  the  country 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: אֶרֶץ  
Sense: land, earth.
הַגִּלְעָ֗ד  of  Gilead 
Parse: Article, Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: גִּלְעָד  
Sense: a mountainous region bounded on the west by the Jordan, on the north by Bashan, on the east by the Arabian plateau, and on the south by Moab and Ammon; sometimes called ‘Mount Gilead’ or the ‘land of Gilead’ or just ‘Gilead’.
אֶ֤רֶץ  the  land 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: אֶרֶץ  
Sense: land, earth.
אֲחֻזָּתָם֙  of  their  possession 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine plural
Root: אֲחֻזָּה  
Sense: possession, property.
נֹֽאחֲזוּ־  had  obtained 
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Perfect, third person common plural
Root: אָחוּז 
Sense: grasp, take hold, seize, take possession.
עַל־  according  to 
Parse: Preposition
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
פִּ֥י  the  word 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: פֶּה  
Sense: mouth.
יְהוָ֖ה  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
בְּיַד־  by  the  hand 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: יָד  
Sense: hand.
מֹשֶֽׁה  of  Moses 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: מֹשֶׁה  
Sense: the prophet and lawgiver, leader of the exodus.