Joshua 16

1 The land that was allotted to [the two tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh that were descended from] Joseph started at the Jordan [River], east of the springs at Jericho.

The boundary for the allocation of the descendants of Joseph went from the Jordan near Jericho, then east of the springs of Jericho and through the wilderness from Jericho up into the hill country of Bethel.

2 It extended west from Jericho to the hilly area near Bethel, which is also called Luz. It extended as far as Ataroth, at the border of the land where the Arki people-group lived.

From Bethel (or Luz) it continued to the border of Ataroth the Arkite.

3 From there it extended west to the border of the land where the Japhleti people-group lived, and then it extended west to the area near Lower Beth-Horon. From there it extended west to Gezer [city] and from there to the [Mediterranean] Sea.

Then it descended west to the border of the Japhletites and the border of Lower Beth-horon, on up to Gezer, and then out to the sea.

4 That is the land that the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh were allotted.

This was the allocation received by the descendants of Joseph, Ephraim and Manasseh.

5 The border of the land that was allotted to the clans of the tribe of Ephraim started at Ataroth-Addar [city] in the east. It extended to Upper Beth-Horon

This was the territory allocated to the tribe of Ephraim, by families. The boundary of their allocation ran from Ataroth-addar in the east to Upper Beth-horon

6 and from there to the [Mediterranean] Sea.

and then on to the sea. From Michmethath in the north the boundary turned east passing Taanath-shiloh to the east of Janoah.

7 From Michmethath [on the north] it extended east to Taanath and from there on to Janoah. From there it extended [south] to Ataroth [city] and to Naarah [town]. From there it extended to Jericho and from there to the Jordan [River].

From Janoah it went down to Ataroth and Naarah, then touched Jericho and ended at the Jordan.

8 The [northern] border extended from Tappuah west to Kanah Ravine, and ended at the [Mediterranean] Sea. That was the land that was allotted to the tribe of Ephraim.

From Tappuah the boundary ran west to the Brook of Kanah and then out to the sea. This was the land allotted to the tribe of Ephraim, by families.

9 Many of those towns were really within the area allotted to the tribe of Manasseh.

Also some towns with their associated villages that lay in the land allotted to the tribe of Manasseh were assigned to the tribe of Ephraim.

10 The people of the tribe of Ephraim could not force the Canaan people-group to leave Gezer, so the Canaan people-group still live among the people of the tribe of Ephraim, but the Israelis forced the people of the Canaan people-group to become their slaves.

However, they did not drive out the Canaanites living in Gezer, so the Canaanites live among the tribe of Ephraim to this very day, but as forced laborers.