Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of Joshua
Chapter 15: Give Me Also Springs of Water
Judah, the royal tribe from which Christ would come, receives the first and largest inheritance. Its borders are drawn from the Salt Sea to the Great Sea, past the valley of Hinnom that would one day give its name to hell. Within the record shines a tender scene: Achsah, Caleb's daughter, asks her father not only for land but for water, 'give me also springs of water,' and he gives her the upper and the nether springs. The chapter ends on a sobering note, the Jebusites of Jerusalem 'the children of Judah could not drive them out', a reminder that unfinished obedience leaves the enemy in the land.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of Joshua chapter 15. For each section you will find the KJV text, the Hebrew words that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. Here Judah's borders are drawn, Achsah asks for springs of water, and the record notes the Jebusites that were not driven out. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
Setting the Stage
The Royal Tribe
The first and largest inheritance, from sea to sea.
Hinnom
A border landmark whose name would come to mean hell.
Springs of Water
A daughter asks her father for a blessing, and receives.
The Jebusites Remain
Unfinished obedience leaves the enemy in the land.
The Lot of the Tribe of Judah (Joshua 15:1-12)
Judah's inheritance is bounded on the south, east, north, and west, its northern line passing by the valley of Hinnom near Jerusalem.
The Valley of the Son of Hinnom
"This then was the lot of the tribe of the children of Judah by their families; even to the border of Edom the wilderness of Zin southward was the uttermost part of the south coast. And their south border was from the shore of the salt sea, from the bay that looketh southward: And it went out to the south side to Maalehacrabbim, and passed along to Zin, and ascended up on the south side unto Kadeshbarnea, and passed along to Hezron, and went up to Adar, and fetched a compass to Karkaa: From thence it passed toward Azmon, and went out unto the river of Egypt; and the goings out of that coast were at the sea: this shall be your south coast. And the east border was the salt sea, even unto the end of Jordan. And their border in the north quarter was from the bay of the sea at the uttermost part of Jordan: And the border went up to Bethhogla, and passed along by the north of Betharabah; and the border went up to the stone of Bohan the son of Reuben: And the border went up toward Debir from the valley of Achor, and so northward, looking toward Gilgal, that is before the going up to Adummim, which is on the south side of the river: and the border passed toward the waters of Enshemesh, and the goings out thereof were at Enrogel: And the border went up by the valley of the son of Hinnom unto the south side of the Jebusite; the same is Jerusalem: and the border went up to the top of the mountain that lieth before the valley of Hinnom westward, which is at the end of the valley of the giants northward: And the border was drawn from the top of the hill unto the fountain of the water of Nephtoah, and went out to the cities of mount Ephron; and the border was drawn to Baalah, which is Kirjathjearim: And the border compassed from Baalah westward unto mount Seir, and passed along unto the side of mount Jearim, which is Chesalon, on the north side, and went down to Bethshemesh, and passed on to Timnah: And the border went out unto the side of Ekron northward: and the border was drawn to Shicron, and passed along to mount Baalah, and went out unto Jabneel; and the goings out of the border were at the sea. And the west border was to the great sea, and the coast thereof. This is the coast of the children of Judah round about according to their families."
Word Study
"the valley of the son of Hinnom," Hebrew ge ben-Hinnom (גֵּיא בֶן־הִנֹּם). This valley, running south and west of Jerusalem, appears here simply as a landmark on Judah's border. But its name would come to carry one of the most solemn meanings in all of Scripture. The Hebrew "valley of Hinnom" is ge-Hinnom, which passed into Greek as Gehenna, the word Jesus used again and again for hell. Why? Because in later centuries this valley became the site of the most horrible idolatry: here apostate Israel "built the high places of Baal... to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire unto Molech" (Jeremiah 32:35), burning children alive in sacrifice. Godly King Josiah defiled the place to end the abomination (2 Kings 23:10), and it became a refuse heap, a place of fire and corruption and death. So the valley of Hinnom became the very picture of the place of final judgment, and Jesus took its name, Gehenna, for the reality it foreshadowed: "fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 10:28); "that thy whole body should be cast into hell" (Matthew 5:29-30). What was a quiet border landmark in Joshua's day became a warning of eternal judgment on the lips of the Lord. So this name preaches soberly: sin, unchecked, turns even a pleasant valley into a place of fire, and the wages of idolatry and rebellion is judgment. But it also magnifies the gospel, for the Christ who warned of Gehenna is the same Christ who bore our judgment on the cross, that all who believe might be delivered from the wrath to come.
Explanation
Judah's borders are traced with a surveyor's care — south to the wilderness of Zin and Edom, east along the Salt Sea, west to the Great Sea — the largest and first inheritance, befitting the royal tribe. Among the landmarks is one that history would darken: "the valley of the son of Hinnom," here a mere boundary line, but later the site of child-sacrifice to Molech and a smouldering refuse-fire, until its name (in Greek, Gehenna) became the Bible's word for hell. Even in a dry list of borders, a name waits to be filled with meaning by the story to come.
Gospel Focus
Judah receives its inheritance first and largest, fittingly, for Judah was the royal tribe. To Judah, Jacob had prophesied, "the sceptre shall not depart from Judah... until Shiloh come" (Genesis 49:10), and from Judah would come David, and at last the Lion of the tribe of Judah, Jesus Christ (Revelation 5:5). The careful record of Judah's borders, from the Salt Sea to the Great Sea, from the wilderness of Zin to the river of Egypt, testifies again to God's precise faithfulness: He gives His people exactly what He promised, marked out to the last landmark. And running through those borders is the valley of Hinnom, a name that would one day become the word for hell, a reminder even here that the land of promise was not free of the shadow of judgment, and that the God who gives an inheritance also warns of wrath. For the Apostolic reader the section quietly points to Christ. The greatest gift of Judah's inheritance was not its acreage but its calling: from this tribe, the Saviour would come. And the valley on its border, later called Gehenna, points to the judgment from which that Saviour came to deliver us. The map of Judah, in the end, is a map that leads to Christ, the Lion of Judah who saves His people from the fire.
Give Me a Blessing (Joshua 15:13-19)
Caleb takes Hebron and offers his daughter Achsah to whoever takes Kirjath-sepher; Othniel wins her, and Achsah boldly asks her father for springs of water, and receives the upper and the nether springs.
The Upper Springs, and the Nether Springs
"And unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh he gave a part among the children of Judah, according to the commandment of the LORD to Joshua, even the city of Arba the father of Anak, which city is Hebron. And Caleb drove thence the three sons of Anak, Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai, the children of Anak. And he went up thence to the inhabitants of Debir: and the name of Debir before was Kirjathsepher. And Caleb said, He that smiteth Kirjathsepher, and taketh it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife. And Othniel the son of Kenaz, the brother of Caleb, took it: and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife. And it came to pass, as she came unto him, that she moved him to ask of her father a field: and she lighted off her ass; and Caleb said unto her, What wouldest thou? Who answered, Give me a blessing; for thou hast given me a south land; give me also springs of water. And he gave her the upper springs, and the nether springs."
Word Study
"springs," Hebrew gullah (גֻּלָּה). The word means a basin or spring of water; here "springs of water," the very source of life in a dry land. Achsah, given "a south land" (a dry, parched inheritance), knows that land without water is of little use, so she asks her father for the one thing that will make the land fruitful: "give me also springs of water." And her father Caleb, generous, gives more than she asked, "the upper springs, and the nether springs," both the high springs and the low, abundant water for all her land. There is a beautiful picture of grace in this exchange. Achsah is not content with land alone; she wants the living water that makes land fruitful, and she is bold to ask her father for it, "Give me a blessing." And the father delights to give, and gives abundantly, exceeding the request. So it is with our heavenly Father. He gives us an inheritance, but He would also give us the living water without which the soul is dry, and He invites us to ask: "If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink" (John 7:37); "whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but... shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life" (John 4:14). And the Father gives generously, "able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think" (Ephesians 3:20), the upper springs and the nether, blessing above and blessing below. So gullah encourages the bold prayer of faith. Like Achsah, we do well not to be content with dry land, but to come to our Father and ask for the springs, for He delights to give His children the living water, and He gives more abundantly than we ask.
Explanation
A warm family scene interrupts the survey. Caleb offers his daughter Achsah to whoever captures Kiriath-sepher, and his nephew Othniel — later Israel's first judge — takes it and wins her. Then Achsah shows her father's boldness: given a field in the dry south, she asks outright for water, "give me... the upper springs, and the nether springs," and Caleb grants both. She would not settle for land she could not water. It is a small portrait of the faith that dares to ask the Father for what it truly needs, and is not refused.
Gospel Focus
Woven into the boundary lists is a family story full of grace. Caleb, true to his word and his faith, takes Hebron and drives out "the three sons of Anak", the very giants that had terrified the ten spies. The man who "wholly followed the LORD" conquers the giants that unbelief could not face. Then, to spur the taking of Kirjath-sepher, Caleb offers his daughter Achsah to the one who takes it, and Othniel, later Israel's first judge (Judges 3:9-11), wins the city and the bride. But the jewel of the passage is Achsah herself. Given "a south land," a dry inheritance, she is not passive or content with less than she needs; she comes to her father and asks boldly, "Give me a blessing... give me also springs of water." And Caleb, the loving father, gives beyond her request: "the upper springs, and the nether springs." Here is a portrait of the life of faith. Achsah knew that land without water is barren, and she was not too timid to ask her father for what would make her inheritance fruitful. And her father delighted to give, and gave abundantly. For the Apostolic reader this scene invites bold, believing prayer. We have an inheritance in Christ, but the soul, like a south land, needs living water to be fruitful; and our Father invites us to ask. He is not reluctant, but generous, giving "exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think," springs above and springs below. So we come like Achsah, not content with dry ground, asking our Father for the living water of His Spirit, confident that He delights to give, and gives more than we ask. Blessing is for the bold in prayer: "ye have not, because ye ask not" (James 4:2); but the child who asks the Father for springs receives the upper and the nether both.
Could Not Drive Them Out (Joshua 15:20-63)
The cities of Judah are listed by region, and the chapter closes with a sobering note: the Jebusites of Jerusalem were not driven out, but dwelt with Judah to that day.
The Jebusites Dwell With Judah Unto This Day
"This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Judah according to their families. And the uttermost cities of the tribe of the children of Judah toward the coast of Edom southward were Kabzeel, and Eder, and Jagur, And Kinah, and Dimonah, and Adadah, And Kedesh, and Hazor, and Ithnan, Ziph, and Telem, and Bealoth, And Hazor, Hadattah, and Kerioth, and Hezron, which is Hazor, Amam, and Shema, and Moladah, And Hazargaddah, and Heshmon, and Bethpalet, And Hazarshual, and Beersheba, and Bizjothjah, Baalah, and Iim, and Azem, And Eltolad, and Chesil, and Hormah, And Ziklag, and Madmannah, and Sansannah, And Lebaoth, and Shilhim, and Ain, and Rimmon: all the cities are twenty and nine, with their villages: And in the valley, Eshtaol, and Zoreah, and Ashnah, And Zanoah, and Engannim, Tappuah, and Enam, Jarmuth, and Adullam, Socoh, and Azekah, And Sharaim, and Adithaim, and Gederah, and Gederothaim; fourteen cities with their villages: Zenan, and Hadashah, and Migdalgad, And Dilean, and Mizpeh, and Joktheel, Lachish, and Bozkath, and Eglon, And Cabbon, and Lahmam, and Kithlish, And Gederoth, Bethdagon, and Naamah, and Makkedah; sixteen cities with their villages: Libnah, and Ether, and Ashan, And Jiphtah, and Ashnah, and Nezib, And Keilah, and Achzib, and Mareshah; nine cities with their villages: Ekron, with her towns and her villages: From Ekron even unto the sea, all that lay near Ashdod, with their villages: Ashdod with her towns and her villages, Gaza with her towns and her villages, unto the river of Egypt, and the great sea, and the border thereof: And in the mountains, Shamir, and Jattir, and Socoh, And Dannah, and Kirjathsannah, which is Debir, And Anab, and Eshtemoh, and Anim, And Goshen, and Holon, and Giloh; eleven cities with their villages: Arab, and Dumah, and Eshean, And Janum, and Bethtappuah, and Aphekah, And Humtah, and Kirjatharba, which is Hebron, and Zior; nine cities with their villages: Maon, Carmel, and Ziph, and Juttah, And Jezreel, and Jokdeam, and Zanoah, Cain, Gibeah, and Timnah; ten cities with their villages: Halhul, Bethzur, and Gedor, And Maarath, and Bethanoth, and Eltekon; six cities with their villages: Kirjathbaal, which is Kirjathjearim, and Rabbah; two cities with their villages: In the wilderness, Betharabah, Middin, and Secacah, And Nibshan, and the city of Salt, and Engedi; six cities with their villages. As for the Jebusites the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the children of Judah could not drive them out: but the Jebusites dwell with the children of Judah at Jerusalem unto this day."
Word Study
"could not drive them out," Hebrew lo yakol (לֹא יָכֹל), "were not able." After a long, faithful record of cities possessed, the chapter ends on a note of failure: "the Jebusites the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the children of Judah could not drive them out." The verb yakol means to be able, to prevail; "could not" means they did not prevail. The reason was not that God lacked power, He had toppled walls and stopped the sun, but that Judah lacked the faith or the will to finish. Elsewhere Scripture makes plain the pattern: the tribes "drave not out" the Canaanites but let them dwell among them (Judges 1:21, 27-33), and this half-obedience became a lasting snare, for God had warned, "if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you... those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides" (Numbers 33:55). The unconquered enemy left in the land becomes a source of temptation and trouble. Jerusalem itself would remain a Jebusite stronghold for centuries, until David finally took it (2 Samuel 5:6-9). So lo yakol preaches a searching lesson about incomplete obedience. It is not enough to win most of the battle and leave a pocket of the enemy in the land. The sins we fail to drive out, the compromises we tolerate, the ground we leave to the flesh, become thorns in our sides and snares to our souls. God calls us to complete the conquest, to give no lasting place to the enemy, and to drive out fully, in His strength, what He has condemned. What we do not overcome will remain to trouble us; so we press on, by faith, to take the whole land.
Explanation
After a long, faithful roll of Judah's cities — region by region across the south, the valley, and the hills — the chapter ends on a quiet failure: "the Jebusites... the children of Judah could not drive out; but the Jebusites dwell with the children of Judah at Jerusalem unto this day." A pocket of the enemy remained in the very heart of the land, in the city that would one day be Israel's capital — unconquered until David's day. It is the first crack in the conquest, a reminder that even a great inheritance can carry an un-dislodged sin at its center.
Gospel Focus
The chapter closes with a long roll of Judah's cities, region by region, the south country, the valley, the mountains, the wilderness, each town and village named and numbered. Once again the detail testifies to God's faithfulness: the inheritance was real, mapped, and given. But the final verse casts a shadow: "As for the Jebusites the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the children of Judah could not drive them out." Right in the heart of the promised land, in the city that would become the city of God, a pocket of the enemy remained. This was not God's failure but Israel's, a failure of faith and resolve to finish what God had given them to do. And it would cost them; the Jebusite stronghold stood for generations. For the Apostolic reader this closing note is a warning against half-hearted obedience. It is a great thing to take the land, to win most of the battle, to name our victories; but the enemy we leave unconquered becomes a thorn. The Christian life is not merely about the ground we take but also about the ground we refuse to leave to the enemy. The besetting sin we tolerate, the compromise we make peace with, the corner of the heart we do not surrender, these are the Jebusites in our Jerusalem, and they will trouble us as long as we let them dwell. God calls us to a complete conquest, to leave no lasting place to the flesh or the devil, but to drive out fully, in His strength, all that He has condemned. The rest of the land was Judah's; but the unfinished corner remained a stronghold. So we press on to finish, that no enemy be left to prick our eyes, until the whole inheritance is truly possessed, and the King, the Lion of Judah, reigns over all.
Chapter 15 in Review
Joshua 15 records the inheritance of Judah, the royal tribe from which Christ would come. Its borders are drawn from the Salt Sea to the Great Sea, its northern line passing "by the valley of the son of Hinnom" near Jerusalem. Within the record, Caleb takes Hebron and drives out the sons of Anak, Othniel wins Achsah by taking Kirjath-sepher, and Achsah boldly asks her father, "Give me a blessing... give me also springs of water," and receives "the upper springs, and the nether springs." The chapter ends with a long roll of Judah's cities, and a sobering note: "the Jebusites the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the children of Judah could not drive them out."
For the Apostolic reader this chapter of boundaries holds three treasures. First, the valley of Hinnom, a mere landmark here, would become Gehenna, the word Jesus used for hell, a reminder that the God who gives an inheritance also warns of judgment, and that the Saviour who warned of Gehenna is the One who delivers us from it. Second, Achsah's bold request for springs is a portrait of believing prayer: not content with dry land, she asked her father for the water that makes land fruitful, and he gave abundantly, above and below. So our heavenly Father invites us to ask for the living water of His Spirit, and gives "exceeding abundantly above all that we ask." Third, the Jebusites left in Jerusalem warn against half-hearted obedience: the enemy we fail to drive out becomes a thorn in our side, and God calls us to a complete conquest, leaving no lasting place to the flesh. So the map of Judah leads us to Christ, the Lion of Judah; it invites us to ask our Father boldly for springs of living water; and it presses us to finish the conquest, driving out fully all that God has condemned, until the whole inheritance is possessed.
- Judah, the royal tribe, receives the first and largest inheritance; from it comes Christ (15:1; Genesis 49:10).
- The valley of Hinnom became "Gehenna," Jesus' word for hell (15:8; Matthew 10:28).
- Caleb drove out the sons of Anak; whole-hearted faith conquers the giants (15:14).
- Achsah's bold request models believing prayer: "give me also springs of water" (15:19).
- The Father gives abundantly, "the upper springs, and the nether springs" (15:19; Ephesians 3:20).
- The Jebusites left in Jerusalem warn against incomplete obedience (15:63; Numbers 33:55).
Questions for Reflection
- Does the reality of Gehenna move you to flee to Christ and warn others?
- Are you, like Achsah, bold to ask your Father for the springs of living water?
- What "Jebusites" have you left undriven in your life, becoming thorns in your side?
- Will you press on to a complete conquest, leaving no place to the enemy?
References & Sources
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). Supporting passages are listed so every claim can be verified in its own setting. Judah the royal tribe; the borders; the valley of Hinnom: Joshua 15:1-12; Genesis 49:8-10; Revelation 5:5; Jeremiah 7:31-32; 32:35; 2 Kings 23:10; Matthew 5:29-30; 10:28. Caleb, Othniel, and Achsah's springs: Joshua 15:13-19; Joshua 14:12-14; Judges 1:11-15; 3:9-11; John 4:14; 7:37-39; Ephesians 3:20; James 4:2. The cities of Judah; the unconquered Jebusites: Joshua 15:20-63; Judges 1:8, 21; Numbers 33:55; 2 Samuel 5:6-9; Judges 2:1-3. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.
- Judah, the royal tribe; the valley of Hinnom that became Gehenna: Joshua 15:1-12; Genesis 49:10; Matthew 10:28.
- Caleb drives out the giants; Achsah asks for springs of water: Joshua 15:13-19; John 7:37; Ephesians 3:20.
- The cities of Judah recorded; God's faithful precision: Joshua 15:20-62.
- The Jebusites not driven out; the warning of incomplete obedience: Joshua 15:63; Numbers 33:55; 2 Samuel 5:6-9.