Joshua 15:63 –
But the tribe of Judah could not drive out the Jebusites, who lived in the city of Jerusalem, so the Jebusites live there among the people of Judah to this day.
This chapter and the next few are basically how the lands are divided between the tribes of Israel. Interestingly, Jerusalem was not part of Judah’s territory but as you will see later the city is part of the tribe of Benjamin’s territory. The Jebusites appear to be the cause of strife and it’s not until David conquers Jerusalem that it becomes fully part of Israel.
As dry this reading may be without much in the way of insightful happenings, it does open your eyes to the strife that is currently happening in the Middle East. I have always found it fascinating that this region has kept such long deep seeded hatred. Look at our nation, the Indians have for the most integrated in with our society. Even the “bitter” ones are not trying to force the issue with terrorist acts. With that said the Protestant and Catholic one in England has been going a long time. But this one seems to have the oldest roots.
This region has roots of conflict all the way back to Abraham’s son Ishmael. We expect peace in a few years, when they have not been able to solve this for millenniums. Ironically everyone is fighting for the same God, it must drive Him nuts! Unfortunately there is no quick fix and we may never see one in our life. If we do it will most likely be “end times” and hopefully we will not endure the tribulation for this peaceful end.