“lot.” Although many versions read “allotment,” the Hebrew word is “lot” and the territories were distributed by lot, and the lot was the decision by Yahweh, and the word “lot” makes that clear.

The first allotment to be described in Israel’s inheritance in Canaan, the Promised Land, is of the tribe of Judah. This is the most detailed description of any inheritance given to any of the tribes of Israel, which implies and foreshadows the importance of Judah, from whom the line of David and eventually the Messiah would come. However, the chapter ends on a negative note, that Jebus (Jerusalem) was not possessed by Judah, but this in itself is somewhat strange since Jebus is actually in the tribal territory of Benjamin, not Judah, although admittedly it is on the extreme southern border of Benjamin and thus on the northern border of Judah. Nevertheless, the mention of Jebus and Judah sets up the story of the conquest of Jebus by David.

“the border of Edom, which is the wilderness of Zin.” So at this time in history, Edom controlled the territory south of the wilderness of Zin in the Sinai Peninsula.