Joshua 21:43

“And the Lord gave unto Israel all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers, etc.] It was all given them by lot, whether subdued or not subdued, and the far greater part was actually put into their hands, and they had as much as they could for the present occupy and cultivate; and such as were in the hands of the Canaanites, were subject to pay tribute to them; and it was owing to their own slothfulness and sluggishness that they did not possess more hereafter; though it was the will of God that their enemies should be driven out by little and little, until the Israelites were so increased as to occupy the whole, lest any part of the land should lie waste and become barren, and lest…”

“GOD GAVE THEM REST. (Jos 21:43-45) the Lord gave unto Israel all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers--This is a general winding up of the history from the thirteenth chapter, which narrates the occupation of the land by the Israelites. All the promises made, whether to the people or to Joshua (Jos 1:5), had been, or were in the course of being fulfilled; and the recorded experience of the Israelites (Jos 21:45), is a ground of hope and confidence to the people of God in every age, that all other promises made to the Church will, in due time, be accomplished. Next: Joshua Chapter 22”

“There is no real inconsistency between the declarations of these verses and the fact that the Israelites had not as yet possessed themselves of all the cities allotted to the various tribes Judges 1:21-36 - nor did at any time, subdue the whole extent of country promised to them Numbers 34:1-12. God had fulfilled all His part of the covenant. It was no part of His purpose that the native population should be annihilated suddenly Deuteronomy 7:22; but they were delivered into the hand of Israel, and their complete dispossession could have been effected at any time by that divine aid which was never wanting when sought. At the time referred to in the text, the Canaanites were discouraged,…”

“All the land - He gave them the right to all, and the actual possession of the greatest part of it, and power to possess the rest, as soon as it was needful for them, which was when their numbers were increased, and the absolute dominion of all the people remaining in it. Joshua 21:44”

“Gen 12:7, Gen 13:15, Gen 15:13-21, Gen 26:3, Gen 26:4, Gen 28:4, Gen 28:13, Gen 28:14; Exo 3:8, Exo 23:27-31; Psa 44:3, Psa 106:42-45 Joshua 21:44”

“Jos 21:43-45 form the conclusion to the account of the division of the land in Josh 13-21, which not only points back to Jos 11:23, but also to Jos 1:2-6, and connects the two halves of our book together. By the division of Canaan among the tribes of Israel, the promise which Joshua had received from God after the death of Moses was fulfilled ( Jos 1:2.). The Lord had given Israel the whole land which He had sworn to the fathers ( Gen 12:7; Gen 15:18, compared with Jos 1:3-4); and they had now taken possession of it to dwell therein. Jos 21:44 He had also procured them rest round about, as He had sworn to their fathers, inasmuch as not a man of all their enemies stood against them. The…”