Ten Years on the East of the Jordan, Ten Years on the West（1 Chronicles 5）
“The members of the half-tribe of Manasseh lived in the land. They were very numerous, from Bashan to Baal-hermon, Senir, and Mount Hermon. These were the heads of their fathers’ houses... mighty warriors, famous men, heads of their fathers’ houses. But they broke faith with the God of their fathers, and whored after the gods of the peoples of the land, whom God had destroyed before them. So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria, the spirit of Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and he took them into exile, namely, the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, and brought them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river Gozan, to this day.” (1 Chronicles 5:23–26, ESV)
This passage tells of the end of the two and a half tribes east of the Jordan—Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. In the time of Moses, before the Israelites crossed the Jordan to fight the seven nations of Canaan, these tribes saw the land east of the river and thought, “This land is good.” So they asked to settle there. Their request stirred up misunderstanding and displeasure among Moses and the other Israelites (see Numbers 32).
Though God later allowed them to settle there, He required that their fighting men first cross the Jordan and help their brothers in battle. Indeed, they did go to war and fought for nearly seven years. Only after Joshua declared the battles finished were they allowed to return home. Think of it—seven years without contact with their families, no letters, no visits. Children had become teenagers; teenagers had entered adulthood. What a painful trial. And in those years, their children had never seen the Jordan River part before the priests’ feet. They never witnessed their fathers fighting bravely in God’s name against the Canaanites.
The east side of the Jordan lacked natural defense. Spiritually speaking, to cross the Jordan means to grow in faith. To stay on the east side is to remain unchanged, content a belief with presence situation.
Later, a misunderstanding arose—the “altar of witness” incident. If everyone had lived and worshiped together, would that altar have been necessary? Obeying God’s commands helps us avoid needless spiritual confusion.
In the end, when the northern kingdom fell, it was these tribes—Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh—who were the first to be taken by Assyria. Just as weak and complacent believers are the first to fall when persecution comes. They were taken to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river Gozan—carried away by the devil.
Once, they had kept the faith with zeal. Once, they had many mighty warriors. But charcoal separated from the fire will grow cold and go out. The spiritual state of Northern and Southern kingdom was not good, but those away from the fire always go cold sooner. In the end, they turned from God’s commands and worshiped idols.
“Ten years on the east bank, ten years on the west”[A]—this Chinese saying reminds us that “the aim of our charge is love [B].” Since it is a command, obeying it is always right. Yet we often ask, “Why not this?” or “Why must it be that way?” Not everything can be explained clearly at the time. What’s worse is that by the time we understand, it may already be too late.
“The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. Certain persons, by swerving from these, have wandered away into vain discussion, desiring to be teachers of the law, without understanding either what they are saying or the things about which they make confident assertions.” (1 Timothy 1:5–7, ESV)
By Isaiah Kao
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