Establishing Ancient Boundary Stones

(Part 1)


“Do not move an ancient boundary stone set up by your forefathers.”

Proverbs 22:28

When Joshua entered the promised land, God told Joshua:

“Be strong and of good courage; for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.”

Joshua 1:6 (kjv)

Once Israel, crossed over, and was able to occupy the land. God instructed Joshua to divide the land among the tribes. From there it was divided among clans, families and individuals. Once allotted their portion of the inheritance the men would set up ‘boundary stones’. These ancient landmarks were like survey stakes marking the perimeter of a families inheritance. Boundary stones established inheritance. Without boundary stones, a families inheritance in the land was unidentifiable. Once these ancient boundary stones were established they were to be honored by the Israelites:

“Do not move your neighbor’s boundary stone set by your predecessors in the inheritance your receive in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess.

Deuteronomy 19:14

In fact, moving an ancient boundary stone was listed by Moses on Mt. Ebal (Dt. 27:17) as a command that if not followed would invite a curse on them. The Israelites, in many cases, would actually inscribe curses on the boundary stones as a reminder to those who might try to encroach on their property.

Because these boundary stones marked their inheritance, the Israelites had to be diligent about maintaining their landmarks. It would be easy for someone to move them gradually, slowly stealing their inheritance. The responsibility of maintaining these ancient landmarks fell on the fathers. Fathers were given the responsibility of protecting their inheritance.
Without the presence of a father, it was easy to gradually encroach upon and take advantage of widows and orphans:

“Do not move the ancient boundary stone or encroach on the fields of the fatherless.”

Proverbs 23:10

There is a story found in 1 Kings 21:1-14 about a man named Naboth who owned a vineyard in Jezreel. It was located in close proximity to the palace of King Ahab. King Ahab fancied how close the vineyard was to the palace and wanted it for his vegetable garden. He approached Naboth about buying the property, but Naboth replied:


“The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my fathers.”

1 Kings 21:3

Scripture tells us that King Ahab went home sullen and angry. He lay sulking on his bed when his wife Jezebel arrived. She devised a plan and had charges brought against Naboth.
Naboth was accused of slandering “God and the king” and was dragged out of the city and stoned. With Naboth out of the way, King Ahab was able to take possession of his vineyard. 2 Kings 9:26 tells us that in order to ensure that no one would attempt to claim Naboth’s property, Ahab had all of Naboth’s sons killed as well. Without Naboth, the father figure, standing in Ahab’s way, Ahab could easily move the ancient boundary stones.

As fathers we have a huge responsibility before us. We must establish some boundary stones for our families. If we fail to, we will be denying our children access to their spiritual inheritance.




Pastor Scott Burr
http://faithandworshipseries.blogspot.com