Joshua 18:17 The stone of Bohan…

And was drawn from the north, and went forth to Enshemesh, and went forth toward Geliloth, which is over against the going up of Adummim, and descended to the stone of Bohan the son of Reuben,

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Joshua is dividing up the land for the children of Israel. He’s drawing the borders of each tribe. In this text, he’s describing the borders of the tribe of Benjamin. Judah shared a border with Benjamin. Therefore, they have a land marker in common; the stone of Bohan. (Joshua 16:6)

Now, who is Bohan? He is the son of Reuben. Problem is that Reuben had only 4 sons recorded in the bible.

And the sons of Reuben; Hanoch, and Phallu, and Hezron, and Carmi. (Genesis 46:9)

There’s no other mention of this person Bohan in the Bible. But allow us to use our imagination a little bit to glean something from these scriptures.

It seems very unlikely that the stone of Bohan could not have been named that during the occupation of Canaan. If something significant happened there then I’m sure the Bible would have said something. There’s no indication in the Bible of a portion of the tribe of Reuben breaking away from the main group during their wanderings in the wilderness and occupying land across the Jordan River and into Canaan.

Therefore, it was either during the 400 years of being in Egyptian captivity, or before Israel and his family went down into Egypt at the request of Joseph. Either way, I think that it’s apparent that there were descendents of Israel (Jacob) that did not come into Egypt with Israel and his children. In fact, the bible says that only 70 of Israel’s children and children’s children went down into Egypt. There may have been some great-grandchildren that stuck around to keep law and order; check the mail; feed the dogs; maybe things like that. Or perhaps Bohan is an illegitimate child of Bilhah and a direct son of Reuben? (Genesis 35:22)

What was the stone of Bohan? What happened there? What was Bohan’s story? There are other examples of this in the Bible.

• The great stone of Abel. This was the place where the ark of the covenant landed when it was sent back to Israel from the Philistines. They sent it back on a wood cart pulled by two milch kine. There at Bethshemeth, in the field of Joshua (not the son of Nun), they broke down the wooden cart and offered those two milch kine a sacrifice to the Lord. (1 Samuel 6)
• Bethel.  Jacob offered oil upon a stone to the Lord after he woke up from a dream where he saw God up above that ladder. He called that place Bethel (Genesis 28:18-22)
• Twelve stones of Jordan The children of Israel were commanded to take up twelve stones out of the midst of the Jordan river as they passed through it on dry ground. These stones were to be a memorial to their children forever of the promises and faitfulness of God. (Joshua 4:8)
• Ebenezer The Philistines came up against the children of Israel and they asked Samuel to cry unto the Lord that he would save them.  Samuel offered up a baby lamb to the Bible says the Lord thundered with a great thunder and discomfited the Philistines. “Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it Ebenezer, saying, Hitherto hath the LORD helped us.” (1 Samuel 7;12)
• The stone Ezel  This is the place that Jonathan told David to wait for news about Saul. Saul was determined to kill David. This was the place that David waited as the three arrows flew over his head. He saw the young man run past the stone. There he knew his fate. This is the place where these good friends said good-bye. (1 Samuel 20:19)
• The great stone in Gibeon Here Joab took the law into his own hands. Amasa had followed Absalom, and Absalom was now dead, but David put Amasa in charge of his armies. Joab was jealous and angry. It was there at the great stone in Gibeon that he slew Amasa through the fifth rib (2 Samuel 20:8)
• The stone of Zoheleth When David was old and stricken in years, Adonijah exalted himself and said that he was now king.  As he gathered his followers and prepared to take over, he offered sacrifices to God here at this stone. He slew sheep, oxen, and fat cattle there at the stone. (1 Kings 1:9)
• Twelve stones of Elijah Everybody remembers the altar that Elijah had built for his great contest against the prophets of Baal; how that God came down with fire and consumed everything on that altar: the burnt sacrifice, the dust, the wood, the water, and even the stones. (1 Kings 18:31-38)

These stones are remembered because something great happened there. They were usually an altar of some sort. They’re used as landmarks throughout the land and bookmarks throughout your Bible. When people come upon these stones, they call them by name because they know the story behind the stone.

What was the story behind the stone of Bohan? The world may never know. But God knows the story behind the stone. Perhaps there are some stones in your life; some great times in your life or not-so-great times in your life that are marked by a place. Everytime you come by that place or hear that place mentioned, you remember what happened there. The stone of Bohan marked the border of the tribe of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin; it defined who they were. You are very much defined by these great times in your life; good or bad.

If this is so, then why not lay down a stone today? An altar. A place of sacrifice. A place of where great things can happen. All the great people of the bible had that in common; they built an altar. The most important place in the church is not the pulpit, not the vestibule, not the pews. It’s the altar.

Likewise, the most important place for the child of God in his home is not the bed, not the kitchen, not the dining room, nor his entertainment center. No. The most important place in the home is the altar; the place where he meets with God.