The land has been divided and the people are settling in. They say farewell to the
Eastern Tribes who fought for them diligently for the past ten years, and who are to take
their designated allotment back on the other side of the Jordan. But what does the rest of
the nation discover after they have left? The Eastern Tribes had set up an idol of “imposing size” right beside the Jordan. What else are they to interpret from this act except for total defiance of YWHW, blatant disregard of his law, and outright treason? They send their trusted man Phinehas to find out what the deal is, and what do they discover? That they had it all wrong. This altar was not set up for some false god, but rather as a sign of the covenant between them and their countrymen. The nation is restored and they live in harmony side by side.