Shiloh is referred to as in the land of Canaan.
Shiloh was 21 kilometres (13 miles) north of Bethel, and is apparently where the Israelite camp
had been relocated during the raid on Jabesh-gilead, perhaps in preparation for the handing over of the young virgins to the Benjamites after the completion of the operation.1 Shiloh was also where the ark was (until it was taken into battle at Ebenezer; see 1 Samuel 4:3–5). This place was in the heartland of the nation of Israel. But the narrator identifies it as in the land of Canaan. That could be a subtle reminder that even after all that had happened in the conquest, Israel is still living in an alien land (indeed, it will not be until the time of Saul that Shiloh will begin to be called the land of Israel
; see 1 Samuel 13:19).2 But more likely, the narrator is hereby signalling what he thinks of Israel’s affairs. Their behaviour has shown that they were no better than the people they replaced.3
12 And they found among the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead 400 young virgins who had not known a man by lying with him, and they brought them to the camp at Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan.