Historical

19 The second lot came out for Simeon, even for the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their families. Their inheritance was in the middle of the inheritance of the children of Judah. ² They had for their inheritance Beersheba (or Sheba), Moladah, ³ Hazar Shual, Balah, Ezem, ⁴ Eltolad, Bethul, Hormah, ⁵ Ziklag, Beth Marcaboth, Hazar Susah, ⁶ Beth Lebaoth, and Sharuhen; thirteen cities with their villages; ⁷ Ain, Rimmon, Ether, and Ashan; four cities with their villages; ⁸ and all the villages that were around these cities to Baalath Beer, Ramah of the South. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their families. ⁹ Out of the part of the children of Judah was the inheritance of the children of Simeon; for the portion of the children of Judah was too much for them. Therefore the children of Simeon had inheritance in the middle of their inheritance.

¹⁰ The third lot came up for the children of Zebulun according to their families. The border of their inheritance was to Sarid. ¹¹ Their border went up westward, even to Maralah, and reached to Dabbesheth. It reached to the brook that is before Jokneam. ¹² It turned from Sarid eastward toward the sunrise to the border of Chisloth Tabor. It went out to Daberath, and went up to Japhia. ¹³ From there it passed along eastward to Gath Hepher, to Ethkazin; and it went out at Rimmon which stretches to Neah. ¹⁴ The border turned around it on the north to Hannathon; and it ended at the valley of Iphtah El; ¹⁵ Kattath, Nahalal, Shimron, Idalah, and Bethlehem: twelve cities with their villages. ¹⁶ This is the inheritance of the children of Zebulun according to their families, these cities with their villages.

¹⁷ The fourth lot came out for Issachar, even for the children of Issachar according to their families. ¹⁸ Their border was to Jezreel, Chesulloth, Shunem, ¹⁹ Hapharaim, Shion, Anaharath, ²⁰ Rabbith, Kishion, Ebez, ²¹ Remeth, Engannim, En Haddah, and Beth Pazzez. ²² The border reached to Tabor, Shahazumah, and Beth Shemesh. Their border ended at the Jordan: sixteen cities with their villages. ²³ This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Issachar according to their families, the cities with their villages.

²⁴ The fifth lot came out for the tribe of the children of Asher according to their families. ²⁵ Their border was Helkath, Hali, Beten, Achshaph, ²⁶ Allammelech, Amad, Mishal. It reached to Carmel westward, and to Shihorlibnath. ²⁷ It turned toward the sunrise to Beth Dagon, and reached to Zebulun, and to the valley of Iphtah El northward to Beth Emek and Neiel. It went out to Cabul on the left hand, ²⁸ and Ebron, Rehob, Hammon, and Kanah, even to great Sidon. ²⁹ The border turned to Ramah, to the fortified city of Tyre; and the border turned to Hosah. It ended at the sea by the region of Achzib; ³⁰ Ummah also, and Aphek, and Rehob: twenty-two cities with their villages. ³¹ This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Asher according to their families, these cities with their villages.

³² The sixth lot came out for the children of Naphtali, even for the children of Naphtali according to their families. ³³ Their border was from Heleph, from the oak in Zaanannim, Adami-nekeb, and Jabneel, to Lakkum. It ended at the Jordan. ³⁴ The border turned westward to Aznoth Tabor, and went out from there to Hukkok. It reached to Zebulun on the south, and reached to Asher on the west, and to Judah at the Jordan toward the sunrise. ³⁵ The fortified cities were Ziddim, Zer, Hammath, Rakkath, Chinnereth, ³⁶ Adamah, Ramah, Hazor, ³⁷ Kedesh, Edrei, En Hazor, ³⁸ Iron, Migdal El, Horem, Beth Anath, and Beth Shemesh; nineteen cities with their villages. ³⁹ This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Naphtali according to their families, the cities with their villages.

⁴⁰ The seventh lot came out for the tribe of the children of Dan according to their families. ⁴¹ The border of their inheritance was Zorah, Eshtaol, Irshemesh, ⁴² Shaalabbin, Aijalon, Ithlah, ⁴³ Elon, Timnah, Ekron, ⁴⁴ Eltekeh, Gibbethon, Baalath, ⁴⁵ Jehud, Bene Berak, Gath Rimmon, ⁴⁶ Me Jarkon, and Rakkon, with the border opposite Joppa. ⁴⁷ The border of the children of Dan went out beyond them; for the children of Dan went up and fought against Leshem, and took it, and struck it with the edge of the sword, and possessed it, and lived therein, and called Leshem, Dan, after the name of Dan their forefather. ⁴⁸ This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Dan according to their families, these cities with their villages.

⁴⁹ So they finished distributing the land for inheritance by its borders. The children of Israel gave an inheritance to Joshua the son of Nun among them. ⁵⁰ According to Yahweh’s commandment, they gave him the city which he asked, even Timnathserah in the hill country of Ephraim; and he built the city, and lived there. ⁵¹ These are the inheritances, which Eleazar the priest, Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers’ houses of the tribes of the children of Israel, distributed for inheritance by lot in Shiloh before Yahweh, at the door of the Tent of Meeting. So they finished dividing the land.

20 Yahweh spoke to Joshua, saying, ² “Speak to the children of Israel, saying, ‘Assign the cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you by Moses, ³ that the man slayer who kills any person accidentally or unintentionally may flee there. They shall be to you for a refuge from the avenger of blood. ⁴ He shall flee to one of those cities, and shall stand at the entrance of the gate of the city, and declare his case in the ears of the elders of that city. They shall take him into the city with them, and give him a place, that he may live among them. ⁵ If the avenger of blood pursues him, then they shall not deliver up the man slayer into his hand; because he struck his neighbor unintentionally, and didn’t hate him before. ⁶ He shall dwell in that city until he stands before the congregation for judgment, until the death of the high priest that shall be in those days. Then the man slayer shall return, and come to his own city, and to his own house, to the city he fled from.’”

⁷ They set apart Kedesh in Galilee in the hill country of Naphtali, Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and Kiriath Arba (also called Hebron) in the hill country of Judah. ⁸ Beyond the Jordan at Jericho eastward, they assigned Bezer in the wilderness in the plain out of the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gilead out of the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan out of the tribe of Manasseh. ⁹ These were the appointed cities for all the children of Israel, and for the alien who lives among them, that whoever kills any person unintentionally might flee there, and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood, until he stands trial before the congregation.

21 Then the heads of fathers’ houses of the Levites came near to Eleazar the priest, and to Joshua the son of Nun, and to the heads of fathers’ houses of the tribes of the children of Israel. ² They spoke to them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, saying, “Yahweh commanded through Moses to give us cities to dwell in, with their pasture lands for our livestock.”

³ The children of Israel gave to the Levites out of their inheritance, according to the commandment of Yahweh, these cities with their pasture lands. ⁴ The lot came out for the families of the Kohathites. The children of Aaron the priest, who were of the Levites, had thirteen cities by lot out of the tribe of Judah, out of the tribe of the Simeonites, and out of the tribe of Benjamin. ⁵ The rest of the children of Kohath had ten cities by lot out of the families of the tribe of Ephraim, out of the tribe of Dan, and out of the half-tribe of Manasseh. ⁶ The children of Gershon had thirteen cities by lot out of the families of the tribe of Issachar, out of the tribe of Asher, out of the tribe of Naphtali, and out of the half-tribe of Manasseh in Bashan. ⁷ The children of Merari according to their families had twelve cities out of the tribe of Reuben, out of the tribe of Gad, and out of the tribe of Zebulun. ⁸ The children of Israel gave these cities with their pasture lands by lot to the Levites, as Yahweh commanded by Moses. ⁹ They gave out of the tribe of the children of Judah, and out of the tribe of the children of Simeon, these cities which are mentioned by name: ¹⁰ and they were for the children of Aaron, of the families of the Kohathites, who were of the children of Levi; for theirs was the first lot. ¹¹ They gave them Kiriath Arba, named after the father of Anak (also called Hebron), in the hill country of Judah, with its pasture lands around it. ¹² But they gave the fields of the city and its villages to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for his possession. ¹³ To the children of Aaron the priest they gave Hebron with its pasture lands, the city of refuge for the man slayer, Libnah with its pasture lands, ¹⁴ Jattir with its pasture lands, Eshtemoa with its pasture lands, ¹⁵ Holon with its pasture lands, Debir with its pasture lands, ¹⁶ Ain with its pasture lands, Juttah with its pasture lands, and Beth Shemesh with its pasture lands: nine cities out of those two tribes. ¹⁷ Out of the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon with its pasture lands, Geba with its pasture lands, ¹⁸ Anathoth with its pasture lands, and Almon with its pasture lands: four cities. ¹⁹ All the cities of the children of Aaron, the priests, were thirteen cities with their pasture lands.

²⁰ The families of the children of Kohath, the Levites, even the rest of the children of Kohath, had the cities of their lot out of the tribe of Ephraim. ²¹ They gave them Shechem with its pasture lands in the hill country of Ephraim, the city of refuge for the man slayer, and Gezer with its pasture lands, ²² Kibzaim with its pasture lands, and Beth Horon with its pasture lands: four cities. ²³ Out of the tribe of Dan, Elteke with its pasture lands, Gibbethon with its pasture lands, ²⁴ Aijalon with its pasture lands, Gath Rimmon with its pasture lands: four cities. ²⁵ Out of the half-tribe of Manasseh, Taanach with its pasture lands, and Gath Rimmon with its pasture lands: two cities. ²⁶ All the cities of the families of the rest of the children of Kohath were ten with their pasture lands.

²⁷ They gave to the children of Gershon, of the families of the Levites, out of the half-tribe of Manasseh Golan in Bashan with its pasture lands, the city of refuge for the man slayer, and Be Eshterah with its pasture lands: two cities. ²⁸ Out of the tribe of Issachar, Kishion with its pasture lands, Daberath with its pasture lands, ²⁹ Jarmuth with its pasture lands, En Gannim with its pasture lands: four cities. ³⁰ Out of the tribe of Asher, Mishal with its pasture lands, Abdon with its pasture lands, ³¹ Helkath with its pasture lands, and Rehob with its pasture lands: four cities. ³² Out of the tribe of Naphtali, Kedesh in Galilee with its pasture lands, the city of refuge for the man slayer, Hammothdor with its pasture lands, and Kartan with its pasture lands: three cities. ³³ All the cities of the Gershonites according to their families were thirteen cities with their pasture lands.

³⁴ To the families of the children of Merari, the rest of the Levites, out of the tribe of Zebulun, Jokneam with its pasture lands, Kartah with its pasture lands, ³⁵ Dimnah with its pasture lands, and Nahalal with its pasture lands: four cities. ³⁶ Out of the tribe of Reuben, Bezer with its pasture lands, Jahaz with its pasture lands, ³⁷ Kedemoth with its pasture lands, and Mephaath with its pasture lands: four cities. ³⁸ Out of the tribe of Gad, Ramoth in Gilead with its pasture lands, the city of refuge for the man slayer, and Mahanaim with its pasture lands, ³⁹ Heshbon with its pasture lands, Jazer with its pasture lands: four cities in all. ⁴⁰ All these were the cities of the children of Merari according to their families, even the rest of the families of the Levites. Their lot was twelve cities.

⁴¹ All the cities of the Levites among the possessions of the children of Israel were forty-eight cities with their pasture lands. ⁴² Each of these cities included their pasture lands around them. It was this way with all these cities.

⁴³ So Yahweh gave to Israel all the land which he swore to give to their fathers. They possessed it, and lived in it. ⁴⁴ Yahweh gave them rest all around, according to all that he swore to their fathers. Not a man of all their enemies stood before them. Yahweh delivered all their enemies into their hand. ⁴⁵ Nothing failed of any good thing which Yahweh had spoken to the house of Israel. All came to pass.