March
23rd Joshua 19 Simeon’s portion
1: And the second lot came forth to
Simeon, even for the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their
families: and their inheritance was within the inheritance of the children of Judah.
2: And they had in their
inheritance Beer-sheba, or Sheba, and Moladah, 3: And Hazar-shual, and Balah, and Azem, 4: And Eltolad, and Bethul, and Hormah, 5: And Ziklag, and Beth-marcaboth, and Hazar-susah, 6: And Beth-lebaoth, and Sharuhen;
thirteen cities and their villages: 7:
Ain, Remmon, and Ether, and Ashan; four cities and their villages: 8: And all the villages that were
round about these cities to Baalath-beer, Ramath of the south. This is the
inheritance of the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their families.
9: Out of the portion of the
children of Judah was the
inheritance of the children of Simeon: for the part of the children of Judah
was too much for them: therefore the children of Simeon had their inheritance
within the inheritance of them.
Zebulun’s
portion
10: And the third lot came up for the
children of Zebulun according to their families: and the border of their
inheritance was unto Sarid: 11:
And their border went up toward the sea, and Maralah, and reached to
Dabbasheth, and reached to the river that is before Jokneam; 12: And turned from Sarid eastward
toward the sunrising unto the border of Chisloth-tabor, and then goeth out to
Daberath, and goeth up to Japhia, 13:
And from thence passeth on along on the east to Gittah-hepher, to Ittah-kazin,
and goeth out to Remmon-methoar to Neah; 14:
And the border compasseth it on the north side to Hannathon: and the outgoings
thereof are in the valley of Jiphthah-el: 15: And Kattath, and Nahallal, and Shimron, and 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.
Issachar’s
portion
17: And the fourth lot came out to
Issachar, for the children of Issachar according to their families. 18: And their border was toward
Jezreel, and Chesulloth, and Shunem, 19:
And Hapharaim, and Shion, and Anaharath, 20:
And Rabbith, and Kishion, and Abez, 21:
And Remeth, and En-gannim, and En-haddah, and Beth-pazzez; 22: And the coast reacheth to Tabor,
and Shahazimah, and Beth-shemesh; and the outgoings of their border were at 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 and their villages.
Asher’s
portion
24: And the fifth lot came out for the
tribe of the children of Asher according to their families. 25: And their border was Helkath, and
Hali, and Beten, and Achshaph, 26:
And Alammelech, and Amad, and Misheal; and reacheth to Carmel westward, and to
Shihor-libnath; 27: And turneth
toward the sunrising to Beth-dagon, and reacheth to Zebulun, and to the valley
of Jiphthah-el toward the north side of Beth-emek, and Neiel, and goeth out to
Cabul on the left hand, 28: And
Hebron, and Rehob, and Hammon, and Kanah, even unto great Zidon; 29: And then the coast turneth to
Ramah, and to the strong city Tyre; and the coast turneth to Hosah; and the
outgoings thereof are at the sea from the coast to Achzib: 30: Ummah also, and Aphek, and Rehob:
twenty and 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.
Naphtali’s
portion
32: The sixth lot came out to the
children of Naphtali, even for the children of Naphtali according to their
families. 33: And their coast
was from Heleph, from Allon to Zaanannim, and Adami, Nekeb, and Jabneel, unto
Lakum; and the outgoings thereof were at Jordan: 34: And then the coast turneth westward to Aznoth-tabor, and
goeth out from thence to Hukkok, and reacheth to Zebulun on the south side, and
reacheth to Asher on the west side, and to Judah upon Jordan toward the
sunrising. 35: And the fenced
cities are Ziddim, Zer, and Hammath, Rakkath, and Chinnereth, 36: And Adamah, and Ramah, and Hazor,
37: And Kedesh, and Edrei, and
En-hazor, 38: And Iron, and
Migdal-el, Horem, and 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 and their villages.
Dan’s
portion
40: And the seventh lot came out for
the tribe of the children of Dan according to their families. 41: And the coast of their
inheritance was Zorah, and Eshtaol, and Ir-shemesh, 42: And Shaalabbin, and Ajalon, and Jethlah, 43: And Elon, and Thimnathah, and
Ekron, 44: And Eltekeh, and
Gibbethon, and Baalath, 45: And
Jehud, and Bene-berak, and Gath-rimmon, 46:
And Me-jarkon, and Rakkon, with the border before Japho. 47: And the coast of the children of
Dan went out too little for them: therefore the children of Dan went up to
fight against Leshem, and took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and
possessed it, and dwelt therein, and called Leshem, Dan, after the name of Dan
their father. 48: This is the
inheritance of the tribe of the children of Dan according to their families,
these cities with their villages.
Joshua’s
portion
49: When they had made an end of dividing
the land for inheritance by their coasts, the children of Israel gave an
inheritance to Joshua the son of Nun among them: 50: According to the word of the LORD they gave him the city
which he asked, even Timnath-serah in mount Ephraim: and he built the city, and
dwelt therein. 51: These are
the inheritances which Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the
heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel, divided for an inheritance by lot in Shiloh before the LORD, at the door of the tabernacle of
the congregation. So they made an end of dividing the country.
Joshua
20 The Cities of Refuge
1: The LORD also spake unto Joshua,
saying, 2: Speak to the
children of Israel,
saying, Appoint out for you cities of refuge, whereof I spake unto you by the
hand of Moses: 3: That the
slayer that killeth any person unawares and unwittingly may flee thither: and
they shall be your refuge from the avenger of blood. 4: And when he that doth flee unto one of those cities shall
stand at the entering of the gate of the city, and shall declare his cause in
the ears of the elders of that city, they shall take him into the city unto
them, and give him a place, that he may dwell among them. 5: And if the avenger of blood pursue
after him, then they shall not deliver the slayer up into his hand; because he
smote his neighbour unwittingly, and hated him not beforetime. 6: And he shall dwell in that city,
until he stand before the congregation for judgment, and until the death of the
high priest that shall be in those days: then shall the slayer return, and come
unto his own city, and unto his own house, unto the city from whence he fled. 7: And they appointed Kedesh in
Galilee in mount Naphtali,
and Shechem in mount Ephraim, and Kirjath-arba, which is Hebron,
in the mountain
of Judah. 8: And on the other side Jordan by Jericho eastward, they assigned Bezer in the wilderness
upon the plain out of the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead out of the
tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan out of the
tribe of Manasseh. 9: These
were the cities appointed for all the children of Israel, and for the stranger that
sojourneth among them, that whosoever killeth any person at unawares might flee
thither, and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood, until he stood before
the congregation.
Joshua
21 The Levite Cities
1: Then came near the heads of the
fathers of the Levites unto Eleazar the priest, and unto Joshua the son of Nun,
and unto the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel; 2: And they spake unto them at Shiloh
in the land of Canaan, saying, The LORD commanded by the hand of Moses to give
us cities to dwell in, with the suburbs thereof for our cattle. 3: And the children of Israel gave
unto the Levites out of their inheritance, at the commandment of the LORD,
these cities and their suburbs. 4:
And the lot came out for the families of the Kohathites: and the children of
Aaron the priest, which were of the Levites, had by lot out of the tribe of
Judah, and out of the tribe of Simeon, and out of the tribe of Benjamin,
thirteen cities. 5: And the
rest of the children of Kohath had by lot out of the families of the tribe of
Ephraim, and out of the tribe of Dan, and out of the half tribe of Manasseh,
ten cities. 6: And the children
of Gershon had by lot out of the families of the tribe of Issachar, and out of
the tribe of Asher, and out of the tribe of Naphtali, and out of the half tribe
of Manasseh in Bashan, thirteen cities. 7:
The children of Merari by their families had out of the tribe of Reuben, and
out of the tribe of Gad, and out of the tribe of Zebulun, twelve cities. 8: And the children of Israel gave by
lot unto the Levites these cities with their suburbs, as the LORD commanded by
the hand of Moses. 9: And 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 here mentioned by name, 10: Which the children of Aaron,
being of the families of the Kohathites, who were of the children of Levi, had:
for theirs was the first lot. 11:
And they gave them the city of Arba the father
of Anak, which city is Hebron, in the hill
country of Judah,
with the suburbs thereof round about it. 12:
But the fields of the city, and the villages thereof, gave they to Caleb the
son of Jephunneh for his possession. 13:
Thus they gave to the children of Aaron the priest Hebron with her suburbs, to
be a city of refuge for the slayer; and Libnah with her suburbs, 14: And Jattir with her suburbs, and
Eshtemoa with her suburbs, 15:
And Holon with her suburbs, and Debir with her suburbs, 16: And Ain with her suburbs, and Juttah with her suburbs, and
Beth-shemesh with her suburbs; nine cities out of those two tribes. 17: And out of the tribe of Benjamin,
Gibeon with her suburbs, Geba with her
suburbs, 18: Anathoth with her
suburbs, and Almon with her suburbs; four cities. 19: All the cities of the children of Aaron, the priests, were
thirteen cities with their suburbs. 20:
And the families of the children of Kohath, the Levites which remained of the
children of Kohath, even they had the cities of their lot out of the tribe of
Ephraim. 21: For they gave them
Shechem with her suburbs in mount Ephraim, to be a city of refuge for the
slayer; and Gezer
with her suburbs, 22: And
Kibzaim with her suburbs, and Beth-horon with her suburbs; four cities. 23: And out of the tribe of Dan,
Eltekeh with her suburbs, Gibbethon with her suburbs, 24: Aijalon with her suburbs, Gath-rimmon with her suburbs; four
cities. 25: And out of the half
tribe of Manasseh, Tanach with her suburbs, and Gath-rimmon with her suburbs;
two cities. 26: All the cities
were ten with their suburbs for the families of the children of Kohath that
remained. 27: And unto the
children of Gershon, of the families of the Levites, out of the other half
tribe of Manasseh they gave Golan in Bashan
with her suburbs, to be a city of refuge for the slayer; and Beesh-terah with
her suburbs; two cities. 28:
And out of the tribe of Issachar, Kishon with her suburbs, Dabareh with her
suburbs, 29: Jarmuth with her
suburbs, En-gannim with her suburbs; four cities. 30: And out of the tribe of Asher, Mishal with her suburbs,
Abdon with her suburbs, 31:
Helkath with her suburbs, and Rehob with her suburbs; four cities. 32: And out of the tribe of Naphtali,
Kedesh in Galilee with her suburbs, to be a
city of refuge for the slayer; and Hammoth-dor with her suburbs, and Kartan
with her suburbs; three cities. 33:
All the cities of the Gershonites according to their families were thirteen
cities with their suburbs. 34:
And unto the families of the children of Merari, the rest of the Levites, out
of the tribe of Zebulun, Jokneam with her suburbs, and Kartah with her suburbs,
35: Dimnah with her suburbs,
Nahalal with her suburbs; four cities. 36:
And out of the tribe of Reuben, Bezer with her suburbs, and Jahazah with her
suburbs, 37: Kedemoth with her
suburbs, and Mephaath with her suburbs; four cities. 38: And out of the tribe of Gad, Ramoth in Gilead
with her suburbs, to be a city of refuge for the slayer; and Mahanaim with her
suburbs, 39: Heshbon with her
suburbs, Jazer with her suburbs; four cities in all. 40: So all the cities for the children of Merari by their
families, which were remaining of the families of the Levites, were by their
lot twelve cities. 41: All the
cities of the Levites within the possession of the children of Israel were
forty and eight cities with their suburbs. 42: These cities were every one with their suburbs round about
them: thus were all these cities.
Israel settles in the land
43: And the LORD gave unto Israel
all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it,
and dwelt therein. 44: And the
LORD gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their
fathers: and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; the LORD
delivered all their enemies into their hand. 45: There failed not ought of any good thing which the LORD had
spoken unto the house of Israel;
all came to pass.
In todays Bible readings we have futher descriptions of the
inhertitence of the tribes of Israel
in the land of Canaan. Six more tribes are outlined.
Then the Lord records Joshua’s unique portion of land. Then the cities of
refuge are specified and the Levitical cities. But first we come to the tribe
of Simeon. Simeon had a territory within the territory of Judah.
They had 13 cities and associated villages in one place and four more in
another place with those villages. The tribe of Zebulun had an inhertitence
west of Galilee. They had 12 cities with the
villages. Issachar’s inhertitence was just south of Zebulun. They had 16 cites
and the villages. The tribe of Asher had an inheritance which was by the side
of the Mediteranian sea, it streached from Carmel
to Sidon. They
had 22 cities and villages. The tribe of Naphtali had an area next to Asher but
nearer to Galilee. They had 19 cites and
villages. The tribe of Dan had an inhertitence in the far north on both sides
of the Jordan.
Then we are told that Joshua had a special inheritance in mt Ephraim. He built
a city there and lived in it. This was the inheritance of Eleazar the priest.
Then the Lord specified the cities of refuge. They were a place of security
until a trial could be established and it prevented blood feuds and
vengeance.
- Kedesh in Galilee in mount Naphtali,
- Shechem in mount Ephraim,
- Kirjath-arba, which is Hebron,
- Bezer in the wilderness upon the plain out of the tribe of Reuben,
- Ramoth in Gilead out of the tribe of Gad,
- Golan in Bashan out of the tribe of Manasseh.
Then
we find that the Levites did not have a specific territory but they had cities
to live in with surrounding field up to about a mile.
- Judah, Simeon, Benjamin, 13 cities.
- Ephraim, Dan, Manasseh, 10 cities.
- Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, Manasseh 13 cities.
- Reuben, Gad, Zebulun, 12 cities.
Israel had complete victory in
the land and no-one stood up to them during the life of Joshua.
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