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48 “‘Following is the list of tribes:

“‘This is Dan’s territory: from the north end, through Hetlon to the entrance of Hamat, Hatzar-‘Einan (at the border of Dammesek), northward, next to Hamat; and they will have their sides east and west.

“‘Asher’s territory will run alongside the territory of Dan from east to west.

“‘Naftali’s territory will run alongside the territory of Asher from east to west.

“‘M’nasheh’s territory will run alongside the territory of Naftali from east to west.

“‘Efrayim’s territory will run alongside the territory of M’nasheh from east to west.

“‘Re’uven’s territory will run alongside the territory of Efrayim from east to west.

“‘Y’hudah’s territory will run alongside the territory of Re’uven from east to west.

“‘Alongside the territory of Y’hudah, from east to west, will be the offering you are to set aside, 25,000 [cubits] wide [eight miles], and in length equal to distance between the east and west boundaries of one of the portions, with the sanctuary inside it. The offering you are to set aside for Adonai is to be eight [miles] long and three wide. 10 This holy offering will be for the cohanim; it will be eight [miles] in length along its north and south sides and three in width along its west and east sides; Adonai’s sanctuary will be inside it. 11 The portion set aside as holy will be for the cohanim who are descendants of Tzadok that remained faithful to my commission and did not go astray when the people of Isra’el and the L’vi’im went astray. 12 It is to be an especially holy portion set apart for them and taken from the offering of the land, next to the border of the L’vi’im.

13 “ ‘Alongside the territory for the cohanim, the L’vi’im are to have a portion eight [miles] long and three wide — its total length will be eight and its width three. 14 They may not sell, exchange or alienate any of this choice land; because it is holy, for Adonai.

15 “‘The 5,000 [cubits, that is, the one-and-a-half miles] that are left of the width is to be for the common use of the city, for housing and for open fields. The city will be inside it. 16 and will measure 4,500 cubits [just under one-and-a-half miles] along each of its sides — north, south, east and west. 17 The city is to have outside it a border of land 440 feet wide on each side — north, south, east and west. 18 A strip next to the holy offering extending three [miles] to the east and three to the west is to be left. This area by the holy offering is to be used to grow food for those serving the city. 19 The people from all the tribes of Isra’el who serve in the city will farm it. 20 The entire offering will be eight [miles] square, including the section for the city.

21 “‘What remains will be for the prince — the land on the two sides of the holy offering and section for the city, that is, the portion eastward from the eight [miles] of the offering’s eastern border to the land’s eastern border and the portion westward from the eight [miles] of the offering’s western border to the land’s western border — this land adjacent to the [tribal] portions will be for the prince, with the holy offering and the sanctuary of the house inside it. 22 Thus the land belonging to the L’vi’im and the section for the city will be inside that which belongs to the prince.

“‘The territory belonging to the prince will be between the territory of Y’hudah and the territory of Binyamin — 23 which brings us to the rest of the tribes:

“‘Binyamin’s territory will run from east to west.

24 “‘Shim‘on’s territory will run alongside the territory of Binyamin from east to west.

25 “‘Yissakhar’s territory will run alongside the territory of Shim‘on from east to west.

26 “‘Z’vulun’s territory will run alongside the territory of Yissakhar from east to west.

27 “‘Gad’s territory will run alongside the territory of Z’vulun from east to west.

28 “‘Alongside the territory of Gad, from the Negev southward, the border will run from Tamar to the water at M’rivat-Kadesh, then to the Vadi [of Egypt], and on to the Great Sea. 29 This is the land you are to distribute by lot to the tribes of Isra’el for inheritance, and these are their portions,’ says Adonai Elohim.

30-34 “‘These are the city exits; they are to be named after the tribes of Isra’el, three gates on each of the four sides; the four sides each measure just under one-and-a-half [miles]: on the north, gates named after Re’uven, Y’hudah and Levi; on the east, gates named after Yosef, Binyamin and Dan; on the south, gates named after Shim‘on, Yissakhar and Z’vulun; and on the west, gates named after Gad, Asher and Naftali.

35 “‘The perimeter of [the city] will be just under six [miles] long. And from that day on the name of the city will be Adonai Shamah [Adonai is there].’”

Each tribe gets its part of the land

48 ‘This is the list of Israel's tribes, with the land that each tribe will receive:

Dan will receive land at the north border of Israel. Their north border goes east from the Mediterranean Sea along the road to Hethlon, as far as Lebo-Hamath. From there, it goes to Hazar-Enan, on the border between Damascus and Hamath.

Dan's part of the land goes all the way from Israel's border in the east to the Mediterranean Sea in the west.

South of Dan's land will be the land for Asher.

South of Asher's land will be the land for Naphtali.

South of Naphtali's land will be the land for Manasseh.

South of Manasseh's land will be the land for Ephraim.

South of Ephraim's land will be the land for Reuben.

South of Reuben's land will be the land for Judah.

South of Judah's land will be a special part of the land, with the temple in the middle of it. From east to west, it will be the same size as the parts of the land for Israel's tribes. From north to south, it will be 12½ kilometres.

The part that belongs to the Lord for his temple will be 12½ kilometres long and 10 kilometres wide. 10 The priests will have a part of this holy land. Their part will measure 12½ kilometres from east to west. It will measure 5 kilometres from north to south. The Lord's temple will be in the middle of this part. 11 This holy part of the land will belong to the priests who are descendants of Zadok. They are the priests who served me faithfully. They did not turn away from me as the other Levites did when Israel's people did not obey me. 12 So the priests will have that special part of the land, next to the part for the Levites. The priests' part will be the most holy part of the land.

13 The Levites will also have a special part, south of the part for the priests. It will be the same size. It will measure 12½ kilometres from east to west, and 5 kilometres from north to south. So the land for the priests and for the Levites will be 12½ kilometres from east to west and 10 kilometres from north to south. 14 The special part of the land that belongs to the Lord is the best of the whole land. You must not give his land to anyone else or sell it to anyone else. It is holy and it belongs to the Lord.

15 The other part of the special land is 12½ kilometres from east to west and 2½ kilometres from north to south. That part is not holy. Ordinary people may use it. They may live there and use the fields. There will be a city in the middle of it. 16 The city will be square, 2,250 metres long on each side. 17 You must leave an open space 125 metres wide on each side of the city. 18 There will be two other pieces of land south of the special holy land. There will be a piece 2.5 kilometres wide on the east side of the city and a piece 2.5 kilometres wide on the west side. People who live in the city may use these pieces of land to grow crops. 19 There will be people from the different tribes of Israel who live in the city. Any of them may use the land to grow things.

20 The whole of the special land, including the holy part and the part for the city, will be a square. Each side will be 12½ kilometres.

21 The parts of land on each side of the square will belong to the ruler. The part on the east side will go as far as Israel's border in the east. The part on the west side will go as far as the Mediterranean Sea. The holy part of land where the temple is will be in the middle, between them. 22 The land that belongs to the Levites and the priests, as well as the city, will be between the two parts of land that belong to the ruler. The land for Judah will be on the north side of these lands. The land for Benjamin's will be on the south side.

23 The other tribes will each have a part of the land that is south of this special part. The land for each of these tribes will go all the way from Israel's border in the east to the Mediterranean Sea in the west.

South of the special land will be the land for Benjamin.

24 South of the Benjamin's land will be the land for Simeon.

25 South of Simeon's land will be the land for Issachar.

26 South of Issachar's land will be the land for Zebulun.

27 South of Zebulun's land will be the land for Gad.

28 The border on the south side of Gad's land goes from Tamar to the springs of water near Meribath Kadesh. From there, it goes along the stream at Egypt's border to the Mediterranean Sea.

29 That is how you must share the land among Israel's tribes. Each part will belong to one tribe and their descendants. I, the Almighty Lord, say this.

The gates of the city

30 These will be the entrance gates on each side of the city. The wall on the north side of the city will be 2,250 metres long. 31 There will be three gates on that side. Each gate will have the name of one of Israel's tribes, one for Reuben, the next for Judah, and the next for Levi. 32 The wall on the east side will also be 2,250 metres long. The three gates on that side will be for Joseph, for Benjamin and for Dan. 33 The wall on the south side will also be 2,250 metres long. The three gates on that side will be for Simeon, for Issachar and for Zebulun. 34 The wall on the west side will also be 2,250 metres long. The three gates on that side will be for Gad, for Asher and for Naphtali. 35 So the walls all around the city will measure 9,000 metres.

From that time on, the name of the city will be, “The Lord is there.” ’