Joshua 17-21

Living Bible

17 The Land Given to the Half-Tribe of Manasseh (Joseph’s oldest son): The clan of Machir (Manasseh’s oldest son who was the father of Gilead) had already been given the land of Gilead and Bashan on the east side of the Jordan River,^[a] for they were great warriors. ² So now, land on the west side of the Jordan^[b] was given to the clans of Abiezer, Helek, Asriel, Shechem, Shemida, and Hepher.

³ However, Hepher’s son Zelophehad (grandson of Gilead, great-grandson of Machir, and great-great-grandson of Manasseh) had no sons. He had only five daughters whose names were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. ⁴ These women came to Eleazar the priest and to Joshua and the Israeli leaders and reminded them, “The Lord told Moses that we were to receive as much property as the men of our tribe.”^[c]

^5-6 So, as the Lord had commanded through Moses, these five women were given an inheritance along with their five great-uncles, and the total inheritance came to ten sections of land (in addition to the land of Gilead and Bashan across the Jordan River).

⁷ The northern boundary of the tribe of Manasseh extended southward from the border of Asher to Michmethath, which is east of Shechem. On the south the boundary went from Michmethath to the spring of Tappuah. ⁸ (The land of Tappuah belonged to Manasseh, but the city of Tappuah, on the border of Manasseh’s land, belonged to the tribe of Ephraim.) ⁹ From the spring of Tappuah the border of Manasseh followed the north bank of Kanah Brook to the Mediterranean Sea. (Several cities south of the brook belonged to the tribe of Ephraim, though they were located in Manasseh’s territory.) ¹⁰ The land south of the brook and as far west as the Mediterranean Sea was assigned to Ephraim, and the land north of the brook and east of the sea went to Manasseh. Manasseh’s northern boundary was the territory of Asher, and the eastern boundary was the territory of Issachar.

¹¹ The half-tribe of Manasseh was also given the following cities, which were situated in the areas assigned to Issachar and Asher: Beth-shean, Ibleam, Dor, En-dor, Taanach, Megiddo (where there are the three cliffs), with their respective villages. ¹² But since the descendants of Manasseh could not drive out the people who lived in those cities, the Canaanites remained. ¹³ Later on, however, when the Israelis became strong enough, they forced the Canaanites to work as slaves.

¹⁴ Then the two tribes of Joseph came to Joshua and asked, “Why have you given us only one portion of land when the Lord has given us such large populations?”

¹⁵ “If the hill country of Ephraim is not large enough for you,” Joshua replied, “and if you are able to do it, you may clear out the forest land where the Perizzites and Rephaim live.”

^16-18 “Fine,” said the tribes of Joseph, “for the Canaanites in the lowlands around Beth-shean and the valley of Jezreel have iron chariots and are too strong for us.”

“Then you shall have the mountain forests,” Joshua replied, “and since you are such a large, strong tribe you will surely be able to clear it all and live there. And I’m sure you can drive out the Canaanites from the valleys, too, even though they are strong and have iron chariots.”

18 ^1-2 After the conquest—although seven of the tribes of Israel had not yet entered and conquered the land God had given them—all Israel gathered at Shiloh to set up the Tabernacle.

³ Then Joshua asked them, “How long are you going to wait before clearing out the people living in the land that the Lord your God has given to you? ⁴ Select three men from each tribe, and I will send them to scout the unconquered territory and bring back a report of its size and natural divisions so that I can divide it for you. ^5-6 The scouts will map it into seven sections, and then I will throw the sacred dice to decide which section will be assigned to each tribe. ⁷ However, remember that the Levites won’t receive any land; they are priests of the Lord. That is their wonderful heritage. And of course the tribes of Gad and Reuben and the half-tribe of Manasseh won’t receive any more, for they already have land on the east side of the Jordan where Moses promised them that they could settle.”

⁸ So the scouts went out to map the country and to bring back their report to Joshua. Then the Lord could assign the sections of land to the tribes by the throw of the sacred dice. ⁹ The men did as they were told and divided the entire territory into seven sections, listing the cities in each section. Then they returned to Joshua and the camp at Shiloh. ¹⁰ There at the Tabernacle at Shiloh the Lord showed Joshua by the sacred lottery which tribe should have each section:

¹¹ The Land Given to the Tribe of Benjamin:

The section of land assigned to the families of the tribe of Benjamin lay between the territory previously assigned to the tribes of Judah and Joseph.

¹² The northern boundary began at the Jordan River, went north of Jericho, then west through the hill country and the wilderness of Beth-aven. ¹³ From there the boundary went south to Luz (also called Bethel) and proceeded down to Ataroth-addar in the hill country south of Lower Beth-horon. ¹⁴ There the border turned south, passing the mountain near Beth-horon and ending at the village of Kiriath-baal (sometimes called Kiriath-jearim), one of the cities of the tribe of Judah. This was the western boundary.

¹⁵ The southern border ran from the edge of Kiriath-baal, over Mount Ephron to the spring of Naphtoah, ¹⁶ and down to the base of the mountain beside the valley of Hinnom, north of the valley of Rephaim. From there it continued across the valley of Hinnom, crossed south of the old city of Jerusalem^[d] where the Jebusites lived, and continued down to En-rogel. ¹⁷ From En-rogel the boundary proceeded northeast to En-shemesh and on to Geliloth (which is opposite the slope of Adummim). Then it went down to the Stone of Bohan (who was a son of Reuben), ¹⁸ where it passed along the north edge of the Arabah. The border then went down into the Arabah, ¹⁹ ran south past Beth-hoglah, and ended at the north bay of the Dead Sea—which is the southern end of the Jordan River.

²⁰ The eastern border was the Jordan River. This was the land assigned to the tribe of Benjamin. ^21-28 These twenty-six cities were included in the land^[e] given to the tribe of Benjamin: Jericho, Beth-hoglah, Emek-keziz, Beth-arabah, Zimaraim, Bethel, Avvim, Parah, Ophrah, Chephar-ammoni, Ophni, Geba, Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth, Mizpeh, Chephirah, Mozah, Rekem, Irpeel, Taralah, Zela, Haeleph, Jebus (or Jerusalem), Gibeah, and Kiriath-jearim. All of these cities and their surrounding villages were given to the tribe of Benjamin.

19 The Land Given to the Tribe of Simeon: The tribe of Simeon received the next assignment of land—including part of the land previously assigned to Judah. ^2-7 Their inheritance included these seventeen cities^[f] with their respective villages: Beer-sheba, Sheba, Moladah, Hazar-shual, Balah, Ezem, Eltolad, Bethul, Hormah, Ziklag, Beth-marcaboth, Hazar-susah, Beth-lebaoth, Sharuhen, En-rimmon, Ether, and Ashan. ⁸ The cities as far south as Baalath-beer (also known as Ramah-in-the-Negeb) were also given to the tribe of Simeon. ⁹ So the Simeon tribe’s inheritance came from what had earlier been given to Judah, for Judah’s section had been too large for them.

¹⁰ The Land Given to the Tribe of Zebulun: The third tribe to receive its assignment of land was Zebulun. Its boundary started on the south side of Sarid. ¹¹ From there it circled to the west, going near Mareal and Dabbesheth until it reached the brook east of Jokneam. ¹² In the other direction, the boundary line went east to the border of Chisloth-tabor, and from there to Daberath and Japhia; ¹³ then it continued east of Gath-hepher, Ethkazin, and Rimmon and turned toward Neah. ¹⁴ The northern boundary of Zebulun passed Hannathon and ended at the valley of Iphtahel. ^15-16 The cities in these areas, besides those already mentioned,^[g] included Kattath, Nahalal, Shimron, Idalah, Bethlehem, and each of their surrounding villages. Altogether there were twelve of these cities.

^17-23 The Land Given to the Tribe of Issachar: The fourth tribe to be assigned its land was Issachar. Its boundaries included the following cities: Jezreel, Chesulloth, Shunem, Hapharaim, Shion, Anaharath, Rabbith, Kishion, Ebez, Remeth, En-gannim, En-haddah, Beth-pazzez, Tabor, Shahazumah, and Beth-shemesh—sixteen cities in all, each with its surrounding villages. The boundary of Issachar ended at the Jordan River.

^24-26 The Land Given to the Tribe of Asher: The fifth tribe to be assigned its land was Asher. The boundaries included these cities: Helkath, Hali, Beten, Achshaph, Allammelech, Amad, and Mishal.

The boundary on the west side went from Carmel to Shihor-libnath, ²⁷ turned east toward Beth-dagon, and ran as far as Zebulun in the valley of Iphtahel, running north of Beth-emek and Neiel. It then passed to the east of Kabul, ²⁸ Ebron, Rehob, Hammon, Kanah, and Greater Sidon. ²⁹ Then the boundary turned toward Ramah and the fortified city of Tyre and came to the Mediterranean Sea at Hosah. The territory also included Mahalab, Achzib, ^30-31 Ummah, Aphek, and Rehob—an overall total of twenty-two cities and their surrounding villages.

³² The Land Given to the Tribe of Naphtali: The sixth tribe to receive its assignment was the tribe of Naphtali. ³³ Its boundary began at Judah, at the oak in Zaanannim, and extended across to Adami-nekeb, Jabneel, and Lakkum, ending at the Jordan River. ³⁴ The western boundary began near Heleph and ran past Aznoth-tabor, then to Hukkok, and coincided with the Zebulun boundary in the south, and with the boundary of Asher on the west, and with the Jordan River at the east. ^35-39 The fortified cities included in this territory were: Ziddim, Zer, Hammath, Rakkath, Chinnereth, Adamah, Ramah, Hazor, Kedesh, Edrei, Enhazor, Yiron, Migdal-el, Horem, Beth-anath, and Beth-shemesh. So altogether the territory included nineteen cities with their surrounding villages.

⁴⁰ The Land Given to the Tribe of Dan: The last tribe to be assigned its land was Dan. ^41-46 The cities within its area included: Zorah, Eshtaol, Ir-shemesh, Shaalabbin, Aijalon, Ithlah, Elon, Timnah, Ekron, Eltekeh, Gibbethon, Baalath, Jehud, Bene-berak, Gath-rimmon, Me-jarkon, and Rakkon, also the territory near Joppa. ^47-48 But some of this territory proved impossible to conquer, so the tribe of Dan captured the city of Leshem, slaughtered its people, and lived there; and they called the city “Dan,” naming it after their ancestor.

⁴⁹ So all the land was divided among the tribes, with the boundaries indicated; and the nation of Israel gave a special piece of land to Joshua, ⁵⁰ for the Lord had said that he could have any city he wanted. He chose Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim; he rebuilt it and lived there.

⁵¹ Eleazar the priest, Joshua, and the leaders of the tribes of Israel supervised the sacred lottery to divide the land among the tribes. This was done in the Lord’s presence at the entrance of the Tabernacle at Shiloh.

20 The Lord said to Joshua,

² “Tell the people of Israel to designate now the Cities of Refuge, as I instructed Moses.^{[h] 3} If a man is guilty of killing someone unintentionally, he can run to one of these cities and be protected from the relatives of the dead man, who may try to kill him in revenge. ⁴ When the innocent killer reaches any of these cities, he will meet with the city council and explain what happened, and they must let him come in and must give him a place to live among them. ⁵ If a relative of the dead man comes to kill him in revenge, the innocent slayer must not be released to him for the death was accidental. ⁶ The man who caused the accidental death must stay in that city until he has been tried by the judges and found innocent, and must live there until the death of the High Priest who was in office at the time of the accident. But then he is free to return to his own city and home.”

⁷ The cities chosen as Cities of Refuge were Kedesh of Galilee in the hill country of Naphtali; Shechem, in the hill country of Ephraim; and Kiriath-arba (also known as Hebron) in the hill country of Judah. ⁸ The Lord also instructed that three cities be set aside for this purpose on the east side of the Jordan River, across from Jericho. They were Bezer, in the wilderness of the land of the tribe of Reuben; Ramoth of Gilead, in the territory of the tribe of Gad; and Golan of Bashan, in the land of the tribe of Manasseh. ⁹ These Cities of Refuge were for foreigners living in Israel as well as for the Israelis themselves, so that anyone who accidentally killed another man could run to that place for a trial and not be killed in revenge.

21 Then the leaders of the tribe of Levi came to Shiloh to consult with Eleazar the priest and with Joshua and the leaders of the various tribes.

² “The Lord instructed Moses to give cities to us Levites for our homes, and pastureland for our cattle,” they said.

³ So they were given some of the recently conquered cities with their pasturelands. ⁴ Thirteen of these cities had been assigned originally to the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin. These were given to some of the priests of the Kohath division (of the tribe of Levi, descendants of Aaron). ⁵ The other families of the Kohath division were given ten cities from the territories of Ephraim, Dan, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. ⁶ The Gershon division received thirteen cities, selected by sacred lot in the area of Bashan. These cities were given by the tribes of Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. ⁷ The Merari division received twelve cities from the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun. ⁸ So the Lord’s command to Moses was obeyed, and the cities and pasturelands were assigned by the toss of the sacred dice.

^9-16 First to receive their assignment were the priests—the descendants of Aaron, who was a member of the Kohath division of the Levites. The tribes of Judah and Simeon gave them the nine cities^[i] listed below, with their surrounding pasturelands:

Hebron, in the Judean hills, as a City of Refuge—it was also called Kiriath-arba (Arba was the father of Anak)—although the fields beyond the city and the surrounding villages were given to Caleb, the son of Jephunneh; Libnah, Jattir, Eshtemoa, Holon, Debir, Ain, Juttah, and Beth-shemesh.

^17-18 The tribe of Benjamin gave them these four cities and their pasturelands: Gibeon, Gaba, Anathoth, and Almon. ¹⁹ So in all, thirteen cities were given to the priests—the descendants of Aaron.

^20-22 The other families of the Kohath division received four cities^[j] and pasturelands from the tribe of Ephraim: Shechem (a City of Refuge), Gezer, Kibza-im, and Beth-horon.

^23-24 The following four cities and pasturelands were given by the tribe of Dan: Elteke, Gibbethon, Aijalon, and Gath-rimmon.

²⁵ The half-tribe of Manasseh gave the cities of Taanach and Gath-rimmon with their surrounding pasturelands.

²⁶ So the total number of cities and pasturelands given to the remainder of the Kohath division was ten.

²⁷ The descendants of Gershon, another division of the Levites, received two cities and pasturelands from the half-tribe of Manasseh: Golan, in Bashan (a City of Refuge), and Beeshterah.

^28-29 The tribe of Issachar gave four cities: Kishion, Daberath, Jarmuth, and Engannim.

^30-31 The tribe of Asher gave four cities and pasturelands: Mishal, Abdon, Helkath, and Rehob.

³² The tribe of Naphtali gave: Kedesh, in Galilee (a City of Refuge), Hammoth-dor, and Kartan.

³³ So thirteen cities with their pasturelands were assigned to the division of Gershon.

^34-35 The remainder of the Levites—the Merari division—were given four cities by the tribe of Zebulun: Jokneam, Kartah, Dimnah, and Nahalal.

^36-37 Reuben gave them: Bezer, Jahaz, Kedemoth, and Mephaath. ^38-39 Gad gave them four cities with pasturelands: Ramoth (a City of Refuge), Mahanaim, Heshbon, and Jazer.

⁴⁰ So the Merari division of the Levites was given twelve cities in all.

^41-42 The total number of cities and pasturelands given to the Levites came to forty-eight.

⁴³ So in this way the Lord gave to Israel all the land he had promised to their ancestors, and they went in and conquered it and lived there. ⁴⁴ And the Lord gave them peace, just as he had promised, and no one could stand against them; the Lord helped them destroy all their enemies. ⁴⁵ Every good thing the Lord had promised them came true.