Chronological
19 The second lot fell to Simeon, to the tribe of the Simeonites according to their families; and their inheritance lay within that of the people of Judah.
2 And they had for their inheritance: Beersheba or Sheba, Moladah,
3 Hazarshual, Balah, Ezem,
4 Eltolad, Bethul, Hormah,
5 Ziklag, Beth-marcaboth, Hazar-susah,
6 Beth-lebaoth, and Sharuhen; [making] thirteen cities and their villages;
7 Ain [with] Rimmon, Ether, and Ashan; [making] four cities and their villages;
8 And all the villages around these cities as far as Baalath-beer, or Ramah of the Negeb. This was the possession of the Simeonites according to their families.
9 Out of the part assigned to the Judahites was the inheritance of the tribe of Simeon, for the portion of the tribe of Judah was too large for them. Therefore the tribe of Simeon had its inheritance in the midst of Judah’s inheritance.
10 The third lot came up for the tribe of Zebulun according to their families. The border of its inheritance extended to Sarid.
11 Then its boundary went up westward and on to Maralah and reached to Dabbesheth and to the brook east of Jokneam.
12 And it turned from Sarid eastward to the border of Chisloth-tabor and it went out to Daberath and on up to Japhia,
13 Then passed eastward to Gath-hepher [Jonah’s birthplace] and to Eth-kazin, and went on to Rimmon bending toward Neah.
14 The boundary circled on the north to Hannathon, ending at the Valley of Iphtah-el.
15 Included were Kattath, Nahalal, Shimron, Idalah, and Bethlehem; twelve cities with their villages.
16 This is the inheritance of the people of Zebulun according to their families, these cities with their villages.
17 The fourth lot fell to Issachar, to its people according to their families.
18 Their territory included: Jezreel, Chesulloth, Shunem,
19 Hapharaim, Shion, Anaharath,
20 Rabbith, Kishion, Ebez,
21 Remeth, En-gannim, En-haddah, and Beth-pazzez.
22 The boundary reached to Tabor, Shahazumah, and Beth-shemesh, and ended at the Jordan; sixteen cities with their villages.
23 This is the inheritance of the tribe of Issachar according to their families, the cities and their villages.
24 The fifth lot fell to the tribe of Asher according to their families.
25 Their territory included: Helkath, Hali, Beten, Achshaph,
26 Allammelech, Amad, and Mishal; and on the west it touched Carmel and Shihor-libnath.
27 Then it turned eastward to Beth-dagon, touching Zebulun and the Valley of Iphtah-el northward to Beth-emek and Neiel, and continued in the north to Cabul,
28 Ebron, Rehob, Hammon, and Kanah, even to populous Sidon.
29 Then the boundary turned to Ramah, reaching to the fortified city of Tyre; and it turned to Hosah, and ended at the sea—Mahalab, Achzib,
30 Ummah, Aphek, and Rehob; twenty-two cities with their villages.
31 This is the inheritance of the tribe of Asher according to their families, these cities with their villages.
32 The sixth lot fell to the tribe of Naphtali according to their families.
33 Their boundary ran from Heleph, from the oak in Zaanannim and Adami-nekeb and Jabneel as far as Lakkum; and it ended at the Jordan.
34 Then the boundary turned westward to Aznoth-tabor and went from there to Hukkok, touching Zebulun on the south, Asher on the west, and Judah on the east at the Jordan.
35 The fortified cities included Ziddim, Zer, Hammath, Rakkath, Chinnereth,
36 Adamah, Ramah, Hazor,
37 Kedesh, Edrei, En-hazor,
38 Yiron, Migdal-el, Horem, Beth-anath, and Beth-shemesh; nineteen cities and their villages.
39 This is the inheritance of the tribe of Naphtali according to their families, the cities and their villages.
40 And the seventh lot fell to the tribe of Dan according to their families.
41 The territory of their inheritance included: Zorah, Eshtaol, Ir-shemesh,
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 territory before Joppa.
47 The territory of the tribe of Dan had to be extended [because of the crowding in of the Amorites and Philistines]; so the sons of Dan went up to fight against Leshem (Laish) and took it and smote it with the sword and possessed it and dwelt there, and they called Leshem (Laish) Dan after Dan their [forefather].(A)
48 This is the inheritance of the tribe of Dan according to their families, these cities with their villages.
49 When they had finished dividing the land for inheritance by their boundaries, the Israelites gave an inheritance among them to Joshua son of Nun.
50 According to the word of the Lord they gave him the city for which he asked—Timnath-serah in the hills of Ephraim. And he built the city and dwelt in it.
51 These are the inheritances which Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers’ houses of the tribes of Israel distributed by lot in Shiloh before the Lord at the door of the Tent of Meeting. So they finished dividing the land.
20 The Lord said also to Joshua,
2 Say to the Israelites, Appoint among you cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you through Moses,
3 That the slayer who kills anyone accidentally and unintentionally may flee there; and they shall be your refuge from the avenger of blood.(B)
4 He who flees to one of those cities shall stand at the entrance of the gate of the city and explain his case to the elders of that city; they shall receive him to [the protection of] that city and give him a place to dwell among them.
5 If the avenger of blood pursues him, they shall not deliver the slayer into his hand, because he killed his neighbor unintentionally, having had no hatred for him previously.
6 And he shall dwell in that city until he has been tried before the congregation and until the death of him who is the high priest in those days. Then the slayer shall return to his own city from which he fled and to his own house.
7 And they set apart and consecrated Kedesh in Galilee in the hill country of Naphtali and Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the hill country of Judah.
8 Beyond the Jordan east of Jericho they appointed Bezer in the wilderness tableland from the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead from the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan from the tribe of Manasseh.
9 These cities were for all the Israelites and the stranger sojourning among them, that whoever killed a person unintentionally might flee there and not be slain by the avenger of blood until he had been tried before the congregation.
21 Then the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites came to Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun and the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Israelite tribes.
2 They said to them at Shiloh in Canaan, The Lord commanded through Moses that we should be given cities to dwell in, with their pasturelands (suburbs) for our cattle.
3 So the Israelites gave to the Levites out of their own inheritance, at the command of the Lord, these cities and their suburbs.
4 The [first] lot came out for the families of the Kohathites. So those [a]Levites who were descendants of Aaron the priest received by lot from the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin thirteen cities.
5 And the rest of the Kohathites received by lot from the families of the tribes of Ephraim, Dan, and the half-tribe of Manasseh ten cities.
6 The Gershonites received by lot from the families of the tribes of Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and the half-tribe of Manasseh in Bashan thirteen cities.
7 The Merarites received according to their families from the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun twelve cities.
8 The Israelites gave by lot to the Levites these cities with their pasturelands (suburbs), as the Lord commanded through Moses.
9 They gave from the tribes of Judah and Simeon the cities here mentioned by name,
10 Which went to the families of the descendants of Aaron, of the Kohathite branch of the Levites, for the lot fell to them first.
11 They gave them [the city of] Kiriath-arba, Arba being the father of Anak, which city is Hebron, in the hill country of Judah, with its pasturelands round about it.
12 But the city’s fields and villages they gave to Caleb son of Jephunneh as his own.
13 Thus to the descendants of Aaron the priest they gave Hebron, the city of refuge for the slayer, with its pasturelands (suburbs), and together with their suburbs, Libnah,
14 Jattir, Eshtemoa,
15 Holon, Debir,
16 Ain, Juttah, and Beth-shemesh; nine cities, each with its suburbs, out of those two tribes.
17 Out of the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon, Geba,
18 Anathoth, and Almon; four cities, each with its suburbs.
19 The cities of the sons of Aaron, the priests, were thirteen, with their suburbs.
20 The rest of the Kohathites belonging to the Levitical families were allotted cities out of the tribe of Ephraim.
21 To them were given, each with its pasturelands (suburbs), Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, as the city of refuge for the slayer, and Gezer,
22 And Kibzaim, and Beth-horon; four cities, each with its pasturelands (suburbs).
23 And out of the tribe of Dan, each with its pasturelands (suburbs), Eltekeh, Gibbethon,
24 Aijalon, and Gath-rimmon; four cities, each with its pasturelands (suburbs).
25 And out of the half-tribe of Manasseh, Taanach, and [another] Gath-rimmon; two cities, each with its pasturelands (suburbs).
26 All the cities for the families of the remaining Kohathites were ten, with their pasturelands (suburbs).
27 And to the Gershonites of the families of the Levites they gave out of the other half-tribe of Manasseh the city of Golan in Bashan, as the city of refuge for the slayer, and Be-eshterah; two cities, each with its pasturelands.
28 Out of the tribe of Issachar, Kishion, Daberath,
29 Jarmuth, and En-gannim; four cities, each with its suburbs.
30 Out of the tribe of Asher, Mishal, Abdon,
31 Helkath, and Rehob; four cities, each with its pasturelands.
32 And out of the tribe of Naphtali, Kedesh in Galilee, city of refuge for the slayer, and Hammoth-dor, and Kartan; three cities, each with its suburbs.
33 All the cities of the Gershonite families were thirteen, with their pasturelands (suburbs).
34 And to the families of the Merarites, the rest of the Levites, out of the tribe of Zebulun were given Jokneam, Kartah,
35 Dimnah, and Nahalal; four cities, each with its pasturelands (suburbs).
36 And out of the tribe of Reuben, Bezer, Jahaz,
37 Kedemoth, and Mephaath; four cities, each with its pasturelands (suburbs).
38 And out of the tribe of Gad, Ramoth in Gilead, as the city of refuge for the slayer, and Mahanaim,
39 Heshbon, and Jazer; four cities in all, each with its pasturelands (suburbs).
40 So all the cities allotted to the Merarite families, that is, the remainder of the Levite families, were twelve cities.
41 The cities of the Levites in the midst of the possession of the Israelites were forty-eight cities in all, with their pasturelands (suburbs).
42 These cities all had their pasturelands (suburbs) around them.
43 And the Lord gave to Israel all the land which He had sworn to give to their fathers, and they possessed it and dwelt in it.
44 The Lord gave them rest round about, just as He had sworn to their fathers. Not one of all their enemies withstood them; the Lord delivered all their enemies into their hands.
45 There failed no part of any good thing which the Lord had promised to the house of Israel; all came to pass.
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