Old/New Testament

Chapter 19

Simeon. ¹ The second lot fell to Simeon. The heritage of the tribe of Simeonites by their clans lay within that of the Judahites. ^2 (A)For their heritage they received Beer-sheba, Shema, Moladah, ³ Hazar-shual, Balah, Ezem, ⁴ Eltolad, Bethul, Hormah, ⁵ Ziklag, Bethmar-caboth, Hazar-susah, ⁶ Beth-lebaoth, and Sharuhen; thirteen cities and their villages. ⁷ Also Ain, Rimmon, Ether, and Ashan; four cities and their villages, ⁸ besides all the villages around these cities as far as Baalath-beer (that is, Ramoth-negeb). This was the heritage of the tribe of the Simeonites by their clans. ⁹ This heritage of the Simeonites was within the confines of the Judahites; for since the portion of the latter was too large for them, the Simeonites obtained their heritage within it.

Zebulun. ^10 [a]The third lot fell to the Zebulunites by their clans. The boundary of their heritage was at Sarid. ¹¹ Their boundary went up west and through Mareal, reaching Dabbesheth and the wadi that is near Jokneam. ¹² From Sarid eastward it ran to the district of Chisloth-tabor, on to Daberath, and up to Japhia. ¹³ From there it continued eastward to Gath-hepher and to Eth-kazin, extended to Rimmon, and turned to Neah. ¹⁴ Skirting north of Hannathon, the boundary ended at the valley of Iphtahel. ¹⁵ Thus, with Kattath, Nahalal, Shimron, Idalah, and Bethlehem, there were twelve cities and their villages. ¹⁶ This was the heritage of the Zebulunites by their clans, these cities and their villages.

Issachar. ^17 [b]The fourth lot fell to Issachar. The territory of the Issacharites by their clans ¹⁸ 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 Tabor, Shahazumah, and Beth-shemesh, ending at the Jordan: sixteen cities and their villages. ²³ This was the heritage of the Issacharites by their clans, these cities and their villages.

Asher. ^24 [c]The fifth lot fell to the Asherites by their clans. ²⁵ Their territory included Helkath, Hali, Beten, Achshaph, ²⁶ Allammelech, Amad, and Mishal, and reached Carmel on the west, and Shihor-libnath. ²⁷ In the other direction, it ran eastward of Beth-dagon, reached Zebulun and the valley of Iphtahel; then north of Beth-emek and Neiel, it extended northward to Cabul, ²⁸ Ebron, Rehob,^(B) Hammon, and Kanah, near Greater Sidon. ²⁹ Then the boundary turned back to Ramah and to the fortress city of Tyre; thence it cut back to Hosah and ended at the sea. Thus, with Mahalab, Achzib, ³⁰ Ummah, Acco, Aphek, and Rehob, there were twenty-two cities and their villages. ³¹ This was the heritage of the tribe of the Asherites by their clans, these cities and their villages.

Naphtali. ^32 [d]The sixth lot fell to the Naphtalites. ³³ Their boundary extended from Heleph, from the oak at Zaanannim, including Adami-nekeb and Jabneel, to Lakkum, and ended at the Jordan. ³⁴ In the opposite direction, westerly, it ran through Aznoth-tabor and from there extended to Hukkok; it reached Zebulun on the south, Asher on the west, and the Jordan on the east. ³⁵ The fortified cities were Ziddim, Zer, Hammath, Rakkath, Chinnereth, ³⁶ Adamah, Ramah, Hazor, ³⁷ Kedesh, Edrei, En-hazor, ³⁸ Yiron, Migdal-el, Horem, Beth-anath, and Beth-shemesh;^(C) nineteen cities and their villages. ³⁹ This was the heritage of the tribe of the Naphtalites by their clans, these cities and their villages.

Dan. ^40 [e]The seventh lot fell to the tribe of Danites by their clans. ⁴¹ Their heritage was the territory of Zorah, Eshtaol, Ir-shemesh, ⁴² Shaalabbin, Aijalon, Ithlah,^{(D) 43} Elon, Timnah, Ekron, ⁴⁴ Eltekoh, Gibbethon, Baalath, ⁴⁵ Jehud, Bene-berak, Gath-rimmon, ⁴⁶ Me-jarkon, and Rakkon, with the coast at Joppa. ^47 (E)But the territory of the Danites was too small for them; so the Danites marched up and attacked Leshem,^[f] which they captured and put to the sword. Once they had taken possession of Leshem, they dwelt there and named it after their ancestor Dan. ⁴⁸ This was the heritage of the tribe of the Danites by their clans, these cities and their villages.

Joshua’s City. ⁴⁹ When the last of them had received the portions of the land they were to inherit, the Israelites assigned a heritage in their midst to Joshua, son of Nun. ⁵⁰ According to the command of the Lord, they gave him the city he requested, Timnah-serah^(F) in the mountain region of Ephraim. He rebuilt the city and made it his home.

⁵¹ These are the heritages which Eleazar the priest, Joshua, son of Nun, and the heads of families in the tribes of the Israelites apportioned by lot in the presence of the Lord, at the door of the tent of meeting in Shiloh. Thus they finished dividing the land.

Chapter 20

Cities of Refuge. ^1 (G)The Lord said to Joshua:^{[g] 2} Tell the Israelites: Designate for yourselves the cities of refuge of which I spoke to you through Moses, ³ to which anyone guilty of inadvertent and unintentional homicide may flee for asylum from the avenger of blood. ⁴ To one of these cities the killer shall flee, and standing at the entrance of the city gate, shall plead his case in the hearing of the elders of the city, who must receive him and assign him a place in which to live among them. ⁵ Though the avenger of blood pursues him, they shall not deliver up to him the one who killed a neighbor unintentionally, when there had been no hatred previously. ⁶ Once he has stood judgment before the community, he shall live on in that city until the death of the high priest who is in office at the time. Then the killer may return home to the city from where he originally fled.

List of Cities. ⁷ So they set apart Kedesh in Galilee in the mountain region of Naphtali, Shechem in the mountain region of Ephraim, and Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the mountain region of Judah.^{(H) 8} And beyond the Jordan east of Jericho they designated Bezer in the wilderness on the tableland in the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gilead in the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan in the tribe of Manasseh.^{(I) 9} These are the designated cities to which any Israelite or alien residing among them who had killed a person unintentionally might flee to escape death at the hand of the avenger of blood, until the killer could appear before the community.

Chapter 21

Levitical Cities. ¹ The heads of the Levite families^[h] approached Eleazar the priest, Joshua, son of Nun, and the heads of families of the other tribes of the Israelites^{(J) 2} at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, and said to them, “The Lord commanded, through Moses, that cities be given us to dwell in, with pasture lands for our livestock.”^{(K) 3} Out of their own heritage, according to the command of the Lord, the Israelites gave the Levites the following cities with their pasture lands.

⁴ When the first lot among the Levites fell to the clans of the Kohathites, the descendants of Aaron the priest obtained by lot from the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin, thirteen cities. ⁵ From the clans of the tribe of Ephraim, from the tribe of Dan, and from the half-tribe of Manasseh, the rest of the Kohathites obtained by lot ten cities.^{(L) 6} From the clans of the tribe of Issachar, from the tribe of Asher, from the tribe of Naphtali, and from the half-tribe of Manasseh, the Gershonites obtained by lot thirteen cities. ⁷ From the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun, the clans of the Merarites obtained twelve cities. ⁸ These cities with their pasture lands the Israelites gave by lot to the Levites, as the Lord had commanded through Moses.

Cities of the Priests. ^9 (M)From the tribes of the Judahites and Simeonites they gave the following cities ¹⁰ and assigned them to the descendants of Aaron in the Kohathite clan of the Levites, since the first lot fell to them: ¹¹ first, Kiriath-arba (Arba was the father of Anak), that is, Hebron, in the mountain region of Judah, with the adjacent pasture lands, ¹² although the open country and villages belonging to the city had been given to Caleb, son of Jephunneh, as his holding.^{(N) 13} Thus to the descendants of Aaron the priest were given the city of refuge for homicides at Hebron, with its pasture lands; also, 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 from these two tribes. ¹⁷ From the tribe of Benjamin they obtained Gibeon with its pasture lands, Geba with its pasture lands, ¹⁸ Anathoth^(O) with its pasture lands, and Almon with its pasture lands: four cities. ¹⁹ These cities which with their pasture lands belonged to the priestly descendants of Aaron, were thirteen in all.

Cities of the Other Kohathites. ^20 (P)The rest of the Kohathite clans among the Levites obtained by lot, from the tribe of Ephraim, four cities. ²¹ They were assigned, with its pasture lands, the city of refuge for homicides at Shechem in the mountain region of Ephraim; also Gezer with its pasture lands, ²² Kibzaim with its pasture lands, and Beth-horon with its pasture lands. ²³ From the tribe of Dan they obtained Elteke with its pasture lands, Gibbethon with its pasture lands, ²⁴ Aijalon with its pasture lands, and Gath-rimmon with its pasture lands: four cities. ²⁵ From the half-tribe of Manasseh, Taanach with its pasture lands, and Gath-rimmon with its pasture lands: two cities. ²⁶ These cities which with their pasture lands belonged to the rest of the Kohathite clans were ten in all.

Cities of the Gershonites. ^27 (Q)The Gershonite clan of the Levites received from the half-tribe of Manasseh the city of refuge for homicides at Golan in Bashan, with its pasture lands; and also Beth-Astharoth with its pasture lands: two cities. ²⁸ From the tribe of Issachar they obtained Kishion with its pasture lands, Daberath with its pasture lands, ²⁹ Jarmuth with its pasture lands, and En-gannim with its pasture lands: four cities. ³⁰ From 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 From the tribe of Naphtali, the city of refuge for homicides at Kedesh in Galilee, with its pasture lands; also Hammath with its pasture lands, and Kartan with its pasture lands: three cities. ³³ The cities which belonged to the Gershonite clans, with their pasture lands, were thirteen in all.

Cities of the Merarites. ^34 (R)The Merarite clans, the last of the Levites, received, from 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 Also, across the Jordan, from the tribe of Reuben, the city of refuge for homicides at 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 From the tribe of Gad, the city of refuge for homicides at Ramoth in Gilead with its pasture lands, Mahanaim with its pasture lands, ³⁹ Heshbon with its pasture lands, and Jazer with its pasture lands: four cities in all. ⁴⁰ The cities allotted to the Merarite clans, the last of the Levites, were therefore twelve in all.

⁴¹ Thus the total number of cities^(S) within the territory of the Israelites which, with their pasture lands, belonged to the Levites, was forty-eight. ⁴² With each and every one of these cities went the pasture lands round about it.

⁴³ And so the Lord gave Israel the entire land he had sworn to their ancestors he would give them.^(T) Once they had taken possession of it, and dwelt in it, ⁴⁴ the Lord gave them peace on every side, just as he had promised their ancestors. Not one of their enemies could withstand them; the Lord gave all their enemies into their power. ⁴⁵ Not a single word of the blessing^(U) that the Lord had promised to the house of Israel failed; it all came true.

²⁵ Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, awaiting the consolation of Israel,^[a] and the holy Spirit was upon him. ²⁶ It had been revealed to him by the holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Messiah of the Lord. ²⁷ He came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform the custom of the law in regard to him, ²⁸ he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying:

³³ The child’s father and mother were amazed at what was said about him; ³⁴ and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted^{(C) 35} (and you yourself a sword will pierce)^[b] so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.” ³⁶ There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived seven years with her husband after her marriage, ³⁷ and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple, but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer. ³⁸ And coming forward at that very time, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.^(D)

The Return to Nazareth. ³⁹ When they had fulfilled all the prescriptions of the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth.^{(E) 40} The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.^(F)

The Boy Jesus in the Temple.^{[c] 41} Each year his parents went to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover,^{(G) 42} and when he was twelve years old, they went up according to festival custom. ⁴³ After they had completed its days, as they were returning, the boy Jesus remained behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. ⁴⁴ Thinking that he was in the caravan, they journeyed for a day and looked for him among their relatives and acquaintances, ⁴⁵ but not finding him, they returned to Jerusalem to look for him. ⁴⁶ After three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions, ⁴⁷ and all who heard him were astounded at his understanding and his answers. ⁴⁸ When his parents saw him, they were astonished, and his mother said to him, “Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety.” ⁴⁹ And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”^{[d] 50} But they did not understand what he said to them. ⁵¹ He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart.^{(H) 52} And Jesus advanced [in] wisdom and age and favor before God and man.^(I)