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Joshua 19-21
Easy-to-Read Version
Joshua 19-21
Easy-to-Read Version
Land for Simeon
19 Then Joshua gave all the families in the tribe of Simeon their share of the land. The land they got was inside the area that belonged to Judah. 2 This is the land that was given to that tribe: Beersheba (also called Sheba), Moladah, 3 Hazar Shual, Balah, Ezem, 4 Eltolad, Bethul, Hormah, 5 Ziklag, Beth Marcaboth, Hazar Susah, 6 Beth Lebaoth, and Sharuhen. There were 13 towns and all the fields around them.
7 They also got the towns of Ain, Rimmon, Ether, and Ashan. There were four towns and all the fields around them. 8 They also got all the fields around the cities as far as Baalath Beer (Ramah in the Negev). So this was the area that was given to the tribe of Simeon. Each family got its land. 9 Simeon’s share of land was within the area that Judah got. The people of Judah had more land than they needed, so the people of Simeon got part of their land.
Land for Zebulun
10 The next tribe to get their land was Zebulun. Each family in Zebulun got the land that was promised to them. The border of Zebulun went as far as Sarid. 11 Then the border went west to Maralah and just touched Dabbesheth. Then it went along the ravine near Jokneam. 12 Then the border turned to the east. It went from Sarid to Kisloth Tabor. Then it went on to Daberath and to Japhia. 13 Then the border continued to the east to Gath Hepher and Eth Kazin. It ended at Rimmon. Then it turned and went to Neah. 14 At Neah the border turned again, went north to Hannathon, and then continued to the Valley of Iphtah El. 15 Inside this border were the cities of Kattath, Nahalal, Shimron, Idalah, and Bethlehem. In all, there were twelve towns and all the fields around them.
16 So these are the towns and fields around them that were given to Zebulun. Each family in Zebulun got its part of the land.
Land for Issachar
17 The fourth part of the land was given to the tribe of Issachar. Each family in that tribe got its part of the land. 18 This is the land that was given to that tribe: Jezreel, Kesulloth, Shunem, 19 Hapharaim, Shion, Anaharath, 20 Rabbith, Kishion, Ebez, 21 Remeth, En Gannim, En Haddah, and Beth Pazzez.
22 The border of their land touched Tabor, Shahazumah, and Beth Shemesh. It ended at the Jordan River. In all, there were 16 towns and the fields around them. 23 These cities and towns were part of the land that was given to the tribe of Issachar. Each family got its part of the land.
Land for Asher
24 The fifth part of land was given to the tribe of Asher. Each family in that tribe got its part of the land. 25 This is the land that was given to that tribe: Helkath, Hali, Beten, Acshaph, 26 Allammelech, Amad, and Mishal.
The western border continued to Mount Carmel and Shihor Libnath. 27 Then the border turned to the east. It went to Beth Dagon. The border touched Zebulun and the Valley of Iphtah El. Then it went north of Beth Emek and Neiel. It passed north of Cabul. 28 Then the border went to Abdon,[a] Rehob, Hammon, and Kanah. It continued to the Greater Sidon area. 29 Then the border went back south to Ramah. It continued to the strong city of Tyre. Then the border turned and went to Hosah. It ended at the sea, near Aczib, 30 Ummah, Aphek, and Rehob.
In all there were 22 towns and the fields around them. 31 These cities and the fields around them were given to the tribe of Asher. Each family in that tribe got its share of the land.
Land for Naphtali
32 The sixth part of land was given to the tribe of Naphtali. Each family in that tribe got its share of the land. 33 The border of their land started at the large tree near Zaanannim. This is near Heleph. Then the border went through Adami Nekeb and Jabneel. It continued to Lakkum and ended at the Jordan River. 34 Then the border went to the west through Aznoth Tabor. It ended at Hukkok. The southern border touched Zebulun and the western border touched Asher. The border went to Judah, at the Jordan River to the east. 35 There were some very strong cities inside these borders. They were Ziddim, Zer, Hammath, Rakkath, Kinnereth, 36 Adamah, Ramah, Hazor, 37 Kedesh, Edrei, En Hazor, 38 Iron, Migdal El, Horem, Beth Anath, and Beth Shemesh. In all, there were 19 towns and all the fields around them.
39 These cities and the fields around them were given to the tribe of Naphtali. Each family in that tribe got its land.
Land for Dan
40 Then land was given to the tribe of Dan. Each family in that tribe got its land. 41 This is the land that was given to them: 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, Rakkon, and the area near Joppa.
47 But the people of Dan had trouble taking their land. There were strong enemies there and the people of Dan could not easily defeat them. So the people of Dan went to the northern part of Israel and fought against Laish.[b] They defeated Laish and killed the people who lived there. So the people of Dan lived in the town of Laish. They changed the name to Dan because that was the name of the father of their tribe. 48 All these cities and fields around them were given to the tribe of Dan. Each family got its share of the land.
Land for Joshua
49 So the leaders finished dividing the land and giving it to the different tribes. After they finished, all the Israelites decided to give Joshua son of Nun some land too. This was land that was promised to him. 50 The Lord had commanded that he get this land. So they gave Joshua the town of Timnath Serah[c] in the hill country of Ephraim. This was the town that Joshua told them he wanted. So he built the town stronger and lived there.
51 All these lands were given to the different tribes of Israel. Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the leaders of each tribe met together at Shiloh to divide the land. They met before the Lord at the entrance of the Meeting Tent. So they finished dividing the land.
Cities of Safety
20 Then the Lord said to Joshua: 2 “Through Moses, I told you to choose some cities to be cities of safety. 3 Anyone who kills someone accidentally can go to a city of safety to hide from the relatives who want to kill him.
4 “If you accidentally kill someone and you run away to one of those cities, you must stop at the entrance of the city and tell the leaders of the people what happened. Then the leaders can allow you to enter the city. They will give you a place to live among them. 5 If someone chases you and follows you to that city, the leaders of the city must not give you up. They must protect you because you came to them for safety after killing someone by accident—you were not angry and did not plan to kill the person. It was something that just happened. 6 You should stay in that city until the court has judged you and until the high priest dies. Then you may go back to your hometown.”
7 So the Israelites chose some cities to be called cities of safety. These are the cities: Kedesh in Galilee in the hill country of Naphtali; Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim; Kiriath Arba (Hebron) in the hill country of Judah; 8 Bezer, east of the Jordan River across from Jericho, in the desert area in the land of Reuben; Ramoth in Gilead in the land of Gad; and Golan in Bashan in the land of Manasseh.
9 All Israelites or any foreigners living among them who killed someone by accident were allowed to run away to one of these cities of safety. They could be safe there and not be killed by anyone chasing them. The court in that city would judge them.
Towns for Priests and Levites
21 The family rulers of the Levite tribe went to talk to Eleazar the priest, to Joshua son of Nun, and to the rulers of the other tribes of Israel. 2 At Shiloh in the land of Canaan, the Levite rulers said to them, “The Lord gave Moses a command. He commanded that you give us towns to live in and that you give us fields where our animals can eat.” 3 So the Israelites obeyed this command from the Lord and gave the Levites these towns and the land around them for their animals:
4 The Kohath family groups were descendants of Aaron the priest from the tribe of Levi. Part of the Kohath family was given 13 towns in the areas that belonged to Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin.
5 The other Kohath families were given ten towns in the areas that belonged to Ephraim, Dan, and half of Manasseh.
6 The people from the Gershon family were given 13 towns. These towns were in the areas that belonged to Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and the half of Manasseh that was in Bashan.
7 The people from the Merari family were given 12 towns. These towns came from the areas that belonged to Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun.
8 So the Israelites gave the Levites these towns and the fields around them, just as the Lord had told Moses.
9 These are the names of the towns that were in the areas that belonged to Judah and Simeon. 10 The first choice of towns was given to the Levites from the Kohath family group. 11 They gave them Kiriath Arba. (This is Hebron. It was named for a man named Arba. Arba was the father of Anak.) They also gave them some land near the town for their animals. 12 But the fields and the small towns around the city of Kiriath Arba belonged to Caleb son of Jephunneh. 13 So they gave the city of Hebron to Aaron’s descendants. (Hebron was a city of safety.) They also gave Aaron’s descendants the towns of Libnah, 14 Jattir, Eshtemoa, 15 Holon, Debir, 16 Ain, Juttah, and Beth Shemesh. They also gave them some of the land near these towns for their animals. These two tribes gave them nine towns.
17 They also gave Aaron’s descendants cities that belonged to the tribe of Benjamin. These cities were Gibeon, Geba, 18 Anathoth, and Almon. They gave them these four towns and some of the land near the towns for their animals. 19 In all, they gave 13 towns to the priests. (All priests were descendants of Aaron.) They also gave them some land near each town for their animals.
20 The other people from the Kohathite family groups were given towns that were in the areas that belonged to the tribe of Ephraim. They got these towns: 21 the city of Shechem from the hill country of Ephraim (which was a city of safety), Gezer, 22 Kibzaim, and Beth Horon. In all, Ephraim gave them four towns and some land around each town for their animals.
23 The tribe of Dan gave them Eltekeh, Gibbethon, 24 Aijalon, and Gath Rimmon. In all, Dan gave them four towns and some land around each town for their animals.
25 Half the tribe of Manasseh gave them Taanach and Gath Rimmon. In all, this half of Manasseh gave them two towns and some land around each town for their animals.
26 In all, the rest of the people from the Kohath family groups got ten towns and some land around each town for their animals.
27 The Gershon family groups were also from the tribe of Levi. They got these towns:
Half the tribe of Manasseh gave them Golan in Bashan. (Golan was a city of safety.) Manasseh also gave them Be Eshtarah. In all, this half of Manasseh gave them two towns and some land around each town for their animals.
28 The tribe of Issachar gave them Kishion, Daberath, 29 Jarmuth, and En Gannim. In all, Issachar gave them four towns and some land around each town for their animals.
30 The tribe of Asher gave them Mishal, Abdon, 31 Helkath, and Rehob. In all, Asher gave them four towns and some land around each town for their animals.
32 The tribe of Naphtali gave them Kedesh in Galilee. (Kedesh was a city of safety.) Naphtali also gave them Hammoth Dor and Kartan. In all, Naphtali gave them three towns and some land around each town for their animals.
33 In all, the Gershon family groups got 13 towns and some land around each town for their animals.
34-39 The other Levite group was the Merari family group. They were given these towns: The tribe of Zebulun gave them Jokneam, Kartah, Dimnah, and Nahalal. In all, Zebulun gave them four towns and some land around each town for their animals. The tribe of Reuben gave them Bezer, Jahaz, Kedemoth, and Mephaath. In all, Reuben gave them four towns and some land around each town for their animals. The tribe of Gad gave them Ramoth in Gilead. (Ramoth was a city of safety.) They also gave them Mahanaim, Heshbon, and Jazer. In all, Gad gave them four towns and some land around each town for their animals.
40 In all, the last family of Levites, the Merari family, got 12 towns.
41 So the Levites were given a total of 48 towns and some land around each town for their animals. All these towns were in areas that belonged to the other tribes. 42 Each of these towns had some land in it for their animals. That was true for every town.
43 So the Lord kept the promise that he had made to the Israelites and gave the people all the land that he had promised. The people took the land and lived there. 44 And the Lord allowed them to have peace on all sides of their land, just as he had promised their ancestors. None of their enemies defeated them. The Lord allowed the Israelites to defeat every enemy. 45 The Lord kept every promise that he made to the Israelites. There were no promises that he failed to keep. Every promise came true.
Footnotes
- Joshua 19:28 Abdon Or “Ebron.”
- Joshua 19:47 Laish Or “Leshem.”
- Joshua 19:50 Timnath Serah Or “Timnath Heres.”
Joshua 19-21
New International Version
Joshua 19-21
New International Version
Allotment for Simeon(A)
19 The second lot came out for the tribe of Simeon according to its clans. Their inheritance lay within the territory of Judah.(B) 2 It included:
Beersheba(C) (or Sheba),[a] Moladah,(D) 3 Hazar Shual,(E) Balah, Ezem,(F) 4 Eltolad,(G) Bethul, Hormah,(H) 5 Ziklag,(I) Beth Markaboth, Hazar Susah, 6 Beth Lebaoth and Sharuhen—thirteen towns and their villages;
7 Ain, Rimmon,(J) Ether and Ashan(K)—four towns and their villages— 8 and all the villages around these towns as far as Baalath Beer (Ramah in the Negev).(L)
This was the inheritance of the tribe of the Simeonites, according to its clans. 9 The inheritance of the Simeonites was taken from the share of Judah,(M) because Judah’s portion was more than they needed. So the Simeonites received their inheritance within the territory of Judah.(N)
Allotment for Zebulun
10 The third lot came up for Zebulun(O) according to its clans:
The boundary of their inheritance went as far as Sarid.(P) 11 Going west it ran to Maralah, touched Dabbesheth, and extended to the ravine near Jokneam.(Q) 12 It turned east from Sarid(R) toward the sunrise to the territory of Kisloth Tabor and went on to Daberath(S) and up to Japhia. 13 Then it continued eastward to Gath Hepher(T) and Eth Kazin; it came out at Rimmon(U) and turned toward Neah. 14 There the boundary went around on the north to Hannathon and ended at the Valley of Iphtah El.(V) 15 Included were Kattath, Nahalal,(W) Shimron,(X) Idalah and Bethlehem.(Y) There were twelve towns and their villages.
16 These towns and their villages were the inheritance of Zebulun,(Z) according to its clans.(AA)
Allotment for Issachar
17 The fourth lot came out for Issachar(AB) according to its clans. 18 Their territory included:
Jezreel,(AC) Kesulloth, Shunem,(AD) 19 Hapharaim, Shion, Anaharath, 20 Rabbith, Kishion,(AE) Ebez, 21 Remeth, En Gannim,(AF) En Haddah and Beth Pazzez. 22 The boundary touched Tabor,(AG) Shahazumah and Beth Shemesh,(AH) and ended at the Jordan. There were sixteen towns and their villages.
23 These towns and their villages were the inheritance of the tribe of Issachar,(AI) according to its clans.(AJ)
Allotment for Asher
24 The fifth lot came out for the tribe of Asher(AK) according to its clans. 25 Their territory included:
Helkath, Hali, Beten, Akshaph,(AL) 26 Allammelek, Amad and Mishal.(AM) On the west the boundary touched Carmel(AN) and Shihor Libnath. 27 It then turned east toward Beth Dagon,(AO) touched Zebulun(AP) and the Valley of Iphtah El,(AQ) and went north to Beth Emek and Neiel, passing Kabul(AR) on the left. 28 It went to Abdon,[b](AS) Rehob,(AT) Hammon(AU) and Kanah,(AV) as far as Greater Sidon.(AW) 29 The boundary then turned back toward Ramah(AX) and went to the fortified city of Tyre,(AY) turned toward Hosah and came out at the Mediterranean Sea(AZ) in the region of Akzib,(BA) 30 Ummah, Aphek(BB) and Rehob.(BC) There were twenty-two towns and their villages.
31 These towns and their villages were the inheritance of the tribe of Asher,(BD) according to its clans.
Allotment for Naphtali
32 The sixth lot came out for Naphtali according to its clans:
33 Their boundary went from Heleph and the large tree in Zaanannim,(BE) passing Adami Nekeb and Jabneel(BF) to Lakkum and ending at the Jordan. 34 The boundary ran west through Aznoth Tabor and came out at Hukkok.(BG) It touched Zebulun(BH) on the south, Asher on the west and the Jordan[c] on the east. 35 The fortified towns were Ziddim, Zer, Hammath,(BI) Rakkath, Kinnereth,(BJ) 36 Adamah, Ramah,(BK) Hazor,(BL) 37 Kedesh,(BM) Edrei,(BN) En Hazor, 38 Iron, Migdal El, Horem, Beth Anath(BO) and Beth Shemesh.(BP) There were nineteen towns and their villages.
39 These towns and their villages were the inheritance of the tribe of Naphtali, according to its clans.(BQ)
Allotment for Dan
40 The seventh lot came out for the tribe of Dan according to its clans. 41 The territory of their inheritance included:
Zorah, Eshtaol,(BR) Ir Shemesh, 42 Shaalabbin, Aijalon,(BS) Ithlah, 43 Elon, Timnah,(BT) Ekron,(BU) 44 Eltekeh, Gibbethon,(BV) Baalath,(BW) 45 Jehud, Bene Berak, Gath Rimmon,(BX) 46 Me Jarkon and Rakkon, with the area facing Joppa.(BY)
47 (When the territory of the Danites was lost to them,(BZ) they went up and attacked Leshem(CA), took it, put it to the sword and occupied it. They settled in Leshem and named(CB) it Dan after their ancestor.)(CC)
48 These towns and their villages were the inheritance of the tribe of Dan,(CD) according to its clans.
Allotment for Joshua
49 When they had finished dividing the land into its allotted portions, the Israelites gave Joshua son of Nun an inheritance among them, 50 as the Lord had commanded. They gave him the town he asked for—Timnath Serah[d](CE) in the hill country of Ephraim. And he built up the town and settled there.
51 These are the territories that Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun and the heads of the tribal clans of Israel assigned by lot at Shiloh in the presence of the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting. And so they finished dividing(CF) the land.(CG)
Cities of Refuge(CH)
20 Then the Lord said to Joshua: 2 “Tell the Israelites to designate the cities of refuge, as I instructed you through Moses, 3 so that anyone who kills a person accidentally and unintentionally(CI) may flee there and find protection from the avenger of blood.(CJ) 4 When they flee to one of these cities, they are to stand in the entrance of the city gate(CK) and state their case before the elders(CL) of that city. Then the elders are to admit the fugitive into their city and provide a place to live among them. 5 If the avenger of blood comes in pursuit, the elders must not surrender the fugitive, because the fugitive killed their neighbor unintentionally and without malice aforethought. 6 They are to stay in that city until they have stood trial before the assembly(CM) and until the death of the high priest who is serving at that time. Then they may go back to their own home in the town from which they fled.”
7 So they set apart Kedesh(CN) in Galilee in the hill country of Naphtali, Shechem(CO) in the hill country of Ephraim, and Kiriath Arba(CP) (that is, Hebron(CQ)) in the hill country of Judah.(CR) 8 East of the Jordan (on the other side from Jericho) they designated Bezer(CS) in the wilderness on the plateau in the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gilead(CT) in the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan(CU) in the tribe of Manasseh. 9 Any of the Israelites or any foreigner residing among them who killed someone accidentally(CV) could flee to these designated cities and not be killed by the avenger of blood prior to standing trial before the assembly.(CW)
Towns for the Levites(CX)
21 Now the family heads of the Levites approached Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the other tribal families of Israel(CY) 2 at Shiloh(CZ) in Canaan and said to them, “The Lord commanded through Moses that you give us towns(DA) to live in, with pasturelands for our livestock.”(DB) 3 So, as the Lord had commanded, the Israelites gave the Levites the following towns and pasturelands out of their own inheritance:
4 The first lot came out for the Kohathites,(DC) according to their clans. The Levites who were descendants of Aaron the priest were allotted thirteen towns from the tribes of Judah, Simeon and Benjamin.(DD) 5 The rest of Kohath’s descendants were allotted ten towns from the clans of the tribes of Ephraim, Dan and half of Manasseh.(DE)
6 The descendants of Gershon(DF) were allotted thirteen towns from the clans of the tribes of Issachar,(DG) Asher,(DH) Naphtali and the half-tribe of Manasseh in Bashan.
7 The descendants of Merari,(DI) according to their clans, received twelve(DJ) towns from the tribes of Reuben, Gad and Zebulun.(DK)
8 So the Israelites allotted to the Levites these towns and their pasturelands, as the Lord had commanded through Moses.
9 From the tribes of Judah and Simeon they allotted the following towns by name 10 (these towns were assigned to the descendants of Aaron who were from the Kohathite clans of the Levites, because the first lot fell to them):
11 They gave them Kiriath Arba(DL) (that is, Hebron(DM)), with its surrounding pastureland, in the hill country of Judah. (Arba was the forefather of Anak.) 12 But the fields and villages around the city they had given to Caleb son of Jephunneh as his possession.(DN)
13 So to the descendants of Aaron the priest they gave Hebron (a city of refuge(DO) for one accused of murder), Libnah,(DP) 14 Jattir,(DQ) Eshtemoa,(DR) 15 Holon,(DS) Debir,(DT) 16 Ain,(DU) Juttah(DV) and Beth Shemesh,(DW) together with their pasturelands—nine towns from these two tribes.
17 And from the tribe of Benjamin they gave them Gibeon,(DX) Geba,(DY) 18 Anathoth(DZ) and Almon, together with their pasturelands—four towns.
19 The total number of towns(EA) for the priests, the descendants of Aaron, came to thirteen, together with their pasturelands.(EB)
20 The rest of the Kohathite clans of the Levites were allotted towns from the tribe of Ephraim:
21 In the hill country of Ephraim they were given Shechem(EC) (a city of refuge for one accused of murder) and Gezer,(ED) 22 Kibzaim and Beth Horon,(EE) together with their pasturelands—four towns.(EF)
23 Also from the tribe of Dan they received Eltekeh, Gibbethon,(EG) 24 Aijalon(EH) and Gath Rimmon,(EI) together with their pasturelands—four towns.
25 From half the tribe of Manasseh they received Taanach(EJ) and Gath Rimmon, together with their pasturelands—two towns.
26 All these ten towns and their pasturelands were given to the rest of the Kohathite clans.(EK)
27 The Levite clans of the Gershonites were given:
from the half-tribe of Manasseh,
Golan in Bashan(EL) (a city of refuge for one accused of murder(EM)) and Be Eshterah, together with their pasturelands—two towns;
28 from the tribe of Issachar,(EN)
Kishion,(EO) Daberath,(EP) 29 Jarmuth(EQ) and En Gannim,(ER) together with their pasturelands—four towns;
30 from the tribe of Asher,(ES)
32 from the tribe of Naphtali,
Kedesh(EW) in Galilee (a city of refuge for one accused of murder(EX)), Hammoth Dor and Kartan, together with their pasturelands—three towns.
33 The total number of towns of the Gershonite(EY) clans came to thirteen, together with their pasturelands.
34 The Merarite clans (the rest of the Levites) were given:
from the tribe of Zebulun,(EZ)
Jokneam,(FA) Kartah, 35 Dimnah and Nahalal,(FB) together with their pasturelands—four towns;
36 from the tribe of Reuben,
38 from the tribe of Gad,
Ramoth(FF) in Gilead(FG) (a city of refuge for one accused of murder), Mahanaim,(FH) 39 Heshbon and Jazer,(FI) together with their pasturelands—four towns in all.
40 The total number of towns allotted to the Merarite clans, who were the rest of the Levites, came to twelve.(FJ)
41 The towns of the Levites in the territory held by the Israelites were forty-eight in all, together with their pasturelands.(FK) 42 Each of these towns had pasturelands surrounding it; this was true for all these towns.
43 So the Lord gave Israel all the land he had sworn to give their ancestors,(FL) and they took possession(FM) of it and settled there.(FN) 44 The Lord gave them rest(FO) on every side, just as he had sworn to their ancestors. Not one of their enemies(FP) withstood them; the Lord gave all their enemies(FQ) into their hands.(FR) 45 Not one of all the Lord’s good promises(FS) to Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.
Footnotes
- Joshua 19:2 Or Beersheba, Sheba; 1 Chron. 4:28 does not have Sheba.
- Joshua 19:28 Some Hebrew manuscripts (see also 21:30); most Hebrew manuscripts Ebron
- Joshua 19:34 Septuagint; Hebrew west, and Judah, the Jordan,
- Joshua 19:50 Also known as Timnath Heres (see Judges 2:9)
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