Joshua 21: Cities for the Levites
The Levites receive forty-eight cities among the tribes, and the chapter declares that God gave Israel rest and that not one promise failed.
Joshua 21 (WEB)
1 Then the heads of fathers’ houses of the Levites came near to Eleazar the priest, and to Joshua the son of Nun, and to the heads of fathers’ houses of the tribes of the children of Israel.
2 They spoke to them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, saying, “Yahweh commanded Moses to give us cities to dwell in, with their suburbs for our livestock.”
3 The children of Israel gave to the Levites out of their inheritance, according to the commandment of Yahweh, these cities with their suburbs.
4 The lot came out for the families of the Kohathites. The children of Aaron the priest, who were of the Levites, had thirteen cities by lot out of the tribe of Judah, out of the tribe of the Simeonites, and out of the tribe of Benjamin.
5 The rest of the children of Kohath had ten cities by lot out of the families of the tribe of Ephraim, out of the tribe of Dan, and out of the half-tribe of Manasseh.
6 The children of Gershon had thirteen cities by lot out of the families of the tribe of Issachar, out of the tribe of Asher, out of the tribe of Naphtali, and out of the half-tribe of Manasseh in Bashan.
7 The children of Merari according to their families had twelve cities out of the tribe of Reuben, out of the tribe of Gad, and out of the tribe of Zebulun.
8 The children of Israel gave these cities with their suburbs by lot to the Levites, as Yahweh commanded by Moses.
9 They gave out of the tribe of the children of Judah, and out of the tribe of the children of Simeon, these cities which are mentioned by name:
10 and they were for the children of Aaron, of the families of the Kohathites, who were of the children of Levi; for theirs was the first lot.
11 They gave them Kiriath Arba, named after the father of Anak (the same is Hebron), in the hill country of Judah, with its suburbs around it.
12 But they gave the fields of the city and its villages to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for his possession.
13 To the children of Aaron the priest they gave Hebron with its suburbs, the city of refuge for the man slayer, Libnah with its suburbs,
14 Jattir with its suburbs, Eshtemoa with its suburbs,
15 Holon with its suburbs, Debir with its suburbs,
16 Ain with its suburbs, Juttah with its suburbs, and Beth Shemesh with its suburbs; nine cities out of those two tribes.
17 Out of the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon with its suburbs, Geba with its suburbs,
18 Anathoth with its suburbs, and Almon with its suburbs; four cities.
19 All the cities of the children of Aaron, the priests, were thirteen cities with their suburbs.
20 The families of the children of Kohath, the Levites, even the rest of the children of Kohath, had the cities of their lot out of the tribe of Ephraim.
21 They gave them Shechem with its suburbs in the hill country of Ephraim, the city of refuge for the man slayer, and Gezer with its suburbs,
22 Kibzaim with its suburbs, and Beth Horon with its suburbs; four cities.
23 Out of the tribe of Dan, Elteke with its suburbs, Gibbethon with its suburbs,
24 Aijalon with its suburbs, Gath Rimmon with its suburbs; four cities.
25 Out of the half-tribe of Manasseh, Taanach with its suburbs, and Gath Rimmon with its suburbs; two cities.
26 All the cities of the families of the rest of the children of Kohath were ten with their suburbs.
27 They gave to the children of Gershon, of the families of the Levites, out of the half-tribe of Manasseh Golan in Bashan with its suburbs, the city of refuge for the man slayer, and Be Eshterah with its suburbs; two cities.
28 Out of the tribe of Issachar, Kishion with its suburbs, Daberath with its suburbs,
29 Jarmuth with its suburbs, En Gannim with its suburbs; four cities.
30 Out of the tribe of Asher, Mishal with its suburbs, Abdon with its suburbs,
31 Helkath with its suburbs, and Rehob with its suburbs; four cities.
32 Out of the tribe of Naphtali, Kedesh in Galilee with its suburbs, the city of refuge for the man slayer, Hammothdor with its suburbs, and Kartan with its suburbs; three cities.
33 All the cities of the Gershonites according to their families were thirteen cities with their suburbs.
34 To the families of the children of Merari, the rest of the Levites, out of the tribe of Zebulun, Jokneam with its suburbs, Kartah with its suburbs,
35 Dimnah with its suburbs, and Nahalal with its suburbs; four cities.
36 Out of the tribe of Reuben, Bezer with its suburbs, Jahaz with its suburbs,
37 Kedemoth with its suburbs, and Mephaath with its suburbs; four cities.
38 Out of the tribe of Gad, Ramoth in Gilead with its suburbs, the city of refuge for the man slayer, and Mahanaim with its suburbs,
39 Heshbon with its suburbs, Jazer with its suburbs; four cities in all.
40 All these were the cities of the children of Merari according to their families, even the rest of the families of the Levites. Their lot was twelve cities.
41 All the cities of the Levites in the midst of the possession of the children of Israel were forty-eight cities with their suburbs.
42 Each of these cities included their suburbs around them. It was this way with all these cities.
43 So Yahweh gave to Israel all the land which he swore to give to their fathers. They possessed it, and lived in it.
44 Yahweh gave them rest all around, according to all that he swore to their fathers. Not a man of all their enemies stood before them. Yahweh delivered all their enemies into their hand.
45 Nothing failed of any good thing which Yahweh had spoken to the house of Israel. All came to pass.
Joshua 21 (KJV)
1 Then came near the heads of the fathers of the Levites unto Eleazar the priest, and unto Joshua the son of Nun, and unto the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel;
2 And they spake unto them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, saying, The Lord commanded by the hand of Moses to give us cities to dwell in, with the suburbs thereof for our cattle.
3 And the children of Israel gave unto the Levites out of their inheritance, at the commandment of the Lord, these cities and their suburbs.
4 And the lot came out for the families of the Kohathites: and the children of Aaron the priest, which were of the Levites, had by lot out of the tribe of Judah, and out of the tribe of Simeon, and out of the tribe of Benjamin, thirteen cities.
5 And the rest of the children of Kohath had by lot out of the families of the tribe of Ephraim, and out of the tribe of Dan, and out of the half tribe of Manasseh, ten cities.
6 And the children of Gershon had by lot out of the families of the tribe of Issachar, and out of the tribe of Asher, and out of the tribe of Naphtali, and out of the half tribe of Manasseh in Bashan, thirteen cities.
7 The children of Merari by their families had out of the tribe of Reuben, and out of the tribe of Gad, and out of the tribe of Zebulun, twelve cities.
8 And the children of Israel gave by lot unto the Levites these cities with their suburbs, as the Lord commanded by the hand of Moses.
9 And they gave out of the tribe of the children of Judah, and out of the tribe of the children of Simeon, these cities which are here mentioned by name,
10 Which the children of Aaron, being of the families of the Kohathites, who were of the children of Levi, had: for theirs was the first lot.
11 And they gave them the city of Arba the father of Anak, which city is Hebron, in the hill country of Judah, with the suburbs thereof round about it.
12 But the fields of the city, and the villages thereof, gave they to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for his possession.
13 Thus they gave to the children of Aaron the priest Hebron with her suburbs, to be a city of refuge for the slayer; and Libnah with her suburbs,
14 And Jattir with her suburbs, and Eshtemoa with her suburbs,
15 And Holon with her suburbs, and Debir with her suburbs,
16 And Ain with her suburbs, and Juttah with her suburbs, and Beth–shemesh with her suburbs; nine cities out of those two tribes.
17 And out of the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon with her suburbs, Geba with her suburbs,
18 Anathoth with her suburbs, and Almon with her suburbs; four cities.
19 All the cities of the children of Aaron, the priests, were thirteen cities with their suburbs.
20 And the families of the children of Kohath, the Levites which remained of the children of Kohath, even they had the cities of their lot out of the tribe of Ephraim.
21 For they gave them Shechem with her suburbs in mount Ephraim, to be a city of refuge for the slayer; and Gezer with her suburbs,
22 And Kibzaim with her suburbs, and Beth–horon with her suburbs; four cities.
23 And out of the tribe of Dan, Eltekeh with her suburbs, Gibbethon with her suburbs,
24 Aijalon with her suburbs, Gath–rimmon with her suburbs; four cities.
25 And out of the half tribe of Manasseh, Tanach with her suburbs, and Gath–rimmon with her suburbs; two cities.
26 All the cities were ten with their suburbs for the families of the children of Kohath that remained.
27 And unto the children of Gershon, of the families of the Levites, out of the other half tribe of Manasseh they gave Golan in Bashan with her suburbs, to be a city of refuge for the slayer; and Beesh–terah with her suburbs; two cities.
28 And out of the tribe of Issachar, Kishon with her suburbs, Dabareh with her suburbs,
29 Jarmuth with her suburbs, En–gannim with her suburbs; four cities.
30 And out of the tribe of Asher, Mishal with her suburbs, Abdon with her suburbs,
31 Helkath with her suburbs, and Rehob with her suburbs; four cities.
32 And out of the tribe of Naphtali, Kedesh in Galilee with her suburbs, to be a city of refuge for the slayer; and Hammoth–dor with her suburbs, and Kartan with her suburbs; three cities.
33 All the cities of the Gershonites according to their families were thirteen cities with their suburbs.
34 And unto the families of the children of Merari, the rest of the Levites, out of the tribe of Zebulun, Jokneam with her suburbs, and Kartah with her suburbs,
35 Dimnah with her suburbs, Nahalal with her suburbs; four cities.
36 And out of the tribe of Reuben, Bezer with her suburbs, and Jahazah with her suburbs,
37 Kedemoth with her suburbs, and Mephaath with her suburbs; four cities.
38 And out of the tribe of Gad, Ramoth in Gilead with her suburbs, to be a city of refuge for the slayer; and Mahanaim with her suburbs,
39 Heshbon with her suburbs, Jazer with her suburbs; four cities in all.
40 So all the cities for the children of Merari by their families, which were remaining of the families of the Levites, were by their lot twelve cities.
41 All the cities of the Levites within the possession of the children of Israel were forty and eight cities with their suburbs.
42 These cities were every one with their suburbs round about them: thus were all these cities.
43 And the Lord gave unto Israel all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein.
44 And the Lord gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their fathers: and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; the Lord delivered all their enemies into their hand.
45 There failed not ought of any good thing which the Lord had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass.
Joshua 21 (ASV)
1 Then came near the heads of fathers’housesof the Levites unto Eleazar the priest, and unto Joshua the son of Nun, and unto the heads of fathers’ houses of the tribes of the children of Israel;
2 and they spake unto them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, saying, Jehovah commanded by Moses to give us cities to dwell in, with the suburbs thereof for our cattle.
3 And the children of Israel gave unto the Levites out of their inheritance, according to the commandment of Jehovah, these cities with their suburbs.
4 And the lot came out for the families of the Kohathites: and the children of Aaron the priest, who were of the Levites, had by lot out of the tribe of Judah, and out of the tribe of the Simeonites, and out of the tribe of Benjamin, thirteen cities.
5 And the rest of the children of Kohath had by lot out of the families of the tribe of Ephraim, and out of the tribe of Dan, and out of the half-tribe of Manasseh, ten cities.
6 And the children of Gershon had by lot out of the families of the tribe of Issachar, and out of the tribe of Asher, and out of the tribe of Naphtali, and out of the half-tribe of Manasseh in Bashan, thirteen cities.
7 The children of Merari according to their families had out of the tribe of Reuben, and out of the tribe of Gad, and out of the tribe of Zebulun, twelve cities.
8 And the children of Israel gave by lot unto the Levites these cities with their suburbs, as Jehovah commanded by Moses.
9 And they gave out of the tribe of the children of Judah, and out of the tribe of the children of Simeon, these cities which are here mentioned by name:
10 and they were for the children of Aaron, of the families of the Kohathites, who were of the children of Levi; for theirs was the first lot.
11 And they gave them Kiriath-arba, which Arba was the father of Anak (the same is Hebron), in the hill-country of Judah, with the suburbs thereof round about it.
12 But the fields of the city, and the villages thereof, gave they to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for his possession.
13 And unto the children of Aaron the priest they gave Hebron with its suburbs, the city of refuge for the manslayer, and Libnah with its suburbs,
14 and Jattir with its suburbs, and Eshtemoa with its suburbs,
15 and Holon with its suburbs, and Debir with its suburbs,
16 and Ain with its suburbs, and Juttah with its suburbs, and Beth-shemesh with its suburbs; nine cities out of those two tribes.
17 And out of the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon with its suburbs, Geba with its suburbs,
18 Anathoth with its suburbs, and Almon with its suburbs; four cities.
19 All the cities of the children of Aaron, the priests, were thirteen cities with their suburbs.
20 And the families of the children of Kohath, the Levites, even the rest of the children of Kohath, they had the cities of their lot out of the tribe of Ephraim.
21 And they gave them Shechem with its suburbs in the hill-country of Ephraim, the city of refuge for the manslayer, and Gezer with its suburbs,
22 and Kibzaim with its suburbs, and Beth-horon with its suburbs; four cities.
23 And out of the tribe of Dan, Elteke with its suburbs, Gibbethon with its suburbs,
24 Aijalon with its suburbs, Gath-rimmon with its suburbs; four cities.
25 And out of the half-tribe of Manasseh, Taanach with its suburbs, and Gath-rimmon with its suburbs; two cities.
26 All the cities of the families of the rest of the children of Kohath were ten with their suburbs.
27 And unto the children of Gershon, of the families of the Levites, out of the half-tribe of Manasseh they gave Golan in Bashan with its suburbs, the city of refuge for the manslayer, and Be-eshterah with its suburbs; two cities.
28 And out of the tribe of Issachar, Kishion with its suburbs, Daberath with its suburbs,
29 Jarmuth with its suburbs, En-gannim with its suburbs; four cities.
30 And out of the tribe of Asher, Mishal with its suburbs, Abdon with its suburbs,
31 Helkath with its suburbs, and Rehob with its suburbs; four cities.
32 And out of the tribe of Naphtali, Kedesh in Galilee with its suburbs, the city of refuge for the manslayer, and Hammoth-dor with its suburbs, and Kartan with its suburbs; three cities.
33 All the cities of the Gershonites according to their families were thirteen cities with their suburbs.
34 And unto the families of the children of Merari, the rest of the Levites, out of the tribe of Zebulun, Jokneam with its suburbs, and Kartah with its suburbs,
35 Dimnah with its suburbs, Nahalal with its suburbs; four cities.
36 And out of the tribe of Reuben, Bezer with its suburbs, and Jahaz with its suburbs,
37 Kedemoth with its suburbs, and Mephaath with its suburbs; four cities.
38 And out of the tribe of Gad, Ramoth in Gilead with its suburbs, the city of refuge for the manslayer, and Mahanaim with its suburbs,
39 Heshbon with its suburbs, Jazer with its suburbs; four cities in all.
40 All these were the cities of the children of Merari according to their families, even the rest of the families of the Levites; and their lot was twelve cities.
41 All the cities of the Levites in the midst of the possession of the children of Israel were forty and eight cities with their suburbs.
42 These cities were every one with their suburbs round about them: thus it was with all these cities.
43 So Jehovah gave unto Israel all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein.
44 And Jehovah gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their fathers: and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; Jehovah delivered all their enemies into their hand.
45 There failed not aught of any good thing which Jehovah had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass.
Summary
The heads of the Levite families come to Eleazar, Joshua, and the tribal heads at Shiloh, reminding them that Yahweh had commanded through Moses that the Levites be given cities to dwell in, with pasturelands for their livestock. Since Levi had received no territorial inheritance, the other tribes give cities out of their own portions. By lot, the priestly sons of Aaron and the various Levite clans—Kohathites, Gershonites, and Merarites—receive cities scattered throughout all the tribes, including several of the cities of refuge. In all, forty-eight cities with their pasturelands are given to the Levites among the possession of Israel. The arrangement spread the servants of God throughout the whole land, placing teachers and ministers within reach of every tribe. The chapter closes with one of the great summary statements of the book: Yahweh gave Israel all the land he had sworn to their fathers, and they possessed it and lived in it. He gave them rest on every side, just as he had sworn, and not one of their enemies stood before them. The chapter ends with a ringing testimony to God's faithfulness: nothing failed of any good thing which Yahweh had spoken to the house of Israel—all of it came to pass.
Main Characters
- The Levites — The tribe set apart for God's service, who receive forty-eight cities with pasturelands scattered among all the tribes instead of a single territory.
- Eleazar the priest — The high priest to whom the Levite heads come, and with Joshua oversees the giving of the Levitical cities by lot.
- Joshua — The leader who, with Eleazar and the tribal heads, allocates the Levites' cities according to the command given through Moses.
- Yahweh (the LORD) — The faithful God who gave Israel the land and rest he had sworn, so that not one of his good promises failed.
Key Verse
Joshua 21:45 (WEB)
Nothing failed of any good thing which Yahweh had spoken to the house of Israel. All came to pass.
Lessons Learned
- God is utterly faithful; not one of his good promises fails.
- Those who serve God are provided for, even without an earthly inheritance of their own.
- Spreading the Levites among all the tribes kept God's truth within reach of every community.
- The rest God gave Israel was a gift fulfilled by his hand, just as he had sworn.
- God provides for his servants. The tribes give the Levites cities and pasturelands “as Yahweh commanded by Moses” (Joshua 21:8, WEB), so that those who serve at his altar are cared for.
- God's ministers are spread among his people. Forty-eight Levitical cities are distributed throughout the tribes (Joshua 21:41, WEB), placing teachers of the law within reach of all Israel.
- God gives the rest he promised. “Yahweh gave them rest all around, according to all that he swore to their fathers” (Joshua 21:44, WEB). Rest is his gift, fulfilled by his hand.
- Not one promise fails. “Nothing failed of any good thing which Yahweh had spoken to the house of Israel. All came to pass” (Joshua 21:45, WEB). God keeps every word he speaks.
- Why were the Levites given cities throughout the tribes rather than one territory?
- What does the provision of forty-eight cities reveal about caring for those who serve God?
- How does verse 44 describe the rest that God gave Israel?
- What is the weight of the declaration that “nothing failed of any good thing” God had spoken?
- How does God's perfect faithfulness to Israel encourage you to trust his promises in your own life?
- Because Levi had no land inheritance, the tribes gave them cities scattered across the whole nation (21:1-8, 41). This dispersion placed the priests and Levites, the teachers of God's law, among every tribe, so that worship and instruction were never far from any Israelite.
- The forty-eight cities with their pasturelands ensured that those set apart for God's service were provided with homes and livelihood (21:41-42). It models how God's people are to care for those who minister among them, since their inheritance is the Lord himself.
- Verse 44 says God “gave them rest all around, according to all that he swore to their fathers,” and that no enemy stood before them. The rest is comprehensive and God-given, the fulfillment of his oath, pointing ahead to the greater rest found in Christ.
- This summary (21:45) is one of the high points of the book: every good promise God made came true. It anchors Israel's confidence in God's character and assures every reader that the Lord's word is wholly reliable.
- This is a personal-application question. Invite members to recall promises of God they are tempted to doubt, and to let Israel's experience—“all came to pass”—strengthen their trust. As leader, point to the cross and resurrection as the surest proof that God keeps his word.