Joshua 21

1 And the heads of the fathers' houses of the sons of Levi came to Eleazar the priest, and to Joshua son of Nun, and to the heads of the fathers' houses of the tribes of Israel; 2 and they spoke to them at Shiloh, in the land of Canaan, and said, “The Lord gave command by the hand of Moses to give us towns to live in, and the open land for our livestock.” [a] 3 And the children of Israel gave the Levites, out of the inheritance they were receiving, by the decree of the Lord, the towns and their open land.

4 And the lot came out for the clan of Kohath; and the sons of Aaron, the priests, the Levites, had by lot thirteen towns from the tribe of Judah and from the tribe of Simeon and from the tribe of Benjamin. 5 And the sons of Kohath who were left had by lot ten towns from the tribe of Ephraim and from the tribe of Dan and from the half tribe of Manasseh. 6 And the sons of Gershon had thirteen towns from the tribe of Issachar and from the tribe of Asher and from the tribe of Naphtali and from the half tribe of Manasseh in Bashan. 7 And the sons of Merari, according to their clans, had by lot twelve towns from the tribe of Reuben and from the tribe of Gad and from the tribe of Zebulun. 8 And the children of Israel gave the Levites the towns and their open land, as the Lord commanded Moses, by lot.

9 And the tribe of the sons of Judah, and the tribe of the sons of Simeon, and part of the tribe of the sons of Benjamin gave these towns, and they were assigned 10 to the sons of Aaron, of the clan of Kohath of the sons of Levi, because the lot fell to them. 11 And they gave them the city of Arbok, the mother-city of Anak — this is Hebron — in the hill country of Judah, and the open land around it; 12 but the fields of the town and its villages Joshua gave to the sons of Caleb son of Jephunneh as a possession.

13 And to the sons of Aaron he gave the city of refuge for the killer, Hebron, and the land set apart for it; and Libnah and the land set apart for it; [b] 14 and Ailom and the land set apart for it; and Tema and the land set apart for it; 15 and Gella and the land set apart for it; and Debir and the land set apart for it; 16 and Asa and the land set apart for it; and Tany and the land set apart for it; and Beth-shemesh and the land set apart for it: nine towns from these two tribes. 17 And from the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon and the land set apart for it; and Gatheth and the land set apart for it; 18 and Anathoth and the land set apart for it; and Gamala and the land set apart for it: four towns. 19 All the towns of the sons of Aaron the priests were thirteen.

20 And to the clans of the sons of Kohath, the Levites who were left of the sons of Kohath — the town of their borders came from the tribe of Ephraim; 21 and they gave them the city of refuge for the killer, Shechem, and the land set apart for it; and Gezer and the ground next to it and the land set apart for it; 22 and Kibzaim and the land set apart for it; and Beth-horon the Upper and the land set apart for it: four towns. [c] 23 And from the tribe of Dan, Elkothaim and the land set apart for it; and Gethedan and the land set apart for it; 24 and Aijalon and the land set apart for it; and Gath-rimmon and the land set apart for it: four towns. 25 And from the half tribe of Manasseh, Taanach and the land set apart for it; and Jebatha and the land set apart for it: two towns. 26 In all, ten towns, and the land set apart with them, for the clans of the sons of Kohath who were left over.

27 And to the sons of Gershon the Levites they gave, from the half tribe of Manasseh, the towns set apart for the killers: Golan in the country of Bashan and the land set apart for it; and Bosora and the land set apart for it: two towns; 28 and from the tribe of Issachar, Kishion and the land set apart for it; and Debba and the land set apart for it; 29 and Remmath and the land set apart for it; and the Spring of Writings and the land set apart for it: four towns. 30 And from the tribe of Asher, Basella and the land set apart for it; and Dabbon and the land set apart for it; 31 and Helkath and the land set apart for it; and Rehob and the land set apart for it: four towns. 32 And from the tribe of Naphtali, the town set apart for the killer, Kedesh in Galilee, and the land set apart for it; and Emmath and the land set apart for it; and Themmon and the land set apart for it: three towns. 33 All the towns of Gershon, according to their clans, were thirteen towns.

34 And to the clan of the sons of Merari, the Levites who were left, they gave from the tribe of the sons of Zebulun, Maan and its open land; and Kedesh and its open land; 35 and Dimnah and its open land; and Sella and its open land: four towns. [d] 36 And beyond the Jordan, opposite Jericho, from the tribe of Reuben, the city of refuge for the killer, Bezer in the wilderness of Misor, and its open land; and Jazer and its open land; 37 and Decmon and its open land; and Mapha and its open land: four towns. 38 And from the tribe of Gad, the city of refuge for the killer, Ramoth in Gilead and its open land; and Camin and its open land; 39 and Heshbon and its open land; and Jazer and its open land: four towns in all. 40 All the towns of the sons of Merari, according to their clans, of those left out of the tribe of Levi — their borders were twelve towns.

41 All the towns of the Levites in the midst of the possession of the children of Israel were forty-eight towns and their open land, 42 the open land around these towns: a town, and the open land around the town, for all these towns. And Joshua finished dividing the land within their borders. And the children of Israel gave Joshua a share, by the decree of the Lord; they gave him the town he asked for — Timnath-serah they gave him, in the hill country of Ephraim. And Joshua built the town and lived in it. And Joshua took the stone knives with which he had circumcised the children of Israel who were born on the way, in the wilderness, and he laid them up in Timnath-serah. [e]

43 And the Lord gave Israel all the land he swore to give to their fathers; and they received it as their inheritance and lived in it. 44 And the Lord gave them rest on every side, just as he swore to their fathers. Not one of all their enemies stood up against them; the Lord handed all their enemies over into their hands. 45 Not one of all the good words the Lord spoke to the children of Israel failed; every one of them came about.