Joshua 21:1-19

1The Levite family heads approached the priest Eleazar, Joshua son of Nun, and the family heads of the Israelite tribes.

2At Shiloh, in the land of Canaan, they told them, “The Lord commanded through Moses that we be given cities to live in, with their pasturelands for our livestock.”

3So the Israelites, by the Lord’s command, gave the Levites these cities with their pasturelands from their inheritance.

4The lot came out for the Kohathite clans: The Levites who were the descendants of the priest Aaron received thirteen cities by lot from the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin.

5The remaining descendants of Kohath received ten cities by lot from the clans of the tribes of Ephraim, Dan, and half the tribe of Manasseh.

6Gershon’s descendants received thirteen cities by lot from the clans of the tribes of Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and half the tribe of Manasseh in Bashan.

7Merari’s descendants received twelve cities for their clans from the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun.

8The Israelites gave these cities with their pasturelands around them to the Levites by lot, as the Lord had commanded through Moses.

9The Israelites gave these cities by name from the tribes of the descendants of Judah and Simeon

10to the descendants of Aaron from the Kohathite clans of the Levites, because they received the first lot.

11They gave them Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron; Arba was the father of Anak) with its surrounding pasturelands in the hill country of Judah.

12But they gave the fields and settlements of the city to Caleb son of Jephunneh as his possession.

13They gave to the descendants of the priest Aaron: Hebron, the city of refuge for the one who commits manslaughter, with its pasturelands, Libnah with its pasturelands,

14Jattir with its pasturelands, Eshtemoa with its pasturelands,

15Holon with its pasturelands, Debir with its pasturelands,

16Ain with its pasturelands, Juttah with its pasturelands, and Beth-shemesh with its pasturelands — nine cities from these two tribes.

17From the tribe of Benjamin they gave: Gibeon with its pasturelands, Geba with its pasturelands,

18Anathoth with its pasturelands, and Almon with its pasturelands — four cities.

19All thirteen cities with their pasturelands were for the priests, the descendants of Aaron.