Joshua 21:1-19

1The leaders of the Levite families came to speak to Joshua, son of Nun. Eleazar the priest and the leaders of the other tribes were also there.

2They met at Shiloh in the land of Canaan. The Levites said, ‘The Lord told Moses that you must give us towns to live in, as well as land for our animals.’

3So the Israelites did as the Lord had told them. They gave to the Levites towns to live in and land for their animals. They gave these from their own land.

4They gave towns first to the clans of Kohath. They gave 13 towns from the tribes of Judah, Simeon and Benjamin. They gave these to Levites who were descendants of Aaron, the priest.

5They also gave to the other descendants of Kohath, towns from the tribes of Ephraim, Dan and the west half of Manasseh.

6Then they gave 13 towns to the descendants of Gershon. Those towns came from the tribes of Issachar, Asher, Naphtali and the east half of Manasseh in Bashan.

7They gave 12 towns to the descendants of Merari. Those towns came from the tribes of Reuben, Gad and Zebulun.

8In that way, the Israelites gave these towns to the Levites, as well as land for their animals. They used lots to do it. They did as the Lord had told Moses to do.

9These are the names of the towns that the tribes of Simeon and Judah gave to the Levites.

10The Kohathite clans who were descendants of Aaron received these towns, because God chose them first.

11They received Kiriath Arba (or Hebron), with land near to it, in the hill country of Judah. Arba was the father of Anak.

12But the fields and villages near Hebron belonged to Caleb, son of Jephunneh.

13Hebron was one of the safe cities. The descendants of Aaron, the priest, received Hebron, Libnah,

14Jattir, Eshtemoa,

15Holon, Debir,

16Ain, Juttah and Beth Shemesh, as well as their fields. These two tribes gave them nine towns.

17Benjamin's tribe also gave four towns to them: Gibeon, Geba,

18Anathoth and Almon, as well as their fields.

19So the priests, descendants of Aaron, received 13 towns with their fields.