New Living Translation
Joshua 21:8
8So the Israelites obeyed the Lord’s command to Moses and assigned these towns and pasturelands to the Levites by casting sacred lots.
Joshua 21:8 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)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.
- New International Version (NIV)So the Israelites allotted to the Levites these towns and their pasturelands, as the Lord had commanded through Moses.
- English Standard Version (ESV)These cities and their pasturelands the people of Israel gave by lot to the Levites, as the Lord had commanded through Moses.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And the children of Israel gave these cities with their common-lands by lot to the Levites, as the Lord had commanded by the hand of Moses.
Context of Joshua 21:8
6The clan of Gershon was allotted thirteen towns from the tribes of Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and the half-tribe of Manasseh in Bashan. 7The clan of Merari was allotted twelve towns from the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun. So the Israelites obeyed the Lord’s command to Moses and assigned these towns and pasturelands to the Levites by casting sacred lots. 9The Israelites gave the following towns from the tribes of Judah and Simeon 10to the descendants of Aaron, who were members of the Kohathite clan within the tribe of Levi, since the sacred lot fell to them first:
Read all of Joshua 21Joshua 21:8 word by word
וַיִּתְּנ֤וּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ לַלְוִיִּ֔ם אֶת־הֶעָרִ֥ים הָאֵ֖לֶּה וְאֶת־מִגְרְשֵׁיהֶ֑ן כַּאֲשֶׁ֨ר צִוָּ֧ה יְהוָ֛ה בְּיַד־מֹשֶׁ֖ה בַּגּוֹרָֽל׃ פRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- gaveנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
- by lotגּוֹרָלgôrâl gôrâl · allottedH1486
- unto the Levitesלֵוִיlêvîyîy lêvîy · LeviH3881
- these citiesעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
- with their suburbsמִגְרָשׁmigrâsh migrâshâh · pastureH4054
- as the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- commandedצָוָהtsâvâh · to commandH6680
- by the handיָדyâd · hand: byH3027
- of Mosesמֹשֶׁהmôsheh · MosesH4872
Cross-references for Joshua 21:8
- Joshua 21:3So by the command of the Lord the people of Israel gave the Levites the following towns and pasturelands out of their own grants of land.
- Joshua 18:6And when you record the seven divisions of the land and bring them to me, I will cast sacred lots in the presence of the Lord our God to assign land to each tribe.
- Numbers 33:54You must distribute the land among the clans by sacred lot and in proportion to their size. A larger portion of land will be allotted to each of the larger clans, and a smaller portion will be allotted to each of the smaller clans. The decision of the sacred lot is final. In this way, the portions of land will be divided among your ancestral tribes.
- Numbers 35:3These towns will be for the Levites to live in, and the surrounding lands will provide pasture for their cattle, flocks, and other livestock.
- Proverbs 16:33We may throw the dice, but the Lord determines how they fall.
- Proverbs 18:18Flipping a coin can end arguments; it settles disputes between powerful opponents.
- Numbers 32:2they came to Moses, Eleazar the priest, and the other leaders of the community. They said,
Commentaries on Joshua 21:8
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8The pasturelands were areas for feeding flocks or cattle around the cities. The repeated use of this word in the list made the land allowance seem like a legal record (21:8–42). It guaranteed the Levites had access to lands right next to each city given to the Levites (Numbers 35:4–5).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 4-84-8. the lot came out for the families of the Kohathites--The Levites were divided into Kohathites, Gershonites, and Merarites. Among the former the family of Aaron were exclusively appointed to the priesthood, and all the rest were ranked in the common order of Levites. The first lot was drawn by the Kohathites; and the first of theirs again by the priests, to whom thirteen cities were granted, and ten to the rest of the Kohathites (Jos 21:5); thirteen…Read the comment
Topics related to Joshua 21:8
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Joshua 21
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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