TRV
Translation
Complete Jewish Bible
Yarmut with its surrounding open land and 'Ein-Ganim with its surrounding open land - four cities.
World English Bible Messianic
Jarmuth with its suburbs, En Gannim with its suburbs; four cities.
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In the KJVVerse 6,411 of 31,102
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Commentary on Joshua 21 verses 9–42
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 Bethshemesh 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 Bethhoron 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, Gathrimmon with her suburbs; four cities.
25 And out of the half tribe of Manasseh, Tanach with her suburbs, and Gathrimmon 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 Beeshterah 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, Engannim 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 Hammothdor 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.
We have here a particular account of the cities which were given to the children of Levi out of the several tribes, not only to be occupied and inhabited by them, as tenants to the several tribes in which they lay - no, their interest in them was not dependent and precarious, but to be owned and possessed by them as lords and proprietors, and as having the same title to them that the rest of the tribes had to their cities or lands, as appears by the law which preserved the house in the Levites' cities from being alienated any longer than till the year of jubilee, Lev 25:32, Lev 25:33. Yet it is probable that the Levites having only the cities and suburbs, while the land about pertained to the tribes in which they lay, those of that tribe, for the convenience of occupying that land, might commonly rent houses of the Levites, as they could spare them in their cities, and so live among them as their tenants. Several things may be observed in this account, besides what was observed in the law concerning it, Num. 35.
I. That the Levites were dispersed into all the tribes, and not suffered to live all together in any one part of the country. This would find them all with work, and employ them all for the good of others; for ministers, of all people, must neither be idle nor live to themselves or to one another only. Christ left his twelve disciples together in a body, but left orders that they should in due time disperse themselves, that they might preach the gospel to every creature. The mixing of the Levites thus with the other tribes would be an obligation upon them to walk circumspectly, and as became their sacred function, and to avoid every thing that might disgrace it. Had they lived all together, they would have been tempted to wink at one another's faults, and to excuse one another when they did amiss; but by this means they were made to see the eyes of all Israel upon them, and therefore saw it their concern to walk so as that their ministry might in nothing be blamed nor their high character suffer by their ill carriage.
II. That every tribe of Israel was adorned and enriched with its share of Levites' cities in proportion to its compass, even those that lay most remote. They were all God's people, and therefore they all had Levites among them. 1. To show kindness to, as God appointed them, Deu 12:19; Deu 14:29. They were God's receivers, to whom the people might give their grateful acknowledgments of God's goodness, as the occasion and disposition were. 2. To receive advice and instruction from; when they could not go up to the tabernacle, to consult those who attended there, they might go to a Levites' city, and be taught the good knowledge of the Lord. Thus God set up a candle in every room of his house, to give light to all his family; as those that attended the altar kept the charge of the Lord, to see that no divine appointment was neglected there, so those that were scattered in the country had their charge too, which was to see that no idolatrous superstitious usages were introduced at a distance and to watch for the souls of God's Israel. Thus did God graciously provide for the keeping up of religion among them, and that they might have the word nigh them; yet, blessed be God, we, under the gospel, have it yet nigher, not only Levites in every county, but Levites in every parish, whose office it is still to teach the people knowledge, and to go before them in the things of God.
III. That there were thirteen cities, and those some of the best, appointed for the priests, the sons of Aaron, Jos 21:19. Aaron left but two sons, Eleazar and Ithamar, yet his family was now so much increased, and it was foreseen that it would in process of time grow so numerous, as to replenish all these cities, though a considerable number must of necessity be resident wherever the ark and the altar were. We read in both Testaments of such numbers of priests that we may suppose none of all the families of Israel that came out of Egypt increased afterwards so much as that of Aaron did; and the promise afterwards to the house of Aaron is, God shall increase you more and more, you and your children, Psa 115:12, Psa 115:14. He will raise up a seed to serve him.
IV. That some of the Levites' cities were afterwards famous upon other accounts. Hebron was the city in which David began his reign, and in Manhanaim, another Levites' city (Jos 21:38), he lay, and had his headquarters when he fled from Absalom. The first Israelite that ever wore the title of king (namely, Abimelech, the son of Gideon) reigned in Shechem, another Levites' city, Jos 21:21.
V. That the number of them in all was more than of most of the tribes, except Judah, though the tribe of Levi was one of the least of the tribes, to show how liberal God is, and his people should be, to his ministers; yet the disproportion will not appear so great as at first it seems, if we consider that the Levites had cities only with their suburbs to dwell in, but the rest of the tribes, besides their cities (and those perhaps were many more than are named in the account of their lot), had many unwalled towns and villages which they inhabited, besides country houses.
Upon the whole, it appears that effectual care was taken that the Levites should live both comfortably and usefully: and those, whether ministers or others, for whom Providence has done well, must look upon themselves as obliged thereby to do good, and, according as their capacity and opportunity are, to serve their generation.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 9–42. Public domain.
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Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
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SUMMARY
Joshua 21:29 meticulously records the allocation of two specific cities, Jarmuth and Engannim, along with their essential pasturelands, to the Gershonite clan of the Levites. This verse is an integral part of Joshua 21, which systematically enumerates the fulfillment of God's divine command to provide dwelling places for the Levites, who, unlike the other tribes, received no contiguous territorial inheritance. This precise distribution ensured the Levites' sustained presence and dedicated service were woven throughout the entire fabric of Israelite society.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
The primary literary device at play in Joshua 21:29, and indeed throughout the entire chapter, is Enumeration and Cataloging. The text meticulously lists specific cities and their associated "suburbs," creating a detailed inventory of the land distribution. This precise cataloging serves to affirm the exact fulfillment of God's covenant promises regarding the land and the Levites' inheritance. The repetitive structure, particularly the recurring phrase "with her suburbs," functions as a form of Anaphora or Repetition, emphasizing the consistent and comprehensive nature of the provision for the Levites across all their allocated cities. This repetition reinforces the idea that the Levites were fully equipped to carry out their duties, not just with a place to live, but with the necessary means to sustain themselves. Furthermore, the very act of listing these specific, often geographically identifiable, place names lends an air of Verisimilitude or realism to the narrative, grounding the theological claims in concrete geographical and historical details, thereby enhancing the credibility and trustworthiness of the divine instruction and its faithful execution.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Joshua 21:29, though seemingly a mundane list of names, carries profound theological implications. It stands as tangible evidence of God's unwavering faithfulness to His covenant promises, not only in bringing Israel into the Promised Land but also in meticulously providing for the spiritual infrastructure of the nation. The dispersion of the Levites throughout the tribes, dwelling in cities like Jarmuth and Engannim, ensured that the presence of God's law, teaching, and worship was accessible to all Israelites. This systematic provision underscores the divine order established for Israel, where every tribe and every aspect of national life was to be permeated by the knowledge and service of God. It highlights God's practical and detailed care for those dedicated to His service, ensuring their physical needs were met so they could focus wholeheartedly on their spiritual duties, thereby fostering a nation rooted in divine instruction and worship.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
The meticulous detail of Joshua 21:29, and indeed the entire chapter, invites us to reflect deeply on the nature of God's faithfulness and His comprehensive care for His people and His purposes. In a world often characterized by chaos, broken promises, and uncertainty, this passage stands as a powerful testament to a God who remembers His covenants and executes them with unwavering precision and thoroughness. For us today, it serves as a profound reminder that God's provision is often practical, specific, and designed to meet our needs so that we can more effectively serve Him. Just as the Levites were strategically placed to be a spiritual influence and source of instruction throughout Israel, believers in Christ are called to be salt and light in their communities, dispersed in various vocations, neighborhoods, and spheres of influence. Our "suburbs" might be the unique resources, talents, opportunities, or supportive relationships God provides, enabling us to fulfill our distinct callings in His kingdom. This passage encourages us to cultivate a deep trust in God's detailed providence, recognizing that even the seemingly ordinary or minute details of our lives are intricately woven into His grand, unfolding plan for His glory and our good.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Why is such a detailed list of cities important in the Bible, especially in a book like Joshua?
Answer: The detailed list of cities, including Joshua 21:29, is crucial for several profound reasons. First, it serves as concrete, irrefutable evidence of God's faithfulness in fulfilling His covenant promises to Israel, specifically the promise of the land that He made to Abraham and his descendants (e.g., Genesis 12:7). Second, it demonstrates the meticulous divine order established for the nascent nation, ensuring that the Levites, who were responsible for religious instruction, priestly duties, and judicial matters, were strategically dispersed throughout all the tribes. This dispersion facilitated widespread access to spiritual guidance and the knowledge of God's law for all Israelites. Third, it underscores the historical accuracy and reliability of the biblical narrative, providing verifiable geographical and tribal allocations that attest to the truthfulness and precision of God's word. It shows that the conquest and settlement were not merely abstract events but concrete, historical realities, meticulously recorded for posterity.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
While Joshua 21:29 details the physical provision for the Old Testament Levites, its deeper theological significance points prophetically towards the ultimate provision found in Christ. The Levites, scattered throughout Israel, served as mediators of God's law and teachers of His ways, foreshadowing the pervasive presence of God's truth and grace, now embodied in Jesus Christ. Just as the Levites had no land inheritance but the Lord Himself (as explicitly stated in Numbers 18:20), believers in Christ find their true and eternal inheritance not in earthly possessions or territories but in God Himself, through their union with Jesus. Christ is our ultimate "suburbs"—the one who provides all that we truly need to live, serve, and flourish in His kingdom (Philippians 4:19). He is the true and greater High Priest, who, unlike the Levitical priests who offered repeated sacrifices, offered a perfect and final sacrifice for sins, once for all (Hebrews 7:27 and Hebrews 10:10-14). Furthermore, the dispersion of the Levites finds its New Testament parallel in the church, the body of Christ, which is scattered throughout the world, acting as God's spiritual presence, teaching His word, and ministering His grace to all nations as per the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20). We, as a "royal priesthood" and a "holy nation" (1 Peter 2:9), are called to live out our faith in every sphere of life, empowered by the Holy Spirit, just as the Levites were enabled by God's meticulous provision to fulfill their sacred duties in the Old Covenant.