1 The LORD also spake unto Joshua, saying,
1 The LORD H3068 also spake H1696 unto Joshua, H3091 saying, H559
1 And Jehovah spake unto Joshua, saying,
1 And Jehovah speaketh unto Joshua, saying,
1 And Jehovah spoke to Joshua, saying,
1 Yahweh spoke to Joshua, saying,
1 And the Lord said to Joshua,
And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my Lord unto his servant?
And the LORD said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valor.
Now Joshua was old and stricken in years; and the LORD said unto him, Thou art old and stricken in years, and there remaineth yet very much land to be possessed. This is the land that yet remaineth: all the borders of the Philistines, and all Geshuri, From Sihor, which is before Egypt, even unto the borders of Ekron northward, which is counted to the Canaanite: five lords of the Philistines; the Gazathites, and the Ashdothites, the Eshkalonites, the Gittites, and the Ekronites; also the Avites: From the south, all the land of the Canaanites, and Mearah that is beside the Sidonians unto Aphek, to the borders of the Amorites: And the land of the Giblites, and all Lebanon, toward the sunrising, from Baalgad under mount Hermon unto the entering into Hamath. All the inhabitants of the hill country from Lebanon unto Misrephothmaim, and all the Sidonians, them will I drive out from before the children of Israel: only divide thou it by lot unto the Israelites for an inheritance, as I have commanded thee. Now therefore divide this land for an inheritance unto the nine tribes, and the half tribe of Manasseh,
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Keil & Delitzsch Commentary » Commentary on Joshua 20
Commentary on Joshua 20 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
After the distribution of the land by lot among the tribes of Israel, six towns were set apart, in accordance with the Mosaic instructions in Num 35, as places of refuge for unintentional manslayers. Before describing the appointment and setting apart of these towns, the writer repeats in Joshua 20:1-6 the main points of the Mosaic law contained in Num 35:9-29 and Deuteronomy 19:1-13, with reference to the reception of the manslayers into these towns. לכם תּנוּ , “ give to you ,” i.e., appoint for yourselves, “ cities of refuge ,” etc. In Joshua 20:6, the two regulations, “ until he stand before the congregation for judgment ,” and “ until the death of the high priest ,” are to be understood, in accordance with the clear explanation given in Numbers 35:24-25, as meaning that the manslayer was to live in the town till the congregation had pronounced judgment upon the matter, and either given him up to the avenger of blood as a wilful murderer, or taken him back to the city of refuge as an unintentional manslayer, in which case he was to remain there till the death of the existing high priest. For further particulars, see at Num 35.
List of the cites: Levitical cities were chosen, for the reasons explained in the Commentary on the Pentateuch.
Joshua 20:7
In the land on this side (viz., Canaan) they sanctified the following cities. In the north , Kedesh (see at Joshua 12:22), in Galil , on the mountains of Naphtali. Galil (a circle) was a district in the northern part of the subsequent province of Galilee; it is called הגּוים גּליל , circle of the heathen, in Isaiah 9:1, because an unusually large number of heathen or Gentiles were living there. In the centre of the land, Shechem , upon the mountains of Ephraim (see at Joshua 17:7). And in the south, Kirjath-arba , i.e., Hebron, upon the mountains of Judah (see at Joshua 10:3).
Joshua 20:8-9
The cities in the land on the other side had already been appointed by Moses (Deuteronomy 4:41-43). For the sake of completeness, they are mentioned here again: viz., Bezer , Ramoth in Gilead , and Golan (see at Deuteronomy 4:43). The subject is brought to a close in Joshua 20:9. המּוּעדה ערי signifies neither urbes congregationis ( Kimchi ) nor urbes asyli ( Gesenius ), but cities of appointment, - those which received the appointment already given and repeated again in what follows.