Study notes

Joshua 20

Introducing JoshuaWho wrote it, when, why, and what to look for as you read

13:1–21:45 Section

The land God promised to give Abraham’s family line was divided up among the Israelites. The book of Joshua records the land given to each tribe.

The tribes of Gad and Reuben received land east of the River Jordan. So did half of the tribe of Manasseh. The rest of the tribes received land west of the River Jordan.

Caleb received land in Hebron. The Levites received towns and grasslands throughout all the other tribes’ land. Their cities included the safe cities.

Keeping careful records about the land would help the Israelites in the future. The records would help each tribe know its borders so they wouldn’t fight about them. The records would show the tribes what land they were responsible for. The records also showed the exact ways God kept his promise to Abraham about land.

Many Canaanites still lived in the land given to the tribes. God promised that he would be the one to drive them out. But the Israelites were his partners and they would have to work hard. Joshua made this clear in his instructions to Joseph’s family line. The tribes had to clear the land and drive out the Canaanites. Not every tribe obeyed those instructions.

13:8–21:45

  • As he had promised, God brought Israel into the land. Joshua then focused on dividing the land among Israel's tribes.

  • The tribal allowances made the covenant of the Israelites with God real. It showed the fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Since God owned the land, giving it to the tribes was a gift. God gave them the land to live in and guided its distribution.

  • In these lists of tribal allowances, the author describes some borders in great detail, allowing them to be mapped. With others, they are less plainly defined.

20:1–21:45

Before they fully divided the land, Joshua had to establish six cities of refuge and assign cities in which the Levites would live.

20:3

The relatives of a victim murdered or killed unintentionally or accidentally were responsible for seeking revenge. If the avenger (Hebrew go’el) found the person who killed outside a city of refuge, he could kill him without suffering punishment.

20:7–9

Joshua chose six cities of refuge. Three were on the east side of the Jordan River and three were on the west side. From anywhere in the land, people could reach one of these well-known Levitical cities within two days of travel.

Verse notes: Adapted by Mission Mutual (Aquifer Open Study Notes) from Tyndale Open Study Notes © 2023 Tyndale House Publishers. CC BY-SA 4.0. Section notes: Biblica Study Notes © 2023 Biblica, Inc. CC BY-SA 4.0, via BibleAquifer. About the sources