Joshua 21 · Verse 3

Joshua 21:3

And the children of Israel gave unto the Levites out of their inheritance, at the commandment of the Lord, these cities and their suburbs.
Joshua 21:3, King James Version

Joshua 21:3 in other translations

BSBSo by the command of the LORD, the Israelites gave the Levites these cities and their pasturelands out of their own inheritance:
WEBThe children of Israel gave to the Levites out of their inheritance, according to the commandment of the LORD, these cities with their pasture lands.
ASVAnd the children of Israel gave unto the Levites out of their inheritance, according to the commandment of Jehovah, these cities with their suburbs.
YLTAnd the sons of Israel give to the Levites, out of their inheritance, at the command of Jehovah, these cities and their suburbs:
DARBYAnd the children of Israel gave to the Levites out of their inheritance, according to the word of Jehovah, these cities and their suburbs.
BBEAnd the children of Israel out of their heritage gave to the Levites these towns with their grass-lands, by the order of the Lord.
WebsterAnd the children of Israel gave to the Levites out of their inheritance, at the commandment of the LORD, these cities and their suburbs.

What does Joshua 21:3 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Joshua 21:1-3

Jos 21:1-8. Eight and Forty Cities Given by Lot Out of the Other Tribes unto the Levites. 1-3. Then came near the heads of the fathers of the Levites--The most venerable and distinguished members of the three Levitical families, on behalf of their tribe, applied for the special provision that had been promised them to be now awarded (see on Nu 35:2). Their inheritance lay within the territory of every tribe. It was…

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Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 3 And the children of Israel gave unto the Levites - They cheerfully obeyed the Divine command, and cities for habitations were appointed to them out of the different tribes by lot, that it might as fully appear that God designed them their habitations, as he designed the others their inheritances.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Joshua 21:1-8

Chapter Outline Cities for the Levites. (1-8) The cities allotted to the Levites. (9-42) God gave the land and rest to the Israelites, according to his promise. (43-45) Verses 1-8 The Levites waited till the other tribes were provided for, before they preferred their claim to Joshua. They build their claim upon a very good foundation; not their own merits or services, but the Divine precept. The maintenance of…

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Joshua 21:3 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיִּתְּנ֨וּvai.yi.te.Nuand they gaveH5414
בְנֵי\־ve.nei-[the] people ofH1121
יִשְׂרָאֵ֧לYis.ra.'ElIsraelH3478
לַלְוִיִּ֛םlal.vi.Yimto the LevitesH3881
מִנַּחֲלָתָ֖םmi.na.cha.la.Tamsome of inheritance theirH5159
אֶל\־'el-toH413
פִּ֣יpi[the] mouth ofH6310
יְהוָ֑הYah.wehYahwehH3068
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
הֶעָרִ֥יםhe.'a.Rimthe citiesH5892
הָאֵ֖לֶּהha.'E.leh<the> theseH428
וְאֶת\־ve.'Etand <obj.>H853
מִגְרְשֵׁיהֶֽן\׃mig.re.shei.Henpasture lands theirH4054

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Joshua 21:3

  • Genesis 49:7

    Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel.

  • Deuteronomy 33:8-10

    And of Levi he said, Let thy Thummim and thy Urim be with thy holy one, whom thou didst prove at Massah, and with whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah; Who said unto his father and to his mother, I have not seen him; neither did he acknowledge his brethren, nor knew his own children: for they have observed thy word, and kept thy covenant. They shall teach Jacob thy judgments, and Israel thy law: they shall put incense before thee, and whole burnt sacrifice upon thine altar.

  • 1 Chronicles 6:54-81

    Now these are their dwelling places throughout their castles in their coasts, of the sons of Aaron, of the families of the Kohathites: for theirs was the lot. And they gave them Hebron in the land of Judah, and the suburbs thereof round about it. But the fields of the city, and the villages thereof, they gave to Caleb the son of Jephunneh. And to the sons of Aaron they gave the cities of Judah, namely, Hebron, the city of refuge, and Libnah with her suburbs, and Jattir, and Eshtemoa, with their suburbs, …

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
unto the Levites.
Ge 49:7; De 33:8-10; 1Ch 6:54-81

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Joshua 21:2

    And they spake unto them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, saying, The Lord commanded by the hand of Moses to give us cities to dwell in, with the suburbs thereof for our cattle.

  • Joshua 21:3

    And the children of Israel gave unto the Levites out of their inheritance, at the commandment of the Lord, these cities and their suburbs.

  • Joshua 21:4

    And the lot came out for the families of the Kohathites: and the children of Aaron the priest, which were of the Levites, had by lot out of the tribe of Judah, and out of the tribe of Simeon, and out of the tribe of Benjamin, thirteen cities.

Read all of Joshua 21

Joshua 21:3 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Entonces los hijos de Israel dieron á los Levitas de sus posesiones, conforme á la palabra de Jehová, estas villas con sus ejidos.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et les fils d’Israël donnèrent de leur héritage aux Lévites, selon le commandement de l’ Éternel, ces villes-ci, avec leurs banlieues:
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und die Kinder Israel gaben den Leviten von ihrem Erbteil diese Städte und ihre Bezirke, nach dem Befehle Jehovas:
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Dederuntque filii Israël de possessionibus suis juxta imperium Domini, civitates et suburbana earum.