This Land Is Our Land! Pt. 2 (Joshua 18-21)

I. The assignments made at Shiloh (Josh. 18:1–19:51)

A. Joshua and the leaders started a new system for allocating the land.

After each of the seven tribes appointed three men, all twenty-one men went through the remaining territories and listed the cities and the landmarks, describing each part of the land. They brought this information back to Joshua, who then assigned the various portions to the remaining seven tribes by casting lots before the Lord.

Since Benjamin was the full brother to Joseph, his territory was assigned adjacent to Ephraim and Manasseh (Josh. 18:11–28). Simeon shared his inheritance with Judah. The children of Joseph wanted more territory, but weren’t willing to fight for it by faith; but the people of Judah had so much land that they shared it with Simeon. What a contrast!

B. The last tribe to receive its assignment was the tribe of Dan.

The tribe of Dan immediately went to work and expanded its territory. Dan and Benjamin formed a “belt” across the land, connecting the Dead Sea with the Mediterranean.

Being the leader that he was, Joshua waited until the very last to claim his own inheritance; and the Lord gave him the city of Timnath-Serah (vv. 49–50). Like his friend Caleb, Joshua preferred living in the mountainous region of the land.

II. The assignment of the cities of refuge (Josh. 20:1–9)

A. God had laid down the basic rule that those who shed blood should pay for their crime with their own blood.

This principle was even before the Law of Moses was given. God made a distinction between murder and manslaughter. “Blood defiles the land, and no atonement can be made for the land, for the blood that is shed on it, except by the blood of him who shed it. Therefore do not defile the land which you inhabit” (Num. 35:33–34, NKJV).

The six “cities of refuge” were needed because society in that day had no police force to investigate crimes. It was the responsibility of each family to see to it that murders were avenged, but how could they tell whether it was a case of premeditated murder or accidental manslaughter? In the heat of anger a relative of the dead person might kill somebody who was really innocent of a capital crime.

B. Joshua set apart six “cities of refuge”

Joshua set apart three cities of refuge on each side of the Jordan River. On the west side, Kedesh was farthest north, in the territory of Naphtali; Shechem was in the middle of the nation in the tribe of Manasseh; and Hebron was in the south in the tribe of Judah. On the east side of the Jordan, the cities were Golan in the north in Manasseh, Ramoth in Gad, and Bezer farther south in the tribe of Reuben. Since the Holy Land is about the size of the state of Maryland, you can see that nobody was very far from a city of refuge.

The law was really quite simple. Anybody who killed another person could flee to a city of refuge and be protected from “the avenger of blood” until the elders of the city could investigate the circumstances. The cities of refuge are a picture of our salvation in Jesus Christ. When we come to Christ for salvation, there’s no need for an investigation or a trial, because we know we’re guilty; and we admit it! The only people Jesus can save are those who confess their guilt and throw themselves on His mercy. If the fugitive prematurely left the city of refuge, he could be killed; but our salvation in Christ is not conditional. Our High Priest will never die, and we are forever secure.

We should note that there is also an application to the nation of Israel. The nation was guilty of killing the Lord Jesus Christ, but it was a sin of ignorance on the part of the people. When Jesus prayed on the cross, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do”, He was declaring them guilty of manslaughter rather than murder. The way was open for their forgiveness, and God gave the nation nearly forty years to repent before He brought judgment.

III. The assignment of the levitical cities (Josh. 21:1–45)

A. The tribe of Levi didn’t have territory assigned to it but was scattered throughout the land.

The reason that they were scattered was so they could teach the people the Law and influence each of the tribes to be faithful to the Lord. But the Levites needed places to live and pastures for their cattle. God assigned forty-eight cities for them to live in, along with a specific amount of land for pasture. The pasture land could not be sold, but their houses could be sold; and the Levites even had special privileges for redeeming their property.

There were forty-eight levitical cities, six of which were also cities of refuge. Each of the tribes contributed four cities, except Judah and Simeon, who together contributed nine, and Naphtali, who contributed three. The descendants of the three sons of Aaron—Kohath, Gershon and Marari—were assigned to the various cities, although other Jews also lived in them.

B. This long section in the Book of Joshua closes with three wonderful affirmations:

God God was faithful and gave Israel the land. He kept the covenant that He made, first with Abraham and then with his descendants.

God gave Israel victory over all their enemies and then gave them the rest from war. What the ten unbelieving spies at Kadesh Barnea said could never happen did happen, because Joshua and the people believed God and obeyed His Word.

God kept His promises. At the close of his life Joshua would remind the people of this; and Solomon reminded them of it when he dedicated the temple.

As the people of God, we can claim these assurances by faith. God’s covenant with us is not going to fail; God’s power and wisdom can give us victory over every foe; and God’s promises can be trusted, no matter what the circumstances may be. The covenant of God, the power of God, the promises of God—these are the spiritual resources we can depend on as we claim our inheritance in Jesus Christ.