Levitical city


The Levitical cities were 48 cities in ancient Israel set aside for the tribe of Levi, who were not allocated their own territorial land when the Israelites entered the Promised Land.
Numbers 35:1-8 relates God's command to Moses to establish 48 cities for the Levites, of which six would also function as cities of refuge to which a manslayer could flee. Each settlement was to comprise a walled city and the common land around it for pasture, measured radially as one thousand cubits in each direction, or as a square measuring two thousand cubits along each side. The land for the cities was to be 'donated' by the host tribe and was allocated to the Levites according to their tribal sub-divisions.
13 cities were for the Aaronite priestly division.

13 cities were for the Gershonite division.

10 cities were for the Kohathite division.

12 cities were for the Merarite division.
The six cities which were to be Cities of Refuge were Golan, Ramoth, and Bezer, on the east of the Jordan River, and Kedesh, Shechem, and Hebron on the western side.

Locations of Cities

21 recounts the fulfilment of God's command at the request of the Levite leaders. A further list is provided in 1 Chronicles 6:54-81. The following table reflects the list in Joshua 21:
TribeLevitical citiesLevite divisionCity of refuge
AsherAbdonGershonites
AsherHelkathGershonites
AsherMishalGershonites
AsherRehobGershonites
BenjaminAlmonAaronites
BenjaminAnathothAaronites
BenjaminGebaAaronites
BenjaminGibeonAaronites
DanAijalonKohathites
DanEltekehKohathites
DanGath RimmonKohathites
DanGibbethonKohathites
EphraimBeth HoronKohathites
EphraimGezerKohathites
EphraimKibzaimKohathites
EphraimShechemKohathites♦
GadRamoth in GileadMerarites♦
GadJazerMerarites
GadMahanaimMerarites
GadHeshbonMerarites
IssacharDaberathGershonites
IssacharEn GannimGershonites
IssacharJarmuthGershonites
IssacharKishionGershonites
JudahAinAaronites
JudahBeth ShemeshAaronites
JudahDebirAaronites
JudahEshtemoaAaronites
JudahHolonAaronites
JudahJattirAaronites
JudahJuttahAaronites
JudahKirjath Arba Aaronites♦
JudahLibnahAaronites
ManassehBe EshterahGershonites
ManassehGath RimmonKohathites
ManassehGolanGershonites♦
ManassehTanachKohathites
NaphtaliHammoth DorGershonites
NaphtaliKartanGershonites
NaphtaliKedesh in GalileeGershonites♦
ReubenBezerMerarites♦
ReubenJahazMerarites
ReubenKedemothMerarites
ReubenMephaathMerarites
SimeonSee Judah
ZebulunDimnahMerarites
ZebulunJokneamMerarites
ZebulunKartahMerarites
ZebulunNahalalMerarites

Interpretation

suggested that the Levites had initially been 'overlooked' in the allocation of land on entry to the Promised Land, until the Levites brought forward a reminder of the divine commandment, making this an example of how:
However, the writer of the Pulpit Commentary disagreed:
This 'arrangement' was the fulfilment of Jacob's prophecy in Genesis 49:5-7 - I will scatter them in Israel - which was a punishment for Simeon and Levi's massacre of the men of Shechem. The Levites could not be scattered amongst the cities of the other tribes until the other tribes had all been appointed to their territories after the entry into the Promised Land.
Matthew Henry commented that Jacob's condemnation of Levi became a blessing for Israel: