Charles (Chuck) Kensinger

In Joshua 19 Simeon is given land from Judah because they did not need all that had been given to them.  Zebulon, Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and Dan are the last to receive their land.  Joshua’s town is in Ephraim.  Today, the country of Israel occupies a much smaller area than that given originally by Jehovah and occupied by them at the time spoken of here.

The cities of refuge are chosen in Joshua 20.  This is a place that those who are waiting for trial for murder can stay with safety to prevent revenge for accidental death.  This is one of the reasons that American laws differentiate between manslaughter and other levels of murder.  Our crime of manslaughter is the one that is being dealt with in these verses.  If you intentionally killed someone, you would not be allowed refuge in these cities for long.  Once your trial was held and you were found guilty of premeditated murder, you would be executed.

The priests which are descended from Levi must settle among the others and this is decided in Joshua 21.  While Jerusalem became the center of the Jewish religion after the temple was constructed, now it is in Shiloh.  The Levites must be distributed in each of the other eleven tribes.  Their job is to keep the Israelites trained on worshipping Jehovah.  Despite the presence of the priestly families, the people eventually worshiped other Gods and brought God’s rejection upon themselves.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger