Joshua 19 Study Notes: The Last Six Lots and Joshua's City
Simeon receives towns inside Judah's land, followed by Zebulun, Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and Dan, whose later move to another city is noted. Joshua then receives the town he asked for in Ephraim, and Eleazar, Joshua, and the tribal leaders complete the division of the land at Shiloh.
General
What does the note in 19:47 say the Danites did after they lost their territory?
Answer: Seized Leshem, lived there, and called it Dan
Dan received the seventh and last lot (19:40-46), but an aside looks ahead to a later time: when the Danites lost their territory, they attacked and took the city of Leshem, made it their home, and gave it their ancestor's name, Dan (19:47). The book of Judges tells this story more fully. The Amorites confined the Danites to the hills and barred them from the lowland (Judges 1:34), the tribe went looking for a place to live (Judges 18:1), and they named the city they took Dan, though it had been called Laish (Judges 18:29).
- Joshua 19:47 (BSB)“(Later, when the territory of the Danites was lost to them, they went up and fought against Leshem, captured it, and put it to the sword. So they took possession of Leshem, settled there, and renamed it after their father Dan.)”A note looks ahead to the Danites losing their territory and taking Leshem, which they renamed Dan.
- Judges 1:34 (BSB)“The Amorites forced the Danites into the hill country and did not allow them to come down into the plain.”The Amorites pushed the Danites into the hill country and kept them out of the plain.
- Judges 18:1 (BSB)“In those days there was no king in Israel, and the tribe of the Danites was looking for territory to occupy. For up to that time they had not come into an inheritance among the tribes of Israel.”Later the Danites were still searching for territory to occupy.
- Judges 18:29 (BSB)“They named it Dan, after their forefather Dan, who was born to Israel—though the city was formerly named Laish.”The Danites named their new city Dan, after their forefather; it had been called Laish.
Theological
According to the aside in 19:47, how did the Danites respond to losing their territory?
Answer: Seized Leshem, lived there, and called it Dan
The seventh lot falls to Dan (19:40-46), but an aside anticipates a later development: having lost their territory, the Danites took Leshem by force, occupied it, and gave it the name of their ancestor Dan (19:47). Judges narrates the background and the migration: Amorite pressure confined Dan to the hills (Judges 1:34), the tribe sought a new inheritance (Judges 18:1), and the captured city, formerly Laish, was renamed Dan (Judges 18:29). The note stands as another example of a tribe failing to hold what the lot assigned.
- Joshua 19:47 (BSB)“(Later, when the territory of the Danites was lost to them, they went up and fought against Leshem, captured it, and put it to the sword. So they took possession of Leshem, settled there, and renamed it after their father Dan.)”A note looks ahead to the Danites losing their territory and taking Leshem, which they renamed Dan.
- Judges 1:34 (BSB)“The Amorites forced the Danites into the hill country and did not allow them to come down into the plain.”The Amorites pushed the Danites into the hill country and kept them out of the plain.
- Judges 18:1 (BSB)“In those days there was no king in Israel, and the tribe of the Danites was looking for territory to occupy. For up to that time they had not come into an inheritance among the tribes of Israel.”Later the Danites were still searching for territory to occupy.
- Judges 18:29 (BSB)“They named it Dan, after their forefather Dan, who was born to Israel—though the city was formerly named Laish.”The Danites named their new city Dan, after their forefather; it had been called Laish.
General
True or False: The closing summary of 19:51 places the casting of lots at Gilgal, beside the stones from the Jordan.
Answer: False
This is false. The summary says the land was divided by lot at Shiloh in the LORD's presence, at the doorway of the Tent of Meeting, where the congregation had pitched the tent (18:1). Gilgal had been Israel's earlier camp. The verse closes by saying the work of dividing the land was complete (19:51). This carries out what the book announced when it said Joshua handed the land over to the tribes by their allotments (11:23), and it leads toward the summary that God gave Israel the whole land promised on oath to their ancestors (21:43).
- Joshua 19:51 (BSB)“These are the inheritances that Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the families distributed by lot to the tribes of Israel at Shiloh before the LORD at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. So they finished dividing up the land.”The land is divided by lot at Shiloh before the LORD, and the division is finished.
- Joshua 18:1 (BSB)“Then the whole congregation of Israel assembled at Shiloh and set up the Tent of Meeting there. And though the land was subdued before them,”The congregation had pitched the Tent of Meeting at Shiloh.
- Joshua 11:23 (BSB)“So Joshua took the entire land, in keeping with all that the LORD had spoken to Moses. And Joshua gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to the allotments to their tribes. Then the land had rest from war.”Joshua gave the land to Israel as an inheritance, according to the tribes' allotments.
- Joshua 21:43 (BSB)“Thus the LORD gave Israel all the land He had sworn to give their fathers, and they took possession of it and settled in it.”The LORD gave Israel all the land He had sworn to their fathers.
Theological
True or False: According to 19:51, the final distribution by lot took place at Gilgal.
Answer: False
This is false. The distribution is located at Shiloh, in the LORD's presence at the doorway of the Tent of Meeting (19:51), the sanctuary set up there in 18:1, so that the allotment is framed as an act performed in God's presence. The closing clause marks the completion of the division, the realization of 11:23, where Joshua is said to have given the land by tribal allotments, and the prelude to the great summary of God's faithfulness in giving all the sworn land (21:43).
- Joshua 19:51 (BSB)“These are the inheritances that Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the families distributed by lot to the tribes of Israel at Shiloh before the LORD at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. So they finished dividing up the land.”The land is divided by lot at Shiloh before the LORD, and the division is finished.
- Joshua 18:1 (BSB)“Then the whole congregation of Israel assembled at Shiloh and set up the Tent of Meeting there. And though the land was subdued before them,”The congregation had pitched the Tent of Meeting at Shiloh.
- Joshua 11:23 (BSB)“So Joshua took the entire land, in keeping with all that the LORD had spoken to Moses. And Joshua gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to the allotments to their tribes. Then the land had rest from war.”Joshua gave the land to Israel as an inheritance, according to the tribes' allotments.
- Joshua 21:43 (BSB)“Thus the LORD gave Israel all the land He had sworn to give their fathers, and they took possession of it and settled in it.”The LORD gave Israel all the land He had sworn to their fathers.
General
True or False: The city Joshua asked for lay in Ephraim's hills, among his own tribe, and he rebuilt it and lived there.
Answer: True
This is true. Joshua was given Timnath-serah in Ephraim's hill region, the city he had requested, and he rebuilt it and made his home there (19:50). Ephraim was Joshua's own tribe: he first appears as Nun's son Hoshea from Ephraim among the twelve scouts (Numbers 13:8), the man Moses renamed Joshua (Numbers 13:16). At the end of the book he is buried in this same inheritance (Joshua 24:30).
- Joshua 19:50 (BSB)“as the LORD had commanded. They gave him the city of Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim, as he requested. He rebuilt the city and settled in it.”Joshua is given the city he requested in Ephraim's hills, and he rebuilds it and settles there.
- Numbers 13:8 (BSB)“from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea son of Nun;”Joshua, then called Hoshea son of Nun, came from the tribe of Ephraim.
- Numbers 13:16 (BSB)“These were the names of the men Moses sent to spy out the land; and Moses gave to Hoshea son of Nun the name Joshua.”Moses gave Hoshea son of Nun the name Joshua.
- Joshua 24:30 (BSB)“And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.”Joshua was later buried in his own inheritance at Timnath-serah.
Theological
True or False: Joshua's requested city lay within the hill region of Ephraim, his own tribe, and he rebuilt and settled it.
Answer: True
This is true. The Israelites grant Joshua the Ephraimite highland town of Timnath-serah at his request, and he rebuilds and occupies it (19:50). Joshua was an Ephraimite, listed as Nun's son Hoshea among the scouts (Numbers 13:8) before Moses renamed him (Numbers 13:16), and the book closes with his burial in this very inheritance (Joshua 24:30).
- Joshua 19:50 (BSB)“as the LORD had commanded. They gave him the city of Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim, as he requested. He rebuilt the city and settled in it.”Joshua is given the city he requested in Ephraim's hills, and he rebuilds it and settles there.
- Numbers 13:8 (BSB)“from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea son of Nun;”Joshua, then called Hoshea son of Nun, came from the tribe of Ephraim.
- Numbers 13:16 (BSB)“These were the names of the men Moses sent to spy out the land; and Moses gave to Hoshea son of Nun the name Joshua.”Moses gave Hoshea son of Nun the name Joshua.
- Joshua 24:30 (BSB)“And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.”Joshua was later buried in his own inheritance at Timnath-serah.
General
When did Joshua receive his own inheritance (19:49-50)?
Answer: After all the tribes' land had been handed out
Joshua received his portion last. Only when the whole land had been divided among the tribes did the Israelites give Joshua a portion of his own, and the text says this followed the LORD's command and that Joshua received the city he asked for (19:49-50). The leader who had overseen the whole division did not take his own share first. His receiving land at all was a mark of God's faithfulness: when the wilderness generation was sentenced, God said only Caleb and Joshua would enter the land (Numbers 14:30), and of the twelve scouts only those two survived (Numbers 14:38). Caleb's grant of Hebron came earlier, at Gilgal (14:6-14).
- Joshua 19:49-50 (BSB)“When they had finished distributing the land into its territories, the Israelites gave Joshua son of Nun an inheritance among them, as the LORD had commanded. They gave him the city of Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim, as he requested. He rebuilt the city and settled in it.”After the land is distributed, the Israelites give Joshua the city he requested, as the LORD had commanded.
- Numbers 14:30 (BSB)“Surely none of you will enter the land in which I swore to settle you, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.”The LORD swore that of the wilderness generation only Caleb and Joshua would enter the land.
- Numbers 14:38 (BSB)“Of those men who had gone to spy out the land, only Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh remained alive.”Of the twelve scouts, only Joshua and Caleb survived.
Theological
At what point in the allotment did Joshua receive his inheritance (19:49-50)?
Answer: After all the tribes' land had been handed out
Joshua's portion comes only after the distribution is complete: the Israelites then give him a portion of his own according to the LORD's command, granting the city he requested (19:49-50). The commander takes his share last, after every tribe has been served. His inheritance also seals God's oath from Kadesh, that of that generation only Caleb and Joshua would enter the land (Numbers 14:30), the two faithful scouts who alone survived (Numbers 14:38). Caleb's grant at Gilgal (14:6-14) preceded the Shiloh lots.
- Joshua 19:49-50 (BSB)“When they had finished distributing the land into its territories, the Israelites gave Joshua son of Nun an inheritance among them, as the LORD had commanded. They gave him the city of Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim, as he requested. He rebuilt the city and settled in it.”After the land is distributed, the Israelites give Joshua the city he requested, as the LORD had commanded.
- Numbers 14:30 (BSB)“Surely none of you will enter the land in which I swore to settle you, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.”The LORD swore that of the wilderness generation only Caleb and Joshua would enter the land.
- Numbers 14:38 (BSB)“Of those men who had gone to spy out the land, only Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh remained alive.”Of the twelve scouts, only Joshua and Caleb survived.
General
Where did Simeon's tribe receive its inheritance (19:1)?
Answer: Inside the land already allotted to Judah
The second lot went to Simeon, but rather than receiving a separate region, Simeon's inheritance lay inside Judah's land (19:1). That is why the first town on Simeon's list, Beersheba, also appears among Judah's towns (15:28). The two tribes stayed closely tied; after Joshua's death Judah invited Simeon to fight alongside it, and Simeon did (Judges 1:3). The northern coast went to Asher, and the land east of the Jordan to Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh.
- Joshua 19:1 (BSB)“The second lot came out for the clans of the tribe of Simeon: Their inheritance lay within the territory of Judah”The second lot goes to Simeon, and its land lies inside Judah's territory.
- Joshua 15:28 (BSB)“Hazar-shual, Beersheba, Biziothiah,”Beersheba, the first of Simeon's towns, also appears in Judah's own town list.
- Judges 1:3 (BSB)“Then the men of Judah said to their brothers the Simeonites, “Come up with us to our allotted territory, and let us fight against the Canaanites. And we likewise will go with you to your territory.” So the Simeonites went with them.”Judah asks Simeon to fight alongside it, pledging help in return, and Simeon goes with Judah.
Theological
How does 19:1 describe the location of Simeon's inheritance?
Answer: Inside the land already allotted to Judah
Simeon's lot, the second of the seven, is not a distinct territory but a set of towns within Judah's inheritance (19:1). The overlap is visible in the lists themselves: Beersheba heads Simeon's towns and also appears in Judah's (15:28). The close tie between the tribes shows again in Judges 1:3, where Judah asks Simeon to fight alongside it, pledging help in return, and Simeon goes. Asher holds the coast near Tyre and Sidon, and the Transjordan was settled by Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh.
- Joshua 19:1 (BSB)“The second lot came out for the clans of the tribe of Simeon: Their inheritance lay within the territory of Judah”The second lot goes to Simeon, and its land lies inside Judah's territory.
- Joshua 15:28 (BSB)“Hazar-shual, Beersheba, Biziothiah,”Beersheba, the first of Simeon's towns, also appears in Judah's own town list.
- Judges 1:3 (BSB)“Then the men of Judah said to their brothers the Simeonites, “Come up with us to our allotted territory, and let us fight against the Canaanites. And we likewise will go with you to your territory.” So the Simeonites went with them.”Judah asks Simeon to fight alongside it, pledging help in return, and Simeon goes with Judah.
General
True or False: Simeon's land was carved out of Judah's portion because Judah's share was more than Judah needed.
Answer: True
This is true. The text gives the reason plainly: Judah's share was larger than its people needed, so Simeon's inheritance was taken from it and Simeon received towns within Judah's portion (19:9). Long before, Jacob had spoken of Simeon and Levi being dispersed and scattered within Israel (Genesis 49:7). Many readers have noted that Simeon's place inside Judah, together with Levi's towns spread among all the tribes (Joshua 21:3), fits that old word.
- Joshua 19:9 (BSB)“The inheritance of the Simeonites was taken from the territory of Judah, because the share for Judah’s descendants was too large for them. So the Simeonites received an inheritance within Judah’s portion.”Simeon's inheritance is taken from Judah because Judah's share was too large for them.
- Genesis 49:7 (BSB)“Cursed be their anger, for it is strong, and their wrath, for it is cruel! I will disperse them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.”Jacob had said he would disperse Simeon and Levi in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.
- Joshua 21:3 (BSB)“So by the command of the LORD, the Israelites gave the Levites these cities and their pasturelands out of their own inheritance:”Levi, too, receives towns scattered among the other tribes' inheritances.
Theological
True or False: According to 19:9, Simeon's inheritance came from Judah's territory because Judah's allotment exceeded its needs.
Answer: True
This is true. The narrator explains that Judah's portion was more than Judah required, so Simeon's inheritance was drawn from within it (19:9). Many readers have connected this with Jacob's oracle that Simeon and Levi would be dispersed in Jacob and scattered in Israel (Genesis 49:7): Simeon is absorbed within Judah, and Levi receives towns distributed throughout the tribes (Joshua 21:3). Joshua 19:9 itself names only Judah's surplus as the reason.
- Joshua 19:9 (BSB)“The inheritance of the Simeonites was taken from the territory of Judah, because the share for Judah’s descendants was too large for them. So the Simeonites received an inheritance within Judah’s portion.”Simeon's inheritance is taken from Judah because Judah's share was too large for them.
- Genesis 49:7 (BSB)“Cursed be their anger, for it is strong, and their wrath, for it is cruel! I will disperse them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.”Jacob had said he would disperse Simeon and Levi in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.
- Joshua 21:3 (BSB)“So by the command of the LORD, the Israelites gave the Levites these cities and their pasturelands out of their own inheritance:”Levi, too, receives towns scattered among the other tribes' inheritances.
General
According to 19:51, who distributed the inheritances by lot?
Answer: Joshua, the priest Eleazar, and the family leaders
The closing summary names Joshua, the priest Eleazar, and the tribal family heads as those who gave out the inheritances by lot (19:51). This is exactly the team the LORD had appointed through Moses: Eleazar and Joshua, joined by a chief from every tribe (Numbers 34:16-18). The allotment record began with the same names (Joshua 14:1), so it ends where it started, with the division carried out just as God had ordered. Moses and Aaron had died before Israel entered the land.
- Joshua 19:51 (BSB)“These are the inheritances that Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the families distributed by lot to the tribes of Israel at Shiloh before the LORD at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. So they finished dividing up the land.”The closing summary names who distributed the land by lot, where, and that the division was finished.
- Numbers 34:16-18 (BSB)“Then the LORD said to Moses, “These are the names of the men who are to assign the land as an inheritance for you: Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun. Appoint one leader from each tribe to distribute the land.”The LORD had named Eleazar the priest and Joshua, with one leader from each tribe, to assign the land.
- Joshua 14:1 (BSB)“Now these are the portions that the Israelites inherited in the land of Canaan, as distributed by Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the families of the tribes of Israel.”The allotment record opens by naming the same people as those who distributed the land.
Theological
Whom does 19:51 name as the distributors of the inheritances by lot?
Answer: Joshua, the priest Eleazar, and the family leaders
The summary credits Joshua, the priest Eleazar, and the tribal family heads with distributing the inheritances by lot (19:51). The roster matches the LORD's appointment through Moses of Eleazar and Joshua together with a chief from every tribe (Numbers 34:16-18), and it repeats the heading of the allotment section (Joshua 14:1). This framing marks the whole distribution, from 14:1 to 19:51, as carried out under God's command through the priest and the leader together.
- Joshua 19:51 (BSB)“These are the inheritances that Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the families distributed by lot to the tribes of Israel at Shiloh before the LORD at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. So they finished dividing up the land.”The closing summary names who distributed the land by lot, where, and that the division was finished.
- Numbers 34:16-18 (BSB)“Then the LORD said to Moses, “These are the names of the men who are to assign the land as an inheritance for you: Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun. Appoint one leader from each tribe to distribute the land.”The LORD had named Eleazar the priest and Joshua, with one leader from each tribe, to assign the land.
- Joshua 14:1 (BSB)“Now these are the portions that the Israelites inherited in the land of Canaan, as distributed by Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the families of the tribes of Israel.”The allotment record opens by naming the same people as those who distributed the land.
General
True or False: The lands allotted here to Zebulun and Naphtali are the region Matthew later names when Jesus moved to Capernaum.
Answer: True
This is true. Zebulun received the third lot (19:10) and Naphtali the sixth (19:32). Centuries later Isaiah promised that this region, which God had humbled, would one day be honored (Isaiah 9:1). Matthew records that Jesus left Nazareth and made His home in Capernaum, within the lands of these two tribes, fulfilling that prophecy of a great light dawning on people in darkness (Matthew 4:13-16). The ordinary tribal boundaries of Joshua 19 became the setting where Jesus began His public ministry.
- Joshua 19:10 (BSB)“The third lot came up for the clans of the tribe of Zebulun: The border of their inheritance stretched as far as Sarid.”The third lot goes to Zebulun.
- Joshua 19:32 (BSB)“The sixth lot came out for the clans of the tribe of Naphtali:”The sixth lot goes to Naphtali.
- Isaiah 9:1 (BSB)“Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those in distress. In the past He humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future He will honor the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations:”Isaiah promises that the humbled land of Zebulun and Naphtali will be honored.
- Matthew 4:13-16 (BSB)“Leaving Nazareth, He went and lived in Capernaum, which is by the sea in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali, to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death, a light has dawned.””Matthew says Jesus settled in Capernaum, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali, fulfilling Isaiah.
Theological
True or False: Matthew identifies the territories of Naphtali and Zebulun, allotted in this chapter, as the region where Jesus settled in Capernaum.
Answer: True
This is true. Zebulun's lot (19:10) and Naphtali's (19:32) cover the region Isaiah later describes as humbled but destined for honor (Isaiah 9:1). Matthew explicitly applies that prophecy to Christ: Jesus settles in Capernaum, within these two tribal lands, so that a great light dawns on a people in darkness (Matthew 4:13-16). The tribal allotment thus becomes the stage for the dawn of the Messiah's Galilean ministry, as the Gospel itself interprets it.
- Joshua 19:10 (BSB)“The third lot came up for the clans of the tribe of Zebulun: The border of their inheritance stretched as far as Sarid.”The third lot goes to Zebulun.
- Joshua 19:32 (BSB)“The sixth lot came out for the clans of the tribe of Naphtali:”The sixth lot goes to Naphtali.
- Isaiah 9:1 (BSB)“Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those in distress. In the past He humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future He will honor the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations:”Isaiah promises that the humbled land of Zebulun and Naphtali will be honored.
- Matthew 4:13-16 (BSB)“Leaving Nazareth, He went and lived in Capernaum, which is by the sea in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali, to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death, a light has dawned.””Matthew says Jesus settled in Capernaum, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali, fulfilling Isaiah.