Joshua 18

1 The land had been subdued and lay before them. The Israelites gathered together at Shiloh and set up the Tent of Meeting.

And all the meeting of the children of Israel came together at Shiloh and put up the Tent of meeting there: and the land was crushed before them.

2 However, seven of the Israelite tribes had not received their land allocations.

But there were still seven tribes among the children of Israel who had not taken up their heritage.

3 So Joshua asked the Israelites, “How long will you go on being reluctant to go and take possession of the land that the Lord gave your forefathers?

Then Joshua said to the children of Israel, Why are you so slow to go in and take up your heritage in the land which the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given you?

4 Choose three men from each tribe and I will send them out to explore the land. Then they can write a description regarding the land allocations and bring it to me.

Take from among you three men from every tribe; and I will send them to go through the land and make a record of it for distribution as their heritage; then let them come back to me.

5 They are to divide the land into seven parts, up to the boundary of Judah's land in the south and Joseph's land in the north.

And let them make division of it into seven parts: let Judah keep inside his limit on the south, and let the children of Joseph keep inside their limit on the north.

6 Once you have written the description the land, dividing it in seven parts, you will bring it to me here and I will cast lots for you in the presence of the Lord our God.

And you are to have the land marked out in seven parts, and come back to me with the record; and I will make the distribution for you here by the decision of the Lord our God.

7 But the Levites do not receive a share, for their role as priests of the Lord is their allocation. Also, Gad, Reuben, and the half-tribe of Manasseh have already received their allocation that Moses, the servant of the Lord, gave them on the east side of the Jordan.”

For the Levites have no part among you; to be the Lord's priests is their heritage; and Gad and Reuben and the half-tribe of Manasseh have had their heritage on the east side of Jordan, given to them by Moses, the servant of the Lord.

8 As the men started out on their way to explore the land. Joshua told them, “Go throughout the land and write a description of what you find. Then return to me and I will cast lots for you in the presence of the Lord here in Shiloh.”

So the men got up and went; and Joshua gave orders to those who went, to make a record of the land, saying, Go up and down through the land, and make a record of it and come back here to me, and I will make the distribution for you here by the decision of the Lord in Shiloh.

9 So the men went and explored the land and wrote down on a scroll a description of the seven parts, recording the towns in each part. Then they returned to Joshua at the camp in Shiloh

So the men went, travelling through the land, and made a record of it by towns in seven parts in a book, and came back to Joshua to the tent-circle at Shiloh.

10 where Joshua cast lots for them in the presence of the Lord. There Joshua divided the land up and allotted the different parts to the remaining Israelite tribes.

And Joshua made the distribution for them in Shiloh by the decision of the Lord, marking out the land for the children of Israel by their divisions.

11 The first lot cast went to the tribe of Benjamin, by families. The land allotted lay between that of the tribe of Judah and the tribe of Joseph.

And the first heritage came out for the tribe of Benjamin by their families: and the limit of their heritage went between the children of Judah and the children of Joseph.

12 Their boundary began at the Jordan, and went north of the slope of Jericho, west through the hill country, coming out at the wilderness of Beth-aven.

And their limit on the north was from the Jordan, and the line goes up to the side of Jericho on the north and through the hill-country to the west, ending at the waste land of Beth-aven.

13 Then the boundary went south to Luz (or Bethel) and on down to Ataroth-addar on the mountain south of Lower Beth-horon.

And from there the line goes south to Luz, to the side of Luz (which is Beth-el), then down to Ataroth-addar, by the mountain to the south of Beth-horon the lower.

14 Here the boundary turned south along the western side of the mountain facing Beth-horon, finishing at Kiriath-baal (or Kiriath-jearim), a town of the tribe of Judah. This was the western boundary.

And the limit is marked as coming round to the south on the west side from the mountain which is south of Beth-horon, and ending at Kiriath-baal (which is Kiriath-jearim), a town of the children of Judah: this is the west part.

15 The southern boundary began at the edge of Kiriath-jearim. It ran to the spring at Nephtoah,

And the south part is from the farthest point of Kiriath-jearim, and the line goes out to the west to the fountain of the waters of Nephtoah:

16 and then down to the foot of the mountain that faces the valley of Ben-hinnom, at the north end of the valley of Rephaim. Then it went down the valley of Hinnom, along the slope near the Jebusite town, south towards En-rogel.

And the line goes down to the farthest part of the mountain facing the valley of the son of Hinnom, which is on the north of the valley of Rephaim: from there it goes down to the valley of Hinnom, to the side of the Jebusite on the south as far as En-rogel;

17 From there it headed north to En-shemesh and on to Geliloth, opposite the heights of Adummim, and then on down to the Stone of Bohan (Reuben's son).

And it goes to En-shemesh and on to Geliloth, opposite the way up to Adummim, and it goes down to the stone of Bohan, the son of Reuben;

18 Then it went along the ridge opposite the Jordan Valley to the north, and then down into the Jordan Valley itself.

And it goes on to the side facing the Arabah to the north, and down to the Arabah;

19 From there it ran along the north slope of Beth-hoglah, ending at the north bay of the Salt Sea, the southern end of the Jordan. This was the southern boundary.

And on to the north side of Beth-hoglah, ending at the north inlet of the Salt Sea at the south end of Jordan; this is their limit on the south.

20 The eastern boundary was the Jordan. These were the boundaries around the land of the tribe of Benjamin, by families.

And the limit of the east part is the Jordan. This is the heritage of the children of Benjamin, marked out for their families by these limits on all sides.

21 These were the towns of the tribe of Benjamin, according to families: Jericho, Beth-hoglah, Emek-keziz,

And the towns of the children of Benjamin, given to them in the order of their families, are Jericho and Beth-hoglah and Emek-kezziz

22 Beth-arabah, Zemaraim, Bethel,

And Beth-arabah and Zemaraim and Beth-el

23 Avvim, Parah, Ophrah,

And Avvim and Parah and Ophrah

24 Kephar-ammoni, Ophni, and Geba—twelve towns with their associated villages.

And Chephar-Ammoni and Ophni and Geba; twelve towns with their unwalled places;

25 In addition: Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth,

Gibeon and Ramah and Beeroth

26 Mizpah, Kephirah, Mozah,

And Mizpeh and Chephirah and Mozah

27 Rekem, Irpeel, Taralah,

And Rekem and Irpeel and Taralah

28 Zela, Haeleph, Jebus (or Jerusalem), Gibeah, and Kiriath-jearim—fourteen towns with their associated villages. This was the land allotted to the tribe of Benjamin, by families.

And Zela, Eleph and the Jebusite (which is Jerusalem), Gibeath and Kiriath; fourteen towns with their unwalled places. This is the heritage of the children of Benjamin by their families.