Introduction: The Chapter of the Levite Cities
Chapter 21 of Sefer Yehoshua concludes the account of the division of the land. After all the tribes received their inheritance, the turn arrives for the tribe of Levi, which has no portion or inheritance among its brethren, yet has cities to dwell in. In this chapter we learn how the forty eight Levite cities were divided among the four families of the tribe of Levi, why specifically in this manner, and how the order of distribution reflects the order of their rank in holiness. The chapter ends with a lofty summary: seven things that were fulfilled among the people of Israel with the conquest of the land and their settlement in it.
"And in addition to them you shall give" - the cities of refuge first
וַיִּגְּשׁוּ רָאשֵׁי אֲבוֹת הַלְוִיִּם אֶל־אֶלְעָזָר הַכֹּהֵן וְאֶל־יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בִּן־נוּן וְאֶל־רָאשֵׁי אֲבוֹת הַמַּטּוֹת לִבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל׃ - The heads of the fathers' houses of the Levi'im drew near to Elazar the Kohen, to Yehoshua son of Nun, and to the heads of the fathers' houses of the tribes of the children of Israel.
The Malbim is precise regarding the language of the command in the Torah: "the cities which you shall give to the Levi'im, the six cities of refuge, and in addition to them you shall give forty two cities." As we already mentioned in the previous chapter, besides the six cities of refuge there were another forty two Levite cities, which also took in the unintentional killer. But the word "in addition to them" comes to teach: wherever it says "in addition to them," the intent is either to something secondary added onto the primary, or to something that comes after the primary in time. Like "upon the daily burnt offering shall he make," which means after the daily burnt offering. So too here: first they waited until the cities of refuge were set aside, and only afterward did they set aside the remaining cities.
וַיְדַבְּרוּ אֲלֵיהֶם בְּשִׁלֹה בְּאֶרֶץ כְּנַעַן לֵאמֹר יְהֹוָה צִוָּה בְיַד־מֹשֶׁה לָתֶת־לָנוּ עָרִים לָשָׁבֶת וּמִגְרְשֵׁיהֶן לִבְהֶמְתֵּנוּ׃ - And they spoke to them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, saying: Hashem commanded through Moshe to give us cities to dwell in, with their open lands for our cattle.
וַיִּתְּנוּ בְנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל לַלְוִיִּם מִנַּחֲלָתָם אֶל־פִּי יְהֹוָה אֶת־הֶעָרִים הָאֵלֶּה וְאֶת־מִגְרְשֵׁיהֶן׃ - And the children of Israel gave to the Levi'im from their inheritance, by the word of Hashem, these cities and their open lands.
The people of Israel fulfill the word of Hashem and give the Levi'im their portion. Note the nature of this inheritance: primarily "cities to dwell in." The Levi'im did not engage in plowing and sowing or in working the land, but a dwelling place for their families they certainly needed. A portion in the holy soil they do not have, but a house to live in they do have. For this purpose the forty two cities were given, with all the tribes setting aside from their portion on behalf of the Levi'im.
"From the many you shall give more" - each tribe according to its size
וַיֵּצֵא הַגּוֹרָל לְמִשְׁפְּחֹת הַקְּהָתִי וַיְהִי לִבְנֵי אַהֲרֹן הַכֹּהֵן מִן־הַלְוִיִּם מִמַּטֵּה יְהוּדָה וּמִמַּטֵּה הַשִּׁמְעֹנִי וּמִמַּטֵּה בִנְיָמִן בַּגּוֹרָל עָרִים שְׁלֹשׁ עֶשְׂרֵה׃ - And the lot came out for the families of the Kehati, and for the sons of Aharon the Kohen, from among the Levi'im, there were thirteen cities by lot from the tribe of Yehuda, from the tribe of Shimon, and from the tribe of Binyamin.
The command was "from the many you shall give more and from the few you shall give less." Therefore Yehuda and Shimon together gave nine cities, because their portion was large, and especially the portion of Yehuda. The Malbim notes that from the inheritance of Shimon there was only the city of Ayin, mentioned further on: "and Ayin with its open land," while the remaining eight cities were from the inheritance of Yehuda. From here we learn: the larger a tribe's territory, the greater was its contribution to the Levite cities. In contrast, from Naftali only three cities were given. Indeed, on average it comes out to four cities per tribe, but not every tribe gave exactly four: some gave more and some gave less.
The Malbim recalls the principle we learned in the division of the tribal inheritances: the lot determined only the general area, while Yehoshua was the one who determined the size of the territory according to the many and the few. The lot said "you are in the region of Yehuda, you are in the territory of Binyamin, you are in the Galil," and exactly how much land, that Yehoshua apportioned. We saw several approaches to this, and we follow the way of the Malbim, who in this follows the Rishonim. So too here: first the verse sets the range of the lot for each family, and the sons of Aharon have their range from the three tribes, Yehuda, Shimon, and Binyamin. These three tribes lit up in the Urim VeTumim when the lot of the sons of Aharon came out, and thus their place was made known. "The sons of Aharon" means the Kohanim, for the tribe of Levi includes Kohanim and Levi'im, and first it speaks of the portion of the Kohanim and afterward of the rest of the Levi'im.
Four Divisions Corresponding to the Limbs of the Body
Those who cast lots divided the sons of Levi into four groups: the sons of Aharon separately, the rest of the sons of Kehat, the sons of Gershon, and the sons of Merari. For each they cast lots to determine from which tribes they would receive their portion. And the lot, says the Malbim, came out according to their level of holiness. By way of parable: look at the limbs of the body, every limb that is closer to the heart is more elevated and its composition is purer, and the farther the limb is, the less pure its composition and the less essential it is. The important organs are located in the center of the chest: the lungs are essential for breathing, the heart is the pump for the blood, the liver is the filter. From the stomach one can cut away parts, from the heart one cannot. In contrast, a finger, and even a hand or a leg, a person can live without them, for the farther the limb is from the center, the less essential it is.
The Sons of Aharon - Close to the Heart
The kohanim, the sons of Aharon, are of a higher level than the Levi'im, and they are closer to the Mishkan and to the Mikdash. Therefore their lot fell in the portions of Yehuda, Shimon, and Binyamin, which are the tribes surrounding the Mikdash: Shimon received his portion within the inheritance of Yehuda, and Yehuda and Binyamin both overlap the place of the Altar. It turns out that the kohanim are the closest to the place of the Mikdash, the most elevated and the most holy. And so we see throughout later history: the kohanim always clung to the kingship of the House of David, they were not part of the rebellions, and they did not follow after Yeravam and his associates, but were always with the kings of Yehuda.
וְלִבְנֵי קְהָת הַנּוֹתָרִים מִמִּשְׁפְּחֹת מַטֵּה־אֶפְרַיִם וּמִמַּטֵּה־דָן וּמֵחֲצִי מַטֵּה מְנַשֶּׁה בַּגּוֹרָל עָרִים עָשֶׂר׃ - And for the remaining sons of Kehat, from the families of the tribe of Ephraim, and from the tribe of Dan, and from the half tribe of Menashe, by lot, ten cities.
On the level after them are the sons of Kehat, who also are neighbors to the heart. Their level is great: "the service of the holy things was upon them, on their shoulders they carried it" - they carried the Aron, the Table, and the holy vessels, and as is known, this carrying requires great purification, for if not, the attribute of strict judgment strikes them, as we saw with Peretz Uza and the like. Therefore their place too is close to the holy: their lot fell in Ephraim, in Dan, and in the half tribe of Menashe, and these were near the inheritance of Binyamin, for the inheritance of Dan was after the inheritance of Binyamin. It turns out that they shelter the Mikdash with their wings: though they are not directly adjacent, they are like spreading wings toward the Mikdash, and are closer to it than the rest.
וְלִבְנֵי גֵרְשׁוֹן מִמִּשְׁפְּחוֹת מַטֵּה־יִשָּׂשכָר וּמִמַּטֵּה־אָשֵׁר וּמִמַּטֵּה נַפְתָּלִי וּמֵחֲצִי מַטֵּה מְנַשֶּׁה בַבָּשָׁן בַּגּוֹרָל עָרִים שְׁלֹשׁ עֶשְׂרֵה׃ - And for the sons of Gershon, from the families of the tribe of Yissachar, and from the tribe of Asher, and from the tribe of Naftali, and from the half tribe of Menashe in Bashan, by lot, thirteen cities.
The sons of Gershon were the carriers of the Ohel Mo'ed, the curtains, and the covering. They are on the level of the flesh that covers the internal organs which shelter the heart: there is the heart, there are the internal organs, and there is the flesh that covers them, and this is still close to the heart. Therefore they took from the tribe of Yissachar and the tribe of Asher, both of which were after Yosef (Yissachar in the east and Asher in the west), and from the tribe of Naftali, which was neighbor to them and parallel to the inheritance of Binyamin and Yosef in the eastern part. They too are still relatively close: not like the Kehati, and certainly not like the sons of Aharon, but closer than those who come after them.
The Sons of Merari - The Remainder, Without a Lot and Without a Vav
לִבְנֵי מְרָרִי לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָם מִמַּטֵּה רְאוּבֵן וּמִמַּטֵּה־גָד וּמִמַּטֵּה זְבוּלֻן עָרִים שְׁתֵּים עֶשְׂרֵה׃ - For the sons of Merari, according to their families, from the tribe of Reuven, and from the tribe of Gad, and from the tribe of Zevulun, twelve cities.
The sons of Merari are the outermost edge. They carried the boards of the Mishkan, its bars, its pillars, and its sockets, and they are like the skin and the bones of the body, the lesser parts: a person can survive even if, Heaven forbid, his skin is burned or the bones of his distant limbs, of the hands and feet and the like, are broken. Therefore they took from the tribe of Reuven and Gad who were across the Jordan on the east, and the tribe of Zevulun which was in the northwest, at the outermost edge of the Land of Israel.
Note a further precision: with all of them it says "by lot, cities," while with the sons of Merari it does not say "by lot." And it also does not say "and for the sons of Merari" with a vav, but rather "for the sons of Merari." The reason is simple: when there are four places and four recipients, three lots suffice, and the fourth automatically receives what remains and there is no need to cast a lot for him. Therefore with Merari a lot is not mentioned, for what remained was left to them, and it is the farthest portion as we said. And for this reason it is also stated without a vav, for they did not take by a lot designated for them, and the verse as it were separates them from the three preceding groups.
After Scripture defined the boundaries of the lot for each and every family, Yehoshua comes and sets apart cities in the same manner that he divided the land among the tribes: according to the size of the tribe, whether large or small. The larger the tribe's portion, the more cities it gives, and the smaller it is, the fewer it gives. That is why it first says "and the lot came out for the families of the Kehati," meaning the order in which the lot came out and the boundaries were fixed, and only afterward does it detail the actual number of cities.
וַיִּתְּנוּ בְנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל לַלְוִיִּם אֶת־הֶעָרִים הָאֵלֶּה וְאֶת־מִגְרְשֵׁיהֶן כַּאֲשֶׁר צִוָּה יְהֹוָה בְּיַד־מֹשֶׁה בַּגּוֹרָל׃ - And the children of Israel gave to the Levites these cities and their open lands, as Hashem commanded by the hand of Moshe, by lot.
"Their open lands" (migresheihen) are the open areas surrounding the cities, the empty spaces.
The Detail: The Cities of the Sons of Aharon the Kohanim
וַיִּתְּנוּ מִמַּטֵּה בְּנֵי יְהוּדָה וּמִמַּטֵּה בְּנֵי שִׁמְעוֹן אֵת הֶעָרִים הָאֵלֶּה אֲשֶׁר־יִקְרָא אֶתְהֶן בְּשֵׁם׃ - And they gave from the tribe of the children of Yehudah and from the tribe of the children of Shimon these cities that are called by name.
From here onward comes the specific giving: from which tribe which exact cities were given and their size, according to whether the tribe was large or small, larger or smaller cities. And this specific division was no longer done by lot.
וַיְהִי לִבְנֵי אַהֲרֹן מִמִּשְׁפְּחוֹת הַקְּהָתִי מִבְּנֵי לֵוִי כִּי לָהֶם הָיָה הַגּוֹרָל רִאישֹׁנָה׃ - And it was for the sons of Aharon, from the families of the Kehati, from the children of Levi, for theirs was the lot first.
It is interesting that it is written here "ראישונה" with an alef and a yud, a spelling that is not usually found this way in Scripture.
וַיִּתְּנוּ לָהֶם אֶת־קִרְיַת אַרְבַּע אֲבִי הָעֲנוֹק הִיא חֶבְרוֹן בְּהַר יְהוּדָה וְאֶת־מִגְרָשֶׁהָ סְבִיבֹתֶיהָ׃ - And they gave them Kiryat Arba, the father of the Anok, that is Chevron, in the hill country of Yehudah, and its open land around it.
The word "הָעֲנוֹק" too is not the usual one, for normally it says "ha'anak." Perhaps this is a proof for the pronunciation of the Yemenites and Ashkenazim who say "anog" and not "anak," and in any case this is a form different from the customary one. "וְאֶת־שְׂדֵה הָעִיר וְאֶת־חֲצֵרֶיהָ נָתְנוּ לְכָלֵב בֶּן־יְפֻנֶּה בַּאֲחֻזָּתוֹ - But the field of the city and its villages they gave to Kalev the son of Yefuneh as his holding."
וְלִבְנֵי אַהֲרֹן הַכֹּהֵן נָתְנוּ אֶת־עִיר מִקְלַט הָרֹצֵחַ אֶת־חֶבְרוֹן וְאֶת־מִגְרָשֶׁהָ וְאֶת־לִבְנָה וְאֶת־מִגְרָשֶׁהָ׃ - And to the sons of Aharon the Kohen they gave the city of refuge for the manslayer, Chevron and its open land, and Livnah and its open land.
And from there onward the names of the places are listed briskly: Yatir, Eshtemoa, Cholon, Devir, Ayin, Yutah and Beit Shemesh - "עָרִים תֵּשַׁע מֵאֵת שְׁנֵי הַשְּׁבָטִים הָאֵלֶּה - nine cities from these two tribes." And from the tribe of Binyamin: Givon, Geva, Anatot and Almon - "עָרִים אַרְבַּע - four cities." And in all: "כׇּל־עָרֵי בְנֵי־אַהֲרֹן הַכֹּהֲנִים שְׁלֹשׁ־עֶשְׂרֵה עָרִים וּמִגְרְשֵׁיהֶן - all the cities of the sons of Aharon the Kohanim, thirteen cities and their open lands."
The Remaining Cities of Bnei Kehat and Bnei Gershon
To the families of Bnei Kehat, who are second in rank, fell the cities of their lot from the tribe of Ephraim: "וַיִּתְּנוּ לָהֶם אֶת־עִיר מִקְלַט הָרֹצֵחַ אֶת־שְׁכֶם וְאֶת־מִגְרָשֶׁהָ בְּהַר אֶפְרָיִם" - They gave them the city of refuge for the manslayer, Shechem and its open lands, in the hill country of Ephraim, and Gezer, Kivtzayim and Beit Choron, four cities. And from the tribe of Dan: Elteke, Gibbeton, Ayalon and Gat Rimon, four cities. And from the half tribe of Menashe: Taanach and Gat Rimon, two. "כׇּל־עָרִים עֶשֶׂר וּמִגְרְשֵׁיהֶן לְמִשְׁפְּחוֹת בְּנֵי־קְהָת הַנּוֹתָרִים" - Ten cities in all with their open lands, for the remaining families of Bnei Kehat.
And to Bnei Gershon, from the half tribe of Menashe: "אֶת־עִיר מִקְלַט הָרֹצֵחַ אֶת־גּוֹלָן בַּבָּשָׁן" - the city of refuge for the manslayer, Golan in the Bashan, and Be'eshtera, two cities. And from the tribe of Yissachar: Kishyon, Daverat, Yarmut and Ein Ganim, four. And from the tribe of Asher: Mishal, Avdon, Chelkat and Rechov, four. And from the tribe of Naftali: "אֶת־עִיר מִקְלַט הָרֹצֵחַ אֶת־קֶדֶשׁ בַּגָּלִיל" - the city of refuge for the manslayer, Kedesh in the Galil, and Chamot Dor and Kartan, three. "כׇּל־עָרֵי הַגֵּרְשֻׁנִּי לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָם שְׁלֹשׁ־עֶשְׂרֵה עִיר וּמִגְרְשֵׁיהֶן" - All the cities of the Gershonites by their families were thirteen cities with their open lands.
Why Bnei Merari Were Called "the Remaining"
וּלְמִשְׁפְּחוֹת בְּנֵי־מְרָרִי הַלְוִיִּם הַנּוֹתָרִים מֵאֵת מַטֵּה זְבוּלֻן אֶת־יׇקְנְעָם וְאֶת־מִגְרָשֶׁהָ אֶת־קַרְתָּה וְאֶת־מִגְרָשֶׁהָ׃ - And to the families of Bnei Merari, the remaining Levites, from the tribe of Zevulun: Yokneam and its open lands, Karta and its open lands.
Here we move to the fourth and final family, and again they are called "the remaining." Based on what we explained, this is understandable: Bnei Merari are, as it were, secondary in relation to the rest of the tribe of Levi, like the skin and the bones that are the shell protecting the fruit, the heart. And just as the other families of Kehat were called "the remaining" in contrast to the sons of Aharon, the Kohanim, who were also Kehatites (that is, you are Levites as opposed to Kohanim, and the Kohanim are the higher rank while the Levites are a lesser level), so too here Bnei Merari are called "remaining" in relation to those of higher standing who preceded them within the tribe of Levi.
The Malbim adds a further reason: they are called "remaining" because they remained from the lot that had first fallen upon Bnei Kehat and Bnei Gershon. They remained because there was no need to cast a lot upon them at all, for when there are four, one casts lots only upon three. And because both reasons are true, the verse here doubles the expression "the remaining": once because they are the secondary ones, and a second time because they were not subject to a lot like the three before them.
And from the detailed listing: Dimnah and Nahalal, four cities. And from the tribe of Gad: "אֶת־עִיר מִקְלַט הָרֹצֵחַ אֶת־רָמֹת בַּגִּלְעָד" - the city of refuge for the manslayer, Ramot in the Gilad, and Machanayim, Cheshbon and Yazer, four cities. "כׇּל־הֶעָרִים לִבְנֵי מְרָרִי לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָם הַנּוֹתָרִים מִמִּשְׁפְּחוֹת הַלְוִיִּם וַיְהִי גּוֹרָלָם עָרִים שְׁתֵּים עֶשְׂרֵה" - All the cities for Bnei Merari by their families, the ones remaining of the families of the Levites, and their lot was twelve cities.
כֹּל עָרֵי הַלְוִיִּם בְּתוֹךְ אֲחֻזַּת בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל עָרִים אַרְבָּעִים וּשְׁמֹנֶה וּמִגְרְשֵׁיהֶן׃ - All the cities of the Levites within the holding of Bnei Yisrael were forty eight cities with their open lands.
תִּהְיֶינָה הֶעָרִים הָאֵלֶּה עִיר עִיר וּמִגְרָשֶׁיהָ סְבִיבֹתֶיהָ כֵּן לְכׇל־הֶעָרִים הָאֵלֶּה׃ - Each of these cities had its open lands around it, so it was for all these cities.
From here we see that all these cities, including the cities of refuge themselves, were cities of the Levites, and the Levites dwelled in the cities of refuge as well. For the verse counts the cities of refuge as part of the tally of the Levites' cities, such as "וּמִמַּטֵּה־גָד אֶת־עִיר מִקְלַט הָרֹצֵחַ אֶת־רָמֹת בַּגִּלְעָד." It emerges that the six original cities of refuge were not cities of refuge alone, but always served also as dwelling places for the Levites.
Seven Things That Were Fulfilled in the People of Israel
וַיִּתֵּן יְהֹוָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל אֶת־כׇּל־הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר נִשְׁבַּע לָתֵת לַאֲבוֹתָם וַיִּרָשׁוּהָ וַיֵּשְׁבוּ בָהּ׃ - And Hashem gave Israel all the land that He had sworn to give to their fathers, and they took possession of it and dwelt in it.
After the verse told us of the conquest and of the division, comes the summary. The Malbim says: come and see that here seven things were fulfilled in Israel. The first is "and He gave," a term of a gift, as Hashem had promised the fathers. The second is "and they took possession of it," that they dispossessed the enemies and conquered them during the seven years of conquest, and the meaning of possession is the transfer of the inheritance from the domain of the one who bequeaths to the domain of the heir, that is, the place became our inheritance. The third is "and they dwelt in it," that during those seven years of division each one held onto his portion.
וַיָּנַח יְהֹוָה לָהֶם מִסָּבִיב כְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר־נִשְׁבַּע לַאֲבוֹתָם וְלֹא־עָמַד אִישׁ בִּפְנֵיהֶם מִכׇּל־אֹיְבֵיהֶם אֵת כׇּל־אֹיְבֵיהֶם נָתַן יְהֹוָה בְּיָדָם׃ - And Hashem gave them rest on every side, according to all that He had sworn to their fathers, and not a man of all their enemies stood before them; Hashem gave all their enemies into their hand.
The fourth is "and Hashem gave them rest on every side," that the war with the enemies ceased. The fifth is "and not a man stood before them": even when they made war against them, they fell before them. And the Malbim points out that there is a difference between "no man positioned himself before them" and "no man stood before them." "Did not position himself" means that he did not stir at all to make war with him, and it would not be correct to say that here, for in truth kings did come and fought and positioned themselves against us. "Did not stand" means that he did indeed position himself, but did not remain standing in his place, rather he fell. The sixth is that the falling was not natural, but rather "Hashem gave all their enemies into their hand," by way of a miracle and providence.
לֹא־נָפַל דָּבָר מִכֹּל הַדָּבָר הַטּוֹב אֲשֶׁר־דִּבֶּר יְהֹוָה אֶל־בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל הַכֹּל בָּא׃ - Not one word failed of all the good word that Hashem had spoken to the house of Israel; it all came to pass.
And the seventh thing: also the rest of the good things and successes that Hashem promised in the Torah through Moshe, those promises that were written as successes they would merit when they would inherit the land, all of them came upon them. "It all came to pass."
In summary:
Chapter 21 completes the division of the land with the giving of forty eight cities of the Leviim, six of them cities of refuge and forty two more that also take in the fugitive, and all of them served as dwellings for the Leviim. The order of the lot for the four families of Levi reflects the order of their level of holiness, like the limbs of the body close to the heart: the sons of Aharon are right beside the Mikdash in the inheritances of Yehudah, Shimon and Binyamin; the sons of Kehat, bearers of the holy vessels, shield it from Ephraim, Dan and half of Menasheh; the sons of Gershon, bearers of the curtains, are like the flesh covering; and the sons of Merari, bearers of the boards and sockets, like the skin and the bones, at the edges, and therefore they were called "those who remained" and no lot was mentioned for them. The chapter concludes with seven things that were fulfilled in Israel, and with the great declaration than which there is none higher: "Not one word failed of all the good word that Hashem had spoken to the house of Israel; it all came to pass."