Joshua 14:3
in Joshua 14For Moses had given the inheritance east of the Jordan to the other two and a half tribes. But he granted no inheritance among them to the Levites.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
For Moses had given the inheritance of the two tribes and the half-tribe beyond the Jordan: but unto the Levites he gave no inheritance among them.
KJV
For Moses had given the inheritance of two tribes and an half tribe on the other side Jordan: but unto the Levites he gave none inheritance among them.
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This verse in Joshua 14
Commentary
7 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
For Moses had given the inheritance east of the Jordan
on Joshua 14:3-5
Two arithmetic problems are answered in one breath. Levi is taken out of the count and receives cities with suburbs instead of territory, and Joseph is counted as two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim, which Jacob had arranged at Genesis 48:5 long before there was any land to divide. Nine and a half tribes are left to provide for west of Jordan because two and a half already have their ground east of it, and the twelve are still twelve.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers3 voices
Just as those who submit to the law, which is the "shadow" of that true law, diligently serve a "shadow and copy" of "heavenly things," so those who divide the inheritance of the land in Judea imitate the "copy and shadow" of a heavenly division. Thus truth was in heaven, "but a shadow and copy" of truth was on earth. And as long as this shadow remained on earth, there was an earthly Jerusalem; there was a temple, an altar and a visible worship; there were priests and high priests; and there existed regions and towns of Judea and all these things that are described in this book and are now recited.
A first and a second distribution of the inheritance is reported. The first is indeed through Moses, but the second, and the more powerful, is depicted as accomplished through Jesus [Joshua]. Across the Jordan, Moses decrees property to the tribe of Reuben and the tribe of Gad and to half the tribe of Manasseh, but all the rest receive their inheritance through Jesus [Joshua]. We have already spoken first about how those who had pleased God through the law do not yet reach those things that have been perfected. They precede in time those who attain to the promises through faith in Jesus but must wait for those coming afterwards who will please God in a different time but by one faith, just as the apostle says, "They might not attain perfection without us."
The whole account of the land of Judah and of the tribes is typical of the church in heaven. Let us read Joshua, the son of Nun, or the concluding portions of Ezekiel, and we shall see that the historical division of the land as related by the one finds a counterpart in the spiritual and heavenly promises of the other. What is the meaning of the seven and eight steps in the description of the temple?
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Joseph made two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim, pursuant to Jacob's adoption of Joseph's two sons, and so the number of the tribes was kept up to twelve, though Levi was taken out, which is intimated here (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
And, to show that his soul did not decay any more than his body, now forty-five years after he adheres to his choice and is still of the same mind. (4.) The hopes he had of being master of it, though the sons of Anak were in possession of it (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
1 more voice on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And Moses had given the inheritance of two tribes, and an half tribe, on the other side Jordan,.... The two tribes of Gad and Reuben, and the half tribe of Manasseh, whose inheritance is described in Jos 13:8, but unto the Levites he gave none inheritance among them; this is frequently observed, that it might be taken notice of, to show the disinterestedness of Moses in this affair, Levi being his own tribe; and to recommend the care of the Levites to the other tribes, according to the provision God had made for them.
The words behind it
15 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| נָתַ֨ן | natan | he had given | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| מֹשֶׁ֜ה | mosheh | Moses | H4872 → | 765 times |
| נַחֲלַ֨ת | nachalat | [the] inheritance of | H5159 → | 222 times |
| שְׁנֵ֤י | shenei | [the] two | H8147 → | 768 times |
| הַמַּטּוֹת֙ | hamatot | the tribes | H4294 → | 252 times |
| וַחֲצִ֣י | vachatzi | and [the] half of | H2677 → | 125 times |
| הַמַּטֶּ֔ה | hamateh | the tribe | H4294 → | 252 times |
| מֵעֵ֖בֶר | meever | from [the] other side | H5676 → | 90 times |
| לַיַּרְדֵּ֑ן | laiyarden | of the Jordan | H3383 → | 182 times |
| וְלַ֨לְוִיִּ֔ם | velalviyim | and to the Levites | H3881 → | 291 times |
| לֹֽא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| נָתַ֥ן | natan | he had given | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| נַחֲלָ֖ה | nachalah | an inheritance | H5159 → | 222 times |
| בְּתוֹכָֽם׃ | betokham | in midst of them | H8432 → | 418 times |
כִּֽי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
נָתַ֨ןhe had given
natanH5414 →2011 times
מֹשֶׁ֜הMoses
moshehH4872 →765 times
נַחֲלַ֨ת[the] inheritance of
nachalatH5159 →222 times
שְׁנֵ֤י[the] two
sheneiH8147 →768 times
הַמַּטּוֹת֙the tribes
hamatotH4294 →252 times
וַחֲצִ֣יand [the] half of
vachatziH2677 →125 times
הַמַּטֶּ֔הthe tribe
hamatehH4294 →252 times
מֵעֵ֖בֶרfrom [the] other side
meeverH5676 →90 times
לַיַּרְדֵּ֑ןof the Jordan
laiyardenH3383 →182 times
וְלַ֨לְוִיִּ֔םand to the Levites
velalviyimH3881 →291 times
לֹֽא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
נָתַ֥ןhe had given
natanH5414 →2011 times
נַחֲלָ֖הan inheritance
nachalahH5159 →222 times
בְּתוֹכָֽם׃in midst of them
betokhamH8432 →418 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Joshua 13:14To the tribe of Levi, however, Moses had given no inheritance. The offerings made by fire to the LORD, the God of Israel, are their inheritance, just as He had promised them.
it leads to
- Numbers 18:20–24
Then the LORD said to Aaron, “You will have no inheritance in their land, nor will you have any portion among them. I am your portion and your inheritance among the Israelites.
- Joshua 14:3–4
For Moses had given the inheritance east of the Jordan to the other two and a half tribes. But he granted no inheritance among them to the Levites.
- Deuteronomy 18:1–2
The Levitical priests—indeed the whole tribe of Levi—shall have no portion or inheritance with Israel. They are to eat the offerings made by fire to the LORD; that is their inheritance.
- Numbers 18:20–24
Through
Joshua 13:8The other half of Manasseh, along with the Reubenites and Gadites, had received the inheritance Moses had given them beyond the Jordan to the east, just as Moses the servant of the LORD had…
it leads to
- Joshua 12:6
Moses, the servant of the LORD, and the Israelites had struck them down and given their land as an inheritance to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.
- Numbers 32:33–42
So Moses gave to the Gadites, to the Reubenites, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan—the…
- Joshua 4:12
The Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over before the Israelites, armed for battle as Moses had instructed them.
- Joshua 22:4
And now that the LORD your God has given your brothers rest as He promised them, you may return to your homes in the land that Moses the servant of the LORD gave you…
- Deuteronomy 3:12–17
So at that time we took possession of this land. To the Reubenites and Gadites I gave the land beyond Aroer along the Arnon Valley, and half the hill country of Gilead, along with…
- Joshua 12:6
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Joshua
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Against Jovinianus 2.34; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Origen of Alexandria, HOMILIES ON JOSHUA 17.1 and Origen of Alexandria, HOMILIES ON JOSHUA 17.2.