And unto the children of Gershon, of the families of the Levites, out of the other half tribe of Manasseh they gave Golan in Bashan with her suburbs, to be a city of refuge for the slayer; and Beeshterah with her suburbs; two cities.
To the descendants of Gershon, who were part of the Levite families, they gave cities from the other half of the tribe of Manasseh: Golan in Bashan with its surrounding pasturelands (which served as a city of refuge for someone who accidentally killed another person), and Beeshterah with its pasturelands, two cities in total.
This verse describes how the Gershonite Levites received two cities from the tribe of Manasseh, including one that served as a safe place for people who had accidentally caused someone's death.
📚 Historical Context
In the book of Joshua, the Israelites were distributing the conquered land of Canaan among the twelve tribes after their military victories. The Levites, who served as priests and had no tribal inheritance, were assigned specific cities and surrounding pastures from the other tribes to ensure they had places to live and fulfill their religious duties. In Joshua 21:27, the Gershonite clan of Levites received cities like Golan in Bashan from the half-tribe of Manasseh, with Golan designated as a city of refuge to protect those who accidentally caused a death from blood revenge.
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