Joshua 15:59

After this verse, the Greek Old Testament lists another district with 11 cities. These cities are:

• Tekoa,

• Ephrathah (that is, Bethlehem),

• Phagor,

• Etam,

• Kulon,

• Tatam,

• Saris,

• Karem,

• Gallim,

• Bether, and

• Manoch.

Each city also had surrounding villages.

Including this district explains why Bethlehem appears in the list. Without this district, Bethlehem would be missing, which would be unexpected. It is possible that an early copyist of the Hebrew text accidentally left out this twelfth district.

We cannot identify all of these locations with certainty. Many are unknown except for their mention in this and other lists. Some are briefly mentioned in other texts.

The description of Judah's allotment of tribes is more detailed than that of the other tribes. The failures of Judah's older brothers positioned him to lead (Genesis 34:25–31; 35:22). As a result, the tribe of Judah received a central location among the tribes, guaranteeing its leadership in the nation (Genesis 49:8–12; Deuteronomy 33:7).

• The allotment of land to the tribes on the west side of the Jordan describes what God intended for each tribe to possess.

• The one narrating the story begins this section with Caleb receiving land and ends with Joshua receiving land (14:6–15; 19:49–51). Only Caleb and Joshua had shown faith in God that Israel could conquer the land (Numbers 13:30; 14:6–9).

• As he had promised, God brought Israel into the land. Joshua then focused on dividing the land among Israel's tribes.

• The tribal allowances made the covenant of the Israelites with God real. It showed the fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Since God owned the land, giving it to the tribes was a gift. God gave them the land to live in and guided its distribution.

• In these lists of tribal allowances, the author describes some borders in great detail, allowing them to be mapped. With others, they are less plainly defined.