Albert Barnes Commentary Joshua 19:35-38

"And the fortified cities were Ziddim, Zer, and Hammath, Rakkath, and Chinnereth, and Adamah, and Ramah, and Hazor, and Kedesh, and Edrei, and En-hazor, And Iron, and Migdal-el, Horem, and Beth-anath, and Beth-shemesh; nineteen cities with their villages." — Joshua 19:35-38 (ASV)

The number of the fortified cities of Naphtali is remarkable, though it does not tally with the catalogue. It was no doubt good policy to protect the northern frontier by a belt of fortresses, as the south was protected by the fenced cities of Judah.

Hammath, a Levitical city (1 Chronicles 6:76), is not to be confused with the Hamath on the northeastern frontier of the land (Numbers 13:21). The name (from a root meaning “to be warm”) probably indicates that hot springs existed here, and it is perhaps correctly identified with Ammaus, near Tiberias.

Rakkath was, according to the rabbis, rebuilt by Herod and called Tiberias. The name (“bank, shore”) suits the site of Tiberias very well. Migdal-el, perhaps the Magdala of Matthew 15:39, is now the miserable village of “El Mejdel.”