John Calvin Commentary Joshua 14:4

"For the children of Joseph were two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim: and they gave no portion unto the Levites in the land, save cities to dwell in, with the suburbs thereof for their cattle and for their substance." — Joshua 14:4 (ASV)

They gave no part unto the Levites, etc. It is repeated here for the third time regarding the Levites that they were not included in the number in such a way as to have the portion of a tribe assigned to them. However, this is mentioned for a different purpose, as it is added immediately afterward that the sons of Joseph were divided into two tribes and were thus privileged to obtain a double portion. Thus Jacob had prophesied (Genesis 49)—or rather, like an arbiter appointed by God, he had in this matter preferred the sons of Joseph to the others. God therefore took the Levites for Himself as a special inheritance, and in their place substituted one of the two families of Joseph.