John Calvin Commentary Joshua 21

Then came near the heads, and so on. Here we have, at a later period, a narrative of what ought to have preceded. For no cities of refuge were appointed before they had been assigned to the Levites. To this may be added what was previously said: that Joshua and Eleazar had finished dividing the land.

Now, the land was not truly divided until the dwelling place of the Levites was established. We must understand, therefore, that when the lot was cast in the name of the ten tribes, a reservation was made of cities in the land of Canaan for the dwelling place of the Levites. Beyond the Jordan, their portion had already been assigned to them.

But as the Levites came forward and requested a ratification of the divine grant, it is probable that they were neglected until they pleaded their own cause. For this is apt to happen: everyone is so attentive in looking after their own affairs that even brothers and sisters are forgotten.

It was certainly disgraceful to the people that they needed to be pulled by the ear and reminded of what the Lord had clearly ordered concerning the Levites. But if they had not demanded a home for themselves, there was a risk of their being left to live in the open air. Although, at the same time, we are permitted to infer that the people erred more from carelessness and forgetfulness than from any intention to deceive, as they made no delay as soon as they were admonished. Indeed, they are praised for their obedience in that they did what was just and right according to the word of the Lord.

And the lot came out for the families...

1. The number of cities is described, which we will discuss later.
2. It is clearly stated that the lot fell to the descendants of Aaron in the tribe of Judah. This did not happen by chance, because God, in His admirable counsel, placed them in that location where He had determined to choose a temple for Himself.
3. The narrative proceeds to give the exact names of the cities. The first one mentioned is Hebron, which Caleb, with great equanimity, allowed himself to be deprived of. If anyone objects that the very first city that should have been given to them was Jerusalem, where they were to have their future station, it is easy to answer that moderate-sized cities were given to them as their condition required.

Moreover, Jerusalem was not yet conquered at that time, as it remained under the power of the Jebusites. In short, it would have been absurd to assign a royal seat to priests. Their religion and faith were better proven by this: that they migrated willingly from their native soil to devote their attention to sacred things.

For no priest performed his duties without becoming a stranger. Their weakness, however, was accommodated to some extent by giving them a grant of neighboring cities, so that they might not have the fatigue of a long journey when going to perform their duties.

Furthermore, the granting of thirteen cities for a dwelling to one family—and that not a very numerous one—confirms what I have said elsewhere: that the other tribes possessed very many cities of which no mention is made. This will be more certainly confirmed in a short time.

And the families of the children of Kohath, etc. Why it was necessary that the Levites should be dispersed among the different tribes, the reader may see in my Commentaries on the Books of Moses. This dispersion had, indeed, been imposed on their progenitor as a punishment for the cruelty and perfidy of which he had been guilty toward the children of Shechem, but its disgrace had been converted into the highest honor by their appointment as a kind of guardians in every district to retain the people in the pure worship of God.

It is true, they were everywhere strangers; but their role still possessed the very high dignity of acting as stewards for God and preventing their countrymen from forsaking piety. This is the reason for stating so carefully how many cities they obtained from each tribe; they were everywhere to keep watch, and preserve the purity of sacred rites unimpaired.

All the cities of the Levites, etc. This passage especially shows what I have already referred to more than once: that the boundaries of the other tribes were not so limited as to prevent them from encompassing a far larger number of cities than are actually mentioned. It is perfectly well known that Levi was the least numerous of all the tribes.

How, then, could it have been equitable for Levi to be allowed to expand over four times the space allotted to the tribe of Zebulun, which, though more populous, is mentioned as possessing only twelve cities? Only sixteen are enumerated as belonging to the tribe of Issachar, nineteen to the tribe of Naphtali, and twenty-two to the tribe of Asher. It would surely have been an unequal division to give the greater number of cities for habitation to the smaller population. Therefore, we infer that not only were the villages listed here as associated with the cities suitable for living in, but also that other unmentioned cities were included. In short, the extent of Levi's allotment makes it perfectly obvious how large and ample the territories of the other tribes must have been.

And the Lord gave to Israel, etc. Should anyone raise a question about this rest, the answer is easy. The nations of Canaan were so completely overcome with fear that they thought they could not better serve their interests than by servilely flattering the Israelites and purchasing peace from them on any terms. Plainly, therefore, the country was subdued and made peaceful for habitation, since no one caused any trouble, or dared to entertain any hostile intentions, since there were no threats, no snares, no violence, no conspiracies.

A second point, however, raises some doubt, namely, how the children of Israel can be said to have been settled in the possession of the land promised to them, and to have become masters of it, so that in regard to its enjoyment, not one syllable of God's promises had failed. For we have already seen that many of the enemy were intermingled with them. The divine intention was that not one of the enemy should be permitted to remain; on the other hand, the Israelites did not drive out many, but admitted them as neighbors, as if the inheritance had been common to them; they even made pacts with them. How then can these two things be reconciled: that God, as He had promised, gave the people possession of the land, and yet they were excluded from some portion by the power or obstinate resistance of the enemy?

In order to remove this appearance of contradiction, it is necessary to distinguish between the certain, clear, and steadfast faithfulness of God in keeping His promises, and the weakness and sluggishness of the people, as a consequence of which the benefit of divine goodness, in a way, slipped through their hands.

Whatever war the people undertook, in whatever direction they moved their standards, victory was prepared for them. Nor was there any other delay or obstacle to their exterminating all their enemies than their own voluntary lethargy. Therefore, although they did not defeat them all so as to secure their possession completely, yet the truth of God was clearly demonstrated and realized, since they could have obtained what remained without any difficulty, if they had chosen to take advantage of the victories offered to them.

The whole matter comes to this: it was entirely due to their own cowardice that they did not enjoy God's goodness in all its fullness and integrity. This will become even clearer from the following chapter.