Numbers 35:1-4

The Levitical Cities

35:1 ¹ Then the Lord spoke to Moses in the Moabite plains by the Jordan near Jericho. ²  He said: 35:2 “Instruct the Israelites to give ³  the Levites towns to live in from the inheritance the Israelites ⁴  will possess. You must also give the Levites grazing land around the towns. 35:3 Thus they will have towns in which to live, and their grazing lands will be for their cattle, for their possessions, and for all their animals. 35:4 The grazing lands around the towns that you will give to the Levites must extend to a distance of 500 yards ⁵  from the town wall.

[35:1]  ¹ sn This section has two main parts, the Levitical cities (vv. 1-8) and the Cities of Refuge (vv. 9-34).

[35:1]  ² map For location see Map5 B2; Map6 E1; Map7 E1; Map8 E3; Map10 A2; Map11 A1.

[35:2]  ³ tn The verb is the perfect tense with vav (ו) consecutive: “command…and they will give,” or “that they give.”

[35:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the Israelites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[35:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “one thousand cubits.” The standard cubit in the OT is assumed by most authorities to be about eighteen inches (45 cm) in length, so this would be a distance of 1,500 feet or 500 yards (675 meters).