Scattered Servants, Centralized Worship
Introduction: The Divine Real Estate Transaction
We live in an age that is allergic to details, particularly divine details. When the modern Christian reads through a passage like this one in Joshua, his eyes tend to glaze over. It seems like a tedious list of ancient place names, a dusty appendix to the more exciting stories of conquest. We treat it like the terms and conditions of a software update; we scroll right past it to get to the good stuff. But in doing this, we reveal a profound theological error. We betray our assumption that God is only interested in the "spiritual" and not in the material, the geographical, the political. We imagine a God who saves souls but has no opinion on zoning laws.
This passage, and others like it, is a direct assault on that kind of Gnostic piety. God is meticulously concerned with the dirt. He is the God of deeds and titles, of property lines and pasture lands. The fulfillment of His covenant promise to Abraham was not a warm feeling in the heart; it was land. And the administration of that land, down to the last detail, reveals His character and His plan for His people. This is not just a list of cities. This is a blueprint for godly society. It is a lesson in how God provides for His ministers, and how He strategically places them for maximum influence. It is a picture of the gospel, embedded in the very geography of the Promised Land.
The tribe of Levi was unique. They were not given a single, contiguous block of land like the other tribes. Their inheritance, as God had told them, was God Himself (Num. 18:20). But this did not mean they were to be homeless spiritualists, floating from place to place. Far from it. God's portion for them was to be provided by the other tribes. They were to be landowners, city-dwellers, with room for their families and their flocks. They were to be scattered throughout all of Israel, a permanent, physical reminder of the presence of God and the demands of His law in every corner of the nation. This was not a punishment, as some have thought, referring back to Jacob's curse on Levi (Gen. 49:7). Rather, in the glorious economy of God, that scattering was transformed into a blessing. It was turned into a strategic deployment. God was not isolating His ministers; He was infiltrating the entire culture with them.
So as we look at this list of cities given to the sons of Kohath, we are not just reading an ancient ledger. We are seeing the logistics of a holy nation being set up. We are learning about the nature of true spiritual inheritance and the practical wisdom of our sovereign God.
The Text
Then the cities from the tribe of Ephraim were allotted to the families of the sons of Kohath, the Levites, even to the rest of the sons of Kohath. And they gave them Shechem, the city of refuge for the manslayer, with its pasture lands, in the hill country of Ephraim, and Gezer with its pasture lands, and Kibzaim with its pasture lands, and Beth-horon with its pasture lands; four cities. From the tribe of Dan, Elteke with its pasture lands, Gibbethon with its pasture lands, Aijalon with its pasture lands, and Gath-rimmon with its pasture lands; four cities. From the half-tribe of Manasseh, they gave Taanach with its pasture lands and Gath-rimmon with its pasture lands; two cities. All the cities with their pasture lands for the families of the rest of the sons of Kohath were ten.
(Joshua 21:20-26 LSB)
God's Portion, God's Provision (v. 20, 26)
The passage begins and ends by summarizing the transaction:
"Then the cities from the tribe of Ephraim were allotted to the families of the sons of Kohath, the Levites... All the cities with their pasture lands for the families of the rest of the sons of Kohath were ten." (Joshua 21:20, 26)
The Levites were the priestly tribe, set apart for the service of the tabernacle and, later, the temple. The sons of Kohath had the particularly high calling of carrying the most holy things: the ark, the table, the lampstand (Numbers 4). Because their full-time job was the ministry of worship, they were not to be distracted by the need to conquer and cultivate a massive tribal territory. Their inheritance was the Lord. This is a foundational principle. The ministry is to be supported by the people of God.
But notice that God's provision is not abstract. It is not a vague promise of "manna from heaven." It is concrete: cities and pasture lands. The other tribes were commanded to give up some of their inheritance to provide for the Levites. This was a tangible act of worship on their part, a recognition that the ministry of the Word and sacrament is essential to the life of the nation. They were investing in their own spiritual health by providing for their teachers.
This cuts against two errors. The first is the error of an impoverished piety that thinks ministers should be poor as a sign of holiness. God intended for His ministers to have homes, to raise families, to own livestock, and to be stable, respected members of their communities. The second error is that of the consumer church, where people think they are paying for a religious service. The Israelites were not "hiring" the Levites. They were obeying God's command to honor the Lord with their substance by supporting the very institution that would continually call them back to Him. It was an act of covenant faithfulness, not a commercial transaction.
The total is ten cities for this branch of the family. God is a God of accounting. He is precise. He is not haphazard. The lots were cast "before the Lord," indicating His sovereign direction in the whole process (Joshua 18:10). This was not a land grab; it was a divinely superintended allocation. Every square inch of Israel belonged to God, and He was distributing it according to His perfect wisdom.
Strategic Infiltration (vv. 21-25)
The specific list of cities reveals the strategic genius of God.
"And they gave them Shechem... in the hill country of Ephraim, and Gezer... and Kibzaim... and Beth-horon... From the tribe of Dan, Elteke... Gibbethon... Aijalon... Gath-rimmon... From the half-tribe of Manasseh... Taanach... and Gath-rimmon..." (Joshua 21:21-25)
These cities are not clustered together in a "Levitical ghetto." They are scattered throughout the territories of Ephraim, Dan, and Manasseh. This was God's plan for national discipleship. The Levites were the custodians of the Law of God. Their job was to teach it, to interpret it, and to apply it (Deut. 33:10). By placing them in cities throughout the land, God was ensuring that no Israelite was ever very far from a teacher of the Word. It was a decentralized seminary system. It was the spiritual and judicial backbone of the nation.
If a man in Dan had a question about a sacrifice, or a dispute with his neighbor, or needed to know the law concerning mildew, he could go to a Levitical city. This was God's plan for creating a culture saturated with His Word. The Levites were to be the immune system of Israel, identifying and dealing with sin and error before it could fester and spread.
This is a powerful model for the church today. We are not called to withdraw into isolated Christian communes. We are called to be salt and light, scattered throughout the world. Every Christian is, in a New Covenant sense, a priest. And we have been strategically placed by God in our neighborhoods, our workplaces, our cities. We are God's fifth column, His holy infiltrators, tasked with teaching the truth and living it out in every corner of the culture.
A Gospel Outpost (v. 21)
Within this list, one city stands out with flashing neon lights.
"And they gave them Shechem, the city of refuge for the manslayer, with its pasture lands, in the hill country of Ephraim..." (Joshua 21:21)
It is no accident that a Levitical city is also a city of refuge. The cities of refuge were a provision of grace within the law. If a man killed another accidentally, without malice, he could flee to one of these cities and be safe from the avenger of blood. He would remain there, safe, until the death of the high priest. This is a stunningly clear type of Christ.
We are all guilty, and the avenger of blood, the righteous wrath of God against sin, is pursuing us. Our only hope is to flee to our refuge. And who is our refuge? Jesus Christ, our great High Priest. It is in Him that we find asylum from judgment. And we are safe in Him until His death is applied to us, which secures our freedom forever.
And who is given the stewardship of these cities of refuge? The Levites. The ministers of the covenant. The very men whose lives were dedicated to pointing people to the grace of God are given the keys to the cities of grace. The ministry of the Word and the ministry of refuge are one and the same. When we preach the gospel, we are opening the gates of the city of refuge and crying out to all who are pursued by the law to flee inside and find safety in Christ.
Pasture Lands for a Permanent Presence (The recurring phrase)
The phrase repeated with every city is "with its pasture lands."
"...Shechem... with its pasture lands... Gezer with its pasture lands... Kibzaim with its pasture lands..."
This is more than just an agricultural detail. The Hebrew word for pasture lands, migrash, refers to the common land surrounding a city, an open space. It speaks of stability, permanence, and community. This was not just a house; it was a home with room to grow. It provided for their livestock, which were essential for their livelihood and for the sacrificial system. It meant they were not temporary residents or renters. They were stakeholders in the community.
This provision of pasture land signifies that God's plan was for a long-term, multi-generational ministry. The Levites were to put down deep roots. They were to raise their children there, who would in turn become the next generation of priests and teachers. This is a rebuke to our modern, transient culture, which often treats churches and communities as disposable.
God's design is for a rooted faithfulness. He wants elders and pastors who are fixtures in their communities, men who have earned the trust of the people over decades, not just for a few years before moving on to a bigger and better post. The "pasture lands" represent the space and stability necessary for that kind of deep, lasting influence. It is the basis for building a true Christian community, a culture of faithfulness that can be passed down to our children's children.
Conclusion: The Royal Priesthood, Scattered for Conquest
So what does this ancient real estate record have to do with us? Everything. Under the New Covenant, the people of God are constituted as a "kingdom of priests and a holy nation" (1 Peter 2:9). Like the Levites, our true inheritance is not a piece of land on this earth; our inheritance is Christ Himself. We are "blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ" (Eph. 1:3).
And like the Levites, we have been scattered. We have been providentially placed by our sovereign God into the territories of this world. Your home, your job, your neighborhood, that is your Levitical city. You have been placed there by God as a minister of His covenant. You are there to teach His Word, to live out His law, and to offer the refuge of the gospel to those who are fleeing from the wrath to come.
We are not to lament this scattering. We are to see it as a divine strategy. God is not retreating; He is advancing His kingdom through us. He has given us our "pasture lands", our homes, our resources, our communities, not for our own comfort, but as a base of operations for the discipleship of the nations. We are to put down deep roots, build stable Christian households, and be a permanent outpost of the kingdom of heaven in a world that is passing away.
This passage in Joshua is therefore a great encouragement. It shows us a God who is faithful to His promises, wise in His administration, and strategic in His deployment of His people. He provided for the Levites then, and He will provide for us now. Let us therefore take up our inheritance with joy, occupy our assigned cities with courage, and faithfully serve as the priests of the Most High God, right where He has planted us.