Day 67. Joshua 19-21

In our reading for today from Joshua 19 we get further information about the allotment of tribal lands in Canaan. Apparently these allotments overlapped some, and we wonder what dramas took place when the Israelites appropriated these lands. But we are not told much about any of that—just the names of villages--and we have to imagine these early Israelite settlers were pioneers in a largely empty world.
From our readings in Deuteronomy (19:15-21) we know quite a lot about the revenge culture of the ancient middle east—a mentality that is alive and well today in that region. In Chapter 20 we are told that now, as Moses directed, cities are set aside as places of refuge for anyone to kills a neighbor unintentionally. We know from Numbers 35:16-19 that a male relative of the deceased might be dispatched to get revenge for the family without reference to the justice of the case. These provisions are intended to protect the innocent from "the avenger of blood" (20:3).
Forgiveness in the sublime New Testament sense (see Matthew 5:38-42) is not what is being counseled here. But these provision of the "cities of refuge" does control the revenge mentality with justice and promises a hearing for the accused "before the congregation" (20:6).
Since the Levites were not given an allotment of land in Canaan, they were instead granted towns in the territories of the other tribes to provide them with homes and pastures for their flocks. The Law of Moses provided a portion of sacrifices offered in the sanctuary for the maintenance of the Levites. But there is reason to believe that that portion was never sufficient for their support and they were often reduced to destitution.
The summary in 21:43-44 emphasizes the fulfillment of the promise the LORD made to Israel's ancestors so long ago. Now at last the People of the Promise received the land, and God has resoundingly proved his faithfulness and love. But the sense of peace and rest we get from these verses is belied by what comes next. Matters are not settled and accomplished—not by a long shot. The struggle for the Land against foes both political and spiritual continues in the Book of Judges.