Joshua 14:3-4

14:3 Now Moses had assigned land ¹  to the two-and-a-half tribes east of the Jordan, but he assigned no land ²  to the Levites. ³  14:4 The descendants of Joseph were considered as two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim. The Levites were allotted no territory, though they were assigned cities in which to live, along with the grazing areas for their cattle and possessions. ⁴ 

Numbers 18:20-24

Duties of the Levites

18:20 The Lord spoke to Aaron, “You will have no inheritance in their land, nor will you have any portion of property ⁵  among them – I am your portion and your inheritance among the Israelites. 18:21 See, I have given the Levites all the tithes in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they perform – the service of the tent of meeting. 18:22 No longer may the Israelites approach the tent of meeting, or else they will bear their sin ⁶  and die. 18:23 But the Levites must perform the service ⁷  of the tent of meeting, and they must bear their iniquity. ⁸  It will be a perpetual ordinance throughout your generations that among the Israelites the Levites ⁹  have no inheritance. ¹⁰  18:24 But I have given ¹¹  to the Levites for an inheritance the tithes of the Israelites that are offered ¹²  to the Lord as a raised offering. That is why I said to them that among the Israelites they are to have no inheritance.”

Deuteronomy 10:9

10:9 Therefore Levi has no allotment or inheritance ¹³  among his brothers; ¹⁴  the Lord is his inheritance just as the Lord your God told him.

Deuteronomy 12:12

12:12 You shall rejoice in the presence of the Lord your God, along with your sons, daughters, male and female servants, and the Levites in your villages ¹⁵  (since they have no allotment or inheritance with you). ¹⁶ 

Deuteronomy 12:19

12:19 Be careful not to overlook the Levites as long as you live in the land.

Deuteronomy 18:2

18:2 They ¹⁷  will have no inheritance in the midst of their fellow Israelites; ¹⁸  the Lord alone is their inheritance, just as he had told them.

[14:3]  ¹ tn Or “assigned an inheritance.”

[14:3]  ² tn Or “no inheritance.”

[14:3]  ³ tn The Hebrew text adds, “in their midst.”

[14:4]  ⁴ tn Heb “and they did not assign a portion to the Levites in the land, except cities [in which] to live and their pastures for their cattle and property.”

[18:20]  ⁵ tn The phrase “of property” is supplied as a clarification.

[18:22]  ⁶ tn The Hebrew text uses the infinitive construct of the verb “to bear” with the lamed (ל) preposition to express the result of such an action. “To bear their sin” would mean that they would have to suffer the consequences of their sin.

[18:23]  ⁷ tn The verse begins with the perfect tense of עָבַד (’avad) with vav (ו) consecutive, making the form equal to the instructions preceding it. As its object the verb has the cognate accusative “service.”

[18:23]  ⁸ sn The Levites have the care of the tent of meeting, and so they are responsible for any transgressions against it.

[18:23]  ⁹ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the Levites) has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[18:23]  ¹⁰ tn The Hebrew text uses both the verb and the object from the same root to stress the point: They will not inherit an inheritance. The inheritance refers to land.

[18:24]  ¹¹ tn The classification of the perfect tense here too could be the perfect of resolve, since this law is declaring what will be their portion – “I have decided to give.”

[18:24]  ¹² tn In the Hebrew text the verb has no expressed subject (although the “Israelites” is certainly intended), and so it can be rendered as a passive.

[10:9]  ¹³ sn Levi has no allotment or inheritance. As the priestly tribe, Levi would have no land allotment except for forty-eight towns set apart for their use (Num 35:1-8; Josh 21:1-42). But theirs was a far greater inheritance, for the Lord himself was their apportionment, that is, service to him would be their full-time and lifelong privilege (Num 18:20-24; Deut 18:2; Josh 13:33).

[10:9]  ¹⁴ tn That is, among the other Israelite tribes.

[12:12]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “within your gates” (so KJV, NASB); NAB “who belongs to your community.”

[12:12]  ¹⁶ sn They have no allotment or inheritance with you. See note on the word “inheritance” in Deut 10:9.

[18:2]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “he” (and throughout the verse).

[18:2]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “brothers,” but not referring to actual siblings. Cf. NASB “their countrymen”; NRSV “the other members of the community.”