Joshua 19 Chapter Introduction

Structure and Formatting

This chapter continues the description of how Joshua divided up among the various tribes the land the Israelites conquered. It concludes the description of how Joshua gave land west of the Jordan River to the remaining tribes of Israel: * Simeon ([19:1–9](../19/01.md)) * Zebulun ([19:10–16](../19/10.md)) * Issachar ([19:17–23](../19/17.md)) * Asher ([19:24–31](../19/24.md)) * Naphtali ([19:32–39](../19/32.md)) * Dan ([19:40–48](../19/40.md))The chapter also describes how the Israelites gave territory to Joshua ([19:49–51](../19/49.md))

Translation Issues in This Chapter

Ordinal numbers

In this chapter, the author uses ordinal numbers to describe the lots for each of the remaining tribes in the order in which those tribes were selected. If your language does not use ordinal numbers, you can use cardinal numbers or an equivalent expression.

Translation issues specific to this section

See Part 4 of the Introduction to Joshua for a discussion of translation issues specific to the descriptions in Chapters 13–21 of territories and their borders. These issues include:1. The author uses the idea of “inheritance” to mean a lasting possession that would be passed down to future generations.2. The author marks travel for change in elevation. He says, for example, “went up” or “went down” rather than just “went.”3. The author describes the location of one place relative to another in the way that is characteristic of his culture. Specifically, he says the direction from which someone would be approaching a new location when coming from a location he has already named.4. The author often says simply “the sea” when he means the Mediterranean Sea, which he calls the Great Sea when he names it.5. The author often uses the term “sea” by association to mean the direction of the Mediterranean Sea, that is, from his perspective, the west.6. Similarly, the author often uses the term “sunrise” by association to mean the direction in which the sun rises, that is, the east.7. All names in border descriptions and lists are the names of cities and towns unless otherwise indicated in the biblical text, in a note, or in the UST.