Numbers 34:18
New International Version
And appoint one leader from each tribe to help assign the land.

New Living Translation
Enlist one leader from each tribe to help them with the task.

English Standard Version
You shall take one chief from every tribe to divide the land for inheritance.

Berean Standard Bible
Appoint one leader from each tribe to distribute the land.

King James Bible
And ye shall take one prince of every tribe, to divide the land by inheritance.

New King James Version
And you shall take one leader of every tribe to divide the land for the inheritance.

New American Standard Bible
And you shall take one leader of each tribe to assign the land as an inheritance.

NASB 1995
“You shall take one leader of every tribe to apportion the land for inheritance.

NASB 1977
“And you shall take one leader of every tribe to apportion the land for inheritance.

Legacy Standard Bible
And you shall take one leader of every tribe to apportion the land for inheritance.

Amplified Bible
You shall take one leader from every tribe to divide the land for the inheritance.

Christian Standard Bible
Take one leader from each tribe to distribute the land.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Take one leader from each tribe to distribute the land.

American Standard Version
And ye shall take one prince of every tribe, to divide the land for inheritance.

Contemporary English Version
One leader from each tribe will help them,

English Revised Version
And ye shall take one prince of every tribe, to divide the land for inheritance.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
You must also take one leader from each tribe to divide the land.

Good News Translation
Take also one leader from each tribe to help them divide it."

International Standard Version
You are to appoint a leader from each tribe to divide the land for inheritance.

Majority Standard Bible
Appoint one leader from each tribe to distribute the land.

NET Bible
You must take one leader from every tribe to assist in allocating the land as an inheritance.

New Heart English Bible
You shall take one prince of every tribe, to divide the land for inheritance.

Webster's Bible Translation
And ye shall take one prince of every tribe, to divide the land by inheritance.

World English Bible
You shall take one prince of every tribe, to divide the land for inheritance.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
And one prince—you take one prince from a tribe to give the land by inheritance.

Young's Literal Translation
and one prince -- one prince -- for a tribe ye do take to give the land by inheritance.

Smith's Literal Translation
And one chief, one chief shall ye take from a tribe to cause to inherit the land.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
And one prince of every tribe,

Catholic Public Domain Version
and one leader from each tribe,

New American Bible
and you will designate one leader from each of the tribes to apportion the land.

New Revised Standard Version
You shall take one leader of every tribe to apportion the land for inheritance.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
And you shall take one prince of every tribe to divide the land to you.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And take one Prince from each tribe that they will distribute the land to you.”
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
And ye shall take one prince of every tribe, to take possession of the land.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And ye shall take one ruler from each tribe to divide the land to you by lot.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Leaders for Dividing the Land
17“These are the names of the men who are to assign the land as an inheritance for you: Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun. 18Appoint one leader from each tribe to distribute the land. 19These are their names: Caleb son of Jephunneh from the tribe of Judah;…

Cross References
Joshua 14:1-2
Now these are the portions that the Israelites inherited in the land of Canaan, as distributed by Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the families of the tribes of Israel. / Their inheritance was assigned by lot for the nine and a half tribes, as the LORD had commanded through Moses.

Joshua 19:51
These are the inheritances that Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the families distributed by lot to the tribes of Israel at Shiloh before the LORD at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. So they finished dividing up the land.

Joshua 21:1-2
Now the family heads of the Levites approached Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the other tribes of Israel / at Shiloh in the land of Canaan and said to them, “The LORD commanded through Moses that we be given cities in which to live, together with pasturelands for our livestock.”

Deuteronomy 1:13-15
Choose for yourselves wise, understanding, and respected men from each of your tribes, and I will appoint them as your leaders.” / And you answered me and said, “What you propose to do is good.” / So I took the leaders of your tribes, wise and respected men, and appointed them as leaders over you—as commanders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens, and as officers for your tribes.

Deuteronomy 17:8-9
If a case is too difficult for you to judge, whether the controversy within your gates is regarding bloodshed, lawsuits, or assaults, you must go up to the place the LORD your God will choose. / You are to go to the Levitical priests and to the judge who presides at that time. Inquire of them, and they will give you a verdict in the case.

1 Chronicles 6:54-81
Now these were the territories assigned to the descendants of Aaron from the Kohathite clan for their settlements, because the first lot fell to them: / They were given Hebron in the land of Judah and its surrounding pasturelands. / But the fields and villages around the city were given to Caleb son of Jephunneh. ...

Ezekiel 47:13-14
This is what the Lord GOD says: “These are the boundaries by which you are to divide the land as an inheritance among the twelve tribes of Israel; Joseph shall receive two portions. / You are to divide it equally among them. Because I swore with an uplifted hand to give it to your forefathers, this land will fall to you as an inheritance.

Ezekiel 48:29
This is the land you are to allot as an inheritance to the tribes of Israel, and these will be their portions,” declares the Lord GOD.

Acts 13:19
And having vanquished seven nations in Canaan, He gave their land to His people as an inheritance.

Acts 7:45
And our fathers who received it brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations God drove out before them. It remained until the time of David,

Hebrews 4:8
For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day.

Matthew 19:28
Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, in the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on His glorious throne, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Luke 22:30
so that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Revelation 21:12-14
The city had a great and high wall with twelve gates inscribed with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, and twelve angels at the gates. / There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south, and three on the west. / The wall of the city had twelve foundations bearing the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

1 Corinthians 6:2
Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases?


Treasury of Scripture

And you shall take one prince of every tribe, to divide the land by inheritance.

Numbers 1:4-16
And with you there shall be a man of every tribe; every one head of the house of his fathers…

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Appoint Apportion Assign Chief Distribution Divide Help Inheritance Leader Possession Prince Tribe
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Appoint Apportion Assign Chief Distribution Divide Help Inheritance Leader Possession Prince Tribe
Numbers 34
1. The borders of the land
16. The names of the men who shall divide the land














Appoint
The Hebrew root for "appoint" is "נָתַן" (natan), which means to give, set, or place. This word conveys a sense of divine ordination and responsibility. In the context of Israel's journey, appointing leaders was not merely a human decision but a divine mandate. It underscores the importance of God-ordained leadership in fulfilling His promises and ensuring orderly governance among His people.

One leader
The term "leader" in Hebrew is "נָשִׂיא" (nasi), which refers to a prince, chief, or captain. This designation highlights the role of these individuals as representatives and decision-makers. In the tribal structure of Israel, leaders were chosen for their wisdom, integrity, and ability to guide their people according to God's laws. The singular "one" emphasizes unity and the importance of each tribe having a distinct yet equal voice in the distribution process.

From each tribe
The phrase "from each tribe" signifies the inclusive and equitable nature of God's plan for His people. The twelve tribes of Israel, each descending from one of Jacob's sons, were to have equal representation in the land distribution. This ensured that no tribe was overlooked or marginalized, reflecting God's justice and fairness. Historically, this tribal system was central to Israel's identity and social structure.

To distribute the land
The Hebrew word for "distribute" is "נָחַל" (nachal), which means to inherit or allocate. This task was not merely administrative but deeply spiritual, as the land was a divine inheritance promised to Abraham and his descendants. The distribution of the land was a fulfillment of God's covenant, symbolizing His faithfulness and the establishment of Israel as a nation. The land itself was a tangible expression of God's blessing and provision, meant to be stewarded according to His laws.

(18) And ye shall take one prince of every tribe . . . --In addition to Eleazar the high priest, and Joshua the commander of the army, one chief man, or prince, was to be selected out of each of the ten tribes which were interested in the division, as at the first census one out of each tribe was associated with Moses and Aaron (Numbers 1:4), and as was probably the case at the second census under Moses and Eleazar. (Comp. Numbers 27:2.) Security was thus afforded for the equity and impartiality of the allotment; the position of the territory only, and not its dimensions, being determined by lot. With the exception of Caleb, the names of the princes selected for this purpose are not mentioned elsewhere.

Verse 18. - One prince of every tribe. This was arranged no doubt in order to insure fairness in fixing the boundaries between the tribes, which had to be done after the situation of the tribe was determined by lot; the further subdivision of the tribal territory was probably left to be managed by the chiefs of the tribe itself. Of these tribe princes (see on Numbers 13:1; Joshua 14:1), Caleb is the only one whose name is known to us, and he had acted in a somewhat similar capacity forty years before. This may of itself account for the tribe of Judah being named first in the list, especially as Reuben was not represented; but the order in which the other names follow is certainly remarkable. Taken in pairs (Judah and Simeon, Manasseh and Ephraim, etc.), they advance regularly from south to north, according to their subsequent position on the map. Differing as this arrangement does so markedly from any previously adopted, it is impossible to suppose that it is accidental. We must conclude either that a coincidence so apparently trivial was Divinely prearranged, or that the arrangement of the names is due to a later hand than that of Moses.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Appoint
תִּקְח֖וּ (tiq·ḥū)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine plural
Strong's 3947: To take

one
אֶחָ֛ד (’e·ḥāḏ)
Number - masculine singular
Strong's 259: United, one, first

leader
וְנָשִׂ֥יא (wə·nā·śî)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 5387: An exalted one, a king, sheik, a rising mist

from each
אֶחָ֖ד (’e·ḥāḏ)
Number - masculine singular
Strong's 259: United, one, first

tribe
מִמַּטֶּ֑ה (mim·maṭ·ṭeh)
Preposition-m | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 4294: A staff, rod, shaft, branch, a tribe

to distribute
לִנְחֹ֥ל (lin·ḥōl)
Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 5157: To inherit, to occupy, to bequeath, distribute, instate

the land.
הָאָֽרֶץ׃ (hā·’ā·reṣ)
Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 776: Earth, land


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OT Law: Numbers 34:18 You shall take one prince of every (Nu Num.)
Numbers 34:17
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