Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Joshua 21:6
And the children of Gershon [had] by lot out of the families of the tribe of Issachar, and out of the tribe of Asher, and out of the tribe of Naphtali, and out of the half tribe of Manasseh in Bashan, thirteen cities.
6. And the children of Gershon ] The eldest of the three sons of Levi during the march through the wilderness had been stationed behind the Tabernacle, on the west side (Num 3:23). It had been their duty to take charge of the tapestry of the Tabernacle, all its curtains, hangings, and coverings, the pillars of the hangings, and the implements used in connection therewith (Num 3:21-26; Num 4:22-28).
had by lot ] Thirteen cities out of the tribes of Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and the half-tribe of Manasseh east of the Jordan.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
And the children of Gershon [had] by lot out of the families of the tribe of Issachar,…. These were Levites who descended from Gershon, the eldest son of Levi, and had their cities by lot assigned them in tribes at a greater distance, not only out of Issachar, but
out of the tribe of Asher, and out of the tribe of Naphtali, and out of the half tribe of Manasseh in Bashan; which was the other half of the tribe beyond Jordan:
thirteen cities; as many as were given out of the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
6. Gershon The second division.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
The Allocation of the Other Cities.
Jos 21:6
‘ And the children of Gershon had by lot out of the families of the tribe of Issachar, and out of the tribe of Asher, and out of the tribe of Naphtali, and out of the half tribe of Manasseh in Bashan, thirteen cities.’
These Levites, who were ‘descended’ from Gershon, were given responsibility for three northern tribes, including Transjordan Manasseh.
Jos 21:7
‘ The children of Merari, according to their families, had out of the tribe of Reuben, and out of the tribe of Gad, and out of the tribe of Zebulun, twelve cities.’
These were the ‘descendants’ of Merari, the third son of Levi. They were given responsibility for the Transjordan tribes of Reuben and Gad, and for Zebulun.
Thus were determined and allocated between the Levites the forty eight cities promised by YHWH (Num 35:6-7).
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Jos 21:27-33, Exo 6:16, Exo 6:17, Num 3:21, Num 3:22, 1Ch 6:62, 1Ch 6:71-76