And out of the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon with her suburbs, Geba with her suburbs,
Out of the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon with its suburbs and Geba with its suburbs were counted among the cities assigned to the Levites. Their inclusion shows the arrangement by which Levi received no distinct tribal territory of its own, but forty-eight cities scattered throughout Israel. That scattering fulfilled the ancient curse of dispersion pronounced upon Levi, yet it was transformed into a blessing. The turning point was the faithfulness of the Levites to God when the other tribes gave themselves to idolatry, and because of that loyalty they were set apart for service connected with the sanctuary. Thus what had been spoken as a curse became the means of their honored ministry among all the tribes.
Out of the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon with its suburbs and Geba with its suburbs were counted among the cities assigned to the Levites. Their inclusion shows the arrangement by which Levi received no distinct tribal territory of its own, but forty-eight cities scattered throughout Israel. That scattering fulfilled the ancient curse of dispersion pronounced upon Levi, yet it was transformed into a blessing. The turning point was the faithfulness of the Levites to God when the other tribes gave themselves to idolatry, and because of that loyalty they were set apart for service connected with the sanctuary. Thus what had been spoken as a curse became the means of their honored ministry among all the tribes.