Numbers 34:2
Command the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land of Canaan; (this is the land that shall fall unto you for an inheritance, even the land of Canaan with the coasts thereof:) Command the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land of Canaan; (this is the land that shall fall unto you for an inheritance, even the land of Canaan with the coasts thereof:)
The boundaries of Canaan were fixed in advance as the inheritance to be divided among the tribes upon their coming into possession. The apportionment was to embrace the entire land, including both the territory already conquered and that which still remained unsubdued. The placement of each tribe was to be decided by lot under the direction of Joshua acting together with Eleazar the high priest and the heads of the tribes, with a prince from each tribe present to attend to the distribution.
Each tribe was then made responsible to completely subdue its own allotted inheritance. If the people remained faithful to God, He would drive out their enemies from before them and grant them still greater possessions as the reward for keeping His covenant. The tribe of Levi was excluded from the land allotment on account of its sanctuary service, yet forty-eight cities scattered in different parts of the country were assigned to the Levites as their inheritance.