migrash · pasturelands

What it means

migrash (מִגְרָשׁ) is a Hebrew word of the Bible that means “pasturelands”.

Open land around a city, used as pasture for the livestock.

How to say it

Approximate pronunciation. Vowels sound as in Spanish (a as in father, e as in bed, i as in machine, o as in note, u as in rule); the syllable in bold is stressed. The voice is your device's.

Its senses in the Bible

1. The open land around a city, for livestock.

From Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906)

Word study

Open land around a city, used as pasture for the livestock. BDB: a suburb (an open country whither flocks are driven for pasture); hence the area around a city or a building.

• The pasturelands of the Levites' cities Numbers 35:2Joshua 21:2
• The measure of those pasturelands Numbers 35:4Numbers 35:5
• A field that cannot be sold Leviticus 25:34

Historical and cultural background

The Levites did not receive territory but cities with their pasturelands (Numbers 35:2; Joshua 14:4). Numbers 35:4-5 gives the measure: “from the wall of the city outward a thousand cubits all around”, and two thousand cubits on each side. Leviticus 25:34 forbids selling those pasturelands, “for it {is} an eternal possession for them”.

How we translate it

“Pasturelands” 109 times, “pastureland” 5 and “open lands” 1 (Ezekiel 27:28). This edition sets “pasturelands” in all the lists of cities (“with their pasturelands”), in Joshua 21 and in 1 Chronicles 6, so that it is seen to be always the same term.

How it is translated

The words this translation uses for it, most frequent first.

• pasturelands ×109
• pastureland ×5
• open lands ×1

Where it appears

• Leviticus×1
• Numbers×5
• Joshua×58
• 1 Chronicles×44
• 2 Chronicles×2
• Ezekiel×5

• Leviticus 25:34

  But the field of the pastureland of their cities shall not be sold, for it is an eternal possession for them.

• Numbers 35:2

  “Command the sons of Israel that they give to the Levites, from the inheritance of their possession, cities to dwell in; and pasturelands for the cities all around them you shall give to the Levites.

• Numbers 35:3

  The cities shall be theirs to dwell in, and their pasturelands shall be for their beasts and for their goods and for all their animals.

• Numbers 35:4

  And the pasturelands of the cities that you shall give to the Levites shall reach from the wall of the city outward a thousand cubits all around.

• Numbers 35:5

  And you shall measure outside the city the east side two thousand cubits, and the south side two thousand cubits, and the west side two thousand cubits, and the north side two thousand cubits, with the city in the middle; this shall be for them the pasturelands of the cities.

• Numbers 35:7

  All the cities that you shall give to the Levites shall be forty-eight cities, them and their pasturelands.

• Joshua 14:4

  For the sons of Joseph were two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim; and they did not give a portion to the Levites in the land, except cities to live in, and their pasturelands for their livestock and for their possessions.

• Joshua 21:2

  and they spoke to them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, saying, “YHWH commanded through Moses to give us cities to live in, with their pasturelands for our livestock.”

• Joshua 21:3

  So the sons of Israel gave to the Levites, out of their inheritance, according to the command of YHWH, these cities and their pasturelands.

• Joshua 21:8

  And the sons of Israel gave to the Levites these cities and their pasturelands, as YHWH had commanded through Moses, by lot.

• Joshua 21:11

  And they gave them Kiriath-arba (the father of Anak), that is Hebron, in the hill country of Judah, with its pasturelands around it.

• Joshua 21:13

  And to the sons of Aaron the priest they gave Hebron, the city of refuge for the manslayer, with its pasturelands, and Libnah with its pasturelands,

• Joshua 21:14

  and Jattir with its pasturelands, and Eshtemoa with its pasturelands,

• Joshua 21:15

  and Holon with its pasturelands, and Debir with its pasturelands,

• Joshua 21:16

  and Ain with its pasturelands, and Juttah with its pasturelands, and Beth-shemesh with its pasturelands —nine cities from these two tribes.

• Joshua 21:17

  And from the tribe of Benjamin: Gibeon with its pasturelands, Geba with its pasturelands,

• Joshua 21:18

  Anathoth with its pasturelands, and Almon with its pasturelands —four cities.

• Joshua 21:19

  All the cities of the sons of Aaron, the priests, were thirteen cities with their pasturelands.

• Joshua 21:21

  And they gave them Shechem, the city of refuge for the manslayer, with its pasturelands, in the hill country of Ephraim, and Gezer with its pasturelands,

• Joshua 21:22

  and Kibzaim with its pasturelands, and Beth-horon with its pasturelands —four cities.

• Joshua 21:23

  And from the tribe of Dan: Eltekeh with its pasturelands, Gibbethon with its pasturelands,

• Joshua 21:24

  Aijalon with its pasturelands, Gath-rimmon with its pasturelands —four cities.

• Joshua 21:25

  And from the half tribe of Manasseh: Taanach with its pasturelands, and Gath-rimmon with its pasturelands —two cities.

• Joshua 21:26

  All the cities were ten with their pasturelands for the families of the rest of the sons of Kohath.

• Joshua 21:27

  And to the sons of Gershon, of the families of the Levites, they gave from the half tribe of Manasseh Golan in Bashan, the city of refuge for the manslayer, with its pasturelands, and Be-eshterah with its pasturelands —two cities.

• Joshua 21:28

  And from the tribe of Issachar: Kishion with its pasturelands, Daberath with its pasturelands,

• Joshua 21:29

  Jarmuth with its pasturelands, En-gannim with its pasturelands —four cities.

• Joshua 21:30

  And from the tribe of Asher: Mishal with its pasturelands, Abdon with its pasturelands,

• Joshua 21:31

  Helkath with its pasturelands, and Rehob with its pasturelands —four cities.

• Joshua 21:32

  And from the tribe of Naphtali: Kedesh in Galilee, the city of refuge for the manslayer, with its pasturelands, and Hammoth-dor with its pasturelands, and Kartan with its pasturelands —three cities.

• Joshua 21:33

  All the cities of the Gershonites according to their families were thirteen cities with their pasturelands.

• Joshua 21:34

  And to the families of the sons of Merari, the Levites who remained, they gave from the tribe of Zebulun: Jokneam with its pasturelands, Kartah with its pasturelands,

• Joshua 21:35

  Dimnah with its pasturelands, Nahalal with its pasturelands —four cities.

• Joshua 21:36

  And from the tribe of Reuben: Bezer with its pasturelands, and Jahaz with its pasturelands,

• Joshua 21:37

  Kedemoth with its pasturelands, and Mephaath with its pasturelands —four cities.

• Joshua 21:38

  And from the tribe of Gad: Ramoth in Gilead, the city of refuge for the manslayer, with its pasturelands, and Mahanaim with its pasturelands,

• Joshua 21:39

  Heshbon with its pasturelands, Jazer with its pasturelands —four cities in all.

• Joshua 21:41

  All the cities of the Levites in the midst of the possession of the sons of Israel were forty-eight cities with their pasturelands.

• Joshua 21:42

  These cities were, each city, with its pasturelands around it; so it was for all these cities.

• 1 Chronicles 5:16

  And they lived in Gilead, in Bashan and in its towns, and in all the pasturelands of Sharon to their limits.

And 75 more times.