The Hebrew particle translated Now then may serve either as a temporal marker or else a transitional to a new thought, as in Good News Translation. In either case the implication is that Joshua must now divide the land, at least in principle, among the other nine tribes and half of the tribe of Manasseh.

For them to possess as their own translates the Hebrew “for an inheritance” (Revised Standard Version; see 1.6).The Septuagint has a considerably longer text in verse 7: “And now divide this land as an inheritance for the nine tribes and half the tribe of Manasseh; you shall give it from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea on the west. The Mediterranean Sea will be its frontier.” And then verse 8 follows: “And to the two tribes of Reuben and Gad and to half the tribe of Manasseh Moses had given (land) on the east side of the Jordan River.” Soggin follows this text in verse 7 (also Bible de Jérusalem Jerusalem Bible); Hebrew Old Testament Text Project follows the Septuagint in verse 7 and 8 (see its notes on 13.7; 13.8, and the translation it proposes for the two verses). It must be said that the Hebrew Old Testament Text Project conjectural restoration of the Hebrew text is not exactly what the Septuagint text is (at least the Septuagint in Rahlfs’ edition). The Masoretic text may certainly be corrupt, as Hebrew Old Testament Text Project says, and a translation may prefer to follow the Septuagint in verse 7.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Newman, Barclay M. A Handbook on Joshua. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1983. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .