In verse 15 only five of the twelve cities are named; it should be noticed that Bethlehem here is not the more famous one south of Jerusalem; this Bethlehem was a town about 12 kilometers west of Nazareth.Nazareth is not mentioned in the Old Testament, and it is uncertain whether it was located in the territory of Zebulun or of Naphtali.

In verse 15, instead of Shimron of the Masoretic text, Hebrew Old Testament Text Project prefers “Shimeon” (as in 11.1; 12.20); instead of Idalah, Hebrew Old Testament Text Project (with some Hebrew manuscripts, the Syriac Old Testament, and the Latin Vulgate) prefers “Iralah” (also Jerusalem Bible) or, as it spells it, “Jiralah.”

Verse 15 may be translated, “It included twelve cities, along with the towns around them. Some of these twelve cities were Kattath … and Bethlehem.”

Verse 16 may be translated similarly to 19.8b.

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 .