Rabbith (so Good News Translation and Revised Standard Version) translates the Masoretic text; Hebrew Old Testament Text Project prefers the spelling “Daberath” (identifying it with the city of this name in 19.12; 21.28); also Soggin and Bible de Jérusalem.

In the Masoretic text fifteen cities are named, but the total given in verse 22 is sixteen; Soggin adds in verse 19 (after Shion) “Reeroth,” in accordance with one manuscript of the Septuagint. It seems best to stay with the Masoretic text here.

Verses 18-22, as they stand in Good News Translation, present several problems. First it is important to tell a city from a mountain. Tabor is a mountain; the other places, except for the Jordan, are cities. Second, the mention of sixteen cities in verse 22b may be taken as a reference to cities other than those listed above. Third, because of a fairly literal rendering of verses 22b-23, there is some unnecessary repetition. This problem of overlap may be resolved either by translating verses 18-23 as a unit, or by translating verses 18-21 in sequence, and then placing verses 22-23 together. These two alternatives may be represented as follows:

• (1) Their territory included sixteen cities, along with the towns around them. These cities were Jezreel … Shahazumah, and Beth Shemesh. In the north their border ran east from Mount Tabor to the Jordan River. Joshua gave this entire region, including its cities and towns, to the tribe of Issachar.

Or it is possible to follow this same restructuring and list separately the towns of Shahazumah and Beth Shemesh:

• Their territory included sixteen cities, along with the towns around them. Some of these cities were Jezreel … and Bethpazzez. In the north their border ran east from Mount Tabor to the Jordan River, including the cities of Shahazumah and Beth Shemesh …

• (2) Their territory included the cities of Jezreel … 19 … 20 … 21 … and Bethpazzez. 22-23 In the north their border ran east from Mount Tabor to the Jordan River, and it took in the cities of Shahazumah and Beth Shemesh. All this territory, including these sixteen cities and their towns, belonged to the tribe of Issachar.

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 .