Deuteronomy 33:21

21 He chose the best of the land for himself, for there a commander's portion was reserved; and he came to the heads of the people, with Israel he executed the commands and just decrees of the LORD."

Deuteronomy 33:21 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 33:21

And he provided a first part for himself
That is, the portion of the land of Sihon and Og, as Jarchi rightly interprets it; which was the beginning or firstfruits of the subduing of the land that was promised; this he looked at, chose, and desired it as his inheritance, ( Numbers 32:1 Numbers 32:2 ) ;

because there, [in] a portion of the lawgiver, [was he] seated;
or in the portion and part of the inheritance of Israel was he placed by Moses the lawgiver, according to the will of God; or because there were in it palaces and towers of great personages, lawgivers, kings, and princes, well covered and strongly fortified; or here he was "hid", or "protected", i.e. their families, wives, and children, while they assisted their brethren in subduing Canaan:

and he came with the heads of the people;
either "to" them, to Moses, Eleazar, and the seventy elders, and the heads of the tribes of Israel, to ask leave to have his part and portion on the other side Jordan, or "with" them, as we supply it; came with them over Jordan armed, to assist in the conquest and subduing of the land of Canaan:

he executed the justice of the Lord, and his judgments with Israel;
that is, either he justly and truly fulfilled all his promises and engagements, on condition of which he was placed on the other side; or he, together with the rest of the Israelites, executed the righteous judgment of God upon the Canaanites, in the expulsion and destruction of them.

Deuteronomy 33:21 In-Context

19 They shall call peoples to their mountain; there they offer right sacrifices; for they suck the affluence of the seas and the hidden treasures of the sand."
20 And of Gad he said, "Blessed be he who enlarges Gad! Gad couches like a lion, he tears the arm, and the crown of the head.
21 He chose the best of the land for himself, for there a commander's portion was reserved; and he came to the heads of the people, with Israel he executed the commands and just decrees of the LORD."
22 And of Dan he said, "Dan is a lion's whelp, that leaps forth from Bashan."
23 And of Naph'tali he said, "O Naph'tali, satisfied with favor, and full of the blessing of the LORD, possess the lake and the south."
Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971] by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.