Cities of Refuge

Cities of Refuge and	Created Date: 20-Jan-2018
Avenger of Blood	Last updated: 4-Jan-2022
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Sections

1	Definition of a Killer and Murderer	2	Avenger of Blood
3	High Priest Dies, Those in a City of Refuge go Free	4	Names of the Cities of Refuge
5	Two Accounts of Something in the Scriptures?

Definition of a Killer and Murderer

The following is an excerpt from the "Does God Forgive Murder" topic:

There is a difference in meaning of the word Killer and the word Murder. The scriptures distinguish one from the other because:

Someone who murders someone is committing a sinful act that is against the Sixth Commandment, and
Someone who kills may have righteous justification to end someone's life, and when it is not justified then it is murder.

Unfortunately, in many cultures, the word Killer has taken on the meaning that is synonymous with Murderer. When someone is called a Killer, then the word "killer" is usually meant as a derogatory and judgmental connotation. Conversely, when a person accidentally kills someone, where the fault is because of victim's actions such as walking in front of a moving car, the person who killed someone is not called a killer because of the negative connotation.

When reading this topic on the Cities of Refuge and Avenger of Blood, the two following points need to be kept in context:

A Murderer is someone who unlawfully ends the life of someone else which can be planned or not planned. Examples:
(a) A person goes into a bank to steal money where the person brought a weapon into the bank with the intention of using it as only a threat, but ends up using it to end the life of someone who tries to stop them from stealing.
(b) A person discovers their spouse is having an affair, so in a fit of rage, the person uses a weapon to end the life of their spouse and the other adulterer.
A Killer by definition is someone who ends the life of someone, but there are examples when killing is justified and is not a sin. Examples of justified (not a sin) killing:
(a) In times of war, a person is defending their country which requires the death of soldiers from the opposing country.
(b) A thief breaks into a home to steal, along with the unknown possibility of torturing unto death the people living in the home to divulge where valuables are located, so one of the people living in the home uses a weapon to end the life of the thief as protection of their life and their family's lives.
(c) A person has the job to administer lethal injection (death penalty), called an executioner, to end the life of a murderer by the orders of a court of law. Even if the death order by a court of law is later found to be against an innocent person, the executioner is not a murderer.

The scriptures of Genesis 9:5-6 and Leviticus 24:17, informs us that God expects judicial process against someone who murders another human being (including animals) who murder someone. Notice the "I will surely demand an accounting" which means God will examine the motive and righteousness of all that have been killed in an act of murder that points to both the Judgment Seat of Christ and the Great White Thrown of Judgment.

Genesis 9:5-6	5 And for your lifeblood I will surely demand an accounting. I will demand an accounting from every animal. And from each human being, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of another human being. 6 “Whoever sheds human blood, by humans shall their blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made mankind.
Leviticus 24:17	Anyone who takes the life of a human being is to be put to death.

Avenger of Blood

These are the important points concerning how the law was enforced in Israel during the time period of the Old Testament:

Israel had no police force that is similar to the modern-world, as Israel was supposed to police themselves by the laws given through Moses.
There were the Elders and the Congregation of a City to decide if a law was broken that could require capital punishment of death by stoning.
The Temple Guards had the ability to arrest or exercise capital punishment in any laws that protected the sanctuary of the Temple.
There was an "Avenger of Blood" that was defined by the Scriptures as someone to administer righteous judgment against someone who murders a family member. Israel expected a victim's family member, in the case of murder, to avenge the death.
Israel had several crimes that could result in the death penalty, such as worshiping any god other than the true God of Israel.

In Numbers 35:11-32, and also in Joshua 20:1-6, God gave Israel instructions on how to handle accidental killings and even justified killings. The instructions either created a sanctuary of freedom from consequences of death or it allowed the Avenger of Blood to exercise judgment by taking of a person's life.

Numbers 35:11-32

¹¹then ye shall appoint you cities to be cities of refuge for you, that the manslayer that killeth any person unwittingly may flee thither. ¹²And the cities shall be unto you for refuge from the avenger, that the manslayer die not, until he stand before the congregation for judgment. ¹³And the cities which ye shall give shall be for you six cities of refuge. ¹⁴Ye shall give three cities beyond the Jordan, and three cities shall ye give in the land of Canaan; they shall be cities of refuge. ¹⁵For the children of Israel, and for the stranger and for the sojourner among them, shall these six cities be for refuge; that every one that killeth any person unwittingly may flee thither.

¹⁶But if he smote him with an instrument of iron, so that he died, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death. ¹⁷And if he smote him with a stone in the hand, whereby a man may die, and he died, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death. ¹⁸Or if he smote him with a weapon of wood in the hand, whereby a man may die, and he died, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death. ¹⁹The avenger of blood shall himself put the murderer to death: when he meeteth him, he shall put him to death. ²⁰And if he thrust him of hatred, or hurled at him, lying in wait, so that he died, ²¹or in enmity smote him with his hand, so that he died; he that smote him shall surely be put to death; he is a murderer: the avenger of blood shall put the murderer to death, when he meeteth him.

²²But if he thrust him suddenly without enmity, or hurled upon him anything without lying in wait, ²³or with any stone, whereby a man may die, seeing him not, and cast it upon him, so that he died, and he was not his enemy, neither sought his harm; ²⁴then the congregation shall judge between the smiter and the avenger of blood according to these ordinances; ²⁵and the congregation shall deliver the manslayer out of the hand of the avenger of blood, and the congregation shall restore him to his city of refuge, whither he was fled: and he shall dwell therein until the death of the high priest, who was anointed with the holy oil. ²⁶But if the manslayer shall at any time go beyond the border of his city of refuge, whither he fleeth, ²⁷and the avenger of blood find him without the border of his city of refuge, and the avenger of blood slay the manslayer; he shall not be guilty of blood, ²⁸because he should have remained in his city of refuge until the death of the high priest: but after the death of the high priest the manslayer shall return into the land of his possession.

²⁹And these things shall be for a statute and ordinance unto you throughout your generations in all your dwellings. ³⁰Whoso killeth any person, the murderer shall be slain at the mouth of witnesses: but one witness shall not testify against any person that he die. ³¹Moreover ye shall take no ransom for the life of a murderer, that is guilty of death; but he shall surely be put to death. ³²And ye shall take no ransom for him that is fled to his city of refuge, that he may come again to dwell in the land, until the death of the priest.

Joshua 20:1-6

1 Then the LORD spoke to Joshua, saying, 2 "Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, 'Designate the cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you through Moses, 3 that the manslayer who kills any person unintentionally, without premeditation, may flee there, and they shall become your refuge from the avenger of blood. 4 'He shall flee to one of these cities, and shall stand at the entrance of the gate of the city and state his case in the hearing of the elders of that city; and they shall take him into the city to them and give him a place, so that he may dwell among them. 5 'Now if the avenger of blood pursues him, then they shall not deliver the manslayer into his hand, because he struck his neighbor without premeditation and did not hate him beforehand. 6 'He shall dwell in that city until he stands before the congregation for judgment, until the death of the one who is high priest in those days. Then the manslayer shall return to his own city and to his own house, to the city from which he fled.'"

Some points on the rules:

If the killing was accidental, then there were six cities (named below) for the killer to flee to for protection until a judgment is held by the congregation.
Children, Strangers and Sojourner could flee there also for protection and assistance.
If the killing was done by:
(a) an iron instrument,
(b) stones thrown,
(c) weapon of wood, or
(d) hands
then the killing was not accidental, and then the murderer must be put to death. The Avenger of Blood can kill the murderer at any place which included the cities of refuge.
The rules for determining if the killing was accidental:
(a) not done with enmity,
(b) the killing was not done secretly,
(c) a stone did not fall intentionally (the case of digging a well),
(d) the person was not an enemy of the killer.
In other words, the killing had to be accidental and not the intention. An example of a modern-day accident, we can consider a situation where a person driving a car down the road, struck a pedestrian who stepped in front of the car without looking first and was killed.
The congregation of the six cities had an obligation to protect the accidental killer in the city.
The killer that killed someone accidentally, must stay in the city of refuge and if he leaves the city, then the Avenger of Blood can kill the killer without any legal consequences. (Note that God knows if the killing was justified or not justified.)
Notice in Numbers 35:30 (shown above), that it takes more than one witness to cause a murderer to be justifiably put to death.
There can be no ransom set to get a killer out of the city so that the Avenger of Blood can kill the killer. If there is a ransom set then the persons who do such a thing, and accept a ransom, will be put to death.

High Priest Dies, Those in a City of Refuge go Free

There is a special provision that states in Numbers 35:6 that when the High Priest dies then the person that has sanctuary in a City of Refuge, can go free to anywhere in Israel where the Avenger of Blood is not allowed to take the person's life. This provision is clarified in Numbers 35:28 and also in Joshua 20:6.

Numbers 35:6	and the congregation shall deliver the manslayer out of the hand of the avenger of blood, and the congregation shall restore him to his city of refuge, whither he was fled: and he shall dwell therein until the death of the high priest, who was anointed with the holy oil.
Joshua 20:6	And he shall remain in that city until he has stood before the congregation for judgment, until the death of him who is high priest at the time. Then the manslayer may return to his own town and his own home, to the town from which he fled.

The beautiful point of the special provision is it points to the freedom we received through Jesus the Christ, who is our High Priest. We now can be forgiven of idolatry, evil against the weak, murder, adultery and so many other sins just like King David by confessing and accepting our penalty being paid on the Cross by Jesus Christ.

We are "set free" by the death of our High Priest Jesus Christ. Just like the High Priest in the City of Refuge's death, there were those who were then set free from being required to remain in the City of Refuge for protection. More than that, Jesus Christ death was a permanent setting free for everyone that seeks sanctuary and protection in Him, and we now have righteousness to be given entrance into eternity with God.

Note that we still have consequences for our sinful actions in our lives on Earth, with the potential loss of Rewards in Heaven. All of the Old Testament people who had Faith in God, and those after the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ, are now justified to go into Eternity.

Furthermore, many of the specifics of the Mosaic Laws ended at the time of Jesus Christ as the Mosaic Laws had many purposes for the entire world, not just Israel, where Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of prophecies and laws that pointed to Him. We are no longer under all of the Mosaic Laws but under a new Law that Biblical Scholars often call the Law of the Holy Spirit who indwells us.

The Names of the Cities of Refuge

There were six cities named in the Scriptures:

East of the Jordan River:

1	Bosor
2	Golan
3	Ramoth

West of the Jordan River:

1	Hebron
2	Kedesh
3	Shechem

Some ask why two accounts of the same things in the Bible

As you have noticed, there are two scriptures sections: Numbers 35:11-32 and also in Joshua 20:1-6, which describe the same rules for Cities of Refuge and Avenger of Blood. You have also noticed that it takes at least two witnesses against the murderer for a death sentence to be carried out.

The provision and necessity for two or more witnesses is also spoken in Deuteronomy, 19:15, 2 Corinthians 13:1 and others.

Deuteronomy 19:15	A single witness shall not suffice against a person for any crime or for any wrong in connection with any offense that he has committed. Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established.
2 Corinthians 13:1	This is the third time I am coming to you. Every charge must be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.

God authenticates His Word by having at least two references for many topics so that there can be no confusion and so that scripture interprets scripture.

What to read next?

The Volume of the Book is written about Jesus Christ. Is it possible to lose Salvation? We have eternal life. Evolution is not real. When a Christian suffers is there benefits from it. Rewards in heaven. Do we Tithe? What does the 3rd Commandment tell us? What is Grace and Mercy? Is there an Age of Accountability? Is there a place of unending punishment and exile form God?