13 Bible Verses about Asylum

And the cities which ye give to the Levites are the six cities of refuge, which ye give for the fleeing thither of the man-slayer, and besides them ye give forty and two cities;

Then Moses separateth three cities beyond the Jordan, towards the sun-rising, for the fleeing thither of the man-slayer, who slayeth his neighbour unknowingly, and he is not hating him heretofore, and he hath fled unto one of these cities, and he hath lived: Bezer, in the wilderness, in the land of the plain, of the Reubenite; and Ramoth, in Gilead, of the Gadite; and Golan, in Bashan, of the Manassahite.

'When Jehovah thy God doth cut off the nations, whose land Jehovah thy God is giving to thee, and thou hast succeeded them, and dwelt in their cities, and in their houses, three cities thou dost separate for thee in the midst of thy land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee to possess it. Thou dost prepare for thee the way, and hast divided into three parts the border of thy land which Jehovah thy God doth cause thee to inherit, and it hath been for the fleeing thither of every man-slayer.read more.
And this is the matter of the man-slayer who fleeth thither, and hath lived: He who smiteth his neighbour unknowingly, and is not hating him heretofore, even he who cometh in with his neighbour into a forest to hew wood, and his hand hath driven with an axe to cut the tree, and the iron hath slipped from the wood, and hath met his neighbour, and he hath died -- he doth flee unto one of these cities, and hath lived, lest the redeemer of blood pursue after the man-slayer when his heart is hot, and hath overtaken him (because the way is great), and hath smitten him -- the life, and he hath no sentence of death, for he is not hating him heretofore; therefore I am commanding thee, saying, Three cities thou dost separate to thee. And if Jehovah thy God doth enlarge thy border, as He hath sworn to thy fathers, and hath given to thee all the land which He hath spoken to give to thy fathers -- when thou keepest all this command to do it, which I am commanding thee to-day, to love Jehovah thy God, and to walk in His ways all the days -- then thou hast added to thee yet three cities to these three; and innocent blood is not shed in the midst of thy land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee -- an inheritance, and there hath been upon thee blood. And when a man is hating his neighbour, and hath lain in wait for him, and risen against him, and smitten him -- the life, and he hath died, and he hath fled unto one of these cities, then the elders of his city have sent and taken him from thence, and given him into the hand of the redeemer of blood, and he hath died; thine eye hath no pity on him, and thou hast put away the innocent blood from Israel, and it is well with thee. 'Thou dost not remove a border of thy neighbour, which they of former times have made, in thine inheritance, which thou dost inherit in the land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee to possess it.

And Jehovah speaketh unto Joshua, saying, 'Speak unto the sons of Israel, saying, Give for you cities of refuge, as I have spoken unto you by the hand of Moses, for the fleeing thither of a man-slayer smiting life inadvertently, without knowledge; and they have been to you for a refuge from the redeemer of blood.read more.
When one hath fled unto one of these cities, and hath stood at the opening of the gate of the city, and hath spoken in the ears of the elders of that city his matter, then they have gathered him into the city unto them, and have given to him a place, and he hath dwelt with them. 'And when the redeemer of blood doth pursue after him, then they do not shut up the man-slayer into his hand, for without knowledge he hath smitten his neighbour, and is not hating him hitherto; and he hath dwelt in that city till his standing before the company for judgment, till the death of the chief priest who is in those days -- then doth the man-slayer turn back and hath come unto his city, and unto his house, unto the city whence he fled.' And they sanctify Kedesh in Galilee, in the hill-country of Naphtali, and Shechem in the hill-country of Ephraim, and Kirjath-Arba (it is Hebron), in the hill-country of Judah; and beyond the Jordan, at Jericho eastward, they have given Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain, out of the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead out of the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan out of the tribe of Manasseh. These have been cities of meeting for all the sons of Israel, and for a sojourner who is sojourning in their midst, for the fleeing thither of any one smiting life inadvertently, and he doth not die by the hand of the redeemer of blood till his standing before the company.

and they give to them the cities of refuge, Shechem and its suburbs in the hill-country of Ephraim, and Gezer and its suburbs,

And the men say unto her, 'We are acquitted of this thine oath which thou hast caused us to swear: lo, we are coming into the land, this line of scarlet thread thou dost bind to the window by which thou hast caused us to go down, and thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all the house of thy father thou dost gather unto thee, to the house; and it hath been, any one who goeth out from the doors of thy house without, his blood is on his head, and we are innocent; and any one who is with thee in the house, his blood is on our head, if a hand is on him;read more.
and if thou declare this our matter, then we have been acquitted from thine oath which thou hast caused us to swear.' And she saith, 'According unto your words, so it is;' and she sendeth them away, and they go; and she bindeth the scarlet line to the window.

And David saith unto his heart, 'Now am I consumed one day by the hand of Saul; there is nothing for me better than that I diligently escape unto the land of the Philistines, and Saul hath been despairing of me -- of seeking me any more in all the border of Israel, and I have escaped out of his hand.' And David riseth, and passeth over, he and six hundred men who are with him, unto Achish son of Maoch king of Gath; and David dwelleth with Achish in Gath, he and his men, each one with his household, even David and his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail wife of Nabal the Carmelitess.read more.
And it is declared to Saul that David hath fled to Gath, and he hath not added any more to seek him. And David saith unto Achish, 'If, I pray thee, I have found grace in thine eyes, they give to me a place in one of the cities of the field, and I dwell there, yea, why doth thy servant dwell in the royal city with thee?' And Achish giveth to him in that day Ziklag, therefore hath Ziklag been to the kings of Judah till this day. And the number of the days which David hath dwelt in the field of the Philistines is days and four months; and David goeth up and his men, and they push unto the Geshurite, and the Gerizite, and the Amalekite, (for they are inhabitants of the land from of old), as thou comest in to Shur and unto the land of Egypt, and David hath smitten the land, and doth not keep alive man and woman, and hath taken sheep, and oxen, and asses, and camels, and garments, and turneth back, and cometh in unto Achish. And Achish saith, 'Whither have ye pushed to-day?' and David saith, 'Against the south of Judah, and against the south of the Jerahmeelite, and unto the south of the Kenite.' Neither man nor woman doth David keep alive, to bring in word to Gath, saying, 'Lest they declare it against us, saying, Thus hath David done, and thus is his custom all the days that he hath dwelt in the fields of the Philistines.' And Achish believeth in David, saying, 'He hath made himself utterly abhorred among his people, in Israel, and hath been to me for a servant age-during.'

as to him who hath not laid wait, and God hath brought to his hand, I have even set for thee a place whither he doth flee.

and have prepared to yourselves cities -- cities of refuge they are to you -- then fled thither hath a man-slayer, smiting a person unawares, and the cities have been to you for a refuge from the redeemer, and the man-slayer doth not die till his standing before the company for judgment. As to the cities which ye give -- six are cities of refuge to you;read more.
the three of the cities ye give beyond the Jordan, and the three of the cities ye give in the land of Canaan; cities of refuge they are. To sons of Israel, and to a sojourner, and to a settler in their midst, are these six cities for a refuge, for the fleeing thither of any one smiting a person unawares. And if with an instrument of iron he hath smitten him, and he dieth, he is a murderer: the murderer is certainly put to death. And if with a stone in the hand, wherewith he dieth, he hath smitten him, and he dieth, he is a murderer: the murderer is certainly put to death. Or with a wooden instrument in the hand, wherewith he dieth, he hath smitten him, and he dieth, he is a murderer: the murderer is certainly put to death. 'The redeemer of blood himself doth put the murderer to death; in his coming against him he doth put him to death. And if in hatred he thrust him through, or hath cast anything at him by lying in wait, and he dieth; or in enmity he hath smitten him with his hand, and he dieth; the smiter is certainly put to death; he is a murderer; the redeemer of blood doth put the murderer to death in his coming against him. 'And if, in an instant, without enmity, he hath thrust him through, or hath cast at him any instrument, without lying in wait; or with any stone wherewith he dieth, without seeing, and causeth it to fall upon him, and he dieth, and he is not his enemy, nor seeking his evil; then have the company judged between the smiter and the redeemer of blood, by these judgments. 'And the company have delivered the man-slayer out of the hand of the redeemer of blood, and the company have caused him to turn back unto the city of his refuge, whither he hath fled, and he hath dwelt in it till the death of the chief priest, who hath been anointed with the holy oil. And if the man-slayer at all go out from the border of the city of his refuge whither he fleeth, and the redeemer of blood hath found him at the outside of the border of the city of his refuge, and the redeemer of blood hath slain the man-slayer, blood is not for him; for in the city of his refuge he doth dwell till the death of the chief priest; and after the death of the chief priest doth the man-slayer turn back unto the city of his possession. 'And these things have been to you for a statute of judgment to your generations, in all your dwellings: whoso smiteth a person, by the mouth of witnesses doth one slay the murderer; and one witness doth not testify against a person -- to die. And ye take no atonement for the life of a murderer who is condemned -- to die, for he is certainly put to death; and ye take no atonement for him to flee unto the city of his refuge, to turn back to dwell in the land, until the death of the priest.

three cities thou dost separate for thee in the midst of thy land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee to possess it. Thou dost prepare for thee the way, and hast divided into three parts the border of thy land which Jehovah thy God doth cause thee to inherit, and it hath been for the fleeing thither of every man-slayer. And this is the matter of the man-slayer who fleeth thither, and hath lived: He who smiteth his neighbour unknowingly, and is not hating him heretofore,read more.
even he who cometh in with his neighbour into a forest to hew wood, and his hand hath driven with an axe to cut the tree, and the iron hath slipped from the wood, and hath met his neighbour, and he hath died -- he doth flee unto one of these cities, and hath lived, lest the redeemer of blood pursue after the man-slayer when his heart is hot, and hath overtaken him (because the way is great), and hath smitten him -- the life, and he hath no sentence of death, for he is not hating him heretofore; therefore I am commanding thee, saying, Three cities thou dost separate to thee. And if Jehovah thy God doth enlarge thy border, as He hath sworn to thy fathers, and hath given to thee all the land which He hath spoken to give to thy fathers -- when thou keepest all this command to do it, which I am commanding thee to-day, to love Jehovah thy God, and to walk in His ways all the days -- then thou hast added to thee yet three cities to these three; and innocent blood is not shed in the midst of thy land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee -- an inheritance, and there hath been upon thee blood. And when a man is hating his neighbour, and hath lain in wait for him, and risen against him, and smitten him -- the life, and he hath died, and he hath fled unto one of these cities, then the elders of his city have sent and taken him from thence, and given him into the hand of the redeemer of blood, and he hath died; thine eye hath no pity on him, and thou hast put away the innocent blood from Israel, and it is well with thee.

And Jehovah speaketh unto Joshua, saying, 'Speak unto the sons of Israel, saying, Give for you cities of refuge, as I have spoken unto you by the hand of Moses, for the fleeing thither of a man-slayer smiting life inadvertently, without knowledge; and they have been to you for a refuge from the redeemer of blood.read more.
When one hath fled unto one of these cities, and hath stood at the opening of the gate of the city, and hath spoken in the ears of the elders of that city his matter, then they have gathered him into the city unto them, and have given to him a place, and he hath dwelt with them. 'And when the redeemer of blood doth pursue after him, then they do not shut up the man-slayer into his hand, for without knowledge he hath smitten his neighbour, and is not hating him hitherto; and he hath dwelt in that city till his standing before the company for judgment, till the death of the chief priest who is in those days -- then doth the man-slayer turn back and hath come unto his city, and unto his house, unto the city whence he fled.'

And they sanctify Kedesh in Galilee, in the hill-country of Naphtali, and Shechem in the hill-country of Ephraim, and Kirjath-Arba (it is Hebron), in the hill-country of Judah; and beyond the Jordan, at Jericho eastward, they have given Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain, out of the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead out of the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan out of the tribe of Manasseh. These have been cities of meeting for all the sons of Israel, and for a sojourner who is sojourning in their midst, for the fleeing thither of any one smiting life inadvertently, and he doth not die by the hand of the redeemer of blood till his standing before the company.

Thou dost prepare for thee the way, and hast divided into three parts the border of thy land which Jehovah thy God doth cause thee to inherit, and it hath been for the fleeing thither of every man-slayer.