4 Bible Verses about Cities of refuge

Most Relevant Verses

Numbers 35:6-34

And among the cities which ye shall give unto the Levites, there shall be six cities for refuge, which ye shall appoint so that the manslayer may flee there; and in addition to them ye shall give them forty-two cities. So all the cities which ye shall give to the Levites shall be forty-eight cities, the cities with their suburbs. And the cities which ye shall give shall be of the possession of the sons of Israel; from those that have much ye shall give many; but from those that have few ye shall give few, each one shall give of his cities unto the Levites according to his possession which he inherited.read more.
And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the sons of Israel and say unto them, When ye have passed the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then ye shall appoint yourselves cities to be cities of refuge for you that the manslayer who kills any person unawares may flee there. And they shall be unto you cities for refuge from the avenger that the manslayer not die until he stands before the congregation in judgment. And of these cities which ye shall give, six cities shall ye have for refuge. Ye shall give three cities on this side of the Jordan and three cities shall ye give in the land of Canaan, which shall be cities of refuge. These six cities shall be a refuge, both for the sons of Israel and for the stranger and for the sojourner among them that anyone that kills another person unawares may flee there. And if he smites him with an instrument of iron so that he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer shall surely be put to death. And if he smites him by throwing a stone with which he may die, and he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer shall surely be put to death. Or if he smites him with a hand weapon of wood with which he may die, and he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer shall surely be put to death. The kinsman avenger of blood shall slay the murderer; when he meets him, he shall slay him. But if he thrusts him out of hatred or hurls at him by laying in wait, so that he dies or out of enmity smites him with his hand so that he dies, he that smote him shall surely be put to death; for he is a murderer; the kinsman avenger of blood shall slay the murderer when he meets him. But if he thrusts him suddenly without enmity, or has cast upon him any thing without laying in wait, or with any stone, with which a man may die, seeing him not and casts it upon him that he dies, and was not his enemy, neither sought his harm, then the congregation shall judge between the slayer and the kinsman avenger of blood according to these laws. And the congregation shall deliver the manslayer out of the hand of the kinsman avenger of blood, and the congregation shall restore him to the city of his refuge, where he has fled, and he shall abide in it unto the death of the high priest, who was anointed with the holy oil. But if the manslayer shall at any time come outside the border of the city of his refuge where he has fled, and the kinsman avenger of blood finds him outside the borders of the city of his refuge, and the kinsman avenger of blood slays the manslayer, he shall not be guilty of his blood. He should have remained in the city of his 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. So these things shall be for a statute of rights unto you throughout your ages in all your dwellings. Whoever kills any person, the murderer shall be put to death by the mouth of witnesses, but one witness shall not testify against any person to cause him to die. Moreover ye shall take no ransom for the life of a murderer who is guilty of death, but he shall be surely put to death. And ye shall take no ransom for him that is fled to the city of his refuge, that he should come again to dwell in the land, until the death of the priest. So ye shall not pollute the land where ye are, for this blood shall defile the land; and the land cannot be reconciled of the blood that is shed therein except by the blood of the one that shed it. Defile not therefore the land which ye shall inhabit in the midst of which I dwell; for I the LORD dwell among the sons of Israel.

Deuteronomy 4:41-43

Then Moses separated three cities on this side of the Jordan toward the sunrising that the manslayer might flee there, who should kill his neighbour unawares and hated him not in times past and that fleeing unto one of these cities he might live: Namely, Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain country, of the Reubenites, and Ramoth in Gilead, of the Gadites, and Golan in Bashan, of the Manassites.

Deuteronomy 19:1-13

When the LORD thy God has cut off the Gentiles whose land the LORD thy God gives thee, and thou hast inherited them and dost dwell in their cities and in their houses, thou shalt separate three cities for thee in the midst of thy land, which the LORD thy God gives thee to inherit. Thou shalt prepare thee a way and divide the borders of thy land, which the LORD thy God gives thee to inherit, into three parts, so that every manslayer may flee there.read more.
And this is the case of the manslayer who is to flee there, that he may live: whoever kills his neighbour by mistake, whom he hated not in time past; and he who went into the woods with his neighbour to cut firewood and his hand fetched a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree and the head slipped from the handle and lighted upon his neighbour so that he died, he shall flee unto one of those cities and live, lest the avenger of the blood pursue the manslayer, while his heart is hot and overtake him, because the way is long, and slay him, whereas he was not worthy of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in time past. Therefore, I command thee, saying, Thou shalt separate three cities for thee. And if the LORD thy God enlarges thy borders, as he has sworn unto thy fathers, and gives thee all the land which he was to give unto thy fathers, when thou shalt keep all these commandments to do them, which I command thee this day: to love the LORD thy God, and to walk all the days in his ways, then shalt thou add three cities more for thee, besides these three, that innocent blood not be shed in thy land, which the LORD thy God gives thee for an inheritance, and the blood shall not be upon thee. But when any man hates his neighbour and lies in wait for him and rises up against him and smites him mortally that he dies and flees into one of these cities, then the elders of his city shall send and take him from there and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, and he shall die. Thine eye shall not pity him, but thou shalt put away the guilt of innocent blood from Israel that it may go well with thee.

Joshua 20:2-9

Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, Appoint the cities of refuge, of which I spoke unto you by the hand of Moses, so that the manslayer who kills any person in error and without knowledge may flee there, and they shall be your refuge from the avenger of blood. And he that flees unto one of these cities shall present himself at the entering of the gate of the city and shall declare his cause in the ears of the elders of that city; they shall receive him into the city among them and give him a place, that he may dwell among them.read more.
And when the avenger of blood pursues after him, they shall not deliver the manslayer up into his hand because he smote his neighbour by error, nor did he have enmity with him before. And he shall dwell in that city until he stands before the congregation for judgment and until the death of the high priest that shall be in those days; then shall the manslayer return, and come unto his own city and unto his own house unto the city from where he fled. Then they appointed Kedesh in Galilee in the mountain of Naphtali and Shechem in the mountain of Ephraim, and Kirjatharba, which is Hebron, in the mountain of Judah. And on the other side of the Jordan of Jericho eastward, they assigned Bezer in the wilderness upon 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 were the cities appointed for all the sons of Israel and for the stranger that sojourns among them that anyone who kills any person by error might flee there and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood until he stands before the congregation.

Bible Theasaurus

From Thematic Bible


Cities of refuge » Design of

Exodus 21:13

And if a man did not lie in wait but God delivered him into his hand, then I will appoint thee a place where he shall flee.

Numbers 35:11

then ye shall appoint yourselves cities to be cities of refuge for you that the manslayer who kills any person unawares may flee there.

Joshua 20:3

so that the manslayer who kills any person in error and without knowledge may flee there, and they shall be your refuge from the avenger of blood.

Cities of refuge » Names &c of

Deuteronomy 4:41-43

Then Moses separated three cities on this side of the Jordan toward the sunrising that the manslayer might flee there, who should kill his neighbour unawares and hated him not in times past and that fleeing unto one of these cities he might live: Namely, Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain country, of the Reubenites, and Ramoth in Gilead, of the Gadites, and Golan in Bashan, of the Manassites.

Joshua 20:7-8

Then they appointed Kedesh in Galilee in the mountain of Naphtali and Shechem in the mountain of Ephraim, and Kirjatharba, which is Hebron, in the mountain of Judah. And on the other side of the Jordan of Jericho eastward, they assigned Bezer in the wilderness upon 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.

Cities of refuge » Required to be » Easy of access

Deuteronomy 19:3

Thou shalt prepare thee a way and divide the borders of thy land, which the LORD thy God gives thee to inherit, into three parts, so that every manslayer may flee there.

Isaiah 62:10

Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; clear up, clear up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a banner as an example for the people.

Cities of refuge » Afforded no asylum to murderers

Exodus 21:14

But if a man comes presumptuously upon his neighbour to slay him with prudence, thou shalt take him from my altar that he may die.

Numbers 35:16-21

And if he smites him with an instrument of iron so that he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer shall surely be put to death. And if he smites him by throwing a stone with which he may die, and he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer shall surely be put to death. Or if he smites him with a hand weapon of wood with which he may die, and he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer shall surely be put to death. read more.
The kinsman avenger of blood shall slay the murderer; when he meets him, he shall slay him. But if he thrusts him out of hatred or hurls at him by laying in wait, so that he dies or out of enmity smites him with his hand so that he dies, he that smote him shall surely be put to death; for he is a murderer; the kinsman avenger of blood shall slay the murderer when he meets him.

Cities of refuge » Those admitted to » Obliged to remain in, until the high priest's death

Numbers 35:25

And the congregation shall deliver the manslayer out of the hand of the kinsman avenger of blood, and the congregation shall restore him to the city of his refuge, where he has fled, and he shall abide in it unto the death of the high priest, who was anointed with the holy oil.

Numbers 35:28

He should have remained in the city of his 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.

Cities of refuge » Those admitted to » Were put on their trial

Numbers 35:12

And they shall be unto you cities for refuge from the avenger that the manslayer not die until he stands before the congregation in judgment.

Numbers 35:24

then the congregation shall judge between the slayer and the kinsman avenger of blood according to these laws.

Cities of refuge » Illustrative » Of Christ

Isaiah 25:4

For thou hast been strength to the poor, strength to the needy in his distress, refuge from the storm, shadow from the heat, for the force of the violent is as a storm against the wall.

Cities of refuge » Illustrative » (the way to,) of Christ

Isaiah 35:8

And a highway shall be there and a way, and it shall be called The Way of Holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; and for those in it there shall be someone to go with them, in such a manner that the foolish shall not err therein.

Cities of refuge » Those admitted to » Not protected outside of

Numbers 35:26-27

But if the manslayer shall at any time come outside the border of the city of his refuge where he has fled, and the kinsman avenger of blood finds him outside the borders of the city of his refuge, and the kinsman avenger of blood slays the manslayer, he shall not be guilty of his blood.

Cities of refuge » Strangers might take advantage of

Numbers 35:15

These six cities shall be a refuge, both for the sons of Israel and for the stranger and for the sojourner among them that anyone that kills another person unawares may flee there.

Cities of refuge » Illustrative » Of the hope of the gospel

Hebrews 6:18

that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us,

Cities of refuge » Required to be » Open to all manslayers

Joshua 20:4

And he that flees unto one of these cities shall present himself at the entering of the gate of the city and shall declare his cause in the ears of the elders of that city; they shall receive him into the city among them and give him a place, that he may dwell among them.

Types of Christ » Cities of refuge

Numbers 35:6

And among the cities which ye shall give unto the Levites, there shall be six cities for refuge, which ye shall appoint so that the manslayer may flee there; and in addition to them ye shall give them forty-two cities.

Hebrews 6:18

that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us,

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