The Cities of Refuge
Joshua 20
Joshua 20
Joshua 20. This chapter recounts the ordinance of the cities of refuge freshly repeated to Joshua. These cities were places designated for individuals guilty of accidental manslaughter. They offered protection from the avenger of blood until proper judgment could be given. The cities of refuge serve as a twofold type: personally, they picture Christ as the place of refuge for the repentant sinner; prophetically, they reflect Israel’s responsibility in the crucifixion of Christ, which God attributed to ignorance, as acknowledged by both Jesus and Peter. In this light, Israel is like the manslayer, kept from their inheritance until the death of the High Priest—in this case, Christ in His heavenly priesthood. Israel’s national restoration awaits the end of that priesthood. Meanwhile, six cities were established, three on each side of the Jordan, ensuring that refuge was accessible within a day’s journey from anywhere in the land, showing God’s provision and mercy.
The Ordinance of the Cities of Refuge (20:1-6 )
CHAPTER 20
1 And Jehovah spoke to Joshua, saying, 2 Speak to the children of Israel, saying, Appoint for yourselves the cities of refuge, whereof I spoke unto you through Moses, 3 that the slayer who unwittingly without intent smiteth any one mortally may flee thither: and they shall be your refuge from the avenger of blood. 4 And he shall flee unto one of those cities and stand at the entrance of the city-gate, and shall declare his matter in the ears of the elders of that city; and they shall take him into the city unto them, and give him a place, that he may dwell among them. 5 And if the avenger of blood pursue after him, they shall not deliver the slayer up into his hand; for he smote his neighbour unwittingly, and hated him not previously. 6 And he shall dwell in that city, until he have stood before the assembly in judgment, until the death of the high-priest that shall be in those days; then shall the slayer return, and come unto his own city, and unto his own house, unto the city from whence he fled.
vv.1-6 The Purpose of the Cities. Though they had received it from the mouth of Moses in the wilderness, the Lord repeats to Joshua the ordinance of the cities of refuge. The purpose of the cities was to provide refuge for “the slayer”, one who accidentally killed someone else (manslaughter), while they waited to stand before the assembly in judgment. The “avenger of blood” would be the relative of the person who was killed, who might Seek to kill the one who is guilty of manslaughter.
Application of Cities of Refuge. There are two primary ways to appreciate the cities of refuge: the personal application to the believer, and the prophetic interpretation concerning Israel. For the believer, they speak of the guilty sinner personally fleeing to Christ for refuge; but prophetically, they are a precious type of God’s dealings with Israel, who, in their ignorance, killed the Christ. The Lord Jesus Himself, in the moment of His crucifixion, acknowledged this when He cried, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34), attributing their terrible act to ignorance. Later, Peter echoed this in Acts 3:17, saying, “And now, brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers.” In this sense, God judges them to be guilty—yet not willfully so, but guilty in ignorance, like Saul of Tarsus, who is himself a striking figure of Israel, being one “born out of due time” (1 Cor. 15:8). Six of the cities were appointed for those who had unintentionally shed blood, and such a manslayer was to remain outside his inheritance until the death of the high priest living in those days. And so it is with Israel: as long as Christ retains His present heavenly priesthood, Israel remains outside their inheritance, under the safe keeping of God. The present position of Christ—rejected and glorified—is a standing testimony to His rejection by the people, and His death in their midst. If Israel were to return now, it would be as though the shedding of His blood were a light matter, and the land would be defiled. But when this priesthood ends, Israel will be restored. Meanwhile, like those who dwell in the city without an earthly inheritance, the servants of God understand Israel’s condition and serve as a refuge, recognizing that the people remain under the watchful and gracious hand of God.
The Cities Named (20:7-9)
7 And they hallowed Kedesh in Galilee in the hill-country of Naphtali, and Shechem in the hill-country of Ephraim, and Kirjath-Arba, that is, Hebron, in the hill-country of Judah. 8 And beyond the Jordan from Jericho eastward, they assigned Bezer in the wilderness, in the plateau, out of the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead out of the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan of the tribe of Manasseh. 9 These were the cities appointed for all the children of Israel, and for the stranger that sojourneth among them, that whosoever smiteth any one mortally without intent might flee thither, and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood, until he stood before the assembly.
vv.7-9 The Location of the Cities. Only three cities are mentioned in the Pentateuch, but here we find three more are added. The cities were located with three on the west and three on the east of Jordan, distributed so that one was within a day’s journey of any place in Israel.