Refuge is an interesting concept for many of us as so few of us have ever needed to take refuge in the truest sense of seeking to protect our physical lives, nor have many of us ever been in the position to offer refuge to another person. Beyond that, while many of us are familiar with the word refuge I tend to think that there are very few among us who truly understand the full meaning and import of that word and it is a word that we, as Christians, should be intimately familiar with.
According to dictionary.com the word refuge is a noun with three separate meanings, but it is the third definition that is the most complete. That definition of refuge is, “anything to which one has recourse for aid, relief, or escape.” Throughout the Bible, we find many references to the Lord in this manner notably throughout the Psalms. Psalm 46:1 describes God as “our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble.” When we turn to Psalm 28:7 we are told that, “The Lord is my strength and my shield; My heart trusted in Him, and I am helped.” As a final example anyone who has seen the movie Saving Private Ryan recalls that the sniper, Private Jackson, in the final fight scene from the film quotes Psalm 144:2 which describe God as, “My lovingkindness and my fortress, My high tower and my deliverer, My shield and the One in whom I take refuge.”
Generally speaking, that kind of refuge in God as spoken of in the Psalms is a referring to a spiritual refuge rather than a real and physical refuge here on earth. That’s not, of course, to say that earthly refuges are not also something that are needed in some situations. One notable example of refuge being necessary and, in many cases, provided was during the Holocaust when many people both Christians and non-Christians opened up their homes and businesses to house Jews, Gypsies, and others that were being targeted by the Gestapo. Names like Oskar Schindler and Cornelia ten Boom resonate with us today specifically because of their actions in providing a refuge for targeted people during World War II.
Because the concept of refuge, and its physical manifestation is such an important concept to grasp when discussing Christianity and our faith in Christ with others today it should come as no surprise that it was a concept, both in theory and in form, that was accepted and utilized by the ancient Israelites as we discover today in our lesson from the twentieth chapter of the Book of Joshua, which details the six cities in Canaan that were specifically designated as cities of refuge.
So, let’s go ahead and get started on the topic of cities of refuge so we can see what lessons we have to learn from the Book of Joshua today. If you all will go ahead and turn with me in your Bibles to Joshua 20:2-3 we’ll read our passage of Scripture for today:
2 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘Appoint for yourselves cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you through Moses, 3 that the slayer who kills a person accidentally or unintentionally may flee there; and they shall be your refuge from the avenger of blood.
Now, in these three verses God is speaking directly to Joshua and reminding Joshua of what had previously been commanded to Moses. Namely, to set up the cities of refuge in the Promised Land as Moses had been commanded to do. I think that, sometimes, we have the wrong idea about what these Cities of Refuge are. I know I certainly did before I began looking into what was meant and so, to clear up our misconceptions we need to first address exactly what Cities of Refuge are.
The first thing that is clearly represented in these Cities of Refuge are is radical new idea. As alluded to here in verse three the typical response to bodily violence was to immediately seek redress. Indeed, when we look to Exodus 21 we find four verses, twelve and twenty-three through twenty-five, that describe how the law code of the ancient Israelites worked at that time. In verse 11 we read:
12 “He who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death.
When we read a bit further down in Exodus 21 we also find this in verses 23-25:
23 But if any harm follows, then you shall give life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,25 burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.
This legal code was also reminiscent of similar ancient legal codes, for example Hammurabi’s Code in ancient Babylon which laid out its laws in much the same way. In short, it was similar to a very literal interpretation of the Golden Rule, basically presenting that as you do unto others so shall it be done unto you. If you killed someone, you should yourself also be killed. It was that simple.
That’s what makes the Cities of Refuge such a radical idea, because for the first time those who are guilty of killing another will have a place that they could flee to in order to take refuge and be safe from the blood vengeance of the family of the individual they had killed, at least until the accused had a chance to be heard in some kind of a court before a judge (1). Not only does that happen with the Cities of Refuge, but it is also among the first times in recorded human history that we see a criminal distinction being made between the willful murder of another human being and the accidental killing of another person, which we today refer to as manslaughter (2).
There is another fact that we must understand about these sanctuary cities as well. While they do provide sanctuary for someone guilty of killing another person until they can have their day in court, as we would say, they absolutely do not provide the full principle of sanctuary as we generally understand it. Therefore, you could not commit any crime under the sun and then flee to one of these sanctuary cities to be safe from the consequences of your actions (3). The sanctuary cities could only be used in cases of murder and manslaughter to ensure that those cases were fairly heard and adjudicated, even then those who were found guilty of murder would find no sanctuary in one of these six cities (4).
Now that we have a better understanding of exactly what the Cities of Refuge are and how they were to function let’s go ahead and move on to Joshua 20:7-8 to find where these cities were located, and once we are armed with that information we can begin to see some parallels between the refuge found in these cities and the refuge that we find in Christ. That passage from Joshua reads as follows:
7 So they appointed Kedesh in Galilee, in the mountains of Naphtali, Shechem in the mountains of Ephraim, and Kirjath Arba (which is Hebron) in the mountains of Judah. 8 And on the other side of the Jordan, by Jericho eastward, they assigned Bezer in the wilderness on the plain, from the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gilead, from the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan, from the tribe of Manasseh.
Now, if you know anything about how the ancient land of Canaan was laid out in terms of where these cities were located, you should notice something right away. In fact, even if you don’t the Bible itself helps you to find this information by noting that three of these cities were in the east and three were in the west.
By simply knowing, in rough terms, we discover the first of our lessons from this passage and the first of its parallels to the refuge we find in Christ. That lesson, namely, is that these cities were selected and placed in such a way so as to provide everyone in the land of Israel, both Israelite and Gentile, with a nearly equal ability to access on of the sanctuaries if they had need of it (5).
In the same way those who profess a faith in Christ and the redemptive act that He made for us on the Cross at Calvary have equal access to the forgiveness that God has offered to everyone. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you live in the world or what you may have done during your lifetime. God, through what Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross, is waiting to forgive you and accept you as one of His children whether you’re in the mountains of Japan, the fields of Kansas, a prison cell, living under a bridge, or gallivanting around Europe.
Christ demonstrates this equality of access to us through the Gospel accounts that record some of the deeds and miracles that He performed during His ministry. Jesus heals the servant of the Roman Centurion in Luke 7:1-10, He ministers to the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4, and in Mark 5:21-43 Christ raises a young Jewish girl from the dead. Through those actions Jesus graphically demonstrates for us that the Kingdom of God that He has come to usher in is a Kingdom of equality, a Kingdom that is for everyone and in which all might find a refuge from the wages of sin.
The next thing we notice from this passage in Joshua is that there are no special privileges granted to anyone. We’re not told anywhere here in Joshua 20 that only the wealthy who commit manslaughter may gain a refuge, or if someone who is quite wealthy murders another person they’ll be let off the hook for that act. Instead we’re told in general terms what the Cities of Refuge are, how they may be used, and where they are to be located within Promised Land.
In short, beyond finding equality of access we also find equality of station.
Christ also demonstrates this quality for us as well. God doesn’t care if you’re wealthy enough to live in a mansion here on earth or if you’re so destitute that you have to sleep on a park bench under some newspaper. What God does care about is that you accept that Jesus died on the Cross as a means of atoning for your sins, that you accept that you’re an imperfect sinner in need of that act of grace, and that you truly and earnestly repent of the wrongdoings that you have committed and are going to continue to commit here in a fallen world.
Throughout the Gospels Jesus demonstrates this quality as well during His ministry. In Luke 19 we have the story of Zacchaeus the tax collector who climbs a tree so he can see Jesus. Jesus, knowing that the exceedingly wealthy tax collector is there, calls out to him and they go to Zacchaeus’ home to share a meal, something that was a big deal in ancient Judea. Jesus also spends time in conversation with, and sharing meals with, the wealthy scribes and the Pharisees that comprised the religious elite in Israel during the time of His ministry. Indeed, in Luke 5:27-32 Jesus reminds them that a doctor comes to heal those who are sick, not those who are healthy. At the same time we also have the recounted events in Luke 17:11-19 where Christ heals ten men with leprosy who had been cast out from their community. Through His acts of ministry to the wealthy and the poor alike, Jesus demonstrates that the love and forgiveness of God are for all people and all may accept Him just as the Cities of Refuge could be accessed and taken advantage of by all people from all walks of life.
Finally, with that understanding of the Cities of Refuge we come to the realization that these cities represent early attempts by the Israelite people to provide equality of justice. They were a means of trying to provide for all sides of a story to be heard and considered in cases that were brought up where one person had killed another. Similarly, we know that through our faith in Christ we are also all afforded equality in justice. We know that there is no sinner, no person, that the cleansing blood of Christ shed at Calvary for us cannot redeem. Everyone from so pious an individual as Mother Teresa to as dark an individual as convicted serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer can be redeemed by Christ, if they only come to the foot of the Cross and accept what Jesus has done for them. Similarly, we know that all those who reject Christ and the freely given gift of grace will also receive equality in justice through eternal separation from God.
Today, we’ve taken a look at Joshua 20 which discusses the Cities of Refuge that were established by the ancient Israelites. Through understanding what those cities were, how they operated, and where they were located we’ve come to a better understanding of how the ancient Israelites, under the direction of God and Joshua, sought to begin establishing a judicial system that would provide for a fair trial for individuals that took the lives of others. In gaining that understanding we’ve also witness the clear ways in which those same principles parallel the forces that were at work when Christ died on the Cross for us and the equality that we can all claim as Children of God.
Works Cited:
(1) Dummelow, Rev. J.R., editor. A Commentary on the Holy Bible by Various Writers. Dallas: The Macmillan Company, 1954, pg. 153.
(2) Dummelow, 153.
(3) Dummelow, 153.
(4) Dummelow, 153.
(5) Dummelow, 153.
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