God gave the cities of refuge. There three things we can consider about these cities.

1 – The nature of these cities (vs. 1-6)

They were cities of refuge. There was no complicated court system in these days. It may be that a person accidentally kills another person. It was customer that a member of the family of the person who was killed would become an “avenger of blood” and kill the person. This was not right as the person was not a cold-blooded murderer. The person who had killed needed a place to hide from the “avenger of blood” and await justice. The cities of refuge were this sort of place. It was not a place of refuge for cold-blooded murderers. It was for those who had committed what we call today, manslaughter.

We have need of a city of refuge. We have put Jesus on the cross. We did it unwittingly and unknowingly. We have a city of refuge – Jesus Christ. If we refuse this city of refuge then there is no escape for us from the avenger of blood.

2 – The names of these cities (vs. 7-8)

There were six of these cities. All of these names tell us something about the Lord Jesus Christ, who is our refuge.

• Kedesh – “holy place, sacred, consecrated.” See Hebrews 12:14. Without holiness you cannot see God. How holy are you? We are given our holiness by the Lord Jesus Christ. It is imputed.
• Shechem – “strength, shoulder, burden.” See Isaiah 9:6. Christ is our strength. He carries us when we are weak.
• Hebron – “united, joined together, communion.” Christ provides us with fellowship and satisfaction.
• Bezer – “cut off, fortification, inaccessible.” Christ is our security. We have a hiding place. See Proverbs 18:10. He will hold you. You are secure.
• Ramoth – “exaltation, heights, heavenly.” See Acts 2:33. Jesus is exalted at the right hand of God. He is our sovereign. He is our King.
• Golan – “circle, circuit, hedged or walled in.” Christ is my sanctification. He makes me different from the world. See 2 Corinthians 6:14-18.

3 – The nearness of these cities (vs. 7-8)

Three of the cities are in the western part of the land and three cities in the eastern part of the land. They are on mountains where they could be seen. There were good roads that were kept in good repair and clearly marked.

The Lord is near to all those who call upon Him. See Romans 10:6-8. The Word of faith is near. It is in your mouth and your heart. It is being preached to you now. If you believe it then He is here. See Luke 10:13. There is a city of refuge for you and it is here and it is close.

See 2 Samuel 3:27-33. Abner was a robust, wise warrior. He had killed Asahel, the brother of Joab. Abner was killed by Joab – the avenger of blood. He was at Hebron, one of the cities of refuge, but he went outside the city. He met Joab at the gates of the city. He was wise but he was deceived by Joab. You can be wise but if you stand outside the city of refuge, you will die like a fool.

Categories: Joshua