Deuteronomy 19:1 – 13 “When the LORD your God has cut off the nations whose land He is giving you, and when you have driven them out and settled in their cities and houses, then you are to set apart for yourselves three cities within the land that the LORD your God is giving you to possess. You are to build roads for yourselves and divide into three regions the land which the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, so that any manslayer can flee to these cities.
Now this is the situation regarding the manslayer who flees to one of these cities to save his life, having killed his neighbor accidentally, without intending to harm him: If he goes into the forest with his neighbor to cut timber and swings his ax to chop down a tree, but the blade flies off the handle and strikes and kills his neighbor, he may flee to one of these cities to save his life.
Otherwise, the avenger of blood might pursue the manslayer in a rage, overtake him if the distance is great, and strike him dead though he did not deserve to die, since he did not intend any harm. This is why I am commanding you to set apart for yourselves three cities.
And if the LORD your God enlarges your territory, as He swore to your fathers, and gives you all the land He promised them, and if you carefully keep all these commandments I am giving you today, loving the LORD your God and walking in His ways at all times, then you are to add three more cities to these three.
Thus innocent blood will not be shed in the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, so that you will not be guilty of bloodshed. If, however, a man hates his neighbor and lies in wait, attacks him and kills him, and then flees to one of these cities, the elders of his city must send for him, bring him back, and hand him over to the avenger of blood to die. You must show him no pity. You are to purge from Israel the guilt of shedding innocent blood, that it may go well with you.”
Tragedies happen! Two men are carrying a heavy rock, one slips and falls, and the rock crushes the other man. Two men are cutting wood and suddenly an axe head flies off, striking the second man and killing him instantly. In modern times, one vehicle might hit a patch of black ice, crashing into another vehicle and killing the occupants of the second vehicle. The examples are endless. Many times when tragedies occur, we want to blame God, forgetting that we live in a fallen sinful world. But God in His mercy is already aware of the potential for tragedies and the possibility that an innocent person might be blamed.
At the time this command was given, the law of lex talionis prevailed – “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” Anyone causing the death of another person accidentally could still be hunted down by one of the dead person’s relatives, here designated as “the avenger of blood.” If the innocent person involved in the tragedy could not reach shelter quickly, he or she might be killed. The shedding of innocent blood would bring curses on a land; therefore, God ordered that six cities of refuge be established. The innocent person could run to one of these cities and remain there in safety.
What if the murder was premeditated and the murderer fled to a city of refuge? At that point the city elders were charged with removing the murderer from their midst and handing him over to the avenger of blood to die, showing no pity.
APPLICATION: It was an unimaginable tragedy! One of our cousins was felling trees with his teenage grandson whom he loved dearly. One tree that had been partially cut suddenly fell in a wrong direction, striking the grandson and killing him instantly. (Lumberjacks call such trees “widow makers with good reason.”)This tragedy devastated our cousin, who blamed himself and grieved for the rest of his life.
No matter how careful we are, any one of us might accidentally do something that will hurt, maim, or kill another. We are not careful with our words, and those words might be as devastating as a knife to the heart if taken wrongly. We commit little murders every day without realizing it.
These days we don’t have cities of refuge; instead, Jesus Christ has shed his blood for our sins on the cross at Calvary so that all those who believe in Him may find refuge in God the Father. Christmas is approaching and Christians are celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ who is the Prince of Peace. 1 John 1:8-10 tells us, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar, and His word is not in us.”
All of us are stuck with a sin problem. What can we do about it?” So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us.”(Hebrews 6:18)
Jesus has come to give all of us hope and to free us from our sins. But the choice is ours; we can accept what Jesus has done for us and believe in Him, or we can refuse.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help everyone who reads these words to realize their need for refuge from themselves and from their sins. Help them to accept the reality of Jesus’ birth, life, and sacrifice of Himself for their sins. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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