Numbers 35
1 Eight and forty cities for the Levites, with their suburbs, and measure thereof.
6 Six of them are to be cities of refuge.
9 The laws of murder and manslaughter.
31 No satisfaction for murder.
500 yards <0520 0505> [thousand cubits.]
The Septuagint reads [dischilious pecheis] "two thousand cubits," as in the following verse; but this reading is not acknowledged by any other ancient version, except the Coptic, nor by any of the MSS. collated by Kennicott and De Rossi. Various modes have been proposed for reconciling the accounts in these two verses, which appear in general to require full as much explanation as the text itself. The explanation of Maimonides is the only one that is intelligible, and appears perfectly satisfactory. "The suburbs," says he, "of the cities are expressed in the law to be 3,000 cubits on every side, from the wall of the city and outwards. The first 1,000 cubits are the suburbs; and the 2,000, which they measured without the suburbs, were for fields and vineyards." The whole therefore, of the city, suburbs, fields, and vineyards, may be represented by the following diagram:-- ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ Fields and vineyards. ³ ³ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ ³ ³ Suburbs. ³ ³ ³ ³ ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ City. ³ ³ ³ ³ ³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ ³ ³ ³ ³ 1,000 Cubits ³ ³ ³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ ³ ³ 2,000 Cubits ³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ
towns ............ six towns ... refuge ................... towns <05892 04733 08337> [six cities for refuge.]
give ................... someone ....... give <05414> [to them ye shall add. Heb. above them ye shall give.]
possession <0272> [possession.]
larger <07227 04592> [from them.]
allocated <05157> [he inheriteth. Heb. they inherit.]
designate <07136> [ye shall appoint.]
As the {goel,} or kinsman, had a right to avenge the death of his relation, by slaying the murderer wherever he found him, the appointment of these cities was a humane institution for the protection of the involuntary homicide; for they were designed only for the protection of such.
unintentionally <07684> [unawares. Heb. by error.]
avenger <01350> [from the avenger.]
stood <05975> [until he stand.]
towns ......... six towns <08337 05892> [six cities.]
three towns ............ three towns .......... towns <07969 05892> [three cities.]
hits <05221> [if he smite.]
murderer ... murderer <07523> [the.]
stone ... enough <068 03027> [throwing a stone. Heb. a stone of the hand.]
throws <01920> [if he thrust.]
intentionally <06660> [by laying.]
live ..... death <03427 04194> [abide in it.]
anointed <04886> [anointed.]
After the manslayer had been received into the city of refuge, the avenger of blood could only act as prosecutor; and the magistrates, in the presence of the people, were appointed to decide the cause according to the rules here laid down. Probably the accused person was tried at or near the place where the deceased had been slain, and where evidence could most easily be brought: and in case he was acquitted by the decision of the judges, and with the approbation of the people, he was conveyed back to the city of refuge, where he was protected as a kind of prisoner at large, till the death of the high priest; when the public loss, and the grief occasioned by it, might be supposed to swallow up all personal regrets and resentments: and then he was permitted to return to his house and estate. But if, in the mean while, he ventured to leave the city, and the avenger met him and slew him, he was supposed to merit his doom by thus neglecting the appointment of God for his preservation, and the avenger must not be punished. This shews that in other cases, if the avenger slew an innocent man on surmise, he was liable to the punishment of a murderer; but if, by the testimony of two credible witnesses, the man who had fled to the city of refuge was adjudged guilty, he must without fail be put to death.
blood ................ blood ........... blood <01818> [he shall not be guilty of blood. Heb. no blood shall be to him]
stayed <03427> [he should.]
death ....... after ... death <04194 0310> [after the death.]
accept <03947> [Moreover.]
guilty ... death ... must ...... death <04191 07563> [guilty of death. Heb. faulty to die.]
The region east of Jordan was nearly as long as that on the west, and therefore three cities were appointed in each division. One or other of these cities would be within half a day's journey of every part of the land; and as it would rarely happen that the avenger of blood would be on the spot, and none had a right to assault or detain the manslayer, at least if no malicious intention was manifest, the unhappy men would, therefore, get the start of their adversaries, and very few of them be overtaken before they gained the place of refuge. But then they must forsake their families, employments, most important interests, and dearest comforts; and they must neither loiter nor yield to weariness, nor regard difficulties, nor slacken their pace, till they had got safe within the walls of the city. The Jewish writers inform us, that to afford every facility to those who thus fled for their life, the road to these cities was always preserved in good repair; and way-posts, upon which was inscribed REFUGE were placed wherever needful, that they might not so much as hesitate for a moment.
pollute ......... defiles <02610> [it defileth.]
land ......... land .... land .... cleansed ............... person <0776 03722> [the land cannot be cleansed. Heb. there can be no expiation for the land.]
defile ... land <02930 0776> [Defile not.]
live ...... live <07931> [I dwell.]
in which ... live ...... live among <07931 08432> [dwell among.]
