Cities of Refuge

Fleeing to the City of Refuge (Numbers 35:11–28). From Charles Foster, The Story of the Bible, 1884.
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Location of the cities of refuge on a map of the Middle East

The cities of refuge (Hebrew: ערי המקלט ‘ārê ha-miqlāṭ) were six Levitical towns in the Kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of Judah in which the perpetrators of accidental manslaughter could claim the right of asylum. Maimonides, invoking talmudic literature, expands the city of refuge count to all 48 Levitical cities.[1] Outside of these cities, blood vengeance against such perpetrators was allowed by law.[2] The Bible names the six cities of refuge as follows: Golan, Ramoth, and Bosor to the east (left bank) of the Jordan River;[3] and Kedesh, Shechem, and Hebron on the western (right) side.[4]

  1. ^ Hilchot Rotzeach, ch. 8 par. 9
  2. ^ Metzger, Bruce M.; Coogan, Michael D., eds. (1993). The Oxford Companion to the Bible. Oxford University Press. p. 125. ISBN 0-19-504645-5.
  3. ^ Deuteronomy 4:43 and Joshua 20:8
  4. ^ Joshua 20:7