“Speak to
the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you cross the Jordan into Canaan, select
some towns to be your cities of refuge, to which a person who has killed
someone accidentally may flee. They will be places of refuge
from the avenger, so that anyone accused of murder may not die before they
stand trial before the assembly.” Numbers 35:10-12
The
punishment for murder was death. If
there were at least two witnesses of that murder, the murderer could be
killed. However, in the case of an
accidental killing, the accused deserved a fair trial, safely away from the
avenging family. A city of refuge was
that place a person could safely hold out until the case was finalized.