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What is a city of refuge?


“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.