NumbersChapter 35

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The LORD spoke to Moses on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho:

"Command the Israelites to give the Levites towns to live in out of the inheritance they possess, and give the Levites pastureland around those towns.

The towns will be theirs to live in, and the pastureland will be for their livestock, their goods, and all their animals.

The pastureland around the towns you give the Levites shall extend a thousand cubits out from the town wall on every side.

Outside the town, measure two thousand cubits on the east side, two thousand on the south, two thousand on the west, and two thousand on the north, with the town in the center. This will be the pastureland for their towns.

Among the towns you give the Levites there shall be six cities of refuge, to which anyone who has killed a person may flee. To these add forty-two more towns.

In all you are to give the Levites forty-eight towns, together with their pastureland.

The towns you give from the holdings of the Israelites shall be taken in proportion: from a larger tribe take more, from a smaller tribe take fewer. Each tribe is to give the Levites towns according to the size of its inheritance."

The LORD said to Moses:

"Speak to the Israelites and say to them: When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan,

select certain towns to be your cities of refuge, to which a person who has killed someone unintentionally may flee.

They will be your refuge from the avenger, so that the one accused of murder does not die until he has stood trial before the assembly.

The six towns you give shall be your cities of refuge.

Give three of them on the east side of the Jordan and three in the land of Canaan as cities of refuge.

These six towns will be a place of refuge for the Israelites, for the foreigner, and for the stranger living among them, so that anyone who kills a person unintentionally may flee there.

If a man strikes someone with an iron object so that he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer must be put to death.

Or if a man has a stone in his hand that can kill, and he strikes someone so that he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer must be put to death.

Or if a man has a wooden object in his hand that can kill, and he strikes someone so that he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer must be put to death.

The avenger of blood is to put the murderer to death; when he finds him, he shall kill him.

If a man shoves another out of hatred, or deliberately throws something at him so that he dies,

or in hostility strikes him with his hand so that he dies, the one who struck him must be put to death; he is a murderer. The avenger of blood shall kill the murderer when he meets him.

But if he shoves him suddenly, without hostility, or throws some object at him unintentionally,

or without seeing him drops on him a stone that can kill, and he dies—though he was not his enemy and did not intend him harm—

then the assembly must judge between the accused and the avenger of blood according to these regulations.

The assembly is to protect the one accused of murder from the avenger of blood and send him back to the city of refuge to which he fled. He must stay there until the death of the high priest who was anointed with the holy oil.

But if he ever leaves the boundary of the city of refuge to which he has fled,

and the avenger of blood finds him outside the boundary of his city of refuge and kills him, the avenger is not guilty of bloodshed;

for the accused must remain in his city of refuge until the death of the high priest. Only after the death of the high priest may he return to his own property.

These are to be legal statutes for you throughout your generations, wherever you live.

Anyone who kills a person is to be put to death on the testimony of witnesses; no one is to be put to death on the testimony of a single witness.

Do not accept a ransom for the life of a murderer who deserves to die; he must surely be put to death.

Do not accept a ransom for anyone who has fled to a city of refuge, allowing him to go back and live on his own land before the death of the high priest.

Do not pollute the land where you live. Bloodshed pollutes the land, and no atonement can be made for the land on which blood has been shed except by the blood of the one who shed it.

Do not defile the land where you live and where I dwell, for I, the LORD, dwell among the Israelites."

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Summary2

Chapter 35

Main Theme: Establishment of Levitical cities and a refuge system to protect against blood guilt and preserve the purity of the land.

Content: The Lord commands Israel to give the Levites 48 cities with surrounding pastureland from the inheritance portions of the tribes. Six of these are to be cities of refuge where someone who has killed another unintentionally can seek protection from the avenger of blood. Intentional murder requires the death penalty, while unintentional killing requires remaining in a city of refuge until the death of the high priest. Blood guilt defiles the land where the Lord dwells, and only the blood of the murderer can make atonement for it.

Key Terms/Images:

City of Refuge (עִיר מִקְלָט): A place where someone who has killed unintentionally can find protection from the avenger of blood.
Avenger of Blood (גֹּאֵל הַדָּם): A relative with the right to kill the one who took a family member's life.
Death of the High Priest: Marks the time when the murderer may leave the city of refuge and return home.
Purity of the Land: Blood guilt defiles the land where the Lord dwells and requires atonement.

Historical context

Historical and Cultural Context for Numbers 35

Places

The chapter concerns 48 Levitical cities scattered throughout the promised land, including six cities of refuge. Three of these were to be located east of the Jordan (later identified as Bezer, Ramoth in Gilead, and Golan) and three west of the Jordan (Kedesh, Shechem, and Hebron, according to Joshua 20). The placement was strategically planned so that no one would have an unreasonably long journey to a place of refuge. The detailed measurements for pastureland around the cities (1,000 cubits from the city wall, with a total area extending 2,000 cubits in each direction) reflect a carefully planned land allocation designed to secure the Levites' livelihood without their owning agricultural land.

Events and Customs

The city-of-refuge system represents a groundbreaking legal ordinance in the ancient world. While blood vengeance (gə'ullat haddam) was a widespread custom throughout the ancient Near East, where the nearest male relative had the duty to avenge a killing, this chapter introduced a distinction between intentional murder and unintentional manslaughter. This was unusual in contemporary legal systems. The law required a trial before the congregation ('edah) before a verdict could be rendered, and it explicitly forbade accepting ransom (kofer) for murder—a practice common in other cultures where wealthy murderers could buy their freedom.

Key Terms

Migrash (מִגְרָשׁ) – The word is often translated as "pastureland" or "suburb" and denotes the open area surrounding the Levitical cities. This was not agricultural land, but rather an area for livestock and other property. The term occurs almost exclusively in connection with the Levitical cities.

Go'el haddam (גֹּאֵל הַדָּם) – "The avenger of blood" or literally "the redeemer of blood." The role of go'el had several aspects in Israelite culture, including redeeming property and marrying widows (see Ruth). As the avenger of blood, he had both the right and the duty to pursue the killer, but the city-of-refuge system limited this right by requiring a trial.

Kofer (כֹּפֶר) – "Ransom" or "atonement payment." The prohibition against accepting kofer for murder (verses 31–32) emphasizes that human life has a value that cannot be measured in money. This stands in contrast to many other ancient law codes where financial compensation was the standard remedy for killing.

Chapter-Specific Findings

Archaeological investigations of cities identified as Levitical cities reveal interesting patterns. Several of the named cities of refuge, such as Shechem and Hebron, have long settlement histories and were located at important crossroads, which aligns with the text's intention regarding accessibility. The Laws of Hammurabi from Babylon (c. 1750 B.C.) and the Middle Assyrian laws contain provisions concerning killing and compensation but lack a corresponding city-of-refuge concept. The closest parallel is found in Hittite laws, which also distinguish between intentional and unintentional killing, but resolve this through financial compensation rather than a geographical refuge system.

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Key words7

Levitical cities — Cities that were given to the Levites, one of the twelve tribes of Israel, to live in and use as places of refuge.
Levites — One of the twelve tribes of Israel, chosen by God to carry out special religious duties and services in the tabernacle and later in the temple.
Avenger of blood — A person from the victim's family who was responsible for killing a murderer in case of homicide, as a form of vengeance and justice.
City of refuge — A safe place where someone who had committed unintentional manslaughter could seek protection from avengers of blood.
Murder — An intentional act in which a person takes another person's life with premeditation.
Unintentional killing — An accidental act in which a person takes another person's life without premeditation.
Priest — A person who performed religious ceremonies and sacrifices on behalf of the people in ancient Israel.