Cities of Refuge
Archimandrite Nikifor’s Biblical Encyclopedia
(Num. 35:10–15)—six Levitical cities appointed as places of protection for a person who had caused another’s death unintentionally. Human life was held sacred: intentional murder required judgment, while an accidental manslayer needed protection from the avenger of blood until the community could examine the case. Moses designated Bezer, Ramoth in Gilead, and Golan east of the Jordan; after the conquest, Joshua designated Kedesh in Galilee, Shechem, and Hebron west of the Jordan (Deut. 4:41–43; Josh. 20:1–9).