Cities of Refuge
Encyclopedia
The Cities of Refuge were towns in the Kingdom of Israel and Kingdom of Judah
in which the perpetrators of manslaughter
could claim the right of asylum
; outside of these cities, blood vengeance against such perpetrators was allowed by law. The Torah
names just six cities as being cities of refuge: Golan
, Ramoth
, and Bosor
, on the east
of the Jordan River, and Kedesh
, Shechem
, and Hebron
on the western side.
, the regulations concerning the cities of refuge state that, once he had claimed asylum, a perpetrator had to be taken from the city and put on trial; if the trial found that the perpetrator was innocent of murder, then the perpetrator had to be returned under guard (for their own protection) to the city in which they had claimed asylum. This law code treats blood money
as an unacceptable device that would compound the crime, insisting that atonement
can only be made by blood.
The Priestly Code states that no harm was allowed to come to the perpetrator once the Jewish high priest
had died, at which point the perpetrator was free to leave the city without fear; the Mishnah
states that the high priest's mother would traditionally supply clothing and food to those claiming asylum in the cities of refuge, so that these individuals would not wish for the death of her son. The Talmud
argues that the death of the high priest formed an atonement, as the death of pious individuals counted as an atonement, and, in its view, the high priest was extremely pious; Maimonides
argued that the death of the high priest was simply an event so upsetting to the Israelites that they dropped all thoughts of vengeance.
presents the regulations in a different manner and, rather than describing the perpetrator being put on trial, merely states that if the perpetrator is guilty of murder, the elders of the town in which the crime was committed should demand the perpetrator's return and hand him over without pity to the avenger of blood to be killed. The Deuteronomic Code does not give any role to the high priest or mention the terms on which the perpetrator could return home, but does state that roads should be built to the cities of refuge to ease the escape of the perpetrator to them; the Talmud states that, in accordance with the requirement to especially build roads to the cities of refuge, the roads to these cities were not only marked by signposts saying "Refuge", but the roads were 32 ells wide—twice the regulation width—and were particularly smooth and even, in order that fugitives were as unhindered as possible.
A chapter in the Book of Joshua
also reiterates the regulations for the cities of refuge, adding that when a perpetrator arrives at the city, he had to disclose to the city elders about the events that had occurred, after which they had to find him a place to live within the city. Textual scholars regard the chapter as being an insertion by the deuteronomist
, and, even in the Talmud, it is argued that the chapter had been moved and was originally part of the Torah as an aspect of the Deuteronomic Code; though the masoretic text
for this chapter includes a role for the death of the high priest, the Septuagint's version of the chapter does not mention it.
of deities was considered to extend to their religious sanctuaries and all that resided within, whether criminals, debtors, escaped slaves, priests, ordinary people, or, in some cases, passing cattle; biblical scholars suspect that Israelite culture was originally no different. In general, the area covered by these rights of sanctuary varied from a small area around the altar or other centrepiece to a large area beyond the limits of the town containing the sanctuary (the limits often being marked in some way), depending on the significance of the deity and the importance of the sanctuary; it was considered a greater crime to drag an individual from the sanctuary or to kill them there than it was to defile the sanctuary itself.
Biblical scholars perceive this simple right of asylum at sanctuaries as being presented by the Covenant Code
, which textual scholars
attribute to the 8th century BC. Biblical scholars also believe that this right was the context underlying the account in the Books of Kings
of Joab
and Adonijah
each fleeing from Solomon
to an altar, with their opponents being unwilling to attack them while they remained there; textual scholars regard these passages as being part of the Court History of David
, which they date to the 9th century BC, or earlier.
Over time, these general rights of asylum were gradually curtailed, as some sanctuaries had become notorious hotbeds of crime; in Athens
, for example, the regulations were changed so that slaves were only permitted to escape to the sanctuary of the temple of Theseus
. This is considered by scholars to be the reason that, in Israelite culture, the rights were restricted to just six locations by the time the Priestly Code was compiled—the late 7th century according to textual scholars—and it is thus regarded by biblical scholars as being no coincidence that the three cities of refuge to the west of the Jordan were also important ancient religious sanctuaries; little is known about the cities of refuge to the east of the Jordan (as of 1901), but scholars consider it reasonable to assume that they were once also important sanctuaries.
The Deuteronomic Code is regarded by textual scholars as dating from the reign of Josiah
, which postdates the fall of the Kingdom of Israel to the Assyria
ns; this is considered to be the reason that only three (unnamed) cities of refuge are mentioned in the Deuteronomic Code, with a further three only being added if the Israelite territory was expanded, as by the time of Josiah's reign, the cities east of the Jordan were no longer controlled by the Israelites. The lack of importance given by the Deuteronomic Code to the identity of the cities of refuge is considered by scholars to be an attempt to continue the right of asylum, even though the sanctuaries (apart from the Temple in Jerusalem
) had been abolished by Josiah's reforms.
offered to turn the Temple into an official place of sanctuary, though the offer was turned down.
The rabbinical sources differentiated between four forms of killing, sometimes giving examples:
According to classical rabbinical authorities, the cities of refuge were not places of protection, but places where atonement was made; Philo
explained this principle as being based on the theory that an innocent man would never be chosen by God as the instrument of another man's death, and therefore those claiming refuge at these cities must have committed some sin before they had killed, for which their exile acts as an atonement. Thus, these rabbinical authorities argued that if the perpetrator had died before reaching a city of refuge, their body still had to be taken there, and, if they had died before the high priest had, then their body had to be buried at the city of refuge until the high priest expired; even if the perpetrator lived beyond the death of the high priest, the rabbinical authorities forbade them from holding political office. Furthermore, since it was to be a place of atonement, the rabbinical authorities required that the perpetrator should always contemplate the fact that they had killed someone and should refuse any honour that the denizens of the city might grant them from time to time, unless the denizens persisted.
Kingdom of Judah
The Kingdom of Judah was a Jewish state established in the Southern Levant during the Iron Age. It is often referred to as the "Southern Kingdom" to distinguish it from the northern Kingdom of Israel....
in which the perpetrators of manslaughter
Manslaughter
Manslaughter is a legal term for the killing of a human being, in a manner considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is said to have first been made by the Ancient Athenian lawmaker Dracon in the 7th century BC.The law generally differentiates...
could claim the right of asylum
Right of asylum
Right of asylum is an ancient juridical notion, under which a person persecuted for political opinions or religious beliefs in his or her own country may be protected by another sovereign authority, a foreign country, or church sanctuaries...
; outside of these cities, blood vengeance against such perpetrators was allowed by law. The Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
names just six cities as being cities of refuge: Golan
Golan
Golan was a biblical city in Land of Israel. It was in the territory of Manasseh in the Bashan.Golan was the most northerly of the three cities of refuge east of the Jordan River . Manasseh gave this city to the Gershonite Levites .According to the Bible, the Israelites conquered Golan from the...
, Ramoth
Ramoth-Gilead
Ramoth-Gilead, , is a city of refuge east of the Jordan river; called "Ramoth in Gilead"...
, and Bosor
Bosor
Bosor was an ancient Biblical city and one of the six Cities of Refuge named in the Mosaic Law. It was located in Gilead, and was conquered by Judas Maccabeus. It is sometimes identified with modern-day Busr el-Bariri. Josephus comments on its conquest....
, on the east
Transjordan (Bible)
The Transjordan is used to describe an area of land in the Southern Levant lying east of the Jordan River that is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. The area is said to form part of an ill-defined area known as the land of Israel...
of the Jordan River, and Kedesh
Kedesh
The ruins of the ancient Canaanite village of Kedesh are located within the modern Kibbutz Malkiya in Israel on the Israeli-Lebanese border....
, Shechem
Shechem
Shechem was a Canaanite city mentioned in the Amarna letters, and is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible as an Israelite city of the tribe of Manasseh and the first capital of the Kingdom of Israel...
, and Hebron
Hebron
Hebron , is located in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judean Mountains, it lies 930 meters above sea level. It is the largest city in the West Bank and home to around 165,000 Palestinians, and over 500 Jewish settlers concentrated in and around the old quarter...
on the western side.
In the Priestly Code
In the Priestly CodePriestly Code
The Priestly Code is the name given, by academia, to the body of laws expressed in the Torah which do not form part of the Holiness Code, the Covenant Code, the Ritual Decalogue, or the Ethical Decalogue. The Priestly Code constitutes the majority of Leviticus, as well as some of the laws...
, the regulations concerning the cities of refuge state that, once he had claimed asylum, a perpetrator had to be taken from the city and put on trial; if the trial found that the perpetrator was innocent of murder, then the perpetrator had to be returned under guard (for their own protection) to the city in which they had claimed asylum. This law code treats blood money
Blood money (term)
Blood money is money or some sort of compensation paid by an offender or his family group to the family or kin group of the victim.-Particular examples and uses:...
as an unacceptable device that would compound the crime, insisting that atonement
Atonement in Judaism
Atonement in Judaism is the process of causing a transgression to be forgiven or pardoned.- In Rabbinic Judaism :In Rabbinic Judaism, atonement is achieved through some combination of*repentance*Temple service Atonement in Judaism is the process of causing a transgression to be forgiven or...
can only be made by blood.
The Priestly Code states that no harm was allowed to come to the perpetrator once the Jewish high priest
Kohen Gadol
The High Priest was the chief religious official of Israelite religion and of classical Judaism from the rise of the Israelite nation until the destruction of the Second Temple of Jerusalem...
had died, at which point the perpetrator was free to leave the city without fear; the Mishnah
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
states that the high priest's mother would traditionally supply clothing and food to those claiming asylum in the cities of refuge, so that these individuals would not wish for the death of her son. The Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
argues that the death of the high priest formed an atonement, as the death of pious individuals counted as an atonement, and, in its view, the high priest was extremely pious; Maimonides
Maimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
argued that the death of the high priest was simply an event so upsetting to the Israelites that they dropped all thoughts of vengeance.
In the Deuteronomic Code
The Deuteronomic CodeDeuteronomic Code
The Deuteronomic Code is the name given by academics to the law code within the Book of Deuteronomy. It contains "a variety of topics including religious ceremonies and ritual purity, civil and criminal law, and the conduct of war"...
presents the regulations in a different manner and, rather than describing the perpetrator being put on trial, merely states that if the perpetrator is guilty of murder, the elders of the town in which the crime was committed should demand the perpetrator's return and hand him over without pity to the avenger of blood to be killed. The Deuteronomic Code does not give any role to the high priest or mention the terms on which the perpetrator could return home, but does state that roads should be built to the cities of refuge to ease the escape of the perpetrator to them; the Talmud states that, in accordance with the requirement to especially build roads to the cities of refuge, the roads to these cities were not only marked by signposts saying "Refuge", but the roads were 32 ells wide—twice the regulation width—and were particularly smooth and even, in order that fugitives were as unhindered as possible.
A chapter in the Book of Joshua
Book of Joshua
The Book of Joshua is the sixth book in the Hebrew Bible and of the Old Testament. Its 24 chapters tell of the entry of the Israelites into Canaan, their conquest and division of the land under the leadership of Joshua, and of serving God in the land....
also reiterates the regulations for the cities of refuge, adding that when a perpetrator arrives at the city, he had to disclose to the city elders about the events that had occurred, after which they had to find him a place to live within the city. Textual scholars regard the chapter as being an insertion by the deuteronomist
Deuteronomist
The Deuteronomist, or simply D, is one of the sources underlying the Hebrew bible . It is found in the book of Deuteronomy, in the books of Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings and also in the book of Jeremiah...
, and, even in the Talmud, it is argued that the chapter had been moved and was originally part of the Torah as an aspect of the Deuteronomic Code; though the masoretic text
Masoretic Text
The Masoretic Text is the authoritative Hebrew text of the Jewish Bible and is regarded as Judaism's official version of the Tanakh. While the Masoretic Text defines the books of the Jewish canon, it also defines the precise letter-text of these biblical books, with their vocalization and...
for this chapter includes a role for the death of the high priest, the Septuagint's version of the chapter does not mention it.
Origin and development
In many ancient cultures, the inviolabilityInviolability
In religion and ethics, inviolability or sanctity of life is a principle of implied protection regarding aspects of sentient life which are said to be holy, sacred, or otherwise of such value that they are not to be violated...
of deities was considered to extend to their religious sanctuaries and all that resided within, whether criminals, debtors, escaped slaves, priests, ordinary people, or, in some cases, passing cattle; biblical scholars suspect that Israelite culture was originally no different. In general, the area covered by these rights of sanctuary varied from a small area around the altar or other centrepiece to a large area beyond the limits of the town containing the sanctuary (the limits often being marked in some way), depending on the significance of the deity and the importance of the sanctuary; it was considered a greater crime to drag an individual from the sanctuary or to kill them there than it was to defile the sanctuary itself.
Biblical scholars perceive this simple right of asylum at sanctuaries as being presented by the Covenant Code
Covenant Code
The Covenant Code, or alternatively Book of the Covenant, is the name given by academics to a text appearing in the Torah at Exodus - . Biblically, the text is the second of the law codes given to Moses by God at Mount Sinai...
, which textual scholars
Textual criticism
Textual criticism is a branch of literary criticism that is concerned with the identification and removal of transcription errors in the texts of manuscripts...
attribute to the 8th century BC. Biblical scholars also believe that this right was the context underlying the account in the Books of Kings
Books of Kings
The Book of Kings presents a narrative history of ancient Israel and Judah from the death of David to the release of his successor Jehoiachin from imprisonment in Babylon, a period of some 400 years...
of Joab
Joab
Joab the son of Zeruiah, was the nephew of King David and the commander of his army, according to the Hebrew Bible.- Name :...
and Adonijah
Adonijah
Adonijah was the fourth son of King David according to the book of Samuel , which is contained in the Bible.-Life:After the death of his elder brothers Amnon and Absalom, he became heir-apparent to the throne, but Solomon, a younger brother, was preferred to him. Adonijah, however, when his father...
each fleeing from Solomon
Solomon
Solomon , according to the Book of Kings and the Book of Chronicles, a King of Israel and according to the Talmud one of the 48 prophets, is identified as the son of David, also called Jedidiah in 2 Samuel 12:25, and is described as the third king of the United Monarchy, and the final king before...
to an altar, with their opponents being unwilling to attack them while they remained there; textual scholars regard these passages as being part of the Court History of David
Court History of David
The Court History of David is one of the two hypothetical main source documents of the Books of Samuel . The text is believed to cover most of 2 Samuel except for the first few chapters and a few more minor parts...
, which they date to the 9th century BC, or earlier.
Over time, these general rights of asylum were gradually curtailed, as some sanctuaries had become notorious hotbeds of crime; in Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, for example, the regulations were changed so that slaves were only permitted to escape to the sanctuary of the temple of Theseus
Theseus
For other uses, see Theseus Theseus was the mythical founder-king of Athens, son of Aethra, and fathered by Aegeus and Poseidon, both of whom Aethra had slept with in one night. Theseus was a founder-hero, like Perseus, Cadmus, or Heracles, all of whom battled and overcame foes that were...
. This is considered by scholars to be the reason that, in Israelite culture, the rights were restricted to just six locations by the time the Priestly Code was compiled—the late 7th century according to textual scholars—and it is thus regarded by biblical scholars as being no coincidence that the three cities of refuge to the west of the Jordan were also important ancient religious sanctuaries; little is known about the cities of refuge to the east of the Jordan (as of 1901), but scholars consider it reasonable to assume that they were once also important sanctuaries.
The Deuteronomic Code is regarded by textual scholars as dating from the reign of Josiah
Josiah
Josiah or Yoshiyahu or Joshua was a king of Judah who instituted major reforms. Josiah is credited by most historians with having established or compiled important Jewish scriptures during the Deuteronomic reform that occurred during his rule.Josiah became king of Judah at the age of eight, after...
, which postdates the fall of the Kingdom of Israel to the Assyria
Assyria
Assyria was a Semitic Akkadian kingdom, extant as a nation state from the mid–23rd century BC to 608 BC centred on the Upper Tigris river, in northern Mesopotamia , that came to rule regional empires a number of times through history. It was named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur...
ns; this is considered to be the reason that only three (unnamed) cities of refuge are mentioned in the Deuteronomic Code, with a further three only being added if the Israelite territory was expanded, as by the time of Josiah's reign, the cities east of the Jordan were no longer controlled by the Israelites. The lack of importance given by the Deuteronomic Code to the identity of the cities of refuge is considered by scholars to be an attempt to continue the right of asylum, even though the sanctuaries (apart from the Temple in Jerusalem
Temple in Jerusalem
The Temple in Jerusalem or Holy Temple , refers to one of a series of structures which were historically located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem, the current site of the Dome of the Rock. Historically, these successive temples stood at this location and functioned as the centre of...
) had been abolished by Josiah's reforms.
Asylum in classical Judea
The classical rabbinical writers regarded all the cities controlled by the Levites as being cities of refuge, although they considered that asylum could only be claimed against the will of a city's inhabitants if the city was one of the six main cities of refuge. Although there the six main cities of refuge were named in the Priestly Code, the Talmudic sources argued that other cities could, over time, be officially substituted for these six, to take account of changing political circumstances. The substitute cities of refuge were constrained to be only of moderate size, since, if they were too small, there could be scarcity of food, forcing the refugee to imperil himself by leaving the city to find sustenance, and, if they were too large, then it would be too easy for an avenger of blood to hide in the crowds; nevertheless, the surrounding region was required to be quite populous since that way, an attack by the avenger of blood could be more easily repelled. The altar of the Temple in Jerusalem also came to be regarded as a place of sanctuary, but only counted for the officiating priest, and even then only temporarily, as the priest ultimately had to be taken to a city of refuge; when Jerusalem was under Seleucid control, Demetrius IDemetrius I Soter
Demetrius I , surnamed Soter , was a ruler of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire....
offered to turn the Temple into an official place of sanctuary, though the offer was turned down.
The rabbinical sources differentiated between four forms of killing, sometimes giving examples:
- Complete innocence, for which no further action was necessary. This situation arises when someone is killed while the perpetrator is fulfilling their legal duties; for example, this situation arises if someone is accidentally killed by a teacher applying corporal punishmentCorporal punishmentCorporal punishment is a form of physical punishment that involves the deliberate infliction of pain as retribution for an offence, or for the purpose of disciplining or reforming a wrongdoer, or to deter attitudes or behaviour deemed unacceptable...
. - Negligence, which required exile to a city of refuge. This situation arises when someone is killed as a result of legal activity, which the perpetrator was not required to perform.
- Severe carelessness, for which exile is insufficient. This situation arises when someone is accidentally killed as a result of illegal activity by the perpetrator; for example, this situation arises if a shop owner fails to maintain their property, and it collapses and kills a legitimate customer.
- Murder, which was subject to the death penalty.
According to classical rabbinical authorities, the cities of refuge were not places of protection, but places where atonement was made; Philo
Philo
Philo , known also as Philo of Alexandria , Philo Judaeus, Philo Judaeus of Alexandria, Yedidia, "Philon", and Philo the Jew, was a Hellenistic Jewish Biblical philosopher born in Alexandria....
explained this principle as being based on the theory that an innocent man would never be chosen by God as the instrument of another man's death, and therefore those claiming refuge at these cities must have committed some sin before they had killed, for which their exile acts as an atonement. Thus, these rabbinical authorities argued that if the perpetrator had died before reaching a city of refuge, their body still had to be taken there, and, if they had died before the high priest had, then their body had to be buried at the city of refuge until the high priest expired; even if the perpetrator lived beyond the death of the high priest, the rabbinical authorities forbade them from holding political office. Furthermore, since it was to be a place of atonement, the rabbinical authorities required that the perpetrator should always contemplate the fact that they had killed someone and should refuse any honour that the denizens of the city might grant them from time to time, unless the denizens persisted.