“And the congregation shall deliver the slayer out of the hand of the revenger of blood, and the congregation shall restore him to the city of his refuge, whither he was fled: and he shall abide in it unto the death of the high priest, which was anointed with the holy oil” (Numbers 35:25).
TEXT — Numbers 35:25-32
Message
A commentator while discussing on the city of refuge writes that it “represented God’s concern for justice in a culture that did not always protect the innocent. These cities were six in number situated in the Levites’ cities. They were located throughout the land to protect those who accidentally or unintentionally committed a crime or murder or those awaiting trials of such cases.”
Today’s text explains what the duty of the congregation (the people) shall be concerning a slayer. It is their prerogative to deliver a slayer (somebody who killed unintentionally) from the hand of the blood avenger (i.e. the nearest relatives of a murdered person), from being killed. The slayer shall run to one of the cities of refuge for safety and shall abide there till the death of the high priest. But if the slayer shall at any time come out of the city of refuge and he is caught by the avenger of blood, he shall be killed. There shall be immediate judgment in the city of refuge and with the testimony of two or more witnesses shall the slayer be put to death, if found guilty. Where he is not guilty, he shall remain in the city of refuge till the death of the high priest because the blood of a fellow human being had been shed.
We learn from this arrangement that life is so important and no one should suffer what can be described as jungle justice. Moreover, we should be very careful not to shed the blood of people through careless acts. We are to honour judges among us and those given the authority to see to the well-being and protection of others.
Jesus Christ is our only city of refuge. He is the One we can run to for protection against Satan, the accuser of brethren. As long as we remain in Him, we are saved and protected.
Thought for the day
There is room enough in Christ for every sincere refuge seeker.
Listed among “500 most powerful people on the planet” by the Foreign Policy magazine in 2013, Pastor (Dr.) William F. Kumuyi is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry (DCLM) headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria. DCLM started in 1973 as a 15-member Bible study group right in Kumuyi’s apartment at University of Lagos where he was a lecturer. His revolutionary Bible teaching on personal holiness and commitment to evangelism soon gained so much traction and resulted in a widespread revival.
