Numbers 35

As Israel waits on the plains of Moab, God tells Moses how the Levites will be provided for: forty-eight towns with pasturelands. Six of these become cities of refuge, where someone who kills by accident can run for safety. The chapter shows God’s care for the Levites, His justice for the murderer, His mercy for the unintentional killer, and the sacredness of life and of the land where He dwells.

Numbers 35:1-2

Israel is about to enter Canaan, and God speaks of the Levites. They received no tribal territory, so the other tribes must give them towns from their own inheritance. God provides for those who serve Him through the generosity of His people.

BSA: pasturelands (“suburbs, open fields”): These were open lands around each town, an edge of shared space beyond the houses.

See also: Numbers 18:20-24.

Numbers 35:3

The towns gave the Levites homes. The surrounding pasturelands let them keep their herds, flocks and other animals. They would live as ordinary families, with real needs met, while they served among all the tribes.

BSA: livestock (“animals, beasts”): Their animals were a real source of food and livelihood, so the land was not only for show.

Numbers 35:4-5

The measurements give each town a buffer of open land. The first thousand cubits from the wall is close pasture. The two thousand cubits on each side, with the city in the center, mark the wider grazing area. A cubit is roughly the length of a forearm.

BSA: cubits (“about the length of a forearm”): The measure was based on the human arm, so it was easy for ordinary people to picture.

Numbers 35:6

Six of the Levite towns are set apart as cities of refuge. A manslayer, someone who has killed a person, may run there for safety. The other forty-two Levite towns are given in addition. Those who served God also guarded a place of mercy.

BSA: refuge (“asylum, safe haven”): These towns were real places of protection for a person in danger of his life. flee (“escape, run for safety”): The man had to run, so he could not simply wait where he was.

See also: Joshua 20:7-9.

Numbers 35:7-8

The total is forty-eight towns, each with its pasturelands. Each tribe gives in proportion to its own inheritance, more from a large tribe and less from a small one. The load is shared fairly, and the Levites end up scattered through the whole nation.

BSA: proportion (“according to, relative to”): Each tribe’s gift was matched to what it had received, so the burden was fair.

Numbers 35:9-11

God speaks again, about what will happen after they cross the Jordan into Canaan. They must choose cities of refuge where a person who kills someone unintentionally may flee. The law makes room for mercy where the killing was an accident.

BSA: unintentionally (“without planning, by mistake”): The law turns on what was in the heart. Killing by mistake is treated differently from killing with a plan.

See also: Deuteronomy 19:1-3.

Numbers 35:12

In that day a close relative of the dead person acted as the avenger, with the duty to pursue the killer. The city of refuge keeps the accused alive until the community can hear his case. No one is to be killed before a fair trial.

BSA: avenger (“kinsman, redeemer”): The same Hebrew word for a family protector who buys back or defends his relatives. Here his duty is to answer for a death. assembly (“congregation, gathering of people”): The community as a whole, not a single angry man, decides the matter.

Hebrew: גֹּאֵל (goʾel, H1350) — “kinsman-redeemer, family avenger.” The same word is used for a relative who rescues a family member from slavery or debt. The family protector could also be the one who avenged a death.

See also: Ruth 4:1-6.

Numbers 35:13-15

Three cities are on the east side of the Jordan and three in Canaan itself, so that none is too far to reach. The refuge is open to Israelites and also to the foreigner and the stranger living among them. God’s mercy here has no favorites.

BSA: foreigner (“stranger, sojourner”): Even a person living in Israel without tribal rights could receive the same protection.

See also: Deuteronomy 4:41-43.

Numbers 35:16-18

Now the law describes real murder. Three examples are given: a blow with an iron tool, a stone big enough to kill, or a wooden weapon. In each case the weapon shows that the person meant to kill, and he must be put to death.

BSA: murderer (“one who takes a life, a killer”): The word marks someone who deliberately takes a life, not someone who caused a death by accident.

See also: Genesis 9:6; Exodus 21:12-14.

Numbers 35:19

The avenger of blood is the one who carries out the sentence. When he finds the murderer, he is to kill him. The family’s duty is made part of justice, so the dead person is not forgotten and the guilty does not escape.

BSA: blood (“life”): Blood stands for life itself, so shedding it is taking something that belongs to God.

Numbers 35:20-21

More cases of murder follow, this time showing the heart behind the act: a malicious push, an object thrown on purpose, or a blow struck in hatred. It does not matter whether a weapon was used. Hatred and intent make the killing murder.

BSA: hostility (“enmity, hatred”): The law looks at the grudge behind the act, since hatred is what makes a killing murder.

See also: 1 John 3:15.

Numbers 35:22-23

In contrast, a sudden push with no hostility, an object thrown without meaning to harm, or a heavy stone dropped without looking is only an accident. The man was no enemy and meant no harm. He is not treated as a murderer.

BSA: suddenly (“in an instant, without warning”): The act happened in a moment, with no plan and no history of anger behind it. enemy (“a foe, an adversary”): There was no quarrel between the two men to explain the death.

Numbers 35:24

The community must judge between the one who killed and the avenger, according to these rules. The law does not leave the matter to feeling. A neutral hearing decides whether the death was murder or accident.

BSA: congregation (“gathering of people, community”): The whole community takes responsibility for judging, so it is not left to the family alone.

Numbers 35:25

If the death was an accident, the assembly protects the man from the avenger and sends him back to his city of refuge. He must stay there until the high priest dies. It was a kind of sentence, but a merciful one: he kept his life.

BSA: protect (“rescue, deliver”): The community becomes the man’s rescuer, taking him out of the avenger’s reach. anointed (“set apart, consecrated”): The high priest was set apart for God, and the oil marks him as holy.

Hebrew: הַגָּדֹל (hag-gadol, H1419) — “the great (high) priest.” The title literally means the great priest, the highest of those who served between God and the people.

See also: Hebrews 9:11-12.

Numbers 35:26-28

If the man leaves the city’s borders and the avenger finds him, the avenger is not guilty for killing him. The man must stay inside until the high priest dies. Then he may go home to his own land. Safety was found only inside the place of refuge.

BSA: limits (“borders, boundaries”): The edge of the city marked the line between safety and danger. remain (“dwell, sit”): He was meant to settle there and live, not just visit.

See also: Joshua 20:6.

Numbers 35:29

This is no short-term arrangement. It is a permanent ordinance for all the generations, in every place where Israel lives. God wanted justice and mercy to stand together in the land for good.

BSA: ordinance (“rule, regulation”): It is a settled rule, not an idea left to each person’s opinion.

Numbers 35:30

No one may be put to death on the word of a single witness. Murder must be proved by several witnesses. This protects the innocent from false accusation, whether from spite or from honest mistake.

BSA: witnesses (“those who see, testify”): The law asks for people who saw the matter, not for rumor or suspicion.

See also: Deuteronomy 17:6; Deuteronomy 19:15.

Numbers 35:31

A murderer’s life cannot be bought. No payment can stand in for the life he took. Human life is too valuable to be traded for money, and the rich and poor are treated alike.

BSA: ransom (“payment or satisfaction”): Money was not permitted to satisfy the debt of a life taken on purpose.

Hebrew: כֹּפֶר (kofer, H3724) — “ransom, covering price.” The word means a payment that covers a debt or buys someone out of a penalty. Here God says no payment can cover deliberate murder.

Numbers 35:32

In the same way, money must not buy an early return for the one who fled to a refuge city. He cannot pay to leave before the high priest dies. The rule protects both the dead person’s family and the order God set.

BSA: ransom (“payment or satisfaction”): Neither side could buy a different result by paying, so the law stayed the same for all.

Numbers 35:33

Bloodshed pollutes the land. Murder is not only a crime against a person but a stain on the land that God gave. The stain is cleansed only by the death of the one who shed the blood. Life is serious in God’s eyes.

BSA: atonement (“expiation, covering”): The word speaks of a covering that removes guilt, and here only the murderer’s own life can do that. blood (“the life, the very essence”): Blood stands for life itself, which is why it has such weight before God.

See also: Genesis 4:10; Leviticus 17:11.

Numbers 35:34

The chapter ends with a reason beyond law: God Himself lives in the land among His people. Because He dwells there, they must not defile it. His presence calls His people to justice and mercy, and it is also their great privilege.

BSA: dwell (“reside, tabernacle”): God pitched His tent among Israel, so His presence was close at hand, not far away.

See also: Exodus 25:8; Leviticus 26:11-12.