Joshua 20:1

1 Then the Lord said to Joshua:

Joshua 20:1 Meaning and Commentary

Joshua 20:1

The Lord also spake unto Joshua
Out of the tabernacle, at the door of which he with the high priest and princes were; the Lord had spoken to him before concerning dividing the land among the tribes, ( Joshua 13:1-7 ) ; and this being done he speaks to him again:

saying:
as follows.

Joshua 20:1 In-Context

1 Then the Lord said to Joshua:

2 "Tell the Israelites to choose the special cities of safety, as I had Moses command you to do.

3 If a person kills someone accidentally and without meaning to kill him, that person may go to a city of safety to hide. There the killer will be safe from the relative who has the duty of punishing a murderer.

4 "When the killer runs to one of those cities, he must stop at the entrance gate, stand there, and tell the leaders of the people what happened. Then that person will be allowed to enter the city and will be given a place to live among them.

5 But if the one who is chasing him follows him to that city, the leaders of the city must not hand over the killer. It was an accident. He did not hate him beforehand or kill him on purpose.