Tour · c. 1406 BC

The six cities of refuge

Bezer Deut 4:41–43
Moses sets apart three cities east of the Jordan, "that the slayer might flee thither, which should kill his neighbour unawares": first Bezer in the wilderness, on the plain, of Reuben.
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Ramoth Deut 4:43 · ≈ 80 km in a straight line
Ramoth in Gilead, of the Gadites: Ramoth-gilead, where Ahab would fall.
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Golan Deut 4:43 · ≈ 32 km in a straight line
Golan in Bashan, of Manasseh, the northernmost of the three.
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Kedesh Josh 20:1–7 · ≈ 53 km in a straight line
After the conquest the land west of the Jordan gets its three, "that the slayer that killeth any person unawares and unwittingly may flee thither": first Kedesh in Galilee in mount Naphtali.
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Shechem Josh 20:7 · ≈ 105 km in a straight line
Shechem in mount Ephraim, between Ebal and Gerizim, where Joshua will renew the covenant.
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Hebron Josh 20:7–9 · ≈ 78 km in a straight line
Kirjath-arba, which is Hebron, in the mountain of Judah. The cities are "for all the children of Israel, and for the stranger that sojourneth among them", until the slayer stands before the congregation.
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