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Cities
of Refuge
refers
to our Lord Jesus Christ
"Ye
shall give three cities on this side
Jordan, and three cities shall ye
give in the land of Canaan, which
shall be cities of refuge" (Numbers
35:14).
When
the Israelites entered the promised
land, God told Joshua to provide six
"cities of refuge" into
which those who had slain someone
could flee for refuge until a trial
could ascertain the facts and render
a proper verdict. As such, these
cities are a type of Christ through
whom "we might have a strong
consolation, who have fled for
refuge to lay hold upon the hope set
before us" (Hebrews
6:18).
The
names of the six cities are given in
Joshua 20:7-8 as Kedesh, Shechem,
Hebron, Bezer, Ramoth, and Golan.
The meanings of these names seem
planned especially to foreshadow
this spiritual application.
Kedesh
means "holy place,"
and Christ in the New Jerusalem is
the ultimate refuge, for "the
Lamb |is| the temple of it" (Revelation
21:22).
Shechem
means "strong
shoulder" which answers to the
"strong consolation" we
have in Christ when we flee to Him
for refuge.
Hebron
means "fellowship,"
and we who have come to Christ have
been "called unto the
fellowship of His Son Jesus Christ
our Lord" (I
Corinthians 1:9).
Bezer
means "strong hiding
place." The Scripture assures
the believer that "your life is
hid with Christ in God" (Colossians
3:3).
Ramoth
means "high place,"
and when we are hidden in Christ,
God also has "made us sit
together in heavenly places in
Christ Jesus" (Ephesians
2:6).
Finally,
Golan apparently means
"enclosure for captives,"
and this would speak of our being
set free from sin and death to
become captive to Christ. "When
He ascended up on high, He led
captivity captive" (Ephesians
4:8). Thus the cities are
appropriately named, both for their
immediate purpose, and as a picture
of Christ as the Savior of sinners.
HMM
INSTITUTE
FOR CREATION RESEARCH
www.icr.org
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