Numbers 35:13
in Numbers 35The cities you select will be your six cities of refuge.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And the cities which ye shall give shall be for you six cities of refuge.
KJV
And of these cities which ye shall give six cities shall ye have for refuge.
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This verse in Numbers 35
Commentary
3 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
as a refuge from the avenger
on Numbers 35:12-13
The avenger is the goel, the same word and office as the "nearest of kin" of Leviticus 25:25 and the "kinsman-redeemer" of Ruth 3:12. The one who redeems a family's land also answers for its blood.
This site's exposition
your six cities of refuge
John Gill reads the verse as settling that only six of the forty-eight Levitical towns gave refuge. Deuteronomy 19:9 allowed three more if the LORD enlarged the territory and the people kept his commandments. Joshua 20:7-8 names the six.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And of these cities which ye shall give,.... Of the forty eight cities they were to give to the Levites, Num 35:7, six cities shall ye have for refuge; which, I think, makes it clear, that not all the forty eight cities were for refuge, only six of them.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
מגאל — [AND THE CITIES SHALL BE UNTO YOU AS A REFUGE] מגאל — i.e. as a refuge on account of the avenger of blood, — he who is the near relative of the murdered man.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 5 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
8 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְהֶעָרִ֖ים | vehearim | and the cities | H5892 → | 1090 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֣ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| תִּתֵּ֑נוּ | titenu | you will give | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| שֵׁשׁ־ | shesh- | six | H8337 → | 216 times |
| עָרֵ֥י | ʾarei | cities of | H5892 → | 1090 times |
| מִקְלָ֖ט | miklat | refuge | H4733 → | 20 times |
| תִּהְיֶ֥ינָה | tihyeinah | they will be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| לָכֶֽם׃ | lakhem | for <the> you |
וְהֶעָרִ֖יםand the cities
vehearimH5892 →1090 times
אֲשֶׁ֣רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
תִּתֵּ֑נוּyou will give
titenuH5414 →2011 times
שֵׁשׁ־six
shesh-H8337 →216 times
עָרֵ֥יcities of
ʾareiH5892 →1090 times
מִקְלָ֖טrefuge
miklatH4733 →20 times
תִּהְיֶ֥ינָהthey will be
tihyeinahH1961 →3559 times
לָכֶֽם׃for <the> you
lakhem
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
Where this verse is studied
About Numbers
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch and MannaFest exposition, Berean Standard Bible, Numbers 35 read with Deuteronomy 19 and Joshua 20.