the ruminations of aaron eberline

I am stunned today during my time reading in Joshua chapters 21 and 22. The words seemed to come to life as I read them. It can be easy to just read through the Bible just to finish a particular book or chapter. It was encouraging to see how scripture is fulfill which God promised and proclaimed to the Israelites. God is faithful to complete all that He promises us and that is a great encouragement. The Levites receiving cities to dwell in and the tribes of Reuben, Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh returning home after the other tribes were at rest testifies to the faithfulness of God. Read more

I love how God provides cities of refuge for the people of Israel to run to if they are charged with manslaughter. These cities of refuge were a prefect solution for people to have protection from vigilante justice. In Deuteronomy chapter 19 Moses repeats God’s command that cities of refuge would be spread throughout the land that the Israelites would inherit. These cities of refuge were places where a person could be safe until it was determined whether they were guilty of manslaughter or not. I remember when I first read about cities of refuge in Numbers 35 and 36 how I began to wonder about the stories of people running to a city of refuge. Read more