Jesus, our City of Refuge

We have all sought a hiding place at some point in our lives. For some of us it may have been while playing hide and seek as children, but on a more serious note, for most it may have been to take a break from a strenuous relationship, running from a dangerous person or situation, a demanding job, or maybe even from yourself.

During the Bible times there were cities of refuge where people could go and find safety and protection from lurking dangers. The cities of refuge we read about in Numbers 35, Joshua 20 and Deuteronomy 4 are a perfect picture of Jesus Christ as our hiding place, even today. How do I get to that conclusion? Let me show you:

Joshua 20:7-9: “So they appointed Kedesh in Galilee, in the mountains of Naphtali, Shechem in the mountains of Ephraim, and Kirjath Arba (which is Hebron) in the mountains of Judah. And on the other side of the Jordan, by Jericho eastward, they assigned Bezer in the wilderness on the plain, from the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gilead, from the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan, from the tribe of Manasseh. These were the cities appointed for all the children of Israel and for the stranger who dwelt among them, that whoever killed a person accidentally might flee there, and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood until he stood before the congregation.” (NKJV)

God instructed His people to appoint six cities of refuge where people could flee to after accidental killings. These cities were to provide shelter to the sinner from death. The same way Christ shelters us as sinners from death. The Old Testament cities of refuge were appointed by God Himself, they were named and anyone could get access to them. A picture of God’s complete grace—Christ Jesus.

There are significant similarities between the cities of refuge and Christ:

• Christ was appointed by God and is easy to reach.
• Christ is open to all. No special qualification is required; you can come as you are.
• Christ never locks the gate. He will never turn a sinner away as His arms are always open. Ready to accept us as we come to Him.
• Christ has everything we need. There is no lack when we come to Christ. He can supply in all our needs and give us all the comfort, security, safety and provision we need.
• Christ is there for any who flees to Him. If we do not come to Him, He cannot help us the way He wants to.

If we were to draw a comparison between Christ and the cities of refuge, there are clear proof that Christ is an even better refuge today for us:

• Christ is nearer to us than any city of refuge. We do not have to travel any distance before we can reach Him. You can access Him right where you are. He is available, in fact He is already knocking at the door of our lives ready to come in if we will only open for Him.
• Christ offers not temporary but permanent refuge. Once we entered Christ’s presence we are part of Him and nothing and no-one can snatch us away from Him.
• Christ protects the guilty. The cities of refuge only protected the innocent after a hearing was held before the elders and it was found that the sinner killed innocently. If they were found guilty, they were to leave the city. Christ died for us while we were sinners and guilty at that.
• The cities of refuge only allowed a man to stay until the high priest died. Jesus is our High Priest and He died once so that we can live forever with Him. Our protection and safety is not only temporary, but everlasting.

We have found Christ in the cities of refuge by merely looking at the way it came about and how it operated, but there is even more. It is found in their names!

The characteristics of each of the names of the cities are also a distinct resemblance to the person and character of Jesus. Let’s look at the meaning of each city’s name:

KEDESH means a “holy place” or “righteousness”. When we are saved we become the righteousness of God through Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21). He makes us holy and sets us apart for His purposes and calling for each of our lives.

SHECHEM means “shoulder”. Christ is our resting place. We find our rest in Christ. We can come and lay our burdens on Him (Matthew 11:28). He gives us comfort and rest from our burdens. As we rest in Him, He refreshes us.

HEBRON means “fellowship”. Because we have right-standing before God in Christ, we can have fellowship with Him. There is no rest and fellowship for us outside the protection of Christ, but in and through Him, we can have true fellowship with God and with man.

BEZER means “stronghold” or “fortress”. We find our protection and victory in Christ. We are no longer to face our battles to obtain victory, but we can approach them from a position of victory. The victory which Christ already obtained on the cross for us. We can be in no safer place than Christ. In Him we are hidden from the dangers and attacks of the enemy. The Lord is our strong tower (Proverbs 18:10).

RAMOTH means “exalted” or “heights”. We are seated in the heavenly places with Christ (Ephesians 2:4). Our mistakes and shortcomings may pull us down but in Christ we are always lifted up.

GOLAN means “separated”. Jesus was separated from God on the cross for once, so that we can forever be close to Him. We never have to be separated from Him as He gave us His presence through the sacrifice on the cross.

Do not stand alone against any reproach which you may suffer. Flee to Jesus and find your refuge, strength and victory, which you already have, in Him.

Hebrew 6:16-20: “For men swear by one greater than themselves, and with them an oath given as confirmation is an end of every dispute. In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil, where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.” (NASB)

Maretha Retief

Illustration by Jeanne de Villiers