The opening lines of this most interesting chapter set before us the
gracious provision which Jehovah made for His servants the Levites. Each
of the tribes of Israel was privileged—that we say not bound—to furnish
the Levites with a certain number of cities with their suburbs, according
to their ability. “All the cities which ye shall give to the Levites
shall be forty and eight cities: them shall ye give with their suburbs.
And the cities which ye shall give shall be of the possession of the
children of Israel: from them that have many ye shall give many, but from
them that have few ye shall give few: every one shall give of his cities
unto the Levites, according to his inheritance which he inherited.” (Ver.
7, 8.)
The Lord’s servants were wholly cast upon Him for their portion. They
had no inheritance or possession save in Himself. Blessed inheritance!
Precious portion! None like it, in the judgment of faith. Blessed are all
those who can truly say to the Lord, “Thou art the portion of my cup,
and the lot of my inheritance.” God took care of His dependent servants,
and permitted the whole congregation of Israel to taste the hallowed
privilege—for such it most assuredly was—of being co-workers with Him in
providing for those who had willingly devoted themselves to His work,
abandoning all besides.
Thus, then, we learn that, out of the twelve tribes of Israel, forty
and eight cities, with their suburbs, were to be given over to the
Levites; and out of these, again, the Levites had the privilege of
furnishing six cities to be a refuge for the poor man-slayer. Most lovely
provision!—lovely in its origin! lovely in its object!
The cities of refuge were situated three on the eastern and three on
the western side of Jordan. Whether Reuben and Gad were right or wrong
in settling east of that significant boundary, God in His mercy would
not leave the slayer without a refuge from the avenger of blood. On
the contrary, like Himself, He ordained that those cities which were
designed as a merciful provision for the slayer should be so situated
that wherever there was need of a shelter that shelter might be near at
hand. There was always a city within reach of any who might be exposed
to the sword of the avenger. This was worthy of our God. If any slayer
happened to fall into the hands of the avenger of blood, it was not for
want of a refuge near at hand, but because he had failed to avail himself
of it. All necessary provision was made; the cities were named, and well
defined, and publicly known. Every thing was made as plain, as simple,
and as easy as possible. Such was God’s gracious way.
No doubt, the slayer was responsible to put forth all his energy to reach
the sacred precincts; and no doubt he would. It is not at all likely
that any one would be so blind or so infatuated as to fold his arms, in
cool indifference, and say, If I am fated to escape, I shall escape; my
efforts are not needed: if I am not fated to escape, I cannot escape;
my efforts are of no use. We cannot fancy a man-slayer using such silly
language, or being guilty of such blind fatuity as this. He knew too well
that if the avenger could but lay his hand upon him, all such notions
would be of small account. There was but the one thing to be done, and
that was, to escape for his life—to flee from impending judgment—to find
his safe abode within the gates of the city of refuge. Once there, he
could breathe freely. No evil could overtake him there. The moment he
crossed the threshold of the gate, he was as safe as God’s provision
could make him. If a hair of his head could be touched within the bounds
of the city, it could but be a dishonor and a reproach upon the ordinance
of God. True, he had to keep close; he dared not venture outside the
gate. Within, he was perfectly safe; without, he was thoroughly exposed.
He could not even visit his friends; he was an exile from his father’s
house; he was a prisoner of hope. Absent from the home of his heart’s
affections, he waited for the death of the high-priest, which was to set
him perfectly free and restore him, once more, to his inheritance and to
his people.
Now, we believe that this beautiful ordinance had special reference to
Israel. They have killed the Prince of Life; but the question is, As
which are they viewed by God? as the murderer, or as the slayer? If the
former, there is no refuge—no hope. No murderer could be sheltered within
the city of refuge. Here is the law of the case, as stated in Joshua
xx: “The Lord also spake unto Joshua, saying, ‘Speak to the children of
Israel, saying, Appoint out for you cities of refuge, whereof I spake
unto you by the hand of Moses: that the slayer that killeth any person
unawares and unwittingly may flee thither; and they shall be your refuge
from the avenger of blood. And when he that doth flee unto one of those
cities shall stand at the entering of the gate of the city, and shall
declare his cause in the ears of the elders of that city, they shall take
him into the city unto them, and give him a place, that he may dwell
among them. And if the avenger of blood pursue after him, then they shall
not deliver the slayer up into his hand, _because he smote his neighbor
unwittingly_, and hated him not aforetime. And he shall dwell in that
city until he stand before the congregation for judgment, and until the
death of the high-priest that shall be in those days; then shall the
slayer return, and come unto his own city, and unto his own house, unto
the city from whence he fled.’” (Ver. 1-6.)
But with respect to the murderer, the law was rigid and unbending—“The
murderer shall surely be put to death. The revenger of blood himself
shall slay the murderer, when he meeteth him.” (Num. xxxv.)
Israel, then, through the marvelous grace of God, will be treated as a
slayer and not as a murderer. “Father, forgive them, for they know not
what they do.” These potent words ascended to the ear and to the heart of
the God of Israel. They were heard and answered; nor are we to suppose
that the answer was exhausted in its application on the day of Pentecost.
No; it stills holds good, and its efficacy will be illustrated in the
future history of the house of Israel. That people are now under God’s
keeping. They are exiles from the land and the home of their fathers; but
the time is coming when they shall be restored to their own land, not by
the death of the High-Priest—blessed be His deathless name! He can never
die,—but He will leave His present position, and come forth, in a new
character, as the Royal Priest, to sit upon His throne. Then shall the
exile return to his long-lost home and his forfeited inheritance. But
not till then, else it would be ignoring the fact that they killed the
Prince of Life, which were impossible. The man-slayer must remain out
of his possession until the appointed time; but he is not to be treated
as a murderer, because he did it unwittingly. “I obtained mercy,” says
the apostle Paul, speaking as a pattern to Israel, “because I did it
ignorantly in unbelief.” “And now, brethren,” says Peter, “I wot that
through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers.”
These passages, together with the precious intercession of the slain
One, do, in the most distinct manner, place Israel on the ground of the
man-slayer, and not on the ground of the murderer. God has provided a
refuge and a shelter for His much-loved people, and in due time they
shall return to their long-lost dwellings, in that land which Jehovah
gave as a gift to Abraham His friend forever.
Such we believe to be the true interpretation of the ordinance of the
city of refuge. Were we to view it as bearing upon the case of a sinner
taking refuge in Christ, it could only be in a very exceptional way,
inasmuch as we should find ourselves surrounded, on all hands, by points
of contrast, rather than by points of similarity. For in the first place,
the man-slayer in the city of refuge was not exempt from judgment, as we
learn from Joshua xx. 6; but for the believer in Jesus there is and can
be no judgment, for the simplest of all reasons, that Christ has borne
the judgment instead.
Again, there was a possibility of the slayer’s falling into the hands of
the avenger if he ventured outside the gates of the city. The believer in
Jesus can never perish; he is as safe as the Saviour Himself.
Finally, as regards the slayer, it was a question of temporal safety and
life in this world: as regards the believer in Jesus, it is a question of
eternal salvation and life everlasting in the world to come. In fact, in
almost every particular, it is striking contrast rather than similarity.
One grand point there is common to both, and that is, the point of
exposure to imminent danger, and the urgent need of fleeing for refuge.
If it would have been wild folly on the part of the slayer to linger
or hesitate for a moment, until he found himself safely lodged in the
city of refuge, it is surely still wilder folly, yea, the very height
of madness, on the part of the sinner, to linger or hesitate in coming
to Christ. The avenger might perhaps fail to lay hold on the slayer
even though he were not in the city, but judgment _must_ overtake the
sinner out of Christ. There is no possibility of escape, if there is the
thickness of a gold leaf between the soul and Christ. Solemn thought! May
it have its due weight in the heart of the reader who is yet in his sins.
May he find no rest—not one moment’s rest—until he has fled for refuge to
lay hold on the hope set before him in the gospel. Judgment impends—sure,
certain, solemn judgment. It is not only that the avenger may come, but
judgment must come upon all who are out of Christ.
O unconverted, thoughtless, careless reader—should this volume fall into
the hands of such—hear the warning voice! Flee for thy life! Tarry not,
we entreat thee! Delay is madness. Every moment is precious. You know
not the hour in the which you may be cut down, and consigned to that
place in the which a single ray of hope, not even the faintest glimmer,
can ever visit you—the place of eternal night, eternal woe, eternal
torment—the place of a deathless worm and an unquenchable flame. Beloved
friend, do let us entreat thee, in these few closing lines of our volume,
to come now, just as thou art, to Jesus, who stands with open arms and
loving heart, ready to receive thee, to shelter, to save, and to bless,
according to all the love of His heart and the perfect efficacy of His
name and His sacrifice. May God the Holy Spirit, by His own resistless
energy, lead thee, just now, to come. “Come unto Me,” says the loving
Lord and Saviour, “all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give
you rest.” Precious words! May they fall, with divine power, upon many a
weary heart!
Here we close our meditations upon this marvelous section of the volume
of God;[24] and in doing so, we are impressed with a profound sense of
the depth and richness of the mine to which we have sought to conduct
the reader, and also of the excessive feebleness and poverty of the
suggestions which we have been enabled to offer. However, our confidence
is in the living God, that He will, by His Holy Spirit, lead the heart
and mind of the Christian reader into the enjoyment of His own precious
truth, and thus fit him, more and more, for His service in these last
evil days, that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be magnified, and
His truth maintained in living power. May God, in His abounding mercy,
grant this, for Jesus Christ’s sake.
_C. H. M._
[Illustration]
FOOTNOTES
[1] Now six.
[2] We ought perhaps to inform the reader that many able scholars render
the last clause of Galatians v. 17 thus: “In order that ye may not do
the things that ye would.” We assuredly believe this rendering to be in
full keeping with the spirit of the context; though we are each day more
convinced of the unrivaled excellence of our precious English Bible.
[3] In using the expression, “The all-sufficiency of the name of the Lord
Jesus Christ,” we understand by it all that is secured to His people in
that name—life, righteousness, acceptance, the presence of the Holy Ghost
with all His varied gifts, a divine centre or gathering-point. In a word,
we believe that every thing that the Church can possibly need, for time
or eternity, is comprehended in that one glorious name—The Lord Jesus
Christ.
[4] For further instruction on the doctrine of the sin-offering and the
burnt-offering, the reader is referred to “Notes on Leviticus,” chapters
i. and iv. This little volume can be had of the publishers, Loizeaux
Brothers.
[5] For further suggestions on the subjects touched upon in the
foregoing section, the reader is referred to “Notes on Exodus,” chapters
xxiv.-xxx.; also to a small pamphlet entitled, “The History of the Tribe
of Levi Considered.”
[6] The “_dust_” lifted from the floor of the tabernacle may be viewed
as the figure of death.—“Thou hast brought me into the dust of death.”
The “_water_” prefigures the Word, which, being brought to bear upon the
conscience, by the power of the Holy Ghost, makes every thing manifest.
If there has been any unfaithfulness to Christ, the true Husband of His
people, it must be thoroughly judged. This holds good with regard to the
nation of Israel, to the Church of God, and to the individual believer.
If the heart be not true to Christ, it will not be able to stand the
searching power of the Word; but if there be truth in the inward parts,
the more one is searched and tried, the better. How blessed it is when we
can truly say, “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my
thoughts; and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the
way everlasting.” (Ps. cxxxix. 23, 24.)
[7] The “prophets,” in the above quotations, are those of the New
Testament, as is evident from the form of expression. Had the apostle
meant Old-Testament prophets, he would have said, His holy prophets and
apostles. But the point he is insisting upon is, that the mystery had
never been revealed until his time—that it had not been made known to
the sons of men in other ages—that it was hid in God; not hid in the
Scriptures, but in the infinite mind of God.
[8] The statement in the text refers, of course, to the Old-Testament
prophecies. There are passages in the epistles to the Romans and
Galatians in which all believers are viewed as the seed of Abraham (See
Rom. iv. 9-17; Gal. iii. 7, 9, 21; vi. 16.), but this is obviously a
different thing altogether. We have no revelation of “the Church,”
properly so called, in the Old-Testament scriptures.
[9] The reader will note, with interest and profit, the contrast between
the acting of Hezekiah in 2 Chronicles xxx, and the acting of Jeroboam
in 1 Kings xii. 32. The former availed himself of the provisions of
divine grace; the latter followed his own device. The second month was
permitted of God; the eighth month was invented by man. Divine provisions
meeting man’s need, and human inventions opposing God’s Word, are totally
different things.
[10] Let it be noted here once for all, that the cutting off of any one
from the congregation of Israel answers to the suspension of a believer’s
communion because of unjudged sin.
[11] “Thoughts on the Lord’s Supper,” etc.
[12] The Greek word for man (ανθρωπος) signifies to turn the face upwards.
[13] We would remind the young Christian reader especially, that the
true safeguard against sins of ignorance is, the study of the Word;
and the true safeguard against presumptuous sins is, subjection to the
Word. We all need to bear these things in mind, but our younger brethren
particularly. There is a strong tendency amongst young Christians to
get into the current of this present age, and to drink in its spirit.
Hence the independence, the strong will, the impatience of control,
the disobedience to parents, the headiness, high-mindedness, and
self-confidence, the pretentious style, the assumption, the setting up
to be wiser than elders—all these things so hateful in the sight of God,
and so entirely opposed to the spirit of Christianity. We would most
earnestly and lovingly entreat all our young friends to guard against
these things, and to cultivate a lowly mind. Let them remember that “God
resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the lowly.”
[14] Even in the matter of appointing deacons, in Acts vi. we see it
was an apostolic act. “Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven
men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom _we may
appoint_ over this business.” The brethren were allowed to _select_
the men, inasmuch as it was their money that was in question; but the
_appointment_ was divine; and this, be it remembered, had reference
merely to the business of deacons who were to manage the Church’s
temporal affairs. But as regards the work of evangelists, pastors, and
teachers, it is wholly independent of human choice and human authority,
and rests simply upon the gift of Christ. (Eph. iv. 11.)
[15] As a general principle, the “son” presents the divine idea; the
“daughter,” the human apprehension thereof: the “male” sets forth the
thing as God gives it; the “female,” as we realize and exhibit it.
[16] Let the reader consider what the moral effect must be of taking
the above passage literally and applying it to a certain priestly class
in the Church of God. Take it typically and spiritually, and you have a
striking and beautiful figure of the spiritual food provided for all the
members of the priestly family, which is, in one word, Christ in all His
preciousness and fullness.
[17] For further remarks on the subject presented in Numbers xviii.
14-19, the reader is referred to “Notes on Exodus,” chapter xiii. We are
anxious to avoid, as much as possible, any repetition of what has been
gone into in previous volumes.
[18] “The camp,” in the above passage, refers primarily to Judaism; but
it has a very pointed moral application to every system of religion set
up by man, and governed by the spirit and principles of this present evil
world.
[19] Poor, wretched Balaam! Miserable man! He would fain die the death
of the righteous. Many there are who would say the same; but they
forget that the way “to die the death of the righteous” is to possess
and exhibit the _life_ of the righteous. Many—alas! how many—would like
to die the death who do not live the life. Many would like to possess
Balak’s silver and gold and yet be enrolled amongst the Israel of God.
Vain thought! Fatal delusion! We cannot serve God and mammon.
[20] The statement in the text does not, by any means, touch the question
of discipline in the house of God. We are bound to judge moral evil and
doctrinal error. (1 Cor. v. 12, 13.)
[21] See an article entitled “Grace and Government,” in “Things New and
Old,” Vol. iv, p. 121. Loizeaux Brothers.
[22] As though the two tribes and a half were actually detached from the
nation of Israel.
[23] No doubt there are many sincere Christians who do not see the
heavenly calling and position of the Church—who do not enter into the
special character of truth taught in the epistle to the Ephesians—who
are, nevertheless, according to their light, earnest, devoted, and
true-hearted; but we feel persuaded that such persons lose incalculable
blessing to their own souls, and fall very short of the true Christian
testimony.
[24] Chapter xxxvi. has been referred to in our meditation on chapter
xxvii.