Joshua 20: Justice in the Land

“Any of the Israelites or any foreigner residing among them who killed someone accidentally could flee to these designated cities and not be killed by the avenger of blood prior to standing trial before the assembly.” -Joshua 20:9

Joshua 20 refers back to an earlier law that discussed the Cities of Refuge in Israel. The idea was that a person who accidentally killed someone would have a town to run to in order to escape the revenge of family members who sought his death.

Joshua adds commentary on the idea of innocent before proven guilty that is so often quoted in American culture today. Those who speak as if the nation has no Christian foundation fail to realize one of our most significant legal phrases comes right from Moses and Joshua. Innocent until proven guilty separates a Judeo-Christian worldview from the views of many other religions, offering a just society that is of great importance to our culture.

God does care about justice. This chapter is one of only many examples. Ultimately, Jesus came to provide a way for all of us to know the Lord by faith in the Son, the Messiah Jesus. Those who do received refuge in him, and in the end, eternal life.

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Dillon Burroughs is the author and coauthor of numerous books and is handwriting a copy of all 31,173 verses of the Bible at HolyWritProject.com. Find out more about Dillon at Facebook.com/readdB or readdB.com.