By Hillel ben David (Greg Killian)
Arei Miklat – Cities of Refuge
The Kohen Gadol and the Manslayer
Mashiach ben Yosef and the Bne Israel
In this study I would like to understand the month of Elul. My preliminary study indicates that this month is related to exile and that exile is the penalty for inadvertently killing someone. Why exile is the penalty for killing someone unintentionally? Additionally, I would like to understand how the cities of refuge pertain to those who do not have blood on their hands. I would also like to understand how the month of Elul, the sixth month, is related to the cities of refuge, that were intended to be the exilic home of the unintentional manslayer.
The Hebrew word Makom - מקם is normally translated as place.
Makom is a word that we use rather lightly in the English speaking world. In the Hebrew world it is never taken or used lightly. You see, HaMakom (The Place) - המקם is one of HaShem’s names! By referring to HaShem as The Place we are saying that HaShem is not in the world; rather, the world is in HaShem. HaMakom asserts that HaShem is everywhere and everything: physical and spiritual, matter and energy. All of this makes up the oneness of HaShem. HaShem makes a place for the world. He provides a place for the world to exist.
Bereshit Rabbah 68:9 HaShem encompasses the world;
the world does not encompass Him[1].
The Land of Israel is also HaMakom, the place on earth set aside by HaShem as the Holy Land.
The Torah calls Mt. Moriah, HaMakom:
Bereshit (Genesis) 22:4-5 Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his
eyes, and saw the place (HaMakom) afar off. And they came to the place
(HaMakom) which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid
the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid
him on the altar upon the wood.
Bereshit (Genesis) 22:9 And they came to the place (HaMakom) which
God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in
order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the
altar upon the wood.
Bereshit (Genesis) 22:14 And Abraham called the name of that place
(Makom) Adonai-Yireh: as it is said to
this day, In the mount of HaShem it shall be seen.
The Midrash reiterates the significance of HaMakom:
Midrash Tehillim Psalm 90 R. Huna said in the name of R. Ammi: Why is the name of the Holy One, blessed be He, called “place?” Because He is the place of the world, as is said Behold, there is a place by Me. Abraham called Him “place,” as is said And Abraham called the name of that place Adonai-Yireh (Gen. 22:14). Jacob called Him “place,” as is said How full of awe is this place (Gen. 28:17). Moses called Him “place,” as is said Behold, there is a place by Me (Ex. 33:21).
Many of the items found in the Bet HaMikdash did not have fixed places. For example, the menorah had a position relative to the Holy Ark, specifically, southeast of the Ark, but it did not have an absolute place in the Temple. In contrast, the mizbeach, the altar, had an absolute place, and if it was not in that place, the obligation of performing the Temple service was not fulfilled. Why? Because, says the Rambam, the place of the altar is the place from which man himself was created!
We feel homesick when we have been away from our home (the place) for a protracted period of time. No matter how humble, we long for our place of origin. We long for our home, our place. Thus we learn that our soul longs to return to HaShem, it’s origin, it’s source. Homesickness was given to us as a mashal to help us understand that our soul longs to return to it’s home with HaShem.
Thus we can understand that makom, place, is very significant. It is a name of HaShem, it is where HaShem focuses His attention, it is a place we call home.
Exile is when we leave our makom, our place, and go to another place. It can never replace our place. The pain of exile is the pain of not having a place to be, because it is not our place.
An Ir Miklat ([refuge city] an absorption / integration city – a new mindset) represents the study of the Torah. Not only does the city absorb the manslayer, but the manslayer also absorbs the Ir Miklat! This is the meaning contained in the Hebrew word miklat.
A manslayer was directed to an Ir Miklat by a road sign that simply said miklat miklat - מקלט מקלט.
The gematria of miklat - מקלט is 179:
מ - 40
ק – 100
ל – 30
ט – 9
======
Total = 170 time 2 equal 358
The gematria, therefore, of miklat miklat is 358. Mashiach also has a gematria of 358.
So we see that the road sign pointing to the city of refuge also contains a hint that points one toward Mashiach.
Makkoth 10b AND DIRECT ROADS WERE MADE LEADING FROM ONE TO THE OTHER. It is
taught: R. Eliezer b. Jacob says that the words miklat
miklat [asylum asylum] was inscribed at the parting of the ways so that
the manslayer might notice and turn in that direction.
that the word miklat [asylum] was inscribed at the parting of the ways so that the manslayer might notice and turn in that direction.
As one stays continuously in the Ir Miklat, so, Joshua commanded us to study Torah continuously:
Yehoshua (Joshua) 1:
8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt
meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all
that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then
thou shalt have good success.
We shall examine this concept in greater detail, but, I am getting ahead of myself. Lets see what the Torah teaches about an Ir Miklat.
A person who murders intentionally after having been previously warned is liable to the death penalty. A person who kills unintentionally is exempt from the death penalty, but is punished with galut (exile).
Bear in mind, lest you believe that this sin of manslaughter does not apply to you, that every time our words hurt another, we are guilty of a small manslayer. Thus, to a certain extent, we all need an Ir Miklat.
When it is proven that a person killed unintentionally, he is banished to one of the six cities of refuge (arei miklat) or one of the forty-two[2] Levitical cities[3], to protect him from the vengeance of the slain man's relatives. He must stay there and not leave the city or its city limits for any reason whatsoever until the death of the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) who served at the time that he was sentenced to exile.
Bamidbar (Numbers) 35:6 And the cities which ye shall give unto the
Levites, they shall be the six cities of refuge, which ye shall give for the
manslayer to flee thither; and beside them ye shall give forty and two cities.
The above passage is where we find the first usage of miklat מקלט.
Miklat is used some twenty times in the Tanach[4] and is always used as a reference to the cities of refuge. The normal Hebrew word for refuge is not miklat.
Makkoth 9b MISHNAH. WHITHER ARE THEY BANISHED? TO THE THREE CITIES SITUATE ON THE YONDER SIDE OF THE JORDAN AND
THREE CITIES SITUATE IN THE LAND OF CANAAN, AS ORDAINED, YE SHALL GIVE THREE
CITIES BEYOND THE JORDAN AND THREE CITIES IN THE LAND OF CANAAN; THEY SHALL BE
CITIES OF REFUGE. NOT UNTIL THREE CITIES WERE SELECTED IN THE LAND OF ISRAEL DID THE [FIRST] THREE CITIES BEYOND THE
JORDAN RECEIVE FUGITIVES, AS ORDAINED, [AND OF THESE CITIES WHICH YE SHALL
GIVE] SIX CITIES FOR REFUGE SHALL THEY BE UNTO YOU WHICH MEANS THAT [THEY DID]
NOT [FUNCTION] UNTIL ALL SIX COULD SIMULTANEOUSLY AFFORD ASYLUM. AND DIRECT
ROADS WERE MADE LEADING FROM ONE TO THE OTHER, AS ORDAINED, THOU SHALT PREPARE
THEE A WAY AND DIVIDE THE BORDERS OF THY LAND. INTO THREE
PARTS. AND TWO [ORDAINED] SCHOLAR — DISCIPLES WERE DELEGATED TO ESCORT THE
MANSLAYER IN CASE ANYONE ATTEMPTED TO SLAY HIM ON THE WAY, AND THAT THEY MIGHT
SPEAK TO HIM. R. MEIR SAYS: HE MAY [EVEN] PLEAD HIS CAUSE HIMSELF, AS IT IS
ORDAINED, AND THIS IS THE WORD OF THE SLAYER. R. JOSE B. JUDAH SAYS: TO BEGIN
WITH, A SLAYER WAS SENT IN ADVANCE TO [ONE OF] THE CITIES OF REFUGE, WHETHER HE
HAD SLAIN IN ERROR OR WITH INTENT. THEN THE COURT SENT AND BROUGHT HIM THENCE.
WHOEVER WAS FOUND GUILTY OF A CAPITAL CRIME THE COURT HAD EXECUTED, AND WHOEVER
WAS FOUND NOT GUILTY OF A CAPITAL CRIME THEY ACQUITTED. WHOEVER WAS FOUND
LIABLE TO BANISHMENT THEY RESTORED TO HIS PLACE [OF REFUGE] AS IT IS ORDAINED,
AND THE CONGREGATION SHALL RESTORE HIM TO THE CITY OF REFUGE WHITHER HE WAS
FLED
In the Torah portion which speaks of the Arei Miklat, it mentions the Arei Miklat (gematria is 179) exactly ten time! These ten are beautifully divided into five and five. The Torah first talks about unintentional manslaughter and then mentions miklat five times. Then the Torah speaks about intentional murder before returning to manslaughter. When the Torah returns to manslaughter it mentions miklat five additional times.
The designated cities of refuge are named by Joshua after they entered eretz Israel:
Yehoshua (Joshua) 20:1 HaShem also spake
unto Joshua, saying, 2 Speak to the children of Israel,
saying, Appoint out for you cities of refuge, whereof I spake unto you by the
hand of Moses: 3 That the slayer that killeth any person unawares and
unwittingly may flee thither: and they shall be your refuge from the avenger of
blood. 4 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. 5 And if
the avenger of blood pursue after him, then they shall not deliver the slayer
up into his hand; because he smote his neighbour unwittingly, and hated him not
beforetime. 6 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. 7 And they appointed Kedesh
in Galilee in mount Naphtali, and Shechem in mount
Ephraim, and Kirjath-arba, which is
Hebron, in the mountain of Judah. 8 And on the other
side Jordan by Jericho eastward, they assigned Bezer in
the wilderness upon the plain out of the tribe of
Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead out of the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan out
of the tribe of Manasseh.9 These were the cities appointed for all the children
of Israel, and for the stranger that sojourneth among them, that whosoever
killeth any person at unawares
might flee thither, and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood, until he
stood before the congregation.
Now we know that HaShem always acts midda kneged midda (measure for measure). There is a direct correlation between the crime and the punishment. Why is galut, exile, the correction for one who kills inadvertently?
The midda kneged midda is like this: If a man causes another man to lose his makom, his place, in this world, the Torah mandates that this unintentional manslayer must lose his makom, his place, by going into galut. The manslayer must leave his home, community, job, and friends (his makom, his “place”) and flee to one the cities of refuge to remain in exile until the Kohen Gadol dies. Thus we see that exile is a great kindness from HaShem that enables us to correct that which we have blemished in this world.
HaShem lessened the discomfort of those who were exiled to the cities of refuge by sending them to cities where the Levites were also landless.
Devarim
(Deuteronomy) 19:2-4 Three cities you shall
set aside within the land that HaShem your G-d is giving you as an inheritance... and they shall be for all murderers to
escape to. This is the murderer who shall flee there, and live: one who strikes
his fellow unintentionally...
The person who kills unintentionally doesn't have an appreciation of life. Therefore, his punishment is to go to the City of Refuge.
Who lives in the Cities of Refuge? The Levites. What did the Levites do with their time? They worked in the Beit HaMikdash, they sang in the Beit HaMikdash, and they were the teachers of Torah. The person who killed unintentionally would now have the opportunity to get an appreciation of what one can do with life. Such an experience will forever change the person. Seeing a Levi who spends his evening, morning, and afternoon immersed in Torah and mitzvot will change his view of life.
The Torah is telling us that there is some connection between the sin of the unintentional manslayer and the Kohen Gadol, by linking the exile of the manslayer with the death of the Kohen Gadol. But what in the connection between the manslayer and the Kohen Gadol? To answer this, we will need a bit of background.
The Torah prohibits using stones touched by iron for the mizbeach, the altar, because iron, which is used to form weapons, is responsible for loss of human life. If even an unintentional murder takes place it indicates that the Beit HaMikdash is not fulfilling its role. The Kohen Gadol, the guardian of the Beit HaMikdash, is also at fault to a certain degree, and he too shares in the punishment of manslayer. The Kohen Gadol should be beseeching HaShem for both the one who dies and the one who killed. Only the Kohen Gadol goes into the Holy of Holies – HaMakom – The Place. Only the Kohen Gadol can give the one who has lost his place – a place – in The Place.
When the Kohen Gadol entered the Holy of Holies on Yom HaKippurim, He represented the entire nation. Therefore we can see that every Jew is also part of a larger entity, the body of Mashiach:
Ephesians 5:23 For the husband is the head of the wife, as Mashiach
also is the head of the Bne Israel, himself the savior
of the body.
Yochanan (John) 15:5 I am the vine, you are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same
bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
So, if every one of the Bne Israel is a part of a larger entity (a body or a vine), then clearly the head (Mashiach – the Kohen Gadol) suffers when the part is broken (unintentionally killing). Additionally, it is the head (Kohen Gadol) which is in control of the body (Bne Israel). Thus we see that the manslayer and the Kohen Gadol are linked and that each is responsible for the other.
In fact, the Talmud indicates that it is the death of the Kohen Gadol which provides atonement for the manslayer.
Makkoth 11b It is the death of the [high] priest that
procures the atonement.
This echoes what we find in the Nazarean Codicil:
Bereans (Hebrews) 9:7 But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood,
which he offered for himself, and for
the errors of the people: 8 The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into
the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first
tabernacle was yet standing: 9 Which was
a figure for the time then present, in which were
offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service
perfect, as pertaining to the conscience; 10 Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and
carnal ordinances, imposed on them
until the time of reformation. 11 But Mashiach being come an high priest of
good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with
hands, that is to say, not of this building; 12 Neither by the blood of goats
and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having
obtained eternal redemption for us.
When the manslayer flees to the city of refuge, he will be tempted to pray for the death of the Kohen Gadol, in order that he should be allowed to end his exile. The Talmud speaks of this problem:
Makkoth 11a MISHNAH. IT IS ALL ONE WHETHER A HIGH
PRIEST [WHO DIED] HAD BEEN ANOINTED WITH THE [HOLY] ANOINTING OIL; OR HAD BEEN
CONSECRATED BY THE MANY VESTMENTS, OR HAD RETIRED FROM HIS OFFICE — ALL MAKE
POSSIBLE THE RETURN OF THE MANSLAYER; R. JUDAH SAYS ALSO THE [DEATH OF THE]
PRIEST WHO HAD BEEN ANOINTED FOR WAR PERMITS THE RETURN OF THE MANSLAYER.
THEREFORE, MOTHERS OF HIGH PRIESTS WERE WONT TO PROVIDE FOOD
AND RAIMENT FOR THEM THAT THEY MIGHT NOT PRAY FOR THEIR SON'S DEATH.
GEMARA. What are the data [for the above statement]? —
Said R. Kahana: They are [severally] indicated in the texts [the high priest
being mentioned three times], And he shall abide in it
unto the death of the high priest which was anointed with the holy oil; again
it is written, Because he should have remained in the city
of refuge until the death of the high priest; and once
more, But after the death of the high priest the slayer shall return into the
land of his possession. And whence R. Judah's view? — It is written once again,
[And ye shall take no satisfaction for him that is fled to the city of his
refuge] that he should come again to dwell in the
land, until the death of the priest. And the other?
— Since the description ‘high’ is omitted therein, the last quoted passage is
taken [by him] as [but a secondary reference to] one of the aforementioned.
THEREFORE
MOTHERS OF HIGH PRIESTS [WERE WONT TO PROVIDE FOOD AND
RAIMENT FOR THEM THAT THEY MIGHT NOT PRAY FOR THEIR
SON'S DEATH]. The reason [given] is that the banished might not pray [for the
high priest's death]; but what if they should pray, [think you] he would die?
[Surely the saying is,] As the flitting bird as the flying swallow, so the
curse that is causeless shall [not] follow! Said a venerable old scholar: I
heard an explanation at one of the sessional lectures of Raba, that [the high
priests were not without blame, as] they should have implored Divine grace for [averting the sorrows of] their generation, which they failed to do. Others read in the Mishnah thus: THAT THEY MIGHT PRAY
FOR THEIR SONS THAT THEY DIE NOT. The reason [given then] is that the banished
should pray [for the high priest]; but, what if they did not pray [for him;
think you] he would die? What should he have done [to avert it]? — As they say
here [in Babylon]: ‘Toby did the [bad] jobbing and Ziggad got the [hard]
slogging,’ or as they say there [in Palestine]: ‘Shechem got him a wife and
Mabgai caught the knife.’ Said a venerable old scholar: I heard an explanation
at one of the sessional lectures of Raba that [the high priests were not
without blame, as] they should have implored Divine grace for [averting the
sorrows of] their generation, which they failed to do.
These Cities of Refuge were, therefore, refuges in space.
Elul is the month immediately preceding Tishri, and it serves as the spiritual preparation for the Rosh HaShanah, the Awesome Days, and Yom HaKippurim. It is the month of repentance, when an honest soul-reckoning, is made of the past year. Just as a businessman makes an assessment of his business to determine how to run it more smoothly and successfully, so a Jew in the month of Elul assesses his past year's spiritual service to HaShem. It is a time to correct the wrongs we have done to our brothers, and to beseech HaShem for forgiveness.
The sixth month, the month of Elul has a unique quality. Each month has its own special quality. The letters in Elul - אלול hint to its special quality. We will look at three of these acronyms.
A. The letters of Elul are the initial letters[5] (acronym), in Hebrew, of Ani ledodi vedodi li:
Shir
HaShirim (Song of Songs) 6:3 I
am my Beloved's and my Beloved is mine.
This refers to the service of prayer, which joins together man and HaShem, I am my Beloved's.[6] This suggests that Elul is a special time of prayer.
Indeed, in Elul the Sephardic custom is to recite the special Selichot (penitential) prayers. Ashkenazim begin reciting Selichot at the end of Elul. Pious men and women rise before the break of dawn and go to the synagogue. There, the special prayers are recited with tears and anguish, as the days of the high holidays, Rosh HaShanah and Yom HaKippurim draw near.
The Baal Shem Tov called the days of Elul, the days when the King is in the field. He explained with a parable. Normally, in order to gain an audience with the King, one must go through a lengthy procedure. He must travel to the capital city, arrange an appointment, and then get permission to enter the palace. Even when permission is granted is may be days or weeks before he is finally allowed to enter. When he does finally get to see the King, the audience is likely to be short and very formal. The citizen, not used to the royal surroundings doubtlessly feels out of place, and maybe even regrets his decision to see the King. From his great fear and uneasiness, he may forget to put his request before the King.
Once a year, the King leaves his palace to visit the various regions of his Kingdom. While the King is in the field; relaxed and enjoying the early fall weather. He doesn't stand on the same formality that he does when in the palace. The common folk are allowed to come out to greet the King and receive his blessing. During the month of Elul, the King is in the field and he is easily accessible. We need only make the effort to go out and greet Him.
B. The letters of Elul also form another acronym[7], in Hebrew, for: Ish L'Rei'eihu U'Matanot L'Evyonim, as found in:
Esther 9:22 Each man [shall give presents] to his
fellow, and gifts to the poor.
These are the deeds of loving kindness.
C. Elul also contains the idea of teshuva as alluded to by its very name. The letters of the word Elul are also the initial letters[8], in Hebrew, of the words Ina Leyodo VeSamti Lecha. In this passage we encounter the cities of refuge. Thus we have a connection between the cities of refuge as a place of refuge in space and Elul as a place of refuge in time:
Shemot
(Exodus) 21:13 And if a man lie not in wait, but G-d cause it to
come to hand; then I will provide a place (makom) whither he may flee.
Avot 4:14 Exile yourself to a place
of Torah.
Elul is, therefore, a city of refuge in time. This haven in time is the entire month of Elul, where the Bne Israel takes shelter each year to rectify their spiritual shortcomings. Elul is the month of repentance, when assessment is made of the past year's service to HaShem. It serves as a spiritual "city of refuge" where atonement for wrongdoing may be found. Even a person who sinned intentionally can find refuge in the month of Elul. Just as the city of refuge protected an intentional killer until his trial, so too does Elul provide sanctuary to an intentional sinner until Rosh HaShana.
All of the above aspects are paralleled in Elul. With every transgression, with every sin, a Jew sheds blood: he deprives his G-dly soul of its vitality. Yet atonement is always possible if the person will exile himself to the "city of refuge", in the dimension of time, the month of Elul. Exile means to leave "your land, your birthplace and your father's house”, the spiritual equivalent of which is to leave one's desires, one's character traits, and the conclusions reached by the human intellect, anything which is a barrier to total submission to the yoke of heaven. In short, a Jew must flee and wander from his egocentric existence and embrace a new life founded on the conclusions of true soul-searching and repentance. Then such galut is an atonement, both for intentional and unintentional transgressions, and one is saved from the seekers of vengeance, from any unfavorable pronouncements of heavenly justice for one's sins.
Not only must cities of refuge be built, but, the Rambam writes, "the court is obliged to define the paths that lead to the cities of refuge, to repair them and to broaden them..." In spiritual terms, this corresponds to the paths whereby one reaches the spiritual city of refuge, the month of Elul.[9]
Because Elul is the preparation for Yom Teruah (Rosh HaShanah), the anniversary of the world's creation, the service of Elul is associated with three things which maintain the world: Torah, prayer, and deeds of loving kindness[10]. They are the "paths" to the refuge of Elul, and are alluded to in its name. As elaborated on earlier, the letters of Elul are the initial letters of "[G-d] caused it to happen, and I will provide for you." Although this refers to the general service of Elul as a "city of refuge" for one's misdeeds of the past year, it also refers to the more particular aspect of Torah, as our Sages say[11], "The words of Torah provide refuge."
Someone who kills a person by mistake is not subject to death, but exile, therefore “I will assign you a place (makom) to which he can flee” (Ex. 21:13). Note that it says ‘a place’ (makom) and not ‘a city of refuge’.
Exile is also a form of atonement:
Makkoth 2b R. Johanan said that the sanction for this (substitutive penalty of a
flogging) may be obtained by argument a fortiori, thus: Now, what do we find in
the case of one who had effected his intended act [of murder]? He is not
banished. Is it not then logical [to argue from this] that zomemim who had not
[actually] effected their intended act should not be banished?
But
does not this [very] argument point to a reverse conclusion? For is it not
logical [to argue] that he who had effected the intended act [of murder] is not
to go into banishment, so as not to obtain the possibility of atonement;
whereas the zomemim who have not effected their intended act, should be allowed
to go into banishment, so as to obtain the possibility of atonement? Hence the
derivation as from the text, given by Resh Lakish, is the best.
Now that we have a bit of background, lets examine some “case histories” of those who have gone into exile.
Adam and Chava were created as eternal beings. They were designed to live forever. It is only through their sin that death entered the world. Not only death for Adam and Chava, but death for everything and everyone in the world. Even time dies. When a moment is gone, it is “dead”, never to return.
Adam and Chava went into galut, exile, from Gan Eden, after they ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Their consumption of this fruit resulted in their eventual death and their galut from Gan Eden. Adam and Chava had to leave their makom, their ideal place:
Bereshit (Genesis) 3:21 Unto Adam also and to his wife did HaShem God make coats of skins, and clothed them. 22 And
HaShem God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his
hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat,
and live for ever: 23 Therefore HaShem God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to
till the ground from whence he was taken. 24 So he drove out the man; and he
placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which
turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.
Midrash Rabbah - Numbers XXIII:13 THEN YE SHALL APPOINT YOU CITIES OF
REFUGE... THAT THE MANSLAYER... MAY FLEE THITHER (XXXV, 11). This bears on the
Scriptural texts, Good and upright is the Lord, therefore doth He instruct
sinners in the way (Ps. XXV, 8). Remember, O Lord, Thy compassions and Thy
mercies (ib. 6). David says: Sovereign of the Universe! Were it not for Thy mercies
which came to the timely assistance of Adam, he could not have survived. For it
says, In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die (Gen. II, 17),
but Thou didst not do so unto him. Thou didst merely exclude him from the
Garden of Eden and he lived nine hundred and thirty years, and only then did he
die. What didst Thou do to him? Thou didst merely drive him from the Garden of Eden; as it says, So He drove out the man (ib.
III, 24). Why was he driven out? Because he brought death upon future generations, and deserved to die immediately,
but Thou didst have compassion upon him and didst drive him out, as is the fate
of one who commits murder in error, such a man having to be an exile from his
own home to the cities of refuge. Consequently it says, ’Remember, O Lord, Thy
compassions and Thy mercies,’ for they have been from of old (Ps. XXV, 6).
Pirke D’Rebbi Eliezer points out that when Adam was sent out of Gan Eden, he was exiled to Har HaMoriah. According to some opinions in Chazal[12] this took place immediately after the judgment which took place on the sixth day of creation, before the beginning of that first Shabbat.
Har Moriah is the place of the Temple. It is the place of the Akeida. It is the ultimate place of Torah. It was in the Temple that the tablets of the testimony and the Torah scroll written by Moshe were kept. Thus we learn that when Adam inadvertently killed the world he was exiled from his makom to a place of Torah.
After Kayin killed Abel he was condemned to wander in galut. He had to leave “his makom”. This passage is particularly interesting because Kayin expresses the fact that this is an extremely severe punishment:
Bereshit (Genesis) 4:9 And HaShem said
unto Kayin, Where is Abel thy
brother? And he said, I know not: Am
I my brother’s keeper? 10 And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy
brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground. 11 And now art thou cursed from the earth, which
hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand; 12 When
thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth.
13 And Kayin said unto HaShem, My punishment is greater than I can bear.
Kayin will eventually be killed by Lamech. In the meantime, his exile had no end, unlike the Torah requirement for the unintentional manslayer who was released when the Kohen Gadol died. So, why did Kayin escape the death penalty? The answer has two parts.
When Israel and his family went into galut, if was shortly after Yosef’s brothers desired to kill him, but sold him instead. This is a very similar situation to the manslayer. Indeed, the Midrash even links these events with the cities of refuge:
Midrash Rabbah - Genesis LXXXIV:15 AND THE MAN SAID. LET US GO TO DOTHAN. For such are the designs of the Almighty. AND
THEY SAW HIM AFAR OFF, etc. (XXXVII, 18). Said they: ‘Let us kill him by
inciting the dogs against him’. AND THEY SAID ONE TO ANOTHER: BEHOLD, THIS
DREAMER COMETH (XXXVII, 19). The Rabbi said: They exclaimed, ‘Behold, it is he,
who is coming wrapt in his dreams!’ R. Levi said:
They exclaimed that this one was to ensnare them into serving [foreign]
overlords. COME NOW THEREFORE, AND LET US SLAY HIM... AND WE SHALL SEE WHAT
WILL BECOME OF HIS DREAMS (XXXVII, 20). Said the Holy One, blessed be He, to
them: Ye say, AND WE SHALL SEE, and I say, WE SHALL SEE: indeed we shall see
whose words will be fulfilled.’
15.
AND REUBEN HEARD IT, etc. (XXXVII, 21). Now where had he been?1 R. Judah said:
Every one of them attended his father one day, and that day it was Reuben's turn.
R. Nehemiah said: [Reuben reasoned]: I am the firstborn and I alone will be
held responsible for the crime. The Rabbis said: [Reuben reasoned]: He includes
me with my brethren, and I am not to rescue him! I thought that I had been
expelled [from the company of my brethren] on account of that incident, yet he
counts me together with my brethren-And, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars (Gen. XXXVII, 9)-shall I then not deliver
him! Said the Holy One, blessed be. He, to him: ‘Thou wast the first to engage
in life saving: by thy life! the cities of refuge will be set up [first]
nowhere else than within thy borders’; thus it is written, Bezer in the
wilderness, in the table-land, for the Reubenites, etc. (Deut. IV, 43).
Moshe killed the Egyptian then he needed to flee to Midian. Remember that Moshe was a Hebrew who was adopted by an Egyptian and raised as a prince in Paro’s palace. When he went into galut for killing the Egyptian, he was leaving his parents, his adopted parents, and his status as a prince. His galut took him to Midian where he became a shepherd and a stranger in a strange land.
Shemot (Exodus) 2:11 And it came to pass in those days, when
Moses was grown, that he went out unto his brethren, and looked on their
burdens: and he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren. 12 And
he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man, he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand.
13 And when he went out the second day, behold, two men
of the Hebrews strove together: and he said to him that did the wrong,
Wherefore smitest thou thy fellow? 14 And he said, Who made thee a prince and a
judge over us? intendest thou to kill me, as thou killedst the Egyptian? And
Moses feared, and said, Surely this thing is known. 15 Now when Pharaoh heard
this thing, he sought to slay Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh,
and dwelt in the land of Midian: and he sat down by a well.
Why did not Moshe deserve the death penalty? Why was he treated as an unintentional manslayer when he clearly intended to kill him?
Rashi says that Moshe killed the Egyptian with the explicit Divine Name (Shem HaMaforash). The Malbim explains that a non-Jew who strikes a Jew is subject to the death penalty, but not at human hands, death from Heaven. This Moshe facilitated by invoking the Shem HaMaforash. Thus we see that Moshe was merely the conduit for HaShem to slay the Egyptian who was mistreating a Jew. Because Moshe was the conduit, the Torah tells us that Moshe slew the Egyptian.
Now, if you have difficulty with this explanation, consider that HaShem did not inflict any penalty on Moshe except galut, the penalty for unintentionally killing a man. Further, Moshe would later be chosen to be “king” of the Jews and to be the leader of the Jewish people for forty years. This is not the normal penalty for a murderer. Since HaShem dealt with Moshe midda kneged midda, we know that Moshe was only guilty of unintentional killing.
Midrash Rabbah - Deuteronomy II:29 THEN MOSES SEPARATED. R. Aibo said: When
Moses fled he began to sing a song, as it is said, And dwelt
in the land of Midian; and he sat down by a well (Ex. II, 15). Just as Israel
sang a song by a well, so too Moses sang a song by a well. R. Levi said: [He
sang a song] because the section dealing with the homicide's [flight] to the
Cities of Refuge was carried into effect through him.
The wandering of the Jews in the desert was another example of the exile of the unintentional manslayer. The spies derogatory report caused the Bne Israel to shun the land and reject the Word of HaShem. This sin would result in the deaths of most of those who had left Mitzrayim. Because the people did not realize that their sin would have this consequence, HaShem sent them into galut, forcing them to wander for forty years.
Bamidbar (Numbers) 13:31 - 14:1 But the men that went up with him said, We
be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. 32
And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched
unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to
search it, is a land that
eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. 33 And there we saw the giants, the sons of
Anak, which come of the giants:
and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight. 1
And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept
that night. 2 And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against
Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this
wilderness! 3 And wherefore hath HaShem brought us
unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be
a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?
There is, in fact, a striking similarity between the galut of the Jews in the wilderness and that of an accidental murderer. The Jews in the wilderness never knew when they would be asked to move. When the cloud rose, they needed to pack their belongings and move on to the next location. In the instance of the cities of refuge, the manslayer’s galut ended with the death of the Kohen Gadol, an event that could not be predicted. In both cases, there was no predetermined time for the relocation to end, adding to the sense of instability.
It is interesting to note that the galut of the generation of the wilderness did not end until the death of the Kohen Gadol, Aaron:
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 10:6 And the children of Israel took their journey from Beeroth of the children of Jaakan to
Mosera: there Aaron died, and there he was buried; and Eleazar his son
ministered in the priest’s office in his stead.
Shortly after Aaron’s death, Joshua led the Bne Israel into the promised land and the Galut ended. This suggests that the death of Aharon was an atonement for the Bne Israel.
The ending of the galut in the wilderness and the entering of the Promised land hints also to the final redemption.
In Sefer Ruth, Elimelech abandoned eretz Israel during the famine that struck Israel in the days of the judging of the judges. Since Elimelech was a leader of the generation with the financial resources to help the poor during this famine, his abandonment of the poor, undoubtedly, contributed to their deaths. While he exiled himself voluntarily, in the end HaShem insured that the exile was permanent. Elimelech never returned to eretz Israel.
In our study of Megillat Ruth, we saw that Elimelech’s exile is reminiscent of Adam’s exile. Like Adam’s exile that resulted in the birth of righteous Seth, so Elimelech’s exile led to the “dove from Moab”, Ruth.
The exile of Elimelech led to the fields of Moab. As we learned in our study of Ruth, we know that a field is a remez, a hint, to a place of Torah study. Elimelech’s exile led to Ruth’s exile. She, too, ended up in a field, the field of Boaz. Additionally, Ruth became a part of the messianic line.
The Midrash makes an explicit connection between the cities of refuge and the Babylonian galut. This suggests that in general, if we see a galut we should look for the sin of inadvertent man slaying:
Midrash Rabbah -
Numbers XXIII:14 THEN YE SHALL
APPOINT YOU CITIES (XXXV, 11). It is also written, SIX
CITIES OF REFUGE (ib. 13). YE SHALL GIVE
THREE CITIES BEYOND THE JORDAN, AND THREE CITIES SHALL
YE GIVE IN THE LAND OF CANAAN (ib. 14).
There were three in the Land of Israel, in the west, and three beyond the
Jordan, in the east, in the land of the children of
Reuben, and the children of Gad, and half the tribe
of Manasseh; as it says, Bezer in the wilderness, in the table-land, for the
Reubenites; and Ramoth in Gilead, for the Gadites; and Golan in Bashan, for the
Manassites (Deut. IV, 43). This gives you three in the east. The three in the
west were: Hebron, belonging to Judah, Shechem in the
hill-country of Ephraim--this was Neapolis--and Kedesh in Galilee, belonging to
the tribe of Naphtali. Moses divided [Transjordan] among Reuben, Gad, and half
the tribe of Manasseh, and set apart from these lands
three cities; as it says, Then Moses separated three
cities (ib. 41). But Joshua divided [the land] among all the tribes and gave to
the tribe of Levi forty-eight cities, of which the priests
took thirteen, the rest going to the Levites. Three
cities of refuge they took in their lot, but in the Land the tribe of Levi took
nothing. Why? They shall eat the offerings of the
Lord made by fire, and His inheritance
(ib. XVIII, 1). You find that Sennacherib carried them off in three sections.
On the first occasion he exiled the Reubenites, Gadites, and half the tribe of
Manasseh. On the second, the tribe of Zebulun and the
tribe of Naphtali; as it says, In the former time he
hath lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali (Isa. VIII,
23). On the third occasion he exiled the rest of the tribes; as it says, But on
the latter he hath dealt a more grievous blow--hikbid (ib.); ‘Hikbid’ implies that he swept them
out (hikbidam) as with a broom (makbed). Nebuchadnezzar also drove out the
tribes of Judah and Benjamin in three installments. On the first occasion he
exiled Jehoiakim and on the second Jehoiachin. What did he do to him? He bound
him [and seated him] in his most honored carriage; as may be inferred from the
text, ‘For behold I shall send her away like the queen-mother1; as a
queen-mother is honored by men, so was Jehoiachin honored by Nebuchadnezzar.
Nebuzaradan exiled Zedekiah This gives you three exiles. The Holy one, blessed
be He, said: ‘In this world, as a result of iniquities, Israel
were exiled and dispersed through the gates of the Land,’ as it says, And I fan
them with a fan in the gates of the land (Jer. XV, 7). For Sennacherib was the
lord of the world, and used to exile some to one place and others to another.
He drove Israel to Babylon and brought those who were in Babylon here.3 In the time to come, however, If any of thine that are dispersed
be in the uttermost parts of heaven, from thence will
the Lord thy God gather thee, and from thence will He fetch thee (Deut. XXX,
4). And gather together the scattered of Judah from
the four corners of the earth (Isa. XI, 12). Isaiah in
the same strain says, The ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come with
singing unto Zion, and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall
obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away (ib. XXXV, 10).
The sins of the Bne Israel resulted in the death of Yeshua HaMashiach, albeit inadvertently. That same generation that saw Yeshua crucified also saw the destruction of the Bet HaMikdash, the symbol of Mashiach’s body, and the subsequent galut; the longest galut in our history. The tikkun for our sins that inadvertently caused the death of Mashiach, is to go into galut to a take refuge in Mashiach, the ultimate place (makom) of Torah.
Chazal tell us that the first Temple was destroyed because Israel had violated the "cardinal sins" of idolatry, murder and immorality, while the second Temple was destroyed because of baseless hatred:
Yoma 9b Why was the First Temple destroyed? Because of three things that
occurred in it: Idolatry, unseemly provocative sexual behavior, and
bloodshed... But the Second Temple, where they occupied themselves with Torah,
Commandments and acts of benevolence, why was it destroyed? Because there was
baseless hatred. This teaches that baseless hatred is equated with three sins:
idolatry, provocative sexual behavior and bloodshed.
Now Mashiach has told us that hatred is related to killing in:
Matityahu (Matthew) 5:21 Ye have heard that it was said by them of
old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of
the judgment: 22 But I say unto you,
That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of
the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger
of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. 23 Therefore
if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother
hath ought against thee; 24 Leave there
thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother,
and then come and offer thy gift.
We can infer that our actions of unintentional man slaying was the cause of the destruction of the second Temple.
We can also understand that it is the atonement of Mashiach, The Living Torah, that will end this bitter exile. It is the death of Mashiach ben Yosef, our Kohen Gadol, which provides the atonement which will allow us to enter the Promised Land, our makom, under the leadership of Mashiach ben David!
Thus we see that the solution to the manslayer’s exile is Torah and that the ultimate end to our national exile is found in The Living Torah, Mashiach. We must seek to study Torah and perform the mitzvot in order to gain the atonement of galut.
All of these unintentional manslayers went into galut because of their sin. They were forced to leave their makom, their place, because they caused others to lose their place in this world. The goal of the galut is the tikkun, the correction, of the individual that can be found in Torah. The reason for galut in the cities of refuge was to force the manslayer to study Torah and confront the mitzvot twenty-four hours a day. The constant interaction between the manslayer and the Levites would be life-changing and would enable the manslayer to change his heart.
From this, we understand that the Temple's destruction and ensuing galut for which we mourn, on Tisha B’Ab. Exile is analogous to a city of refuge. Just as the inadvertent manslayer exiled himself to a city of refuge, so too, the Jewish people were exiled because of inadvertent sins. Their tikkun is found in their study of Torah.
At this point, we can shed new light on what lies behind Simchat Torah, which Chazal combined together with Shemini Atzeret, the day after Succoth. In Devarim (Deuteronomy) 4:41, the Torah relates that Moshe before his passing, set aside the three ‘Arei Miklot’ cities of refuge, on the eastern side of the Jordan. Immediately afterwards in Devarim 4:44, the pasukim teaches, ‘And this is the law which Moshe set before the children of Israel’. The Baal HaTurim points out that this pasuk comes to teach that a person must exile one’s self to a place of Torah, as is taught in:
Avot 4:14 Exile yourself to a
place of Torah.
Rabeinu Bachya points out that the pasukim come to teach me that Torah protects a person even more than an ‘Ir Miklat’ (city of refuge) for the ‘Ir Miklat’ saves only for a sin done inadvertently while Torah saves from all sin. Furthermore, the Midrash describes a dialogue between Klal Israel and HaShem in which Klal Israel want to know how they will atone for their sins when the existence of cities of refuge will cease. HaShem’s answer is that there will always be Torah!
We can now appreciate Chazal’s choosing the day that follows Succoth as ‘Simchat Torah.’ When we leave that succah that serves us as a refuge when we are forced to exile; we are distraught as to where will our salvation come from. Therefore Chazal made sure that we will choose this day to reach the greatest intimacy with the Torah, thereby appreciating it’s special quality of serving as our salvation and refuge at all times. These are certainly appropriate thought when we begin again the cycle of Torah reading with Bereshit and learn about Adam and Cain having had to undergo their respective exiles. We must remember that we have Torah that serves as the greatest refuge. May HaShem open our hearts and our eyes to appreciate and see the depth of His Torah!!
* * *
In an allegorical sense, there exist six "cities of refuge" for the spiritual manslayer. Life, in the true and ultimate sense, is connection with The Source[13]; an act of transgression against the divine will is a subtle form of manslaying, as it hinders the flow of vitality from HaShem to His creation. The words of the Torah, say Chazal, are the "cities of refuge" for the destroyer of spiritual life; if he flees into the Torah and immerses himself in it, the Torah will protect him from the adverse results of his deed.
Makkoth 10a A Tanna taught: A disciple who goes into banishment is joined in exile by his master, in accordance with the text, and that fleeing unto one of these cities he might live[14], which means — provide him with whatever he needs to live[15]. R. Ze'ira remarked that this is the basis of the dictum, ‘Let no one teach Mishnah to a disciple that is unworthy.’ R. Johanan said: A master who goes into banishment is joined in exile by his College. But that cannot be correct, seeing that R. Johanan said: Whence can it be shown [Scripturally] that the study of the Torah affords asylum[16]? From the verse, [Then Moses separated three cities . . .] Bezer in the wilderness . . . Ramoth... and Golan . . ., which is followed by, and this-the law which Moses set before the children of Israel[17]? — This [discrepancy] is not difficult [to explain]. One [of his sayings] is applicable to the scholar who maintains his learning in practice, while the other saying is applicable to him who does not maintain it in practice. Or, if you will,