The application of the sixth commandment has broader implications than simply prohibiting murder. First, a provision is made for a humanitarian zone (19:1–13), called “cities of refuge” in Numbers 35:6–32. Thus, the right of asylum is provided for at three evenly distributed cities in Canaan, just as three cities of refuge have been provided in the Transjordan. In Joshua 20:1–9 we learn these added cities are Kedesh, Shechem, and Kirjath Arba (Hebron). These places of refuge are not for murderers but for those who unintentionally cause someone’s death. The illustration of an ax flying off the handle and killing a victim while the two are chopping wood (19:5) shows that although such a c…