by Sylvia DoolingIn my opinion, the author does not study the cities of refuge so much as she makes them a pretext for exploring a broader subject of terrorism in the Middle East. In fact, on Page 73, she says “I may be going too far, but I believe that so-called “preemptive wars” all too often increase violence and evil instead of preventing it. Yes, she has wandered off, once again, and has brought a subject to the text that does not exist. The study, however, does make the important point that biblical justice demands both the protection of life and faithfulness to the truth. The lesson also raises some interesting questions as to how to apply this standard to contemporary life. Application of Scripture is always in order after carefully studying the context of the passage itself.