The Cities of Refuge East of the Jordan

^41 (A)Then Moses set aside three cities east of the Jordan River ⁴² to which a man could escape and be safe if he had accidentally killed someone who had not been his enemy. He could escape to one of these cities and not be put to death. ⁴³ For the tribe of Reuben there was the city of Bezer, on the desert plateau; for the tribe of Gad there was Ramoth, in the territory of Gilead; and for the tribe of Manasseh there was Golan, in the territory of Bashan.

Introduction to the Giving of God's Law

⁴⁴ Moses gave God's laws and teachings to the people of Israel. ^45-46 It was after they had come out of Egypt and were in the valley east of the Jordan River, opposite the town of Bethpeor, that he gave them these laws. This was in the territory that had belonged to King Sihon of the Amorites, who had ruled in the town of Heshbon. Moses and the people of Israel defeated him when they came out of Egypt. ⁴⁷ They occupied his land and the land of King Og of Bashan, the other Amorite king who lived east of the Jordan. ⁴⁸ This land extended from the town of Aroer, on the edge of the Arnon River, all the way north to Mount Sirion,^[a] that is, Mount Hermon. ⁴⁹ It also included all the region east of the Jordan River as far south as the Dead Sea and east to the foot of Mount Pisgah.