約書亞記 20

1 上主訓示說：「

YHWH spoke to Joshua, saying,

2 你應告訴以色列子民說：他們應向照我藉梅瑟向你們所提及的，指定一些避難城，

"Speak to the children of Israel, saying, 'Assign the cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you by Moses,

3 好使無心誤殺人的能逃到那裏去。這些城市作為你們逃避血仇者的地方

that the manslayer who kills any person accidentally or unintentionally may flee there. They shall be for you a refuge from the avenger of blood.

4 那誤殺人的，只要逃往這些城中的一座，立於城門口，將自己的事，報告給這城的長老聽；長老就該將他接入城中，給他地方，讓他往在他們中間。

He shall flee to one of those cities, and shall stand at the entrance of the gate of the city, and declare his cause in the ears of the elders of that city. They shall take him into the city with them, and give him a place, that he may live among them.

5 如果報血仇者追來了，長老不可將他交於報血仇者手中，因為他殺人原是出於無心，素無仇恨。

If the avenger of blood pursue after him, then they shall not deliver up the manslayer into his hand; because he struck his neighbor unintentionally, and did not hate him before.

6 殺人者應往在這城內，直到他在會眾前出庭受審，直到現任的大司祭去世之後，方可回到本城本家，即由之逃出城市。」

He shall dwell in that city until he stands before the congregation for judgment, until the death of the high priest that shall be in those days. Then the manslayer shall return, and come to his own city, and to his own house, to the city he fled from.'"

7 以色列人於是在納斐塔里山區，指定了加里肋亞的刻德士；在厄弗辣因山區指定了舍根；在猶大山區指定了克黎雅特阿爾耳巴，即赫貝龍；

They set apart Kedesh in Galilee in the hill country of Naphtali, Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the hill country of Judah.

8 在約旦河東岸，耶利哥東面，在曠野高原裏，勒烏本支派內指定了貝責爾；在加得支派內，指定了基肋阿得的辣摩特；在默納協支派內，指定了巴商的哥藍。

Beyond the Jordan at Jericho eastward, they assigned Bezer on the wilderness plateau out of the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gilead out of the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan out of the tribe of Manasseh.

9 以上是為所有的以色列人和寄他們中間的外方人指定的城市，使凡誤殺人的，能逃往那裏去，在他未出庭受會眾審判以前，不致死在報血仇者的手裏。

These were the appointed cities for all the children of Israel, and for the stranger who sojourns among them, that whoever kills any person unintentionally might flee there, and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood, until he stands before the congregation.