Josua 20

1 Og HERREN talede til Josua og sagde:

And the Lord spoke unto Joshua, saying,

2 »Tal til Israeliterne og sig: Afgiv de Tilflugtsbyer, jeg talede til eder om ved Moses,

speak to the children of Israel, saying, Appoint for yourselves the cities of refuge, whereof I have spoken unto you by the hand of Moses;

3 for at en Manddraber, der uforsætligt og af Vanvare slaar en ihjel, kan ty til dem, saa at de kan være eder Tilflugtssteder mod Blodhævneren.

That thither may flee the manslayer that killeth any person unawares, without knowledge; and they shall be unto you for a refuge from the avenger of the blood.

4 Naar han tyr hen til en af disse Byer og stiller sig i Byportens Indgang og forebringer sin Sag for Byens Ældste, skal de optage ham i Byen hos sig og anvise ham et Sted, hvor han kan bo hos dem;

And he shall flee unto one of those cities, and he shall stand at the entrance of the gate of the city, and speak in the ears of the elders of that city his words; and they shall take him into the city unto them, and give him a place, that he may dwell among them.

5 og naar Blodhævneren forfølger ham, maa de ikke udlevere Manddraberen til ham, thi han har slaaet sin Næste ihjel af Vanvare uden i Forvejen at have baaret Nag til ham;

And if the avenger of the blood should pursue after him, then shall they not deliver the manslayer up into his hand; because without knowledge did he smite his neighbor, and he was not an enemy to him in time past.

6 han skal blive boende i denne By, indtil han har været stillet for Menighedens Domstol, eller den Mand, som paa den Tid er Ypperstepræst, dør; derefter kan Manddraberen vende tilbage til sin By og sit Hjem, den By, han er flygtet fra.«

And he shall dwell in that city, until he shall have stood before the congregation for judgment, [and] until the death of the high-priest that may be in those days: then shall the manslayer return, and come unto his own house, unto the city whence he hath fled.

7 Da helligede de Kedesj i Galilæa i Naftalis Bjerge, Sikem i Efraims Bjerge og Kirjat-Arba, det er Hebron, i Judas Bjerge.

And they appointed Kedesh in Galilee in the mountain of Naphtali, and Shechem in the mountain of Ephraim, and Kiryath-arba', which is Hebron, in the mountain of Judah.

8 Og østen for Jordan afgav de Bezer i Ørkenen, paa Højsletten, af Rubens Stamme, Ramot i Gilead at Gads Stamme og Golan i Basan af Manasses Stamme.

And on the other side of the Jordan by Jericho eastward, they appointed Bezer in the wilderness in the plain from the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gil'ad from the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan from the tribe of Menasseh.

9 Det var de Byer, som fastsattes for alle Israeliterne og de fremmede, som bor iblandt dem, i det Øjemed at enhver, der uforsætligt slaar en ihjel, kan ty derhen og undgaa Døden for Blodhævnerens Haand, før han har været stillet for Menighedens Domstol.

These were the cities assigned for all the children of Israel, and for the stranger that sojourneth among them, that thither might flee whosoever killeth any person at unawares, and that he should not die by the hand of the avenger of the blood, until he have stood before the congregation.