Deuteronomy 19

1 When Jehovah thy God hath cut off the nations whose land Jehovah thy God giveth thee, and thou hast dispossessed them, and dwellest in their cities and in their houses,

And when the Lord your God shall have destroyed the nations, which God gives you, [even] the land, and you shall inherit them, and dwell in their cities, and in their houses,

2 thou shalt separate three cities for thyself in the midst of thy land, which Jehovah thy God giveth thee to possess.

you shall separate for yourself three cities in the midst of your land, which the Lord your God gives you.

3 Thou shalt prepare thee the way, and divide the territory of thy land, which Jehovah thy God giveth thee to inherit, into three parts, so that every slayer may flee thither.

Take a survey of your way, and you shall divide the coasts of your land, which the Lord your God apportions to you, into three parts, and there shall be there a refuge for every manslayer.

4 And this is the case of the slayer who shall flee thither that he may live: he that smiteth his neighbour unwittingly, whom he hated not previously;

And this shall be the ordinance of the manslayer, who shall flee there, and shall live, whoever shall have struck his neighbor ignorantly, whereas he hated him not in times past.

5 as when he goeth into the wood with his neighbour to hew wood, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree, and the iron slippeth from the handle, and lighteth upon his neighbour, that he die; such an one shall flee unto one of these cities, and live;

And whoever shall enter with his neighbor into the thicket, to gather wood, if the hand of him that cuts wood with the axe should be violently shaken, and the axe head falling off from the handle should light on his neighbor, and he should die, he shall flee to one of these cities, and live.

6 lest the avenger of blood pursue the manslayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and smite him mortally; whereas he was not worthy of death, since he hated him not previously.

Lest the avenger of blood pursue after the slayer, because his heart is hot, and overtake him, if the way be too long, and kill him, though there is to this man no sentence of death, because he hated him not in time past.

7 Therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt separate three cities for thyself.

Therefore I charge you, saying, You shall separate for your self three cities.

8 And if Jehovah thy God enlarge thy border, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, and give thee all the land which he promised to give unto thy fathers

And if the Lord shall enlarge your borders, as he sware to your fathers, and the Lord shall give to you all the land which he said he would give to your fathers;

9 (if thou keep all this commandment to do it, which I command thee this day, to love Jehovah thy God, and to walk in his ways continually), then shalt thou add three cities more for thyself to these three,

if you shall listen to do all these commands, which I charge you this day, to love the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways continually; you shall add for yourself yet three cities to these three.

10 that innocent blood be not shed in the midst of thy land which Jehovah thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and blood come not upon thee.

So innocent blood shall not be spilt in the land, which the Lord your God gives you to inherit, and there shall not be in you one guilty of blood.

11 But if a man hate his neighbour, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally that he die, and he flee into one of these cities,

But if there should be in you a man hating his neighbor, and he should lay wait for him, and rise up against him, and strike him, that he die, and he should flee to one of these cities,

12 then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him thence, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die.

then shall the elders of his city send, and take him thence, and they shall deliver him into the hands of the avengers of blood, and he shall die.

13 Thine eye shall not spare him; and thou shalt put away innocent blood from Israel, that it may be well with thee.

Your eye shall not spare him; so shall you purge innocent blood from Israel, and it shall be well with you.

14 Thou shalt not remove thy neighbour's landmark, which they of old time have fixed in thine inheritance, which thou shalt inherit in the land which Jehovah thy God giveth thee to possess.

You shall not move the landmarks of your neighbor, which your fathers set in the inheritance, in which you have obtained a share in the land, which the Lord your God gives you to inherit.

15 One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, and for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall a matter be established.

One witness shall not stand to testify against a man for any iniquity, or for any fault, or for any sin which he may commit; by the mouth of two witnesses, or by the mouth of three witnesses, shall every word be established.

16 If an unrighteous witness rise up against any man to testify against him of an offence;

And if an unjust witness rise up against a man, alleging iniquity against him;

17 then both the men between whom the controversy is shall stand before Jehovah, before the priests and the judges that shall be in those days;

then shall the two men between whom the controversy is, stand before the Lord, and before the priests, and before the judges, who may be in those days.

18 and the judges shall make thorough inquiry; and if the witness be a false witness, and he have testified falsely against his brother,

And the judges shall make diligent inquiry, and, behold, [if] and unjust witness has borne unjust testimony; [and] has stood up against his brother;

19 then shall ye do unto him as he had thought to have done unto his brother; and thou shalt put evil away from thy midst.

then shall you do to him as he wickedly devised to do against his brother, and you shall remove the evil from yourselves.

20 And those that remain shall hear, and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil in thy midst.

And the rest shall hear and fear, and do no more according to this evil thing in the midst of you.

21 And thine eye shall not spare: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Your eye shall not spare him: [you shall exact] life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.