Numbers 35

1 And the Lord spoke these things also to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan, over against Jericho:

And Jehovah spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan of Jericho, saying,

2 Command the children of Israel that they give to the Levites out of their possessions,

Command the children of Israel, that of the inheritance of their possession they give unto the Levites cities to dwell in; and a suburb for the cities round about them shall ye give unto the Levites.

3 Cities to dwell in, and their suburbs round about: that they may abide in the towns, and the suburbs may be for their cattle and beasts:

And the cities shall they have to dwell in, and their suburbs shall be for their cattle, and for their goods, and for all their beasts.

4 Which suburbs shall reach from the walls of the cities outward, a thousand paces on every side:

And the suburbs of the cities that ye shall give unto the Levites shall be from the walls of the city outward, a thousand cubits round about.

5 Toward the east shall be two thousand cubits: and toward the south in like manner shall be two thousand cubits: toward the sea also, which looketh to the west, shall be the same extent: and the north side shall be bounded with the like limits. And the cities shall be in the midst, and the suburbs without.

And ye shall measure, without the city, the east side two thousand cubits, and the south side two thousand cubits, and the west side two thousand cubits, and the north side two thousand cubits, and the city shall be in the midst: they shall have this as suburbs of the cities.

6 And among the cities, which you shall give to the Levites, six shall be separated for refuge to fugitives, that he who hath shed blood may flee to them: and besides these there shall be other forty-two cities,

And [among] the cities that ye shall give unto the Levites [shall be] the six cities of refuge, which ye shall appoint for the manslayer, that he may flee thither, — and besides them ye shall give forty-two cities:

7 That is, in all forty-eight with their suburbs.

all the cities that ye shall give to the Levites shall be forty-eight cities, they and their suburbs.

8 And of these cities which shall be given out of the possessions of the children of Israel, from them that have more, more shall be taken: and from them that have less, fewer. Each shall give towns to the Levites according to the extent of their inheritance.

And the cities which ye shall give shall be of the possession of the children of Israel: from them that have much ye shall take much, and from them that have little ye shall take little; each one according to his inheritance which he will inherit shall give of his cities to the Levites.

9 The Lord said to Moses:

And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying,

10 Speak to the children of Israel, and thou shalt say to them: When you shall have passed over the Jordan into the land of Chanaan,

Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye pass over the Jordan into the land of Canaan,

11 Determine what cities shall be for the refuge of fugitives, who have shed blood against their will.

then ye shall appoint for yourselves cities: cities of refuge shall they be for you; that a manslayer may flee thither, who without intent smiteth a person mortally.

12 And when the fugitive shall be in them, the kinsman of him that is slain may not have power to kill him, until he stand before the multitude, and his cause be judged.

And ye shall have these cities for refuge from the avenger; that the manslayer die not, until he have stood before the assembly in judgment.

13 And of those cities, that are separated for the refuge of fugitives,

And the cities that ye shall give shall be six cities of refuge for you.

14 Three shall be beyond the Jordan, and three in the land of Chanaan,

Three cities shall ye give on this side of the Jordan, and three cities shall ye give in the land of Canaan; they shall be cities of refuge.

15 As well for the children of Israel as for strangers and sojourners, that he may flee to them, who hath shed blood against his will.

For the children of Israel, and for the stranger, and for the sojourner among them shall these six cities be a refuge, that one who smiteth a person mortally without intent may flee thither.

16 If any man strike with iron, and he die that was struck: he shall be guilty of murder, and he himself shall die.

And if he have smitten him with an instrument of iron, so that he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall certainly be put to death.

17 If he throw a stone, and he that is struck die: he shall be punished in the same manner.

And if he have smitten him with a stone from the hand, wherewith one may die, and he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall certainly be put to death.

18 If he that is struck with wood die: he shall be revenged by the blood of him that struck him.

Or if he have smitten him with an instrument of wood, in the hand, wherewith one may die, and he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall certainly be put to death;

19 The kinsman of him that was slain, shall kill the murderer: as soon as he apprehendeth him, he shall kill him.

the avenger of blood, he shall put the murderer to death; when he meeteth him, he shall put him to death.

20 If through hatred any one push a man, or fling any thing at him with ill design:

And if he thrust at him out of hatred, or hurl at him intentionally, so that he die,

21 Or being his enemy, strike; him with his hand, and he die: the striker shall be guilty of murder: the kinsman of him that was slain as soon as he findeth him, shall kill him.

or from enmity smite him with his hand, so that he die, he that smote him shall certainly be put to death; he is a murderer: the avenger of blood shall put the murderer to death, when he meeteth him. —

22 But if by chance medley, and without hatred,

But if he have thrust at him suddenly without enmity, or have cast upon him anything unintentionally,

23 And enmity, he do any of these things,

or [have smitten him] with any stone wherewith one may die, without seeing him, and have cast it upon him so that he die, and he was not his enemy, neither sought his harm:

24 And this be proved in the hearing of the people, and the cause be debated between him that struck, and the next of kin:

then the assembly shall judge between the smiter and the avenger of blood according to these judgments;

25 The innocent shall be delivered from the hand of the revenger, and shall be brought back by sentence into the city, to which he had fled, and he shall abide there until the death of the high priest, that is anointed with the holy oil.

and the assembly shall rescue the manslayer out of the hand of the avenger of blood, and the assembly shall restore him to the city of his refuge, whither he had fled; and he shall abide in it until the death of the high-priest, who was anointed with the holy oil.

26 If the murderer be found without the limits of the cities that are appointed for the banished,

But if the manslayer shall in any way come outside the limits of the city of his refuge whither he hath fled,

27 And be struck by him that is the avenger of blood: he shall not be guilty that killed him.

and the avenger of blood find him outside the limits of his city of refuge, and the avenger of blood kill the manslayer, there shall be no blood-guiltiness upon him;

28 For the fugitive ought to have stayed in the city until the death of the high priest: and after he is dead, then shall the manslayer return to his own country.

for the manslayer should have remained in the city of his refuge until the death of the high-priest; but after the death of the high-priest he may return into the land of his possession.

29 These things shall be perpetual, and for an ordinance in all your dwellings.

And this shall be unto you a statute of right throughout your generations in all your dwellings.

30 The murderer shall be punished by witnesses: none shall be condemned upon the evidence of one man.

Whoever shall smite a person mortally, at the mouth of witnesses shall the murderer be put to death; but one witness shall not testify against a person to cause him to die.

31 You shall not take money of him that is guilty of blood, but he shall die forthwith.

And ye shall take no satisfaction for the life of a murderer, who is guilty of death, but he shall certainly be put to death.

32 The banished and fugitives before the death of the high priest may by no means return into their own cities.

And ye shall take no satisfaction for him that hath fled to the city of his refuge, that he should come again to dwell in the land, until the death of the priest.

33 Defile not the land of your habitation, which is stained with the blood of the innocent: neither can it otherwise be expiated, but by his blood that hath shed the blood of another.

And ye shall not pollute the land wherein ye are; for blood, it polluteth the land; and there can be no atonement made for the land, for the blood that hath been shed therein, but by the blood of him that shed it.

34 And thus shall your possession he cleansed, myself abiding with you. For I am the Lord that dwell among the children of Israel.

And ye shall not defile the land that ye inhabit, in the midst whereof I dwell; for I am Jehovah who dwell in the midst of the children of Israel.