Numbers 35

1 And the LORD spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho, saying,

And the Lord spoke to Moses to the west of Moab by Jordan near Jericho, saying,

2 Command the children of Israel, that they give to the Levites of the inheritance of their possession cities to dwell in; and you shall give also to the Levites suburbs for the cities round about them.

Give orders to the children of Israel, and they shall give to the Levites cities to dwell in from the lot of their possession, and they shall give to the Levites the suburbs of the cities round about them.

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

And the cities shall be for them to dwell in, and their enclosures shall be for their cattle and all their beasts.

4 And the suburbs of the cities, which you shall give to the Levites, shall reach from the wall of the city and outward a thousand cubits round about.

And the suburbs of the cities which you shall give to the Levites, shall be from the wall of the city and outwards two thousand cubits round about.

5 And you shall measure from without the city on the east side two thousand cubits, and on the south side two thousand cubits, and on the west side two thousand cubits, and on the north side two thousand cubits; and the city shall be in the middle: this shall be to them the suburbs of the cities.

And you shall measure outside the city on the east side two thousand cubits, and on the south side two thousand cubits, and on the west side two thousand cubits, and on the north side two thousand cubits; and your city shall be in the midst of this, and the suburbs of the cities [as described].

6 And among the cities which you shall give to the Levites there shall be six cities for refuge, which you shall appoint for the manslayer, that he may flee thither: and to them you shall add forty and two cities.

And you shall give the cities to the Levites, the six cities of refuge which you shall give for the slayer to flee there, and in addition to these, forty-two cities.

7 So all the cities which you shall give to the Levites shall be forty and eight cities: them shall you give with their suburbs.

You shall give to the Levites in all forty-eight cities, them and their suburbs.

8 And the cities which you shall give shall be of the possession of the children of Israel: from them that have many you shall give many; but from them that have few you shall give few: every one shall give of his cities to the Levites according to his inheritance which he inherits.

And as for the cities which you shall give out of the possession of the children of Israel, from those [that have] much [you shall give] much, and from those that have less you shall give less: they shall give of their cities to the Levites each one according to his inheritance which they shall inherit.

9 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

10 Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them, When you be come over Jordan into the land of Canaan;

Speak to the children of Israel, and you shall say to them, You are to cross over Jordan into the land of Chanaan.

11 Then you shall appoint you cities to be cities of refuge for you; that the slayer may flee thither, which kills any person at unawares.

And you shall appoint to yourselves cities: they shall be to you cities of refuge for the slayer to flee to, every one who has killed another unintentionally.

12 And they shall be to you cities for refuge from the avenger; that the manslayer die not, until he stand before the congregation in judgment.

And the cities shall be to you places of refuge from the avenger of blood, and the slayer shall not die until he stands before the congregation for judgment.

13 And of these cities which you shall give six cities shall you have for refuge.

And the cities which you shall assign, [even] the six cities, shall be places of refuge for you.

14 You shall give three cities on this side Jordan, and three cities shall you give in the land of Canaan, which shall be cities of refuge.

You shall assign three cities on the other side of Jordan, and you shall assign three cities in the land of Chanaan.

15 These six cities shall be a refuge, both for the children of Israel, and for the stranger, and for the sojourner among them: that every one that kills any person unawares may flee thither.

It shall be a place of refuge for the children of Israel, and for the stranger, and for him that sojourns among you; these cities shall be for a place of refuge, for every one to flee there who has killed a man unintentionally.

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

And if he should strike him with an iron instrument, and the man should die, he is a murderer; let the murderer by all means be put to death.

17 And if he smite him with throwing a stone, with which he may die, and he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.

And if he should strike him with a stone [thrown] from his hand, whereby a man may die, and he [thus] die, he is a murderer; let the murderer by all means be put to death.

18 Or if he smite him with an hand weapon of wood, with which he may die, and he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.

And if he should strike him with an instrument of wood from his hand, whereby he may die, and he [thus] die, he is a murderer; let the murderer by all means be put to death.

19 The revenger of blood himself shall slay the murderer: when he meets him, he shall slay him.

The avenger of blood himself shall kill the murderer: whenever he shall meet him he shall kill him.

20 But if he thrust him of hatred, or hurl at him by laying of wait, that he die;

And if he should thrust him through enmity, or cast any thing upon him from an ambuscade, and the man should die,

21 Or in enmity smite him with his hand, that he die: he that smote him shall surely be put to death; for he is a murderer: the revenger of blood shall slay the murderer, when he meets him.

or if he have struck him with his hand through anger, and the man should die, let the man that struck him be put to death by all means, he is a murderer: let the murderer by all means be put to death: the avenger of blood shall kill the murderer when he meets him.

22 But if he thrust him suddenly without enmity, or have cast on him any thing without laying of wait,

But if he should thrust him suddenly, not through enmity, or cast any thing upon him, not from an ambuscade,

23 Or with any stone, with which a man may die, seeing him not, and cast it on him, that he die, and was not his enemy, neither sought his harm:

or [strike him] with any stone, whereby a man may die, unawares, and it should fall upon him, and he should die, but he was not his enemy, nor sought to hurt him;

24 Then the congregation shall judge between the slayer and the revenger of blood according to these judgments:

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

25 And the congregation shall deliver the slayer out of the hand of the revenger of blood, and the congregation shall restore him to the city of his refuge, where he was fled: and he shall abide in it to the death of the high priest, which was anointed with the holy oil.

And the congregation shall rescue the slayer from the avenger of blood, and the congregation shall restore him to his city of refuge, whither he fled for refuge; and he shall dwell there till the death of the high-priest, whom they anointed with the holy oil.

26 But if the slayer shall at any time come without the border of the city of his refuge, where he was fled;

But if the slayer should in any wise go out beyond the bounds of the city whither he fled for refuge,

27 And the revenger of blood find him without the borders of the city of his refuge, and the revenger of blood kill the slayer; he shall not be guilty of blood:

and the avenger of blood should find him without the bounds of the city of his refuge, and the avenger of blood should kill the slayer, he is not guilty.

28 Because he should have remained in the city of his refuge until the death of the high priest: but after the death of the high priest the slayer shall return into the land of his possession.

For he ought to have remained in the city of refuge till the high-priest died; and after the death of the high-priest the slayer shall return to the land of his possession.

29 So these things shall be for a statute of judgment to you throughout your generations in all your dwellings.

And these things shall be to you for an ordinance of judgment throughout your generations in all your dwellings.

30 Whoever kills any person, the murderer shall be put to death by the mouth of witnesses: but one witness shall not testify against any person to cause him to die.

Whoever kills a man, you shall kill the murderer on the testimony of witnesses; and one witness shall not testify against a soul that he should die.

31 Moreover you shall take no satisfaction for the life of a murderer, which is guilty of death: but he shall be surely put to death.

And you shall not accept ransoms for life from a murderer who is worthy of death, for he shall be surely put to death.

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

You shall not accept a ransom [to excuse] his fleeing to the city of refuge, so that he should again dwell in the land, until the death of the high-priest.

33 So you shall not pollute the land wherein you are: for blood it defiles the land: and the land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed therein, but by the blood of him that shed it.

So shall you not pollute with murder the land in which you dwell; for this blood pollutes the land, and the land shall not be purged from the blood shed upon it, but by the blood of him that shed it.

34 Defile not therefore the land which you shall inhabit, wherein I dwell: for I the LORD dwell among the children of Israel.

And you shall not defile the land whereon you dwell, on which I dwell in the midst of you; for I am the Lord dwelling in the midst of the children of Israel.