Deuteronomy 19

1 “When your God YHWH cuts off the nations whose land your God YHWH is giving to you, and you have dispossessed them, and dwelt in their cities and in their houses,

When Adonai your God cuts off the nations, whose land Adonai your God gives you, and you succeed them, and dwell in their cities, and in their houses;

2 you separate three cities for yourself in the midst of your land which your God YHWH is giving to you to possess it.

you shall set apart three cities for yourselves in the middle of your land, which Adonai your God gives you to possess it.

3 You prepare the way for yourself, and have divided into three parts the border of your land which your God YHWH causes you to inherit, and it has been for the fleeing there of every manslayer.

You shall prepare the way, and divide the borders of your land, which Adonai your God causes you to inherit, into three parts, that every man slayer may flee there.

4 And this [is] the matter of the manslayer who flees there, and has lived: he who strikes his neighbor unknowingly, and is not hating him before—

This is the case of the man slayer who shall flee there and live. Whoever kills his neighbor unawares, and didn’t hate him in time past;

5 even he who comes into a forest with his neighbor to hew wood, and his hand has driven with an axe to cut the tree, and the iron has slipped from the wood, and has met his neighbor, and he has died—he flees to one of these cities, and has lived,

as when a man goes into the forest with his neighbor to chop wood, and his hand fetches a stroke with the ax to cut down the tree, and the head slips from the handle, and lights on his neighbor, so that he dies, he shall flee to one of these cities and live.

6 lest the redeemer of blood pursue after the manslayer when his heart is hot and has overtaken him, because the way is great, and has struck his life, and he has no sentence of death, for he is not hating him before;

Otherwise, the avenger of blood might pursue the man slayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and strike him mortally; even though he was not mishpat ·judged· worthy of death, because he didn’t hate him in time past.

7 therefore I am commanding you, saying, You separate three cities for yourself.

Therefore I enjoin you to set apart three cities for yourselves.

8 And if your God YHWH enlarges your border, as He has sworn to your fathers, and has given to you all the land which He has spoken to give to your fathers—

If Adonai your God enlarges your border, as he has sworn to your fathers, and gives you all the land which he promised to give to your fathers;

9 when you keep all this command to do it, which I am commanding you today, to love your God YHWH and to walk in His ways [for] all the days—then you have added three more cities for yourself to these three;

if you keep all this mitzvot ·instructions· to do them, which I enjoin you today, to 'ahav ·affectionately love· Adonai your God, and to walk ever in his ways; then you shall add three cities more for yourselves, besides these three.

10 and [do this] lest innocent blood is shed in the midst of your land which your God YHWH is giving to you [for] an inheritance, and there has been blood on you.

This is so that innocent blood will not be shed in the middle of your land which Adonai your God gives you for an inheritance, leaving blood guilt on you.

11 And when a man is hating his neighbor, and has lain in wait for him, and risen against him, and struck his life, and he has died, then he has fled to one of these cities,

But if any man hates his neighbor, lies in wait for him, rises up against him, strikes him mortally so that he dies, and he flees into one of these cities;

12 and [the] elderly of his city have sent and taken him from there, and given him into the hand of the redeemer of blood, and he has died;

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

13 your eye has no pity on him, and you have put away the innocent blood from Israel, and it is well with you.

Your eye shall not pity him, but you shall purge the innocent blood from Israel [God prevails], that it may go well with you.

14 You do not remove a border of your neighbor, which they of former times have made, in your inheritance, which you inherit in the land which your God YHWH is giving to you to possess it.

You shall not remove your neighbor’s landmark, which they of old time have set, in your inheritance which you shall inherit, in the land that Adonai your God gives you to possess.

15 One witness does not rise against a man for any iniquity and for any sin, in any sin which he sins; by the mouth of two witnesses or by the mouth of three witnesses is a thing established.

One witness shall not rise up against a man for any depravity (moral evil), or for any habitual sin ·missing the mark·, in any crime deserving peanlty, sin ·missing the goal· that he sins ·errs (the standard goal)·. At the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall a matter be established.

16 When a violent witness rises against a man to testify against him apostasy,

If an unrighteous witness rises up against any man to testify against him of wrongdoing,

17 then both of the men who have the strife have stood before YHWH, before the priests and the judges who are in those days,

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

18 and the judges have searched diligently, and behold, the witness [is] a false witness who has testified a falsehood against his brother,

and the judges shall make diligent inquisition: and, behold, if the witness is a false witness, and has testified falsely against his brother;

19 then you have done to him as he devised to do to his brother, and you have put away evil out of your midst,

then you shall do to him as he had thought to do to his brother. So you shall remove the evil from among you.

20 and those who are left hear and fear, and do not add to do according to this evil thing in your midst anymore.

Those who remain shall sh'ma ·hear obey·, and fear, and will never again commit any such evil among you.

21 And your eye does not pity—life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.”

Your eyes shall not pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.