Joshua 20

1 And the LORD spake unto Joshua, saying,

耶和華曉諭約書亞說：

2 Speak to the children of Israel, saying, Assign you the cities of refuge, whereof I spake unto you by the hand of Moses:

「你吩咐以色列人說：你們要照着我藉摩西所曉諭你們的，為自己設立逃城，

3 that the manslayer that killeth any person unwittingly [and] unawares may flee thither: and they shall be unto you for a refuge from the avenger of blood.

使那無心而誤殺人的，可以逃到那裏。這些城可以作你們逃避報血仇人的地方。

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

那殺人的要逃到這些城中的一座城，站在城門口，將他的事情說給城內的長老們聽。他們就把他收進城裏，給他地方，使他住在他們中間。

5 And if the avenger of blood pursue after him, then they shall not deliver up the manslayer into his hand; because he smote his neighbour unawares, and hated him not beforetime.

若是報血仇的追了他來，長老不可將他交在報血仇的手裏；因為他是素無仇恨，無心殺了人的。

6 And he shall dwell in that city, until he stand before the congregation for judgment, until the death of the high priest that shall be in those days: then shall the manslayer return, and come unto his own city, and unto his own house, unto the city from whence he fled.

他要住在那城裏，站在會眾面前聽審判，等到那時的大祭司死了，殺人的才可以回到本城本家，就是他所逃出來的那城。」

7 And they set apart Kedesh in Galilee in the hill country of Naphtali, and Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and Kiriath-arba (the same is Hebron) in the hill country of Judah.

於是，以色列人在拿弗他利山地分定加利利的基低斯；在以法蓮山地分定示劍；在猶大山地分定基列‧亞巴（基列‧亞巴就是希伯崙）；

8 And beyond the Jordan at Jericho eastward, they assigned Bezer in the wilderness in the plain out of the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead out of the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan out of the tribe of Manasseh.

又在約旦河外耶利哥東，從呂便支派中，在曠野的平原，設立比悉；從迦得支派中設立基列的拉末；從瑪拿西支派中設立巴珊的哥蘭。

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

這都是為以色列眾人和在他們中間寄居的外人所分定的城邑，使誤殺人的都可以逃到那裏，不死在報血仇人的手中，等他站在會眾面前聽審判。