Deuteronomy 19

1 When Yahweh thy God, shall cut off the nations whose land Yahweh thy God is giving thee, —and thou shalt dispossess them, and dwell in their cities and in their houses,

When the LORD your God has cut off the nations whose land He is giving you, and when you have driven them out and settled in their cities and houses,

2 three cities, shalt thou set apart for thee, —in the midst of thy land which Yahweh thy God is giving thee to possess.

then you are to set apart for yourselves three cities within the land that the LORD your God is giving you to possess.

3 Thou shalt prepare for thee a way, and shalt divide into three parts the boundary of thy land which Yahweh thy God shall cause thee to inherit, —and it shall be that every manslayer shall flee thither.

You are to build roads for yourselves and divide into three regions the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, so that any manslayer can flee to these cities.

4 And, this, is the case of the manslayer, who shall flee thither and live, —Whoso shall smite his neighbour unwittingly, he, not having hated him aforetime;

Now this is the situation regarding the manslayer who flees to one of these cities to save his life, having killed his neighbor accidentally, without intending to harm him:

5 as when one entereth with his neighbour into a forest, to fell trees, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the axe, to cut down the tree, and the head flieth off from the handle, and lighteth upon his neighbour, that he die, he, shall flee into one of these cities, and live;

If he goes into the forest with his neighbor to cut timber and swings his axe to chop down a tree, but the blade flies off the handle and strikes and kills his neighbor, he may flee to one of these cities to save his life.

6 lest the blood redeemer pursue the manslayer because his heart is hot, and overtake him because the way is long, and he smite him so as to take away his life, —he not being worthy of death, seeing that he had not been hating him aforetime.

Otherwise, the avenger of blood might pursue the manslayer in a rage, overtake him if the distance is great, and strike him dead though he did not deserve to die, since he did not intend any harm.

7 For this cause, am I commanding thee saying, —Three cities, shalt thou set apart for thee.

This is why I am commanding you to set apart for yourselves three cities.

8 But, if Yahweh thy God should enlarge thy bounds, as he sware unto thy fathers, —and should give thee all the land, which he spake of giving unto thy fathers;

And if the LORD your God enlarges your territory, as He swore to your fathers, and gives you all the land He promised them,

9 because thou dost observe all this commandment to do it which I am commanding thee to-day, to love Yahweh thy God and to walk in his paths all the days, then shalt thou add unto thee yet three cities, unto these three;

and if you carefully keep all these commandments I am giving you today, loving the LORD your God and walking in His ways at all times, then you are to add three more cities to these three.

10 that innocent blood may not be shed in the midst of thy land, which Yahweh thy God is giving unto thee as an inheritance, —and so shed-blood be upon thee.

Thus innocent blood will not be shed in the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, so that you will not be guilty of bloodshed.

11 But, when any man shall be hating his neighbour, and shall lie in wait for him and rise up against him, and smite him so as to take away his life that he dieth, —and shall then flee into one of these cities,

If, however, a man hates his neighbor and lies in wait, attacks him and kills him, and then flees to one of these cities,

12 then shall the elders of his city send and fetch him from thence, —and deliver him into the hand of the blood redeemer that he die;

the elders of his city must send for him, bring him back, and hand him over to the avenger of blood to die.

13 thine eye shall not look with pity upon him, —so shall thou consume the shedding of innocent blood out of Israel and it shall go well with thee.

You must show him no pity. You are to purge from Israel the guilt of shedding innocent blood, that it may go well with you.

14 Thou shalt not move back the boundary of thy neighbour, by which they set bounds at first, —in thine inheritance which thou shall receive in the land which Yahweh thy God is giving thee to possess.

You must not move your neighbor’s boundary marker, which was set up by your ancestors to mark the inheritance you shall receive in the land that the LORD your God is giving you to possess.

15 One witness, shall not rise up, against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, with regard to any sin that he may commit, —at the mouth of two witnesses or at the mouth of three witnesses, must a matter be establish.

A lone witness is not sufficient to establish any wrongdoing or sin against a man, regardless of what offense he may have committed. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.

16 When there shall rise up a wrongful witness against a man, —to answer against him perversely,

If a false witness testifies against someone, accusing him of a crime,

17 then shall the two men who are at variance stand before Yahweh, —before the priests and the judges who shall be in those days;

both parties to the dispute must stand in the presence of the LORD, before the priests and judges who are in office at that time.

18 and the judges shall make diligent inquisition, —and lo! if the witness be, a false witness and, falsely, have answered against his brother,

The judges shall investigate thoroughly, and if the witness is proven to be a liar who has falsely accused his brother,

19 then shall ye do unto him as he had thought to de unto his brother, —so shalt thou consume the wicked thing out of thy midst;

you must do to him as he intended to do to his brother. So you must purge the evil from among you.

20 and, they who remain shall hear and fear, —and not go on to do again according to this wicked thing, in thy midst:

Then the rest of the people will hear and be afraid, and they will never again do anything so evil among you.

21 neither shall thine eye pity, —life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

You must show no pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, and foot for foot.