Deuteronomy 19

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

'When Jehovah thy God doth cut off the nations, whose land Jehovah thy God is giving to thee, and thou hast succeeded them, and dwelt in their cities, and in their houses,

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

three cities thou dost separate for thee in the midst of thy land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee to possess it.

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

Thou dost prepare for thee the way, and hast divided into three parts the border of thy land which Jehovah thy God doth cause thee to inherit, and it hath been for the fleeing thither of every man-slayer.

4 This is the case of the man slayer who shall flee there and live: Whoever kills his neighbour unintentionally, and didn’t hate him in time past—

'And this [is] the matter of the man-slayer who fleeth thither, and hath lived: He who smiteth his neighbour unknowingly, and is not hating him heretofore,

5 as when a man goes into the forest with his neighbour to chop wood and his hand swings the axe to cut down the tree, and the head slips from the handle and hits his neighbour so that he dies—he shall flee to one of these cities and live.

even he who cometh in with his neighbour into a forest to hew wood, and his hand hath driven with an axe to cut the tree, and the iron hath slipped from the wood, and hath met his neighbour, and he hath died — he doth flee unto one of these cities, and hath lived,

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

lest the redeemer of blood pursue after the man-slayer when his heart is hot, and hath overtaken him (because the way is great), and hath smitten him — the life, and he hath no sentence of death, for he is not hating him heretofore;

7 Therefore I command you to set apart three cities for yourselves.

therefore I am commanding thee, saying, Three cities thou dost separate to thee.

8 If the LORD 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;

'And if Jehovah thy God doth enlarge thy border, as He hath sworn to thy fathers, and hath given to thee all the land which He hath spoken to give to thy fathers —

9 and if you keep all this commandment to do it, which I command you today, to love the LORD your God, and to walk ever in his ways, then you shall add three cities more for yourselves, in addition to these three.

when thou keepest all this command to do it, which I am commanding thee to-day, to love Jehovah thy God, and to walk in His ways all the days — then thou hast added to thee yet three cities to these three;

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

and innocent blood is not shed in the midst of thy land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee — an inheritance, and there hath been upon thee blood.

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

'And when a man is hating his neighbour, and hath lain in wait for him, and risen against him, and smitten him — the life, and he hath died, and he hath fled unto one of these cities,

12 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.

then the elders of his city have sent and taken him from thence, and given him into the hand of the redeemer of blood, and he hath died;

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

thine eye hath no pity on him, and thou hast put away the innocent blood from Israel, and it is well with thee.

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

'Thou dost not remove a border of thy neighbour, which they of former times have made, in thine inheritance, which thou dost inherit in the land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee to possess it.

15 One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin that he sins. At the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall a matter be established.

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

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

'When a violent witness doth rise against a man, to testify against him apostasy,

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

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

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

and the judges have searched diligently, and lo, the witness [is] a false witness, a falsehood he hath testified against his brother:

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

'Then ye have done to him as he devised to do to his brother, and thou hast put away the evil thing out of thy midst,

20 Those who remain shall hear, and fear, and will never again commit any such evil amongst you.

and those who are left do hear and fear, and add not to do any more according to this evil thing in thy midst;

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

and thine eye doth not pity — life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.