Yosua 20

1 Yehowa gblɔ na Yosua be,

And the Lord said to Joshua,

2 “Gblɔ na Israelviwo be woatia sitsoƒeduwo, abe ale si meɖoe da ɖi to Mose dzi ene la azɔ.

Say to the children of Israel, Let certain towns be marked out as safe places, as I said to you by the mouth of Moses,

3 Ne ame aɖe wu ame to nu maɖowɔ me la, ate ŋu asi ayi du siawo dometɔ ɖeka me, eye woaxɔ nɛ tso ame kukua ƒe ƒometɔwo, ame siwo adi be yewoabia hlɔ̃ awui la ƒe asi me.

So that any man who in error and without design has taken the life of another, may go in flight to them: and they will be safe places for you from him who has the right of punishment for blood.

4 Ne amewula la ɖo du siawo dometɔ ɖeka me la, awɔ takpekpe kple du ma me tɔwo ƒe ametsitsiwo, agblɔ nu si dzɔ la na wo, ekema woaxɔe, ana teƒee wòanɔ le wo dome.

And if anyone goes in flight to one of those towns, and comes into the public place of the town, and puts his cause before the responsible men of the town, they will take him into the town and give him a place among them where he may be safe.

5 Ne ame kuku la ƒe ƒometɔ aɖe va be yeabia hlɔ̃e, awui la, womaɖe asi le amewula la ŋu nɛ o, elabena menye ɖe wòɖoe hafi wu amea o.

And if the one who has the right of punishment comes after him, they are not to give the taker of life up to him; because he was the cause of his neighbour's death without designing it and not in hate.

6 Ele be amewula la nanɔ sitsoƒedu la me va se ɖe esime ʋɔnudrɔ̃lawo nadrɔ̃ ʋɔnui, eye wòaganɔ afi ma va se ɖe esime nunɔlagã si nɔ dzi ɖum hafi nya sia dzɔ la naku. Ekema amewula la ate ŋu atrɔ ayi wo de azɔ.”

And he is to go on living in that town till he has to come before the meeting of the people to be judged; (till the death of him who is high priest at that time: ) then the taker of life may come back to his town and to his house, to the town from which he had gone in flight.

7 Du siwo wotsɔ wɔ sitsoƒeduwoe lae nye Kedes le Galilea, le Naftali ƒe viwo ƒe tonyigba dzi, Sekem le Efraim ƒe viwo ƒe tonyigba dzi kple Kiriat Arba si wogayɔna be Hebron la, le Yuda ƒe tonyigba dzi.

So they made selection of Kedesh in Galilee in the hill-country of Naphtali, and Shechem in the hill-country of Ephraim, and Kiriath-arba (which is Hebron) in the hill-country of Judah.

8 Yehowa gaɖoe be woagatia du bubu etɔ̃ woazu sitsoƒeduwo le Yɔdan tɔsisi la ƒe ɣedzeƒe lɔƒo, le Yeriko ƒe akpa kemɛ. Sitsoƒedu siawoe nye Bezer le Ruben ƒe viwo ƒe anyigba dzi, Ramot le Gilead, le Gad ƒe viwo ƒe anyigba dzi kple Golan le Basan, le Manase ƒe viwo ƒe anyigba dzi.

And on the east side of Jordan at Jericho, they made selection of Bezer in the waste land, in the table-land, 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.

9 Sitsoƒedu siawo li na amedzro siwo le Israelviwo dome kple Israelviwo ŋutɔ siaa, ale be ame si meɖoe hafi wu nɔvia o la ate ŋu asi ayi teƒe ma, woadrɔ̃ ʋɔnui, eye womabia hlɔ̃e, awui o.

These were the towns marked out for all the children of Israel and for the man from a strange country living among them, so that anyone causing the death of another in error, might go in flight there, and not be put to death by him who has the right of punishment for blood till he had come before the meeting of the people.