Deuteronomio 21
1 Es posible que encuentres a un hombre asesinado, tirado en un campo en el país que el Señor tu Dios te da, y que nadie sepa quién lo mató.
“When there will have been found in the land, which the Lord your God will give to you, the corpse of a man who has been killed, and it is not known who is guilty of the murder,
2 Tus ancianos y jueces deben venir y medir la distancia del cuerpo a los pueblos de alrededor.
your judges and those greater by birth shall go out and measure, from the place of the corpse, the distance to each of the surrounding cities.
3 Entonces los ancianos del pueblo que se encuentren más cerca del cuerpo tomarán una vaca que nunca haya sido sometida a un yugo o utilizada para el trabajo.
And in whichever one they perceive to be closer than the others, the elders shall take a calf from the herd, one which has not pulled with a yoke, nor tilled with a plow.
4 Llevarán la vaca a un valle que tenga un arroyo que lo atraviese y cuya tierra nunca haya sido arada o sembrada. Rómpele el cuello a la vaca allí, junto al arroyo.
And they shall lead it into a rough and stony valley, one which has never been tilled or sown. And in that place, they shall cut the neck of the calf.
5 Los sacerdotes levitas deben estar allí también, porque el Señor tu Dios los ha elegido para servirle y para dar bendiciones en su nombre, y para decidir sobre las disputas legales y los casos de asalto.
And the priests the sons of Levi shall approach, those whom the Lord your God has chosen to minister to him, and to bless in his name, and to decide every controversy by their word, and to judge which things are clean and which are unclean.
6 Entonces todos los ancianos del pueblo más cercano al cuerpo deben lavarse las manos en el arroyo sobre la vaca muerta, diciendo,
And those greater by birth of that city, nearest to the one who was slain, shall go and shall wash their hands over the calf that was killed in the valley.
7 “No tuvimos nada que ver con este asesinato, y no vimos quién lo hizo.
And they shall say: ‘Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it.
8 Señor, por favor perdona a tu pueblo Israel, a quien rescataste, y no lo hagas culpable de derramar sangre inocente. De esta manera la culpa por derramar sangre será perdonada”.
Be merciful to your people Israel, whom you have redeemed, O Lord, and do not charge them with innocent blood in the midst of your people Israel.’ And so the guilt of the blood will be taken away from them.
9 Así es como deberán quitarse la culpa de derramar sangre inocente, ya que han hecho lo que es correcto a los ojos del Señor.
Then you will be free from the blood that was shed against the innocent, when you will have done as the Lord has instructed you.
10 Cuando vayan a la guerra con sus enemigos y el Señor su Dios los entregue en derrota y los capturen,
If you have gone out to fight against your enemies, and the Lord your God has delivered them into your hand, and if, as you are leading away the captives,
11 es posible que vean que uno de ellos es una mujer hermosa que les gusta y con la que se quieren casar.
you see among the number of the captives a beautiful woman, and you love her, and you are willing to have her as a wife:
12 Llévenla a casa y hagan que se afeite la cabeza, que se corte las uñas,
then you shall lead her into your house. And she shall shave off her hair, and cut her nails short,
13 y que se deshaga de la ropa que llevaba puesta cuando fue capturada. Después de que haya vivido en tu casa y haya terminado su mes de luto por su padre y su madre, puedes dormir con ella y casarte con ella, y será tu esposa.
and remove the garment in which she was captured. And she shall sit in your house and weep for her father and mother, for one month. And after that, you shall enter to her and sleep with her, and she shall be your wife.
14 Sin embargo, si no eres feliz con ella, debes dejarla ir donde ella quiera. No se te permite venderla por dinero o tratarla como una esclava, porque la has avergonzado.
But if afterwards she does not sit well in your mind, you shall set her free. You cannot sell her for money, nor can you oppress her by force. For you have humiliated her.
15 Si un hombre tiene dos esposas, una que ama y otra que no, y ambas tienen hijos a su cargo, pero el hijo primogénito es de la esposa que no ama,
If a man has two wives, one beloved and the other hated, and they have produced children by him, and if the son of the hated wife is the firstborn,
16 cuando llegue el momento de que el hombre decida lo que cada hijo heredará de él, no debe preferir al hijo de la esposa que ama y tratarlo como primogénito en lugar del hijo de la esposa que no ama.
and if he wishes to divide his substance among his sons: he cannot make the son of the beloved wife the firstborn, and so prefer him before the son of the hated wife.
17 Sino que debe reconocer al primogénito, el hijo de la esposa que no ama por medio de la costumbre habitual de darle una doble porción de todo lo que posee. El hijo primogénito es la primicia de la fuerza de su padre, y por lo tanto los derechos del primogénito son suyos.
Instead, he shall acknowledge the son of the hated wife as the firstborn, and he shall give to him a double portion of all that he has. For he is the first among his children, and the rights of the firstborn are owed to him.
18 Si alguien tiene un hijo obstinado y rebelde que no obedece a sus padres y no les obedece ni siquiera cuando está castigado,
If a man produces a disobedient and reckless son, who will not listen to the orders of his father or mother, and, having been corrected, shows contempt for obedience:
19 sus padres deben llevarlo a los ancianos del pueblo, al tribunal de su ciudad natal,
they shall take him and lead him to the elders of the city and to the gate of judgment.
20 y decirles: “Nuestro hijo es obstinado y rebelde, no nos obedece. ¡Es un borracho inútil!”
And they shall say to them: ‘This our son is reckless and disobedient. He shows contempt when listening to our admonitions. He occupies himself with carousing, and self-indulgence, and feasting.’
21 Entonces todos los hombres de su pueblo lo apedrearán hasta la muerte. Deben eliminar el mal de entre ustedes, y todo israelita se enterará y tendrá miedo.
Then the people of the city shall stone him to death. And he shall die, so that you may take away the evil from your midst. And so may all of Israel, upon hearing it, be very afraid.
22 Si alguien comete un crimen castigado con la muerte, y la persona es ejecutada colgando de un árbol,
When a man will have sinned in a matter which is punished by death, and, having been judged unto death, he has been hanged on a gallows:
23 no dejes el cuerpo colgando allí de la noche a la mañana. Asegúrate de enterrar el cuerpo el mismo día, porque cualquiera que sea colgado está bajo la maldición de Dios. No profanen el país que el Señor su Dios les ha dado para que lo posean.
his corpse shall not remain on the tree. Instead, he shall be buried on the same day. For he who hangs from a tree has been cursed by God, and you shall not defile your land, which the Lord your God will give to you as a possession.”
