4 Mose 35
1 Bere a Israelfo bɔɔ atenase wɔ Yordan ho, Moab tataw so wɔ Yeriko akyi no, Awurade ka kyerɛɛ Mose se,
Yahweh spoke to Moses on the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho and said,
2 “Ka kyerɛ Israelfo no na wɔmfa wɔn agyapade no mu bi a ɛyɛ nkurow ne ɛho mmoa adidibea mma Lewifo no.
“Command the people of Israel to give some of their own shares of land to the Levites. They must give them cities to live in and pastureland surrounding those cities.
3 Nkurow no mu na wɔbɛtena na wɔn anantwi, wɔn nguan ne wɔn mmoa a aka no nso akɔ adidi wɔ adidibea hɔ.
The Levites will have these cities to live in. The pastureland will be for their cattle, their flocks, and all their animals.
4 “Wɔn mmoa adidibea no kɛse befi kurow no afasu ho a ne fa biara trɛw yɛ anammɔn apem ne ahannum.
The pasturelands around the cities that you will give to the Levites must extend from the city walls for one thousand cubits in every direction.
5 Munsusuw anammɔn mpensa mfi kurow no afasu no ho wɔ nʼafanan nyinaa. Eyi bɛyɛ mmoa adidibea kɛse ama nkurow no.
You must measure two thousand cubits from outside the city on the east side, and two thousand cubits to the south side, two thousand cubits to the west side, and two thousand cubits to the north side. This will be the pasturelands for their cities. The cities will be in the center.
6 “Nkurow a mode bɛma Lewifo no no mu asia bɛyɛ guankɔbea nkuropɔn, baabi a obi a wafom akum ɔfoforo no, betumi aguan akɔ. Momfa nkurow aduanan abien nka ho mma wɔn.
Six of the cities that you will give to Levites must serve as cities of refuge. You must provide these as places to which a person who has killed someone can flee. Also provide forty-two other cities.
7 Ne nyinaa bɛyɛ nkurow aduanan awotwe ne ho mmoa adidibea.
The cities that you give to the Levites will total forty-eight. You must give their pasturelands with them.
8 Saa nkurow yi befi Israelfo no agyapade mu. Mmusuakuw no mu akɛse bɛma Lewifo no nkurow bebree na mmusuakuw nketewa no ama kakraa bi. Abusuakuw biara bɛma sɛnea nʼagyapade kɛse te.”
The larger tribes of the people of Israel, the tribes that have more land, must provide more cities. The smaller tribes will provide fewer cities. Each tribe must provide for the Levites according to the share that it has received.”
9 Awurade ka kyerɛɛ Mose se,
Then Yahweh spoke to Moses and said,
10 “Ka kyerɛ Israelfo no se, ‘Sɛ mutwa Yordan du Kanaan a,
“Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, 'When you cross over the Jordan into the land of Canaan,
11 mompaw nkurow bi mfa nyɛ guankɔbea nkurow a, obiara a ɔbɛfom akum onipa no betumi aguan akɔ hɔ.
then you must choose cities to serve as cities of refuge for you, a place to which a person who has killed someone unintentionally may flee.
12 Saa nkurow yi bɛyɛ guankɔbea a ebegye no afi owufo no abusuafo a wɔpɛ sɛ wɔtɔ owufo no wu so were no nsa mu; na ɛnsɛ sɛ wokum owudifo no gye sɛ wɔadi nʼasɛm abu no kumfɔ ansa.
These cities must be your refuge from the avenger, so that the accused man will not be killed without first standing trial before the community.
13 Ɛsɛ sɛ wosisi guankɔbea nkurow yi mu abiɛsa wɔ Kanaan asase so
You must choose six cities as cities of refuge.
14 na wosisi abiɛsa nso wɔ Asubɔnten Yordan apuei fam.
You must provide three cities beyond the Jordan and three in the land of Canaan. They will be cities of refuge.
15 Ɛnyɛ Israelfo nko na ɛhɔ bɛyɛ wɔn guankɔbea, na mmom, ɛbɛyɛ guankɔbea ama ahɔho ne akwantufo nyinaa.
For the people of Israel, for the foreigners, for anyone living among you, these six cities will serve as a refuge to which anyone who kills someone unintentionally can flee.
16 “‘Nanso sɛ obi de dade pema sin bi bɔ obi kum no a, wɔfa no sɛ wadi awu enti ɛsɛ sɛ wokum owudifo no.
But if an accused man has struck his victim with an instrument of iron, and if his victim dies, then the accused is indeed a murderer. He must certainly be put to death.
17 Anaasɛ, sɛ wɔde ɔbo kɛse bi bɔ obi ma owu a, ɛyɛ awudi enti ɛsɛ sɛ wokum owudifo no.
If an accused man has struck his victim with a stone in his hand that might kill the victim, and if his victim dies, then the accused is indeed a murderer. He must certainly be put to death.
18 Saa ara nso na sɛ wɔde dua na ekum no a ɛte ara ne no.
If an accused man has struck his victim with a wooden weapon that might kill the victim, and if the victim dies, then the accused is indeed a murderer. He must certainly be put to death.
19 Sɛ ɔweretɔni no hyia owudifo no wɔ baabiara a, ɔwɔ ho kwan sɛ okum no bi.
The avenger of blood may put the murderer to death. When he meets him, the avenger of blood must put him to death.
20 Enti sɛ obi nam ɔtan so tow biribi bɔ obi, anaa, sɛ ɔtetɛw no,
If he strikes another in hatred or throws something at him, while hiding to ambush him, so that the victim dies,
21 anaa ɔde abufuw bɔ no kuturuku na onii no wu a, ɔyɛ owudifo nti ɛsɛ sɛ wokum no.
or if he strikes him down in hatred with his hand so that the victim dies, then the accused who struck him must surely be put to death. He is a murderer. The avenger of blood may put the murderer to death when he meets him.
22 “‘Na sɛ emfi ɔtan so na obi sum ɔfoforo, anaa wanhyɛ da na ɔtow biribi ma ɛkɔbɔ obi,
But if an accused man suddenly hits a victim without premeditated hate or throws something that hits the victim without lying in wait
23 anaasɛ wanhu no na ogyaa ɔbo bi a ɛso a ebetumi akum no mu ma ekokum no a, esiane sɛ saa onipa no nyɛ ɔtamfo na onkura adwene bɔne bi nti,
or if he throws a stone that could kill a victim without seeing the victim, then the accused was not the victim's enemy; he was not trying to hurt the victim. But this is what to do if the victim dies anyway.
24 ɛyɛ bagua no asɛde sɛ wodi asɛm na wɔfa saa mmarakwan yi so bu ɔweretɔni no nea ne nsa apa no ntam atɛn.
In that case, the community must judge between the accused and the avenger of blood on the basis of these rules.
25 Ɛsɛ sɛ bagua no bɔ nea ne nsa apa no ho ban fi ɔweretɔni no nsam na wɔde nea ne nsa apa no san kɔ guankɔbea kuropɔn a oguan kɔɔ mu no mu. Ɛsɛ sɛ nea ne nsa apa no tena hɔ ara kosi sɛ ɔsɔfopanyin a wɔsraa no ngo bewu.
The community must rescue the accused from the power of the avenger of blood. The community must return the accused to the city of refuge to which he had originally fled. He must live there until the death of the current high priest, the one who was anointed with the holy oil.
26 “‘Nanso sɛ nea ne nsa apa no no fi guankɔbea kuropɔn a waguan akɔ mu no no ahye so
But if the accused man at any time goes beyond the border of the city of refuge to which he fled,
27 na ɔweretɔni no hu no wɔ hɔ a obetumi akum no a ɔrenni awudi ho fɔ.
and if the avenger of blood finds him outside the border of his city of refuge, and if he kills the accused man, the avenger of blood will not be guilty of murder.
28 Ɛsɛ sɛ nea ne nsa apa no tena guankɔbea kuropɔn no mu ara kosi sɛ ɔsɔfopanyin bewu. Ɔsɔfopanyin wu akyi nkutoo na obetumi asan akɔ nʼankasa agyapade ho.
This is because the accused man should have remained in his city of refuge until the death of the high priest. After the death of the high priest, the accused may return to the land where he has his own property.
29 “‘Ɛsɛ sɛ eyi yɛ mmara a mudi so wɔ awo ntoatoaso a ɛbɛba no nyinaa mu wɔ baabiara a mobɛtena.
These laws must be statutes for you through all your people's generations in all the places where you live.
30 “‘Ɛsɛ sɛ wokum obiara a obekum obi, nanso gye sɛ nnansefo a wɔboro onipa baako di tia no ansa na ɛsɛ sɛ wokum no. Sɛ onipa baako pɛ na odi adanse tia no de a, ɛno de, ɛnsɛ sɛ wokum no.
Whoever kills any person, the murderer must be killed, as testified to by the words of witnesses. But one witness' word alone may not cause any person to be put to death.
31 “‘Munnnye owudifo a ɛsɛ sɛ owu no ti mpata, nnyina so nnyaa no. Ɛsɛ sɛ wokum no.
Also, you must not accept ransom for the life of a murderer who is guilty of murder. He must certainly be put to death.
32 “‘Munnnye obi a waguan akɔ guankɔbea kuropɔn mu no ti mpata nnyina so mma no nsan mmɛtena nʼasase so bere a ɔsɔfopanyin bi nwui.
You must not accept ransom for the one who has fled to a city of refuge. You must not in this way allow him to reside on his own property until the high priest dies.
33 “‘Munngu asase a mote so no ho fi. Awudi gu asase ho fi, na wɔrentumi nyɛ mpata foforo biara mma asase a wɔahwie mogya agu so gye sɛ wɔde nea ohwiee mogya gui no mogya yɛ okum owudifo no.
Do not pollute in this way the land where you live, because blood from murder pollutes the land. No atonement can be made for the land when blood has been shed on it, except by the blood of the one who shed it.
34 Munngu asase a mote so ne faako a mete no ho fi, efisɛ Me, Awurade no, mete Israelfo no mu.’”
So you must not defile the land in which you live because I am living in it. I, Yahweh, live among the people of Israel.'”
