Numbers 35

1 And the Lord spoke these things also to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan, over against Jericho:

And the Lord spoke to Moses to the west of Moab by Jordan near Jericho, saying,

2 Command the children of Israel that they give to the Levites out of their possessions,

Give orders to the children of Israel, and they shall give to the Levites cities to dwell in from the lot of their possession, and they shall give to the Levites the suburbs of the cities round about them.

3 Cities to dwell in, and their suburbs round about: that they may abide in the towns, and the suburbs may be for their cattle and beasts:

And the cities shall be for them to dwell in, and their enclosures shall be for their cattle and all their beasts.

4 Which suburbs shall reach from the walls of the cities outward, a thousand paces on every side:

And the suburbs of the cities which you shall give to the Levites, shall be from the wall of the city and outwards two thousand cubits round about.

5 Toward the east shall be two thousand cubits: and toward the south in like manner shall be two thousand cubits: toward the sea also, which looketh to the west, shall be the same extent: and the north side shall be bounded with the like limits. And the cities shall be in the midst, and the suburbs without.

And you shall measure outside the city on the east side two thousand cubits, and on the south side two thousand cubits, and on the west side two thousand cubits, and on the north side two thousand cubits; and your city shall be in the midst of this, and the suburbs of the cities [as described].

6 And among the cities, which you shall give to the Levites, six shall be separated for refuge to fugitives, that he who hath shed blood may flee to them: and besides these there shall be other forty-two cities,

And you shall give the cities to the Levites, the six cities of refuge which you shall give for the slayer to flee there, and in addition to these, forty-two cities.

7 That is, in all forty-eight with their suburbs.

You shall give to the Levites in all forty-eight cities, them and their suburbs.

8 And of these cities which shall be given out of the possessions of the children of Israel, from them that have more, more shall be taken: and from them that have less, fewer. Each shall give towns to the Levites according to the extent of their inheritance.

And as for the cities which you shall give out of the possession of the children of Israel, from those [that have] much [you shall give] much, and from those that have less you shall give less: they shall give of their cities to the Levites each one according to his inheritance which they shall inherit.

9 The Lord said to Moses:

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

10 Speak to the children of Israel, and thou shalt say to them: When you shall have passed over the Jordan into the land of Chanaan,

Speak to the children of Israel, and you shall say to them, You are to cross over Jordan into the land of Chanaan.

11 Determine what cities shall be for the refuge of fugitives, who have shed blood against their will.

And you shall appoint to yourselves cities: they shall be to you cities of refuge for the slayer to flee to, every one who has killed another unintentionally.

12 And when the fugitive shall be in them, the kinsman of him that is slain may not have power to kill him, until he stand before the multitude, and his cause be judged.

And the cities shall be to you places of refuge from the avenger of blood, and the slayer shall not die until he stands before the congregation for judgement.

13 And of those cities, that are separated for the refuge of fugitives,

And the cities which you shall assign, [even] the six cities, shall be places of refuge for you.

14 Three shall be beyond the Jordan, and three in the land of Chanaan,

You shall assign three cities on the other side of Jordan, and you shall assign three cities in the land of Chanaan.

15 As well for the children of Israel as for strangers and sojourners, that he may flee to them, who hath shed blood against his will.

It shall be a place of refuge for the children of Israel, and for the stranger, and for him that sojourns amongst you; these cities shall be for a place of refuge, for every one to flee there who has killed a man unintentionally.

16 If any man strike with iron, and he die that was struck: he shall be guilty of murder, and he himself shall die.

And if he should strike him with an iron instrument, and the man should die, he is a murderer; let the murderer by all means be put to death.

17 If he throw a stone, and he that is struck die: he shall be punished in the same manner.

And if he should strike him with a stone [thrown] from his hand, whereby a man may die, and he [thus] die, he is a murderer; let the murderer by all means be put to death.

18 If he that is struck with wood die: he shall be revenged by the blood of him that struck him.

And if he should strike him with an instrument of wood from his hand, whereby he may die, and he [thus] die, he is a murderer; let the murderer by all means be put to death.

19 The kinsman of him that was slain, shall kill the murderer: as soon as he apprehendeth him, he shall kill him.

The avenger of blood himself shall kill the murderer: whenever he shall meet him he shall kill him.

20 If through hatred any one push a man, or fling any thing at him with ill design:

And if he should thrust him through enmity, or cast any thing upon him from an ambuscade, and the man should die,

21 Or being his enemy, strike; him with his hand, and he die: the striker shall be guilty of murder: the kinsman of him that was slain as soon as he findeth him, shall kill him.

or if he have struck him with his hand through anger, and the man should die, let the man that struck him be put to death by all means, he is a murderer: let the murderer by all means be put to death: the avenger of blood shall kill the murderer when he meets him.

22 But if by chance medley, and without hatred,

But if he should thrust him suddenly, not through enmity, or cast any thing upon him, not from an ambuscade,

23 And enmity, he do any of these things,

or [strike him] with any stone, whereby a man may die, unawares, and it should fall upon him, and he should die, but he was not his enemy, nor sought to hurt him;

24 And this be proved in the hearing of the people, and the cause be debated between him that struck, and the next of kin:

then the assembly shall judge between the smiter and the avenger of blood, according to these judgements.

25 The innocent shall be delivered from the hand of the revenger, and shall be brought back by sentence into the city, to which he had fled, and he shall abide there until the death of the high priest, that is anointed with the holy oil.

And the congregation shall rescue the slayer from the avenger of blood, and the congregation shall restore him to his city of refuge, whither he fled for refuge; and he shall dwell there till the death of the high-priest, whom they anointed with the holy oil.

26 If the murderer be found without the limits of the cities that are appointed for the banished,

But if the slayer should in any wise go out beyond the bounds of the city whither he fled for refuge,

27 And be struck by him that is the avenger of blood: he shall not be guilty that killed him.

and the avenger of blood should find him without the bounds of the city of his refuge, and the avenger of blood should kill the slayer, he is not guilty.

28 For the fugitive ought to have stayed in the city until the death of the high priest: and after he is dead, then shall the manslayer return to his own country.

For he ought to have remained in the city of refuge till the high-priest died; and after the death of the high-priest the slayer shall return to the land of his possession.

29 These things shall be perpetual, and for an ordinance in all your dwellings.

And these things shall be to you for an ordinance of judgement throughout your generations in all your dwellings.

30 The murderer shall be punished by witnesses: none shall be condemned upon the evidence of one man.

Whoever kills a man, you shall kill the murderer on the testimony of witnesses; and one witness shall not testify against a soul that he should die.

31 You shall not take money of him that is guilty of blood, but he shall die forthwith.

And you shall not accept ransoms for life from a murderer who is worthy of death, for he shall be surely put to death.

32 The banished and fugitives before the death of the high priest may by no means return into their own cities.

You shall not accept a ransom [to excuse] his fleeing to the city of refuge, so that he should again dwell in the land, until the death of the high-priest.

33 Defile not the land of your habitation, which is stained with the blood of the innocent: neither can it otherwise be expiated, but by his blood that hath shed the blood of another.

So shall you not pollute with murder the land in which you dwell; for this blood pollutes the land, and the land shall not be purged from the blood shed upon it, but by the blood of him that shed it.

34 And thus shall your possession he cleansed, myself abiding with you. For I am the Lord that dwell among the children of Israel.

And you shall not defile the land whereon you dwell, on which I dwell in the midst of you; for I am the Lord dwelling in the midst of the children of Israel.