Numbers 35:19-27
New English Translation
19 The avenger[a] of blood himself must kill the murderer; when he meets him, he must kill him.
20 “‘But if he strikes him out of hatred or throws something at him intentionally[b] so that he dies, 21 or with enmity he strikes him with his hand and he dies, the one who struck him must surely be put to death, for he is a murderer. The avenger of blood must kill the murderer when he meets him.
22 “But if he strikes him suddenly, without enmity, or throws anything at him unintentionally, 23 or with any stone large enough that a man could die, without seeing him, and throws it at him, and he dies, even though he was not his enemy nor sought his harm, 24 then the community must judge between the slayer and the avenger of blood according to these decisions. 25 The community must deliver the slayer out of the hand of the avenger of blood, and the community must restore him to the town of refuge to which he fled, and he must live there[c] until the death of the high priest, who was anointed with the consecrated oil. 26 But if the slayer at any time goes outside the boundary of the town to which he had fled, 27 and the avenger of blood finds him outside the borders of the town of refuge, and the avenger of blood kills the slayer, he will not be guilty of blood,
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Numbers 35:19 tn The participle גֹּאֵל (goʾel) is the one who protects the family by seeking vengeance for a crime. This is the same verb used for levirate marriages and other related customs.
- Numbers 35:20 tn The Hebrew text is more vivid: “by lying in wait.”
- Numbers 35:25 tn Heb “in it.”
Numbers 35:19-27
New King James Version
19 (A)The[a] avenger of blood himself shall put the murderer to death; when he meets him, he shall put him to death. 20 (B)If he pushes him out of hatred or, (C)while lying in wait, hurls something at him so that he dies, 21 or in enmity he strikes him with his hand so that he dies, the one who struck him shall surely be put to death. He is a murderer. The avenger of blood shall put the murderer to death when he meets him.
22 ‘However, if he pushes him suddenly (D)without enmity, or throws anything at him without lying in wait, 23 or uses a stone, by which a man could die, throwing it at him without seeing him, so that he dies, while he was not his enemy or seeking his harm, 24 then (E)the congregation shall judge between the manslayer and the avenger of blood according to these judgments. 25 So the congregation shall deliver the manslayer from the hand of the avenger of blood, and the congregation shall return him to the city of refuge where he had fled, and (F)he shall remain there until the death of the high priest (G)who was anointed with the holy oil. 26 But if the manslayer at any time goes outside the limits of the city of refuge where he fled, 27 and the avenger of blood finds him outside the limits of his city of refuge, and the avenger of blood kills the manslayer, he shall not be guilty of [b]blood,
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Numbers 35:19 A family member who is to avenge the victim
- Numbers 35:27 Murder
Numbers 35:19-27
English Standard Version
19 (A)The avenger of blood shall himself put the murderer to death; when he meets him, he shall put him to death. 20 And if he pushed him out of hatred or hurled something at him, (B)lying in wait, so that he died, 21 or in enmity struck him down with his hand, so that he died, then he who struck the blow shall be put to death. He is a murderer. (C)The avenger of blood shall put the murderer to death when he meets him.
22 “But if he pushed him suddenly without enmity, or hurled anything on him (D)without lying in wait 23 or used a stone that could cause death, and without seeing him dropped it on him, so that he died, though he was not his enemy and did not seek his harm, 24 then (E)the congregation shall judge between the manslayer and (F)the avenger of blood, in accordance with these rules. 25 And the congregation shall rescue the manslayer from the hand of the avenger of blood, and the congregation shall restore him to his city of refuge to which he had fled, and he shall live in it (G)until the death of the high priest (H)who was anointed with the holy oil. 26 But if the manslayer shall at any time go beyond the boundaries of his city of refuge to which he fled, 27 and (I)the avenger of blood finds him outside the boundaries of his city of refuge, and the avenger of blood kills the manslayer, he shall not be guilty of blood.
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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