Numbers 35
Names of God Bible
Cities for the Levites
35 Yahweh spoke to Moses on the plains of Moab near the Jordan River across from Jericho. He said, 2 “Tell the Israelites to give the Levites some cities from their own property. They must also give the Levites the pastureland around those cities. 3 Then the Levites will have cities to live in and pastureland for their cattle, the flocks they own, and any other animals they have.
4 “The land around the cities that you give the Levites will extend 1,500 feet from the city wall. 5 Outside the city measure off 3,000 feet on the east side, 3,000 feet on the south side, 3,000 feet on the west side, and 3,000 feet on the north side, with the city in the center. This will be their pastureland around the city.
6 “Six of the cities you give the Levites will be cities of refuge. You must allow murderers to escape to these cities. In addition, you must also give the Levites 42 other cities. 7 So you will give a total of 48 cities with pastureland to the Levites. 8 The cities you give the Levites from the property of the other Israelites must be given based on the amount of land each tribe owns. Take more cities from larger tribes and fewer from smaller tribes.”
Cities of Refuge
9 Yahweh said to Moses, 10 “Tell the Israelites: When you cross the Jordan River and enter Canaan, 11 select certain cities to be places of refuge. Anyone who unintentionally kills another person may run to them. 12 These cities will be places of refuge from any relative who can avenge the death. So anyone accused of murder will not have to die until he has had a trial in front of the community. 13 There will be six cities you select as places of refuge, 14 three on the east side of the Jordan River and three in Canaan. 15 These six cities will be places of refuge for Israelites, foreigners, and strangers among you. Anyone who unintentionally kills another person may flee to these cities.
16 “But if any of you uses an iron weapon to kill another person, you are a murderer. Murderers must be put to death. 17 If any of you picks up a stone as a weapon and uses it to kill another person, you are a murderer. Murderers must be put to death. 18 Or if any of you picks up a piece of wood as a weapon and uses it to kill another person, you are a murderer. Murderers must be put to death. 19 The relative who can avenge the death must make sure a murderer is put to death. When he catches up with the murderer, he must kill him. 20 If any of you kills someone you hate by shoving him or by deliberately throwing something at him, 21 or if you beat your enemy to death with your bare hands, you must be put to death. You are a murderer. The relative who can avenge the death must kill you when he catches up with you, because you are a murderer.
22 “But suppose you accidentally kill someone who wasn’t your enemy. Maybe you shoved him or threw something at him but didn’t mean to kill him. 23 Or suppose you drop a big stone, and someone is killed. However, you didn’t know the person was there, he wasn’t your enemy, and you weren’t trying to harm him. 24 Then the community must use these rules in order to decide if you are innocent or if the dead person’s relative can avenge the death. 25 If you are innocent, the community must protect you from that relative. They must take you back to the city of refuge you fled to. You must live there until the death of the high priest who was anointed with the holy oil.
26 “But don’t go outside the city of refuge you fled to. 27 If the relative who can avenge the death finds you outside the city of refuge and kills you, the relative is not guilty of murder. 28 Accused murderers must stay in their city of refuge until the death of the high priest. They may go back to their own property only after his death.
29 “These will be the rules for future generations wherever you live.
30 “Whoever kills another person will be put to death as a murderer only on the testimony of more than one witness. No one can be put to death on the testimony of only one witness.
31 “Never accept a cash payment in exchange for the life of a convicted murderer who has been given the death penalty. Murderers must be put to death.
32 “An accused murderer who has fled to a city of refuge must never go back and live on his own land before the death of the high priest. Don’t accept a cash payment to allow him to do this.
33 “You must not pollute the land where you live. Murder is what pollutes the land. The land where a murder was committed can never make peace with the Lord except through the death of the murderer. 34 Never make the land where you and I live unclean.[a] I, Yahweh, live among the Israelites.”
Footnotes
- Numbers 35:34 “Unclean” refers to anything that is not presentable to God.
Numbers 35
New American Standard Bible
Cities for the Levites
35 (A)Now the Lord spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab, by the Jordan opposite Jericho, saying, 2 “Command the sons of Israel that they give to the Levites from the inheritance of their possession cities to live in; and you shall give to the Levites pasture lands around the cities. 3 The cities shall be theirs to live in; and their pasture lands shall be for their cattle and for their equipment and for all their other animals.
4 “The pasture lands of the cities which you are to give to the Levites shall extend from the wall of the city [a]outward a thousand cubits around. 5 You shall also measure outside the city on the east side two thousand cubits, on the south side two thousand cubits, on the west side two thousand cubits, and on the north side two thousand cubits, with the city in the center. This shall become theirs as pasture lands for the cities.
Cities of Refuge
6 The cities which you shall give to the Levites shall be the (B)six cities of refuge, which you shall provide for the one who commits manslaughter to flee to; and in addition to them you shall give forty-two cities. 7 The total number of the cities which you are to give to the Levites shall be (C)forty-eight cities, [b]together with their pasture lands. 8 (D)As for the cities which you shall give them from the possession of the sons of Israel, you shall take more from the larger, and you shall take fewer from the smaller; each shall give some of his cities to the Levites in proportion to his inheritance which he possesses.”
9 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 10 “(E)Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, 11 (F)then you shall select for yourselves cities to be your (G)cities of refuge, so that the one who commits manslaughter by [c]killing a person (H)unintentionally may flee there. 12 (I)The cities shall [d]serve you as a refuge from the avenger, so that the one who commits manslaughter does not die until he stands before the congregation for [e]trial. 13 So the cities which you are to provide shall be six cities of refuge for you. 14 You (J)shall provide three cities across the Jordan, and three cities [f]in the land of Canaan; they are to be cities of refuge. 15 These six cities shall be a refuge for the sons of Israel, for the stranger, and for the foreign resident among them; so that anyone who [g]kills a person (K)unintentionally may flee there.
16 ‘(L)But if he struck him with an iron object, so that he died, he is a murderer; the murderer must be put to death. 17 And if he struck him with a stone in the hand, by which he would die, and as a result he did die, he is a murderer; the murderer (M)must be put to death. 18 Or if he struck him with a wooden object in the hand, by which he would die, and as a result he did die, he is a murderer; the murderer must be put to death. 19 The blood avenger himself shall put the murderer to death; he himself shall put him to death when he meets him. 20 Now (N)if he pushed him in hatred, or he threw something at him [h](O)with malicious intent, and as a result he died, 21 or if he struck him with his hand with hostility, and as a result he died, the one who struck him must be put to death; he is a murderer. The blood avenger shall put the murderer to death when he meets him.
22 ‘(P)But if he pushed him suddenly, without hostility, or threw any object at him without [i]malicious intent, 23 or had any [j]deadly stone, and without looking he dropped it on him so that he died, while he was not his enemy nor was he seeking [k]to harm him, 24 then (Q)the congregation shall judge between the one who fatally struck the victim and the blood avenger in accordance with these ordinances. 25 And the congregation shall save the one who committed manslaughter from the hand of the blood avenger, and the congregation shall return him to his city of refuge to which he fled; and he shall live in it until the death of the high priest who was anointed with the holy oil. 26 But if at any time [l]he goes beyond the border of his city of refuge to which he flees, 27 and the blood avenger finds him outside the border of his city of refuge, and the blood avenger kills [m]him, he [n]will not be guilty of bloodshed, 28 because he should have remained in his city of refuge until the death of the high priest. But after the death of the high priest the one who committed manslaughter may return to the land of his property.
29 ‘These things shall be a (R)statutory ordinance for you throughout your generations in all your dwelling places.
30 ‘(S)If anyone kills a person, the murderer shall be put to death on the [o]testimony of witnesses, but (T)no person shall be put to death on the testimony of only one witness. 31 Moreover, you shall not accept a ransom for the life of a murderer who is [p]condemned to death, but he must be put to death. 32 And you shall not accept a ransom for one who has fled to his city of refuge, so that he may return to live in the land [q]before the death of the priest. 33 (U)So you shall not defile the land in which you live; for blood defiles the land, and no atonement can be made for the land for the blood that is shed on it, except (V)by the blood of the one who shed it. 34 So you shall not (W)defile the land in which you live, in the midst of which (X)I dwell; for I the Lord am dwelling in the midst of the sons of Israel.’”
Footnotes
- Numbers 35:4 Lit and outward
- Numbers 35:7 Lit them together with
- Numbers 35:11 Lit fatally striking
- Numbers 35:12 Lit be to you
- Numbers 35:12 Lit judgment
- Numbers 35:14 Lit you shall give in
- Numbers 35:15 Lit strikes
- Numbers 35:20 Lit in pursuit
- Numbers 35:22 Lit pursuit
- Numbers 35:23 Lit stone by which he would die
- Numbers 35:23 Lit his harm
- Numbers 35:26 Lit the one who committed manslaughter
- Numbers 35:27 Lit the one who committed manslaughter
- Numbers 35:27 Lit he has no bloodguilt
- Numbers 35:30 Lit mouth
- Numbers 35:31 Lit guilty
- Numbers 35:32 Or until
The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
