Add parallel Print Page Options

19 ¶ Moyiz di yo ankò: -Lè Seyè a, Bondye nou an, va fin detwi nasyon sa yo pou l' ban nou peyi ki te pou yo a, lè n'a fin pran tout peyi a nan men yo pou nou rete nan lavil yo ak nan lakay yo,

n'a chwazi twa lavil nan peyi Seyè a, Bondye nou an, te ban nou pou nou rete a, n'a mete yo apa.

N'a kenbe wout ki mennen nan lavil sa yo an bon eta. N'a divize teritwa Seyè a, Bondye nou an, te ban nou pou nou rete a an twa zòn ak yon lavil nan chak zòn. Konsa, nenpòt moun ki ta rive touye yon lòt ka kouri al kache nan yonn nan lavil sa yo pou sove lavi l'.

Men nan ki sikonstans yon moun ka kouri al kache nan yonn nan lavil sa yo pou sove lavi l': Se lè yon moun touye yon frè parèy li san li pa fè espre, san li pa janm gen anyen avè l'.

Konsa, si de moun al nan bwa ansanm pou koupe bwa epi yonn ladan yo fè sa li leve rach li pou l' koupe yon bwa epi rach la chape soti nan manch lan, l' al frape zanmi l' lan, li touye l' frèt, yon nonm konsa gen dwa kouri al kache nan yonn nan lavil sa yo pou l' ka sove lavi l'.

Si te gen yon sèl lavil konsa, distans la ta ka twò long. Lè sa a, moun ki reskonsab pou tire revanj moun yo touye a, si l'ap kouri dèyè moun ki te fè krim lan, li ta ka rapouswiv li. Nan kè cho li, li ta ka ba l' yon kou, li touye l'. Lè sa a, li ta touye yon inonsan, paske nonm lan pa t' fè espre, li pa t' janm gen anyen nan kè l' kont moun li touye a.

Se poutèt sa mwen mande nou pou nou mete twa lavil konsa apa espre pou sa.

Konsa tou, lè Seyè a, Bondye nou an, va fè peyi nou an vin pi gran jan li te pwomèt zansèt nou yo, lè l'a ban nou tout peyi li te pwomèt l'ap bay zansèt nou yo,

n'a chwazi twa lòt lavil, n'a mete sou sa nou genyen deja yo. Men, pa bliye, l'ap ban nou peyi a, se pou nou toujou swiv tout lòd m'ap ban nou jòdi a, se pou nou toujou renmen Seyè a Bondye nou an, pou nou swiv chemen li mete devan nou an.

10 Se konsa, nou p'ap kite yo touye moun ki inonsan nan peyi Seyè a, Bondye nou an, te ban nou pou rele nou pa nou. Si nou kite sa rive, n'a peye pou sa nou fè a.

11 Men, si yon moun rayi yon lòt, epi li pran veye l' jouk li tonbe sou li, li ba l' kou jouk li touye l', epi apre sa, li kouri al kache nan yonn nan lavil sa yo,

12 lè sa a, chèf fanmi ki reskonsab lavil kote li rete a va voye chache l' epi y'a lage l' nan men fanmi pre moun ki mouri a pou yo touye l'.

13 N'a san pitye pou li, n'a wete moun k'ap mache touye inonsan nan peyi Izrayèl la. Se konsa tout bagay va mache byen pou nou.

14 ¶ Nan peyi Seyè a, Bondye nou an, pral ban nou pou nou rete a, pa janm deplase bòn tè moun pèp Izrayèl parèy nou. Kite yo kote zansèt nou yo te plante yo a.

15 Depozisyon yon sèl temwen pa kont pou moutre si yon moun fè yon krim, osinon yon bagay mal tout bon nan nenpòt akizasyon yo ta ka fè sou do li. Fòk gen de osinon twa temwen ki pou fè depozisyon kont li pou akizasyon an ka kenbe.

16 Lè yon fo temwen kanpe pou l' akize yon moun pou yon krim li pa fè,

17 de moun ki nan pwose yo va prezante ansanm devan lòtèl Seyè a, devan prèt yo ak jij yo ki desèvis lè sa a.

18 Jij yo va egzaminen ka a. Y'a mennen yon bon ankèt jan yo dwe fè l' la. Si yo jwenn se manti temwen an ap bay, se akize l'ap akize yon moun pèp Izrayèl parèy li pou yon bagay li pa janm fè,

19 n'a fè l' sibi chatiman li te vle pou moun li akize a. Se konsa n'a wete mechanste sa a ki te nan mitan nou.

20 Lè lòt moun yo va konn sa, y'a pè, yo p'ap rekonmanse fè move bagay konsa ankò nan mitan nou.

21 Se pou nou san pitye pou moun konsa. Se pou nou fè yo peye lavi pou lavi, yon je pou yon je, yon dan pou yon dan, yon men pou yon men, yon pye pou yon pye.

Cities of Refuge(A)

19 When the Lord your God has destroyed the nations whose land he is giving you, and when you have driven them out and settled in their towns and houses,(B) then set aside for yourselves three cities in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess. Determine the distances involved and divide into three parts the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, so that a person who kills someone may flee for refuge to one of these cities.

This is the rule concerning anyone who kills a person and flees there for safety—anyone who kills a neighbor unintentionally, without malice aforethought. For instance, a man may go into the forest with his neighbor to cut wood, and as he swings his ax to fell a tree, the head may fly off and hit his neighbor and kill him. That man may flee to one of these cities and save his life. Otherwise, the avenger of blood(C) might pursue him in a rage, overtake him if the distance is too great, and kill him even though he is not deserving of death, since he did it to his neighbor without malice aforethought. This is why I command you to set aside for yourselves three cities.

If the Lord your God enlarges your territory,(D) as he promised(E) on oath to your ancestors, and gives you the whole land he promised them, because you carefully follow all these laws I command you today—to love the Lord your God and to walk always in obedience to him(F)—then you are to set aside three more cities. 10 Do this so that innocent blood(G) will not be shed in your land, which the Lord your God is giving you as your inheritance, and so that you will not be guilty of bloodshed.(H)

11 But if out of hate someone lies in wait, assaults and kills a neighbor,(I) and then flees to one of these cities, 12 the killer shall be sent for by the town elders, be brought back from the city, and be handed over to the avenger of blood to die. 13 Show no pity.(J) You must purge from Israel the guilt of shedding innocent blood,(K) so that it may go well with you.

14 Do not move your neighbor’s boundary stone set up by your predecessors in the inheritance you receive in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess.(L)

Witnesses

15 One witness is not enough to convict anyone accused of any crime or offense they may have committed. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.(M)

16 If a malicious witness(N) takes the stand to accuse someone of a crime, 17 the two people involved in the dispute must stand in the presence of the Lord before the priests and the judges(O) who are in office at the time. 18 The judges must make a thorough investigation,(P) and if the witness proves to be a liar, giving false testimony against a fellow Israelite, 19 then do to the false witness as that witness intended to do to the other party.(Q) You must purge the evil from among you. 20 The rest of the people will hear of this and be afraid,(R) and never again will such an evil thing be done among you. 21 Show no pity:(S) life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.(T)