Deuteronomy 19
Christian Standard Bible
Cities of Refuge
19 “When the Lord your God annihilates the nations whose land he is giving you,(A) so that you drive them out and live in their cities and houses, 2 you are to set apart three cities for yourselves within the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess.(B) 3 You are to determine the distances[a] and divide the land the Lord your God is granting you as an inheritance into three regions, so that anyone who commits manslaughter can flee to these cities.[b]
4 “Here is the law concerning a case of someone who kills a person and flees there to save his life, having killed his neighbor accidentally without previously hating him: 5 If, for example, he goes into the forest with his neighbor to cut timber, and his hand swings the ax to chop down a tree, but the blade flies off the handle and strikes his neighbor so that he dies, that person may flee to one of these cities and live. 6 Otherwise, the avenger of blood in the heat of his anger[c] might pursue the one who committed manslaughter, overtake him because the distance is great, and strike him dead. Yet he did not deserve to die,[d] since he did not previously hate his neighbor. 7 This is why I am commanding you to set apart three cities for yourselves. 8 If the Lord your God enlarges your territory as he swore to your ancestors, and gives you all the land he promised to give them— 9 provided you keep every one of these commands I am giving you today and follow them, loving the Lord your God and walking in his ways at all times—you are to add three more cities to these three. 10 In this way, innocent blood will not be shed, and you will not become guilty of bloodshed in the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.(C) 11 But if someone hates his neighbor, lies in ambush for him, attacks him, and strikes him fatally, and flees to one of these cities, 12 the elders of his city are to send for him, take him from there, and hand him over to the avenger of blood and he will die. 13 Do not look on him with pity but purge from Israel the guilt of shedding innocent blood, and you will prosper.
Boundary Markers
14 “Do not move your neighbor’s boundary marker,(D) established at the start in the inheritance you will receive in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess.
Witnesses in Court
15 “One witness cannot establish any iniquity or sin against a person, whatever that person has done.(E) A fact must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.(F)
16 “If a malicious witness(G) testifies against someone accusing him of a crime, 17 the two people in the dispute are to stand in the presence of the Lord before the priests and judges in authority at that time. 18 The judges are to make a careful investigation, and if the witness turns out to be a liar who has falsely accused his brother, 19 you must do to him as he intended to do to his brother. You must purge the evil from you. 20 Then everyone else will hear and be afraid, and they will never again do anything evil like this among you.(H) 21 Do not show pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, and foot for foot.(I)
Deuteronomy 19
New American Standard Bible
Cities of Refuge
19 “(A)When the Lord your God cuts off the nations whose land the Lord your God is giving you, and you dispossess them and settle in their cities and in their houses, 2 (B)you shall set aside for yourself three cities in the midst of your land which the Lord your God is giving you to [a]possess. 3 You shall prepare the [b]roads for yourself, and divide into three regions the territory of your land which the Lord your God will give you as an inheritance, [c]so that anyone who commits manslaughter may flee there.
4 “(C)Now this is the case of the one who commits manslaughter, who may flee there and live: when he [d]kills his friend [e]unintentionally, [f]not hating him previously— 5 as when a person goes into the forest with his friend to cut wood, and his hand [g]swings the axe to cut down the tree, and the iron head slips off the [h]handle and [i]strikes his friend so that he dies—he may flee to one of these cities and live. 6 Otherwise, the avenger of blood might pursue [j]him [k]in the heat of his anger, and overtake him because the way is long, and [l]take his life, though he was not sentenced to death since he had not hated him previously. 7 Therefore I command you, saying, ‘You shall set aside for yourself three cities.’
8 “And if the Lord your God (D)enlarges your territory, just as He has sworn to your fathers, and gives you all the land that He [m]promised to give your fathers— 9 if you [n]carefully follow all of this commandment which I am commanding you today, (E)to love the Lord your God, and to walk in His ways always—(F)then you shall add three more cities for yourself, besides these three. 10 So innocent blood will not be shed in the midst of your land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, and (G)guilt for bloodshed will not be on you.
11 “But (H)if there is a person who hates his neighbor, and waits in ambush for him and rises up against him and strikes [o]him so that he dies, and he flees to one of these cities, 12 then the elders of his city shall send men and take him from there, and hand him over to the avenger of blood, so that he may die. 13 [p](I)You shall not pity him, but (J)you shall eliminate the guilt for the bloodshed of the innocent from Israel, so that it may go well for you.
Laws of Landmark and Testimony
14 “(K)You shall not displace your neighbor’s boundary marker, which the ancestors have set, in your inheritance which you will inherit in the land that the Lord your God is giving you to [q]possess.
15 “(L)A single witness shall not rise up against a person regarding any wrongdoing or any sin [r]that he commits; on the [s]testimony of two or three witnesses a matter shall be confirmed. 16 (M)If a malicious witness rises up against a person to testify against him of wrongdoing, 17 then both people who have the dispute shall stand (N)before the Lord, before the priests and the judges who will be in office in those days. 18 And the judges (O)shall investigate thoroughly, and if the witness is a false witness and he has testified against his brother falsely, 19 then (P)you shall do to him just as he had planned to do to his brother. So you shall eliminate the evil from among you. 20 And (Q)the rest of the people will hear and be afraid, and will never again do such an evil thing among you. 21 So [t](R)you shall not show pity: (S)life for life, (T)eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, and foot for foot.
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 19:2 Lit possess it
- Deuteronomy 19:3 Lit road
- Deuteronomy 19:3 Lit and it shall be for everyone who committed manslaughter to flee there
- Deuteronomy 19:4 Lit strikes
- Deuteronomy 19:4 Lit without knowledge
- Deuteronomy 19:4 Lit and he was not hating him previously
- Deuteronomy 19:5 Lit is put to the
- Deuteronomy 19:5 Lit wood
- Deuteronomy 19:5 Lit finds
- Deuteronomy 19:6 Lit the one who committed manslaughter
- Deuteronomy 19:6 Lit while his heart is hot
- Deuteronomy 19:6 Lit strike him in the soul
- Deuteronomy 19:8 Lit spoke
- Deuteronomy 19:9 Lit keep all...to do it
- Deuteronomy 19:11 Lit him in the soul
- Deuteronomy 19:13 Lit Your eye
- Deuteronomy 19:14 Lit possess it
- Deuteronomy 19:15 Lit in any sin, that he sins
- Deuteronomy 19:15 Lit mouth of two witnesses, or by the mouth of three
- Deuteronomy 19:21 Lit your eye
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
