Deuteronomy 19
Lexham English Bible
19 “When Yahweh your God has exterminated[a] the nations concerning whom Yahweh your God is giving to you their land, and you have dispossessed them, and you have settled in their towns and in their houses, 2 you shall set apart three cities for you in the midst of your land that Yahweh your God is giving to you to take possession of it. 3 You shall prepare the roads[b] for yourselves, and you shall divide the regions of your land into thirds that Yahweh your God gives you as a possession, so that it will be available for any manslayer to flee there.[c]
4 “Now this is the case of the manslayer who may flee there and live there who has killed his neighbor unintentionally,[d] and he did not hate him previously.[e] 5 For example,[f] when somebody goes with his neighbor into the forest to cut wood, and the iron head slips from the handle of the tool and strikes his neighbor and he dies, then he may flee to one of these cities, and so he may live. 6 He does this lest the avenger of blood might pursue after the killer, because he is hot with anger[g] and he overtakes him, because it is a long distance to the city of refuge, and so he kills him,[h] but he did not deserve a death sentence,[i] because he was not hating him before.[j] 7 Therefore I am commanding you, saying,[k] ‘You shall set apart three cities.’ 8 Then if Yahweh your God enlarges your territory just as he swore to your ancestors[l] and gives[m] to you all the land that he promised[n] to give to your ancestors,[o] 9 then if you diligently observe this entire commandment[p] that I am commanding you today[q] by loving Yahweh your God and by going[r] in his ways at all times,[s] then you shall add three more cities for yourselves to these three. 10 Do this so that innocent blood will not be shed[t] in the midst of your land that Yahweh your God is giving to you as an inheritance and thereby bloodguilt would be on you.[u]
11 But if someone hates[v] his neighbor and lies in wait for him and rises up[w] against him and murders him,[x] and the murderer flees to one of these cities, 12 then the elders of his city shall send and take him from there, and they shall give him into the hand of the avenger of blood, and he shall be put to death. 13 Your eye shall not take pity on him, and you shall purge the guilt of innocent blood from Israel, so that good will be directed toward you.[y]
14 “You shall not move the boundary marker of your neighbor that former generations[z] set up on your property in the land that Yahweh your God is giving to you to take possession of it. 15 The testimony of a single witness may not be used to convict[aa] with respect to any crime and for any wrongdoing in any offense that a person[ab] committed; on the evidence[ac] of two witnesses or on the evidence[ad] of three witnesses a charge shall be sustained.[ae] 16 If a malicious witness[af] gets up to accuse[ag] anyone to testify against him falsely, 17 then the two men to whom the legal dispute pertains[ah] shall stand before[ai] Yahweh, before[aj] the priests and the judges who are in office in those days. 18 Then judges shall make a thorough inquiry, and if it turns out[ak] that the witness is a false witness and he testified falsely against his brother, 19 then you shall do to him as he meant[al] to do to his brother, and so you shall purge the evil from your midst. 20 And the rest[am] shall hear and shall fear, and they shall not continue to do such a thing again[an] as this evil thing in your midst. 21 You must show no pity:[ao] life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.”
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 19:1 Literally “cut off”
- Deuteronomy 19:3 Hebrew “road”
- Deuteronomy 19:3 Literally “it shall be to flee there all/anyone killing”
- Deuteronomy 19:4 Literally “with no knowledge”
- Deuteronomy 19:4 Literally “from yesterday and the day before”
- Deuteronomy 19:5 Literally “And as”
- Deuteronomy 19:6 Literally “is hot his heart”
- Deuteronomy 19:6 Literally “he strikes him down as to his life/soul”
- Deuteronomy 19:6 Literally “for him there was not a judgment of death”
- Deuteronomy 19:6 Literally “from yesterday and the day before”
- Deuteronomy 19:7 Literally “to say”
- Deuteronomy 19:8 Or “fathers”
- Deuteronomy 19:8 Hebrew “will give”
- Deuteronomy 19:8 Literally “spoke”
- Deuteronomy 19:8 Or “fathers”
- Deuteronomy 19:9 Literally “if you observe all of the commandment the this to do it”
- Deuteronomy 19:9 Literally “the day”
- Deuteronomy 19:9 Or “walking”
- Deuteronomy 19:9 Literally “all of the days”
- Deuteronomy 19:10 Hebrew “is not shed”
- Deuteronomy 19:10 Hebrew “shall be on you,” but conditional sense of imperfect is clear
- Deuteronomy 19:11 Hebrew “is hating”
- Deuteronomy 19:11 Or “gets up”
- Deuteronomy 19:11 Literally “and strikes him mortally with regard to his life and he dies”
- Deuteronomy 19:13 Literally “and good shall be for you” or “it shall be good for you”
- Deuteronomy 19:14 Literally “the first settlers/ancestors”
- Deuteronomy 19:15 Literally “Not shall get up only a single witness against a man”
- Deuteronomy 19:15 Hebrew “he”
- Deuteronomy 19:15 Literally “mouth”
- Deuteronomy 19:15 Literally “mouth”
- Deuteronomy 19:15 Literally “shall be established a case/charge”
- Deuteronomy 19:16 Literally “a witness of violence”
- Deuteronomy 19:16 Literally “against”
- Deuteronomy 19:17 Literally “who for them are the legal dispute”
- Deuteronomy 19:17 Literally “to the face of”
- Deuteronomy 19:17 Literally “to the face of”
- Deuteronomy 19:18 Or “in fact”
- Deuteronomy 19:19 Or “planned”
- Deuteronomy 19:20 Literally “and those remaining”
- Deuteronomy 19:20 Literally “and they shall not do again to do again”
- Deuteronomy 19:21 Literally “And not take pity your eye”
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)
2012 by Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software
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.