33 “‘Do not pollute the land where you are. Bloodshed pollutes the land,(A) and atonement cannot be made for the land on which blood has been shed, except by the blood of the one who shed it.

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11 But now many nations
    are gathered against you.
They say, “Let her be defiled,
    let our eyes gloat(A) over Zion!”

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38 They shed innocent blood,
    the blood of their sons(A) and daughters,
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan,
    and the land was desecrated by their blood.

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“Whoever sheds human blood,
    by humans shall their blood be shed;(A)
for in the image of God(B)
    has God made mankind.

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50 Therefore this generation will be held responsible for the blood of all the prophets that has been shed since the beginning of the world, 51 from the blood of Abel(A) to the blood of Zechariah,(B) who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, this generation will be held responsible for it all.(C)

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31 So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.(A) 32 Go ahead, then, and complete(B) what your ancestors started!(C)

33 “You snakes! You brood of vipers!(D) How will you escape being condemned to hell?(E) 34 Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify;(F) others you will flog in your synagogues(G) and pursue from town to town.(H) 35 And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel(I) to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah,(J) whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.(K)

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There is only cursing,[a] lying(A) and murder,(B)
    stealing(C) and adultery;(D)
they break all bounds,
    and bloodshed follows bloodshed.(E)
Because of this the land dries up,(F)
    and all who live in it waste away;(G)
the beasts of the field, the birds in the sky
    and the fish in the sea are swept away.(H)

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Footnotes

  1. Hosea 4:2 That is, to pronounce a curse on

24 “Son of man, say to the land, ‘You are a land that has not been cleansed or rained on in the day of wrath.’(A) 25 There is a conspiracy(B) of her princes[a] within her like a roaring lion(C) tearing its prey; they devour people,(D) take treasures and precious things and make many widows(E) within her. 26 Her priests do violence to my law(F) and profane my holy things; they do not distinguish between the holy and the common;(G) they teach that there is no difference between the unclean and the clean;(H) and they shut their eyes to the keeping of my Sabbaths, so that I am profaned(I) among them.(J) 27 Her officials(K) within her are like wolves(L) tearing their prey; they shed blood and kill people(M) to make unjust gain.(N)

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Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 22:25 Septuagint; Hebrew prophets

21 See, the Lord is coming(A) out of his dwelling(B)
    to punish(C) the people of the earth for their sins.
The earth will disclose the blood(D) shed on it;
    the earth will conceal its slain no longer.

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28 They yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor(A)
    and ate sacrifices offered to lifeless gods;

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including the shedding of innocent blood.(A) For he had filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the Lord was not willing to forgive.(B)

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26 Nevertheless, the Lord did not turn away from the heat of his fierce anger,(A) which burned against Judah because of all that Manasseh(B) had done to arouse his anger.

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23 you must not leave the body hanging on the pole overnight.(A) Be sure to bury(B) it that same day, because anyone who is hung on a pole is under God’s curse.(C) You must not desecrate(D) the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.

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Atonement for an Unsolved Murder

21 If someone is found slain, lying in a field in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess, and it is not known who the killer was,(A) your elders and judges shall go out and measure the distance from the body to the neighboring towns. Then the elders of the town nearest the body shall take a heifer that has never been worked and has never worn a yoke(B) and lead it down to a valley that has not been plowed or planted and where there is a flowing stream. There in the valley they are to break the heifer’s neck. The Levitical priests shall step forward, for the Lord your God has chosen them to minister and to pronounce blessings(C) in the name of the Lord and to decide all cases of dispute and assault.(D) Then all the elders of the town nearest the body shall wash their hands(E) over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley, and they shall declare: “Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it done. Accept this atonement for your people Israel, whom you have redeemed, Lord, and do not hold your people guilty of the blood of an innocent person.” Then the bloodshed will be atoned for,(F)

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25 Even the land was defiled;(A) so I punished it for its sin,(B) and the land vomited out its inhabitants.(C)

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