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Numbers 34-36
New American Standard Bible

Instruction for Apportioning Canaan

34 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Command the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When you enter (A)the land of Canaan, this is the land that shall fall to you as an inheritance, that is, the land of Canaan according to its borders. 3 (B)Your southern region shall [a]extend from the wilderness of Zin along the side of Edom, and your southern border shall [b]extend from the end of the Salt Sea (C)eastward. 4 Then your border shall change direction from the south to the ascent of Akrabbim and [c]continue to Zin, and its [d]termination shall be to the south of (D)Kadesh-barnea; and it shall [e]reach Hazaraddar and [f]continue to Azmon. 5 Then the border shall change direction from Azmon to the brook of Egypt, and its termination shall be at (E)the sea.

6 ‘As for the western border, you shall have the Great Sea, that is, its [g]coastline; this shall be your western border.

7 ‘(F)And this shall be your northern border: you shall draw your boundary from the Great Sea to Mount Hor. 8 You shall draw a boundary from Mount Hor to (G)the [h]Lebo-hamath, and the termination of the border shall be at Zedad; 9 and the border shall proceed to Ziphron, and its termination shall be at Hazar-enan. This shall be your northern border.

10 ‘For your eastern border you shall also draw a boundary from Hazar-enan to Shepham, 11 and the border shall go down from Shepham to (H)Riblah on the east side of Ain; and the border shall go down and reach to the slope on the east side of the Sea of (I)Chinnereth. 12 And the border shall go down to the Jordan, and its termination shall be at the Salt Sea. This shall be your land according to its borders on all sides.’”

13 So Moses commanded the sons of Israel, saying, “(J)This is the land that you are to possess by lot, which the Lord has commanded to give to the nine and a half tribes. 14 (K)For the tribe of the sons of Reuben have received theirs according to their fathers’ households, and the tribe of the sons of Gad according to their fathers’ households, and the half-tribe of Manasseh have received their possession. 15 The two and a half tribes have received their possession across the Jordan opposite Jericho, eastward toward the sunrise.”

16 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 17 “(L)These are the names of the men who shall assign the land to you as an inheritance: Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun. 18 And you shall take one leader of each tribe to assign the land as an inheritance. 19 These are the names of the men: of the tribe of (M)Judah, (N)Caleb the son of Jephunneh. 20 Of the tribe of the sons of (O)Simeon, Samuel the son of Ammihud. 21 Of the tribe of (P)Benjamin, Elidad the son of Chislon. 22 And of the tribe of the sons of Dan, a leader, Bukki the son of Jogli. 23 Of the sons of Joseph: of the tribe of the sons of Manasseh, a leader, Hanniel the son of Ephod. 24 Of the tribe of the sons of Ephraim, a leader, Kemuel the son of Shiphtan. 25 Of the tribe of the sons of Zebulun, a leader, Elizaphan the son of Parnach. 26 Of the tribe of the sons of Issachar, a leader, Paltiel the son of Azzan. 27 Of the tribe of the sons of Asher, a leader, Ahihud the son of Shelomi. 28 Of the tribe of the sons of Naphtali, a leader, Pedahel the son of Ammihud.” 29 These are the ones whom the Lord commanded to apportion the inheritance to the sons of Israel in the land of Canaan.

Cities for the Levites

35 (Q)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 [i]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 (R)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 (S)forty-eight cities, [j]together with their pasture lands. 8 (T)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 “(U)Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, 11 (V)then you shall select for yourselves cities to be your (W)cities of refuge, so that the one who commits manslaughter by [k]killing a person (X)unintentionally may flee there. 12 (Y)The cities shall [l]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 [m]trial. 13 So the cities which you are to provide shall be six cities of refuge for you. 14 You (Z)shall provide three cities across the Jordan, and three cities [n]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 [o]kills a person (AA)unintentionally may flee there.

16 ‘(AB)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 (AC)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 (AD)if he pushed him in hatred, or he threw something at him [p](AE)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 ‘(AF)But if he pushed him suddenly, without hostility, or threw any object at him without [q]malicious intent, 23 or had any [r]deadly stone, and without looking he dropped it on him so that he died, while he was not his enemy nor was he seeking [s]to harm him, 24 then (AG)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 [t]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 [u]him, he [v]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 (AH)statutory ordinance for you throughout your generations in all your dwelling places.

30 ‘(AI)If anyone kills a person, the murderer shall be put to death on the [w]testimony of witnesses, but (AJ)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 [x]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 [y]before the death of the priest. 33 (AK)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 (AL)by the blood of the one who shed it. 34 So you shall not (AM)defile the land in which you live, in the midst of which (AN)I dwell; for I the Lord am dwelling in the midst of the sons of Israel.’”

Inheritance by Marriage

36 (AO)Now the heads of the fathers’ households of the family of the sons of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, of the families of the sons of Joseph, came forward and spoke before Moses and before the leaders, the heads of the fathers’ households of the sons of Israel, 2 and they said, “The Lord commanded my lord to give the land by lot to the sons of Israel as an inheritance, and my lord (AP)was commanded by the Lord to give the inheritance of our brother Zelophehad to his daughters. 3 But if they [z]marry one of the sons of the other tribes of the sons of Israel, their inheritance will be withdrawn from the inheritance of our fathers and will be added to the inheritance of the tribe to which they belong; so it will be withdrawn from our allotted inheritance. 4 And when the (AQ)jubilee of the sons of Israel takes place, then their inheritance will be added to the inheritance of the tribe to which they belong; so their inheritance will be withdrawn from the inheritance of the tribe of our fathers.”

5 Then Moses commanded the sons of Israel in accordance with the [aa]word of the Lord, saying, “The tribe of the sons of Joseph is right in its statements. 6 (AR)This is [ab]what the Lord has commanded regarding the daughters of Zelophehad, saying, ‘Let them marry [ac]whomever they wish; only they must marry within the family of the tribe of their father.’ 7 So (AS)no inheritance of the sons of Israel will [ad]be transferred from tribe to tribe, for the sons of Israel shall each [ae]retain possession of the inheritance of the tribe of his fathers. 8 (AT)And every daughter who comes into possession of an inheritance of any tribe of the sons of Israel shall marry one of the family of the tribe of her father, so that the sons of Israel may each possess the inheritance of his fathers. 9 So no inheritance will [af]be transferred from one tribe to another tribe, for the tribes of the sons of Israel shall each [ag]retain possession of its own inheritance.”

10 Just as the Lord had commanded Moses, so the daughters of Zelophehad did: 11 (AU)Mahlah, Tirzah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Noah, the daughters of Zelophehad married their uncles’ sons. 12 They married those from the families of the sons of Manasseh the son of Joseph, and their inheritance [ah]remained with the tribe of the family of their father.

13 (AV)These are the commandments and the ordinances which the Lord commanded to the sons of Israel through Moses in the plains of Moab, by the Jordan opposite Jericho.

Footnotes

  1. Numbers 34:3 Lit be
  2. Numbers 34:3 Lit be
  3. Numbers 34:4 Lit pass along
  4. Numbers 34:4 Lit exits, and so throughout the ch
  5. Numbers 34:4 Lit go forth to
  6. Numbers 34:4 Lit pass along
  7. Numbers 34:6 Lit border
  8. Numbers 34:8 Or entrance of Hamath
  9. Numbers 35:4 Lit and outward
  10. Numbers 35:7 Lit them together with
  11. Numbers 35:11 Lit fatally striking
  12. Numbers 35:12 Lit be to you
  13. Numbers 35:12 Lit judgment
  14. Numbers 35:14 Lit you shall give in
  15. Numbers 35:15 Lit strikes
  16. Numbers 35:20 Lit in pursuit
  17. Numbers 35:22 Lit pursuit
  18. Numbers 35:23 Lit stone by which he would die
  19. Numbers 35:23 Lit his harm
  20. Numbers 35:26 Lit the one who committed manslaughter
  21. Numbers 35:27 Lit the one who committed manslaughter
  22. Numbers 35:27 Lit he has no bloodguilt
  23. Numbers 35:30 Lit mouth
  24. Numbers 35:31 Lit guilty
  25. Numbers 35:32 Or until
  26. Numbers 36:3 Lit become wives to, and so throughout the ch
  27. Numbers 36:5 Lit mouth
  28. Numbers 36:6 Lit the word which
  29. Numbers 36:6 Lit the good one in their eyes
  30. Numbers 36:7 Lit turn about
  31. Numbers 36:7 Lit cling to
  32. Numbers 36:9 Lit turn about
  33. Numbers 36:9 Lit cling to
  34. Numbers 36:12 Lit was to the
Listen to Numbers 34-36
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Numbers 34-36
New International Version

Boundaries of Canaan

34 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Command the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter Canaan,(A) the land that will be allotted to you as an inheritance(B) is to have these boundaries:(C)

3 “‘Your southern side will include some of the Desert of Zin(D) along the border of Edom. Your southern boundary will start in the east from the southern end of the Dead Sea,(E) 4 cross south of Scorpion Pass,(F) continue on to Zin and go south of Kadesh Barnea.(G) Then it will go to Hazar Addar and over to Azmon,(H) 5 where it will turn, join the Wadi of Egypt(I) and end at the Mediterranean Sea.

6 “‘Your western boundary will be the coast of the Mediterranean Sea.(J) This will be your boundary on the west.(K)

7 “‘For your northern boundary,(L) run a line from the Mediterranean Sea to Mount Hor(M) 8 and from Mount Hor to Lebo Hamath.(N) Then the boundary will go to Zedad, 9 continue to Ziphron and end at Hazar Enan. This will be your boundary on the north.

10 “‘For your eastern boundary,(O) run a line from Hazar Enan to Shepham. 11 The boundary will go down from Shepham to Riblah(P) on the east side of Ain(Q) and continue along the slopes east of the Sea of Galilee.[a](R) 12 Then the boundary will go down along the Jordan and end at the Dead Sea.

“‘This will be your land, with its boundaries on every side.’”

13 Moses commanded the Israelites: “Assign this land by lot(S) as an inheritance.(T) The Lord has ordered that it be given to the nine and a half tribes, 14 because the families of the tribe of Reuben, the tribe of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh have received their inheritance.(U) 15 These two and a half tribes have received their inheritance east of the Jordan across from Jericho, toward the sunrise.”

16 The Lord said to Moses, 17 “These are the names of the men who are to assign the land for you as an inheritance: Eleazar the priest and Joshua(V) son of Nun. 18 And appoint one leader from each tribe to help(W) assign the land.(X) 19 These are their names:(Y)

Caleb(Z) son of Jephunneh,

from the tribe of Judah;(AA)

20 Shemuel son of Ammihud,

from the tribe of Simeon;(AB)

21 Elidad son of Kislon,

from the tribe of Benjamin;(AC)

22 Bukki son of Jogli,

the leader from the tribe of Dan;

23 Hanniel son of Ephod,

the leader from the tribe of Manasseh(AD) son of Joseph;

24 Kemuel son of Shiphtan,

the leader from the tribe of Ephraim(AE) son of Joseph;

25 Elizaphan son of Parnak,

the leader from the tribe of Zebulun;(AF)

26 Paltiel son of Azzan,

the leader from the tribe of Issachar;

27 Ahihud son of Shelomi,

the leader from the tribe of Asher;(AG)

28 Pedahel son of Ammihud,

the leader from the tribe of Naphtali.”

29 These are the men the Lord commanded to assign the inheritance to the Israelites in the land of Canaan.(AH)

Towns for the Levites

35 On the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho,(AI) the Lord said to Moses, 2 “Command the Israelites to give the Levites towns to live in(AJ) from the inheritance the Israelites will possess. And give them pasturelands(AK) around the towns. 3 Then they will have towns to live in and pasturelands for the cattle they own and all their other animals.(AL)

4 “The pasturelands around the towns that you give the Levites will extend a thousand cubits[b] from the town wall. 5 Outside the town, measure two thousand cubits[c](AM) on the east side, two thousand on the south side, two thousand on the west and two thousand on the north, with the town in the center. They will have this area as pastureland for the towns.(AN)

Cities of Refuge(AO)

6 “Six of the towns you give the Levites will be cities of refuge, to which a person who has killed someone may flee.(AP) In addition, give them forty-two other towns. 7 In all you must give the Levites forty-eight towns, together with their pasturelands. 8 The towns you give the Levites from the land the Israelites possess are to be given in proportion to the inheritance of each tribe: Take many towns from a tribe that has many, but few from one that has few.”(AQ)

9 Then the Lord said to Moses: 10 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you cross the Jordan into Canaan,(AR) 11 select some towns to be your cities of refuge, to which a person who has killed someone(AS) accidentally(AT) may flee. 12 They will be places of refuge from the avenger,(AU) so that anyone accused of murder(AV) may not die before they stand trial before the assembly.(AW) 13 These six towns you give will be your cities of refuge.(AX) 14 Give three on this side of the Jordan and three in Canaan as cities of refuge. 15 These six towns will be a place of refuge for Israelites and for foreigners residing among them, so that anyone who has killed another accidentally can flee there.

16 “‘If anyone strikes someone a fatal blow with an iron object, that person is a murderer; the murderer is to be put to death.(AY) 17 Or if anyone is holding a stone and strikes someone a fatal blow with it, that person is a murderer; the murderer is to be put to death. 18 Or if anyone is holding a wooden object and strikes someone a fatal blow with it, that person is a murderer; the murderer is to be put to death. 19 The avenger of blood(AZ) shall put the murderer to death; when the avenger comes upon the murderer, the avenger shall put the murderer to death.(BA) 20 If anyone with malice aforethought shoves another or throws something at them intentionally(BB) so that they die 21 or if out of enmity one person hits another with their fist so that the other dies, that person is to be put to death;(BC) that person is a murderer. The avenger of blood(BD) shall put the murderer to death when they meet.

22 “‘But if without enmity someone suddenly pushes another or throws something at them unintentionally(BE) 23 or, without seeing them, drops on them a stone heavy enough to kill them, and they die, then since that other person was not an enemy and no harm was intended, 24 the assembly(BF) must judge between the accused and the avenger of blood according to these regulations. 25 The assembly must protect the one accused of murder from the avenger of blood and send the accused back to the city of refuge to which they fled. The accused must stay there until the death of the high priest,(BG) who was anointed(BH) with the holy oil.(BI)

26 “‘But if the accused ever goes outside the limits of the city of refuge to which they fled 27 and the avenger of blood finds them outside the city, the avenger of blood may kill the accused without being guilty of murder. 28 The accused must stay in the city of refuge until the death of the high priest; only after the death of the high priest may they return to their own property.

29 “‘This is to have the force of law(BJ) for you throughout the generations to come,(BK) wherever you live.(BL)

30 “‘Anyone who kills a person is to be put to death as a murderer only on the testimony of witnesses. But no one is to be put to death on the testimony of only one witness.(BM)

31 “‘Do not accept a ransom(BN) for the life of a murderer, who deserves to die. They are to be put to death.

32 “‘Do not accept a ransom for anyone who has fled to a city of refuge and so allow them to go back and live on their own land before the death of the high priest.

33 “‘Do not pollute the land where you are. Bloodshed pollutes the land,(BO) and atonement cannot be made for the land on which blood has been shed, except by the blood of the one who shed it. 34 Do not defile the land(BP) where you live and where I dwell,(BQ) for I, the Lord, dwell among the Israelites.’”

Inheritance of Zelophehad’s Daughters(BR)

36 The family heads of the clan of Gilead(BS) son of Makir,(BT) the son of Manasseh, who were from the clans of the descendants of Joseph,(BU) came and spoke before Moses and the leaders,(BV) the heads of the Israelite families. 2 They said, “When the Lord commanded my lord to give the land as an inheritance to the Israelites by lot,(BW) he ordered you to give the inheritance of our brother Zelophehad(BX) to his daughters. 3 Now suppose they marry men from other Israelite tribes; then their inheritance will be taken from our ancestral inheritance and added to that of the tribe they marry into. And so part of the inheritance allotted to us will be taken away. 4 When the Year of Jubilee(BY) for the Israelites comes, their inheritance will be added to that of the tribe into which they marry, and their property will be taken from the tribal inheritance of our ancestors.”

5 Then at the Lord’s command Moses gave this order to the Israelites: “What the tribe of the descendants of Joseph is saying is right. 6 This is what the Lord commands for Zelophehad’s daughters: They may marry anyone they please as long as they marry within their father’s tribal clan. 7 No inheritance(BZ) in Israel is to pass from one tribe to another, for every Israelite shall keep the tribal inheritance of their ancestors. 8 Every daughter who inherits land in any Israelite tribe must marry someone in her father’s tribal clan,(CA) so that every Israelite will possess the inheritance of their ancestors. 9 No inheritance may pass from one tribe to another, for each Israelite tribe is to keep the land it inherits.”

10 So Zelophehad’s daughters did as the Lord commanded Moses. 11 Zelophehad’s daughters—Mahlah, Tirzah, Hoglah, Milkah and Noah(CB)—married their cousins on their father’s side. 12 They married within the clans of the descendants of Manasseh son of Joseph, and their inheritance remained in their father’s tribe and clan.(CC)

13 These are the commands and regulations the Lord gave through Moses(CD) to the Israelites on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho.(CE)

Footnotes

  1. Numbers 34:11 Hebrew Kinnereth
  2. Numbers 35:4 That is, about 1,500 feet or about 450 meters
  3. Numbers 35:5 That is, about 3,000 feet or about 900 meters
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