| NET Bible | New International Version |
| 1Then the LORD spoke to Moses in the Moabite plains by the Jordan near Jericho. He said: | 1On the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho, the LORD said to Moses, |
| 2"Instruct the Israelites to give the Levites towns to live in from the inheritance the Israelites will possess. You must also give the Levites grazing land around the towns. | 2"Command the Israelites to give the Levites towns to live in from the inheritance the Israelites will possess. And give them pasturelands around the towns. |
| 3Thus they will have towns in which to live, and their grazing lands will be for their cattle, for their possessions, and for all their animals. | 3Then they will have towns to live in and pasturelands for the cattle they own and all their other animals. |
| 4The grazing lands around the towns that you will give to the Levites must extend to a distance of 500 yards from the town wall. | 4"The pasturelands around the towns that you give the Levites will extend a thousand cubits from the town wall. |
| 5"You must measure from outside the wall of the town on the east 1,000 yards, and on the south side 1,000 yards, and on the west side 1,000 yards, and on the north side 1,000 yards, with the town in the middle. This territory must belong to them as grazing land for the towns. | 5Outside the town, measure two thousand cubits 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. |
| 6Now from these towns that you will give to the Levites you must select six towns of refuge to which a person who has killed someone may flee. And you must give them forty-two other towns. | 6"Six of the towns you give the Levites will be cities of refuge, to which a person who has killed someone may flee. In addition, give them forty-two other towns. |
| 7"So the total of the towns you will give the Levites is forty-eight. You must give these together with their grazing lands. | 7In all you must give the Levites forty-eight towns, together with their pasturelands. |
| 8The towns you will give must be from the possession of the Israelites. From the larger tribes you must give more; and from the smaller tribes fewer. Each must contribute some of its own towns to the Levites in proportion to the inheritance allocated to each. | 8The 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." |
| 9Then the LORD spoke to Moses: | 9Then the LORD said to Moses: |
| 10"Speak to the Israelites and tell them, 'When you cross over the Jordan River into the land of Canaan, | 10"Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'When you cross the Jordan into Canaan, |
| 11you must then designate some towns as towns of refuge for you, to which a person who has killed someone unintentionally may flee. | 11select some towns to be your cities of refuge, to which a person who has killed someone accidentally may flee. |
| 12And they must stand as your towns of refuge from the avenger in order that the killer may not die until he has stood trial before the community. | 12They will be places of refuge from the avenger, so that anyone accused of murder may not die before they stand trial before the assembly. |
| 13These towns that you must give shall be your six towns for refuge. | 13These six towns you give will be your cities of refuge. |
| 14"You must give three towns on this side of the Jordan, and you must give three towns in the land of Canaan; they must be towns of refuge. | 14Give three on this side of the Jordan and three in Canaan as cities of refuge. |
| 15These six towns will be places of refuge for the Israelites, and for the foreigner, and for the settler among them, so that anyone who kills any person accidentally may flee there. | 15These 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"But if he hits someone with an iron tool so that he dies, he is a murderer. The murderer must surely be put to death. | 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. |
| 17If he strikes him by throwing a stone large enough that he could die, and he dies, he is a murderer. The murderer must surely be put to death. | 17Or 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. |
| 18Or if he strikes him with a wooden hand weapon so that he could die, and he dies, he is a murderer. The murderer must surely be put to death. | 18Or 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. |
| 19The avenger of blood himself must kill the murderer; when he meets him, he must kill him. | 19The avenger of blood shall put the murderer to death; when the avenger comes upon the murderer, the avenger shall put the murderer to death. |
| 20"But if he strikes him out of hatred or throws something at him intentionally so that he dies, | 20If anyone with malice aforethought shoves another or throws something at them intentionally so that they die |
| 21or with enmity he strikes him with his hand and he dies, the one who struck him must surely be put to death, for he is a murderer. The avenger of blood must kill the murderer when he meets him. | 21or if out of enmity one person hits another with their fist so that the other dies, that person is to be put to death; that person is a murderer. The avenger of blood shall put the murderer to death when they meet. |
| 22"But if he strikes him suddenly, without enmity, or throws anything at him unintentionally, | 22"'But if without enmity someone suddenly pushes another or throws something at them unintentionally |
| 23or with any stone large enough that a man could die, without seeing him, and throws it at him, and he dies, even though he was not his enemy nor sought his harm, | 23or, 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, |
| 24then the community must judge between the slayer and the avenger of blood according to these decisions. | 24the assembly must judge between the accused and the avenger of blood according to these regulations. |
| 25The community must deliver the slayer out of the hand of the avenger of blood, and the community must restore him to the town of refuge to which he fled, and he must live there until the death of the high priest, who was anointed with the consecrated oil. | 25The 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, who was anointed with the holy oil. |
| 26But if the slayer at any time goes outside the boundary of the town to which he had fled, | 26"'But if the accused ever goes outside the limits of the city of refuge to which they fled |
| 27and the avenger of blood finds him outside the borders of the town of refuge, and the avenger of blood kills the slayer, he will not be guilty of blood, | 27and the avenger of blood finds them outside the city, the avenger of blood may kill the accused without being guilty of murder. |
| 28because the slayer should have stayed in his town of refuge until the death of the high priest. But after the death of the high priest, the slayer may return to the land of his possessions. | 28The 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. |
| 29So these things must be a statutory ordinance for you throughout your generations, in all the places where you live. | 29"'This is to have the force of law for you throughout the generations to come, wherever you live. |
| 30"Whoever kills any person, the murderer must be put to death by the testimony of witnesses; but one witness cannot testify against any person to cause him to be put to death. | 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. |
| 31Moreover, you must not accept a ransom for the life of a murderer who is guilty of death; he must surely be put to death. | 31"'Do not accept a ransom for the life of a murderer, who deserves to die. They are to be put to death. |
| 32And you must not accept a ransom for anyone who has fled to a town of refuge, to allow him to return home and live on his own land before the death of the high priest. | 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"You must not pollute the land where you live, for blood defiles the land, and the land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed there, except by the blood of the person who shed it. | 33"'Do not pollute the land where you are. Bloodshed pollutes the land, and atonement cannot be made for the land on which blood has been shed, except by the blood of the one who shed it. |
| 34Therefore do not defile the land that you will inhabit, in which I live, for I the LORD live among the Israelites." | 34Do not defile the land where you live and where I dwell, for I, the LORD, dwell among the Israelites.'" |
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