1
When the LORD thy God hath cut off the nations, whose land the LORD thy Godgiveth thee, and thou succeedest[a] them, and dwellest in their cities, and in their houses;
2
Thou shalt separatethreecities for thee in the midst of thy land, which the LORD thy Godgiveth thee to possess it.
3
Thou shalt prepare thee a way, and divide the coasts of thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee to inherit, into three parts, that every slayer may flee thither.
4
And this is the case of the slayer, which shall flee thither, that he may live: Whoso killeth his neighbourignorantly*, whom he hated not in timepast;
5
As when a man goeth into the wood with his neighbour to hewwood, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree, and the head[b]slippeth from the helve, and lighteth upon his neighbour, that he die; he shall flee unto one of those cities, and live:
6
Lest the avenger of the bloodpursue the slayer*, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and slay[c]him; whereas he was not worthy of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in timepast.
7
Wherefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt separatethreecities for thee.
8
And if the LORD thy Godenlarge thy coast, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, and give thee all the land which he promised to give unto thy fathers;
9
If thou shalt keep all these commandments to do them, which I command thee this day, to love the LORD thy God, and to walkever in his ways; then shalt thou addthreecities more for thee, beside these three:
10
That innocentblood be not shedin thy land, which the LORD thy Godgiveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon thee.
11
But if any manhate his neighbour, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally[d] that he die, and fleeth into one of thesecities:
12
Then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him thence, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die.
13
Thine eye shall not pity him, but thou shalt put away the guilt of innocentblood from Israel, that it may go well with thee.
14
Thou shalt not remove thy neighbour'slandmark, which they of old time have set in thine inheritance, which thou shalt inherit in the land that the LORD thy Godgiveth thee to possess it.
15
Onewitness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of twowitnesses, or at the mouth of threewitnesses, shall the matter be established.
16
If a falsewitness rise up against any man to testify against him that which is wrong;
17
Then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall standbefore the LORD,before the priests and the judges, which shall be in those days;
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And the judges shall make diligentinquisition: and, behold, if the witness be a falsewitness, and hath testifiedfalsely against his brother;
19
Then shall ye do unto him, as he had thought to have done unto his brother: so shalt thou put the evilaway from among you.
20
And those which remain shall hear, and fear, and shall henceforthcommit no more any such evilamong you.
21
And thine eye shall not pity; but life shall go for life,eye for eye,tooth for tooth,hand for hand,foot for foot.