Numbers 35:16

16 But if he smote him with an instrument of iron, so that he died, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.

Numbers 35:16 Meaning and Commentary

Numbers 35:16

And if he smite him with an instrument of iron, so that he
die
As with an hatchet, hammer, sword, knife, &c.

he is a murderer;
the instrument used by him, and with which he smote, shows that he had a bad design, and intended to kill, or he would never have smitten a man with such an instrument:

the murderer shall surely be put to death;
be condemned to death, and be executed, by the order of the civil magistrate, according to the law in ( Genesis 9:6 ) and not be allowed the benefit of a city of refuge.

Numbers 35:16 In-Context

14 Ye shall give three cities beyond the Jordan, and three cities shall ye give in the land of Canaan; they shall be cities of refuge.

15 For the children of Israel, and for the stranger and for the sojourner among them, shall these six cities be for refuge; that every one that killeth any person unwittingly may flee thither.

16 But if he smote him with an instrument of iron, so that he died, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.

17 And if he smote him with a stone in the hand, whereby a man may die, and he died, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.

18 Or if he smote him with a weapon of wood in the hand, whereby a man may die, and he died, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.