Joshua 20:3

3 Anyone who kills a person by accident or unintentionally may flee there; they will be for yourselves a refuge from the avenger of blood.

Joshua 20:3 Meaning and Commentary

Joshua 20:3

That the slayer that killeth [any] person unawares, [and]
unwittingly, may flee thither
Who through mere accident, and without design, killed a person, friend or foe, one of his own kindred, or a stranger, without any malice against him, or intention to take away his life:

and they shall be your refuge from the avenger of blood;
from any of the relations of the deceased, who might be stirred up to avenge the blood of his kinsman on the slayer; see ( Numbers 35:12 ) .

Joshua 20:3 In-Context

1 And Yahweh spoke to Joshua, saying,

2 "Speak to the {Israelites}, saying, 'Appoint for yourselves cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you through the hand of Moses.

3 Anyone who kills a person by accident or unintentionally may flee there; they will be for yourselves a refuge from the avenger of blood.

4 The killer will flee to one of these cities, stand [at] the entrance of the gate of the city, and {state his case to the elders of that city}; and they will take him into the city and give him a place, and he will dwell among them.

5 And if the avenger of blood pursues after him, they will not hand over the killer into his hand, because he killed his neighbor unintentionally, and {he did not hate him previously}.

Footnotes

• [a] Or "by not knowing"