Deuteronomy 19:13

13 Your eye shall not pity him, but you shall put away the guilt of innocent blood from Israel, that it may go well with you.

Deuteronomy 19:13 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 19:13

Thine eye shall not pity him
This is not said to the avenger of blood, who is not to be supposed to have any pity or compassion on such a person, but to the elders, judges, and civil magistrates of the city to which he belonged, who took cognizance of his case; these were to show him no favour on account of his being a citizen, a neighbour, a relation or friend, or a rich man, or on any account whatever; but without favour or affection were to judge him and put him to death as a murderer; see ( Numbers 35:21 ) ,

but thou shall put away the guilt of innocent blood from Israel;
by which they would be defiled, and be liable to punishment for it; see ( Numbers 35:33 Numbers 35:34 ) , the Targum of Jonathan is,

``shall put away those that shed innocent blood out of Israel;''

put them away by death:

that it may go well with thee;
with the whole land and its inhabitants, and with the city particularly, and the magistrates, and men of it, to which the murderer condemned to death belonged, being continued in the enjoyment of all temporal blessings and mercies.

Deuteronomy 19:13 In-Context

11 "But if anyone hates his neighbor, lies in wait for him, rises against him and strikes him mortally, so that he dies, and he flees to one of these cities,
12 then the elders of his city shall send and bring him from there, and deliver him over to the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die.
13 Your eye shall not pity him, but you shall put away the guilt of innocent blood from Israel, that it may go well with you.
14 "You shall not remove your neighbor's landmark, which the men of old have set, in your inheritance which you will inherit in the land that the Lord your God is giving you to possess.
15 "One witness shall not rise against a man concerning any iniquity or any sin that he commits; by the mouth of two or three witnesses the matter shall be established.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.