Parallel Bible results for "deuteronomy 19"

Deuteronomy 19

New Living Translation NLT

1 “When the LORD your God destroys the nations whose land he is giving you, you will take over their land and settle in their towns and homes.

2 Then you must set apart three cities of refuge in the land the LORD your God is giving you.

3 Survey the territory, and divide the land the LORD your God is giving you into three districts, with one of these cities in each district. Then anyone who has killed someone can flee to one of the cities of refuge for safety.

4 “If someone kills another person unintentionally, without previous hostility, the slayer may flee to any of these cities to live in safety.

5 For example, suppose someone goes into the forest with a neighbor to cut wood. And suppose one of them swings an ax to chop down a tree, and the ax head flies off the handle, killing the other person. In such cases, the slayer may flee to one of the cities of refuge to live in safety.

6 “If the distance to the nearest city of refuge is too far, an enraged avenger might be able to chase down and kill the person who caused the death. Then the slayer would die unfairly, since he had never shown hostility toward the person who died.

7 That is why I am commanding you to set aside three cities of refuge.

8 “And if the LORD your God enlarges your territory, as he swore to your ancestors, and gives you all the land he promised them,

9 you must designate three additional cities of refuge. (He will give you this land if you are careful to obey all the commands I have given you—if you always love the LORD your God and walk in his ways.)

10 That way you will prevent the death of innocent people in the land the LORD your God is giving you as your special possession. You will not be held responsible for the death of innocent people.

11 “But suppose someone is hostile toward a neighbor and deliberately ambushes and murders him and then flees to one of the cities of refuge.

12 In that case, the elders of the murderer’s hometown must send agents to the city of refuge to bring him back and hand him over to the dead person’s avenger to be put to death.

13 Do not feel sorry for that murderer! Purge from Israel the guilt of murdering innocent people; then all will go well with you.

14 “When you arrive in the land the LORD your God is giving you as your special possession, you must never steal anyone’s land by moving the boundary markers your ancestors set up to mark their property.

15 “You must not convict anyone of a crime on the testimony of only one witness. The facts of the case must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.

16 “If a malicious witness comes forward and accuses someone of a crime,

17 then both the accuser and accused must appear before the LORD by coming to the priests and judges in office at that time.

18 The judges must investigate the case thoroughly. If the accuser has brought false charges against his fellow Israelite,

19 you must impose on the accuser the sentence he intended for the other person. In this way, you will purge such evil from among you.

20 Then the rest of the people will hear about it and be afraid to do such an evil thing.

21 You must show no pity for the guilty! Your rule should be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Common English Bible CEB

1 Once the LORD your God has eliminated those nations—whose land the LORD your God is giving you—and you displace them, settling into their cities and their houses,

2 you must designate three cities for your use in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess.

3 Mark out the roads to them and divide the regions of the land the LORD your God is apportioning to you into three parts. These cities are the places to which a person who has killed can escape.

4 Here is the rule concerning a person who killed someone and is permitted to escape to one of these cities and live: If it is someone who killed his neighbor accidentally, without having hated that person previously;

5 or if someone goes into the forest with a neighbor to chop some wood, and while swinging an ax to cut down the tree, the axhead flies off its handle and hits the neighbor, who subsequently dies—these kinds of killers may escape to one of these cities and live.

6 Otherwise, the blood avenger will chase after the killer out of rage and—especially if the distance to one of these cities is too far—might catch and kill him, even though a death sentence was not in order because the killer didn't have prior malice toward the other.

7 This is why I am commanding you as follows: Designate three cities for your use.

8 Now if the LORD your God enlarges your territory, as he swore to your ancestors—and he will give you all the land he swore to give to them

9 as long as you keep all this commandment that I am giving you right now by doing it, by loving the LORD your God, and by always walking in his ways—you can add three more cities for your use along with the first three.

10 Innocent blood must not be spilled in the land the LORD your God is giving to you as an inheritance, or it will be bloodshed that will be required of you.

11 But if someone does hate a neighbor and ambushes him, rising up against him and attacking him so he dies, and then escapes to one of these cities,

12 elders from the killer's hometown will send word, and the killer will be sent back from there. They will then hand him over to the blood avenger, and he will be executed.

13 Show no mercy to such killers. Remove innocent bloodshed from Israel so that things go well for you.

14 Now in the land the LORD your God is giving you, in your allotted property that you will receive there, you must not tamper with your neighbor's property line, which has been previously established.

15 A solitary witness against someone in any crime, wrongdoing, or in any sort of misdeed that might be done is not sufficient. The decision must stand by two or three witnesses.

16 Now if a spiteful witness comes forward against someone, so as to testify against them falsely,

17 the two persons who have a legal suit must stand before the LORD, before the priests, and before the judges that are in office at that time.

18 The judges will look into the situation very carefully. If it turns out that the witness is a liar—that the witness has given false testimony against his fellow Israelite—

19 then you must do to him what he had planned to do to his fellow Israelite. Remove such evil from your community!

20 The rest of the people will hear about this and be afraid. They won't do that sort of evil thing among you again.

21 Show no mercy on this point: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.