The Complete Jewish Bible CJB
New Living Translation NLT
1 In the plains of Mo'av by the Yarden, across from Yericho, ADONAI said to Moshe,
1
While Israel was camped beside the Jordan on the plains of Moab across from Jericho, the LORD said to Moses,
2 "Order the people of Isra'el to give to the L'vi'im cities to live in from the heritage they will possess, and you are also to give the L'vi'im some of the open land surrounding the cities.
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“Command the people of Israel to give to the Levites from their property certain towns to live in, along with the surrounding pasturelands.
3 They are to have the cities to live in, while their open land will be for their livestock, for growing crops and for all their animals.
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These towns will be for the Levites to live in, and the surrounding lands will provide pasture for their cattle, flocks, and other livestock.
4 The open land around the cities you give to the L'vi'im is to commence at a line drawn around the city wall 1,500 feet outside it and is to extend outward from there.
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The pastureland assigned to the Levites around these towns will extend 1,500 feet from the town walls in every direction.
5 Measure 3,000 feet outward from the city wall to the east, south, west and north, with the city in the center. The space between the 1,500-foot line and the 3,000-foot line will be their open land around the cities.
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Measure off 3,000 feet outside the town walls in every direction—east, south, west, north—with the town at the center. This area will serve as the larger pastureland for the towns.
6 The cities you give to the L'vi'im are to be the six cities of refuge to which you permit the person who kills someone to flee to; plus an additional forty-two cities.
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“Six of the towns you give the Levites will be cities of refuge, where a person who has accidentally killed someone can flee for safety. In addition, give them forty-two other towns.
7 Thus you will give the L'vi'im forty-eight cities, with their surrounding open land.
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In all, forty-eight towns with the surrounding pastureland will be given to the Levites.
8 As to the cities you will give from those the people of Isra'el possess, from the many you will take many, and from the few you will take few - each tribe will contribute from its cities to the L'vi'im in accordance with the size of its inheritance."
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These towns will come from the property of the people of Israel. The larger tribes will give more towns to the Levites, while the smaller tribes will give fewer. Each tribe will give property in proportion to the size of its land.”
9 ADONAI said to Moshe,
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The LORD said to Moses,
10 "Tell the people of Isra'el, 'When you cross the Yarden into the land of Kena'an,
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“Give the following instructions to the people of Israel. “When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan,
11 you are to designate for yourselves cities that will be cities of refuge for you, to which anyone who kills someone by mistake can flee.
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designate cities of refuge to which people can flee if they have killed someone accidentally.
12 These cities are to be a refuge for you from the dead person's next-of-kin, who might otherwise avenge his kinsman's death by slaying the killer prior to his standing trial before the community.
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These cities will be places of protection from a dead person’s relatives who want to avenge the death. The slayer must not be put to death before being tried by the community.
13 In regard to the cities you are to give, there are to be six cities of refuge for you.
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Designate six cities of refuge for yourselves,
14 You are to give three cities east of the Yarden and three cities in the land of Kena'an; they will be cities of refuge.
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three on the east side of the Jordan River and three on the west in the land of Canaan.
15 These six cities will serve as refuge for the people of Isra'el, as well as for the foreigner and resident alien with them; so that anyone who kills someone by mistake may flee there.
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These cities are for the protection of Israelites, foreigners living among you, and traveling merchants. Anyone who accidentally kills someone may flee there for safety.
16 "'However, if he hits him with an iron implement and thus causes his death, he is a murderer; the murderer must be put to death.
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“But if someone strikes and kills another person with a piece of iron, it is murder, and the murderer must be executed.
17 Or if he hits him with a stone in his hand big enough to kill someone, and he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer must be put to death.
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Or if someone with a stone in his hand strikes and kills another person, it is murder, and the murderer must be put to death.
18 Or if he hits him with a wood utensil in his hand capable of killing someone, and he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer must be put to death.
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Or if someone strikes and kills another person with a wooden object, it is murder, and the murderer must be put to death.
19 The next-of-kin avenger is to put the murderer to death himself - upon meeting him, he is to put him to death.
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The victim’s nearest relative is responsible for putting the murderer to death. When they meet, the avenger must put the murderer to death.
20 Likewise, if he shoves him out of hatred; or intentionally throws something at him, causing his death;
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So if someone hates another person and waits in ambush, then pushes him or throws something at him and he dies, it is murder.
21 or out of hostility strikes him with his hand, so that he dies; then the one who struck him must be put to death; he is a murderer; and the next-of-kin avenger is to put the murderer to death upon meeting him.
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Or if someone hates another person and hits him with a fist and he dies, it is murder. In such cases, the avenger must put the murderer to death when they meet.
22 "'But suppose he shoves him suddenly, but without hostility; or he throws something at him unintentionally;
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“But suppose someone pushes another person without having shown previous hostility, or throws something that unintentionally hits another person,
23 or, without seeing him, being his enemy or seeking to harm him, he throws a stone big enough to cause death; and the person dies.
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or accidentally drops a huge stone on someone, though they were not enemies, and the person dies.
24 Then the community is to judge between the one who struck him and the next-of-kin avenger in accordance with these rules;
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If this should happen, the community must follow these regulations in making a judgment between the slayer and the avenger, the victim’s nearest relative:
25 and the community is to save the killer from the next-of-kin avenger. The community is to return him to the city of refuge to which he fled, and he is to live there until the cohen hagadol, who was anointed with the holy oil, dies.
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The community must protect the slayer from the avenger and must escort the slayer back to live in the city of refuge to which he fled. There he must remain until the death of the high priest, who was anointed with the sacred oil.
26 But if the killer ever goes beyond the limits of the city of refuge he fled to,
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“But if the slayer ever leaves the limits of the city of refuge,
27 and the next-of-kin avenger finds him outside the limits of his city of refuge, and the avenger kills the killer, he will not be guilty of the man's blood;
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and the avenger finds him outside the city and kills him, it will not be considered murder.
28 because he must stay in his city of refuge until the death of the cohen hagadol. But after the death of the cohen hagadol the killer may return to the land he owns.
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The slayer should have stayed inside the city of refuge until the death of the high priest. But after the death of the high priest, the slayer may return to his own property.
29 These things shall constitute your standard for judgment through all your generations, wherever you live.
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These are legal requirements for you to observe from generation to generation, wherever you may live.
30 "'If anyone kills someone, the murderer is to be put to death upon the testimony of witnesses; but the testimony of only one witness will not suffice to cause a person to be put to death.
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“All murderers must be put to death, but only if evidence is presented by more than one witness. No one may be put to death on the testimony of only one witness.
31 Also, you are not to accept a ransom in lieu of the life of a murderer condemned to death; rather, he must be put to death.
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Also, you must never accept a ransom payment for the life of someone judged guilty of murder and subject to execution; murderers must always be put to death.
32 Likewise, you are not to accept for someone who has fled to his city of refuge a ransom that would allow him to return to his land before the death of the cohen.
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And never accept a ransom payment from someone who has fled to a city of refuge, allowing a slayer to return to his property before the death of the high priest.
33 In this way you will not defile the land in which you are living. For blood defiles the land, and in this land no atonement can be made for the blood shed in it except the blood of him who shed it.
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This will ensure that the land where you live will not be polluted, for murder pollutes the land. And no sacrifice except the execution of the murderer can purify the land from murder.
34 No, you are not to defile the land in which you live and in which I live; for I, ADONAI, live among the people of Isra'el.'"
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You must not defile the land where you live, for I live there myself. I am the LORD, who lives among the people of Israel.”
Complete Jewish Bible Copyright 1998 by David H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by
Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.