Deuteronomy 19

Cities of Refuge

19"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.H3068H430H3772H1471H776H3068H430H5414H3423H3427H5892H1004 2Then you must set apart three cities of refuge in the land the LORD your God is giving you.H914H7969H5892H8432H776H3068H430H5414H3423 3Survey 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.H3559H1870H1366H776H3068H430H5157H8027H7523H5127 4"If someone kills another person unintentionally, without previous hostility, the slayer may flee to any of these cities to live in safety.H1697H7523H5127H2425H5221H7453H1097H1847H8130H8543H8032 5For 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.H935H3293H7453H2404H6086H3027H5080H1631H3772H6086H1270H5394H6086H4672H7453H4191H5127H259H5892H2425 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.H1350H1818H7291H310H7523H3588H3824H3179H5381H1870H7235H5221H5315H4941H4194H3588H8130H8543H8032 7That is why I am commanding you to set aside three cities of refuge.H6680H559H914H7969H5892 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,H3068H430H7337H1366H7650H1H5414H776H1696H5414H1 9you 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.)H8104H4687H6213H6680H3117H157H3068H430H3212H3117H1870H3254H7969H5892H7969 10That 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.H5355H1818H8210H7130H776H3068H430H5414H5159H1818 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.H376H8130H7453H693H6965H5221H5315H4191H5127H259H411H5892 12In 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.H2205H5892H7971H3947H5414H3027H1350H1818H4191 13Do not feel sorry for that murderer! Purge from Israel the guilt of murdering innocent people; then all will go well with you.H5869H2347H1197H5355H1818H3478H2895

Concern for Justice

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.H5253H7453H1366H7223H1379H5159H5157H776H3068H430H5414H3423 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.H259H5707H6965H376H5771H2403H2399H2398H6310H8147H5707H6310H7969H5707H1697H6965 16"If a malicious witness comes forward and accuses someone of a crime,H2555H5707H6965H376H6030H5627 17then both the accuser and accused must appear before the LORD by coming to the priests and judges in office at that time.H8147H582H7379H5975H6440H3068H6440H3548H8199H3117 18The judges must investigate the case thoroughly. If the accuser has brought false charges against his fellow Israelite,H8199H3190H1875H5707H8267H5707H6030H8267H251 19you must impose on the accuser the sentence he intended for the other person. In this way, you will purge such evil from among you.H6213H2161H6213H251H1197H7451H1197H7130 20Then the rest of the people will hear about it and be afraid to do such an evil thing.H7604H8085H3372H3254H6213H1697H7451H7130 21You 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.H5869H2347H5315H5315H5869H5869H8127H8127H3027H3027H7272H7272