Deuteronomy 19

Set Apart Three Cities of Refuge

1“When the LORD your God cuts off the nations whose land the LORD your God is giving you, and you dispossess them and live in their cities and houses, 2you shall set apart three cities for yourself in the midst of your land that the LORD your God is giving you to possess. 3You shall prepare the road for yourself and divide into three parts the territory of your land that the LORD your God causes you to inherit, so that every manslayer may flee there.

The Unintentional Manslayer

4“And this is the case of the manslayer who may flee there and live: whoever strikes his neighbor without intent and did not hate him previously— 5for example, one goes with his neighbor into the forest to cut wood, and his hand swings the axe to cut down the tree, but the iron slips from the handle and strikes his neighbor so that he dies—he may flee to one of these cities and live. 6Otherwise the avenger of blood may pursue the manslayer while his heart is hot, overtake him because the way is long, and strike his life, though he did not deserve death because he had not hated the man previously. 7Therefore I command you, saying, ‘Set apart three cities for yourself.’

Add Three More Cities If the Territory Is Enlarged

8“And if the LORD your God enlarges your territory as he swore to your ancestors and gives you all the land that he spoke to give to your ancestors, 9if you keep all this commandment to do it, which I command you today, to love the LORD your God and walk in his ways all the days, then you shall add three more cities for yourself besides these three, 10so that innocent blood is not shed in the midst of your land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance and bloodguilt comes upon you.

The Murderer Is Not Protected

11“But if a man hates his neighbor, lies in wait for him, rises against him, strikes his life so that he dies, and then flees to one of these cities, 12then the elders of his city shall send and take him from there and give him into the hand of the avenger of blood, and he shall die. 13Your eye shall not pity him. You shall remove the blood of the innocent from Israel, so that it may go well with you.

Do Not Move Your Neighbor’s Boundary Marker

14“You shall not move your neighbor’s boundary marker, which the former generations set in your inheritance that you will inherit in the land that the LORD your God is giving you to possess.

Two or Three Witnesses

15“One witness shall not rise against a man concerning any guilt or any sin, for any sin that he commits. On the mouth of two witnesses or on the mouth of three witnesses a matter shall be established.

If a Malicious Witness Arises

16“If a malicious witness arises against a man to testify against him of rebellion, 17then the two men who have the dispute shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges who are in those days. 18The judges shall investigate carefully, and look, if the witness is a false witness and has testified falsely against his brother, 19then you shall do to him as he intended to do to his brother. So you shall remove the evil from your midst. 20The rest will hear and fear and will not again do such an evil thing in your midst. 21Your eye shall not pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.