Deuteronomy 19
1 “When the LORD your God wipes out the nations whose land he is giving you, and you drive them out and live in their cities and houses,
2 set aside three cities in the middle of the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess.
3 Prepare the roads and divide into three parts the territory of the land the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, so that any murderer will have a place to flee.
4 This is the case of the murderer who flees there and lives: someone who kills a neighbor unintentionally, without having hated him beforehand.
5 For example, a man goes into the woods with his neighbor to cut wood. As he swings his axe to cut down a tree, the iron head slips from the handle, strikes his neighbor, and he dies. That man may flee to one of these cities and live.
6 Otherwise, the avenger of blood might pursue the murderer in a fit of anger and catch up with him because the way is long, and take his life—even though he does not deserve to die, since he had not hated the other man beforehand.
7 That is why I command you: ‘Set aside three cities.’
8 The LORD your God may enlarge your territory, as he swore to your ancestors, and give you all the land he promised to give them.
9 If you keep this whole commandment that I am giving you today, and carry it out—loving the LORD your God and walking in his ways always—then add three more cities to these three.
10 Then innocent blood will not be shed in the middle of your land, which the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, and you will not bear bloodguilt.
11 But a man may hate his neighbor, lie in wait for him, rise up against him, strike him down so that he dies, and flee to one of these cities.”
12 “Then the elders of his city shall send for him, bring him back from there, and hand him over to the avenger of blood, and he shall die.
13 Show him no pity. You must remove the guilt of innocent blood from Israel, and all will go well for you.
14 Do not move your neighbor’s boundary marker, set up by the people of old, on the inheritance you receive in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess.
15 One witness shall not be enough to convict anyone of any offense or sin, whatever wrong he may have done. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.
16 A violent witness may rise up against someone to accuse him of rebellion.
17 The two men involved in the dispute shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and judges serving in those days.
18 The judges shall investigate thoroughly. If the witness is false and has falsely accused his fellow Israelite,
19 then do to him what he intended to do to his fellow Israelite. You must remove the evil from among you.
20 Those who remain will hear about it and be afraid, and they will never again do such an evil thing among you.
21 Show no pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.”
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