NumbersChapter 35

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¹The LORD spoke to Moses again on the plains of Moab. They were by the Jordan River, across from Jericho. He said, ²"Command the Israelites to give the Levites cities to live in. They must give these from the land they will own. They must also give the fields around the cities for grazing. ³The Levites will live in the cities. The fields will be for their herds, their flocks, and all their other animals. ⁴The fields you give the Levites around the cities will reach out 1,500 feet from the city wall on every side.a ⁵Also measure 3,000 feet outside the city on each side. Measure 3,000 feet on the east, on the south, on the west, and on the north. The city will be in the middle. This land will be larger fields for the cities.b ⁶Six of the cities you give the Levites will be cities of refuge. A person who has killed someone may run to one of them to be safe. Besides these, give the Levites 42 other cities. ⁷In all, you will give the Levites 48 cities, along with the fields around them. ⁸These cities will come from the land the Israelites own. Each tribe will give cities to the Levites based on how much land it has. Take more from a larger tribe and fewer from a smaller one." ⁹Then the LORD said to Moses, ¹⁰"Speak to the Israelites and tell them this. You will cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan. ¹¹Then choose some cities to be your cities of refuge. A person who kills someone by accident may run to one of them. ¹²These cities will keep him safe from the person who wants to avenge the death. That way the one who killed will not die before he has a trial in front of the community. ¹³The cities you choose will be your six cities of refuge. ¹⁴Choose three cities on the east side of the Jordan. Choose three in the land of Canaan. They will be cities of refuge. ¹⁵These six cities will be a safe place for the Israelites. They will also be safe places for foreigners and outsiders living among them. Anyone who kills a person by accident may run there. ¹⁶But suppose someone hits a person with an iron object, and the person dies. Then the one who hit him is a murderer. The murderer must be put to death. ¹⁷Or suppose someone holds a stone big enough to kill. If he hits and kills another person, he is a murderer. The murderer must be put to death. ¹⁸Suppose someone holds a wooden object that can kill. If he hits and kills another person, he is a murderer. The murderer must be put to death. ¹⁹The avenger of blood must put the murderer to death. When he finds him, he must kill him.c ²⁰Suppose someone pushes another person out of hate. Or suppose he throws something at him on purpose, and the person dies. ²¹Or suppose he hits him with his fist because he is his enemy, and the person dies. Then the one who hit him must be put to death. He is a murderer. When the avenger of blood finds the murderer, he must kill him. ²²But suppose someone pushes a person all of a sudden, but not out of hate. Or suppose he throws something at him, but not on purpose. ²³Or suppose he drops a heavy stone without seeing the person, and it kills him. He was not the person's enemy, and he did not mean to hurt him. ²⁴Then the community must judge between the one who killed and the avenger of blood. They must follow these rules. ²⁵The community must protect the one who killed from the avenger of blood. They will send him back to the city of refuge he ran to. He must live there until the high priest dies. The high priest is the one who was anointed with the holy oil. ²⁶But suppose the one who killed ever goes outside the city of refuge he ran to. ²⁷And suppose the avenger of blood finds him outside his city of refuge and kills him. Then the avenger will not be guilty of murder. ²⁸That is because the one who killed must stay in his city of refuge until the high priest dies. Only after the high priest dies may he go back to his own land. ²⁹This will be a lasting law for you, for all the generations to come, wherever you live. ³⁰If anyone kills a person, the murderer must be put to death if witnesses speak against him. But no one may be put to death because of what only one witness says. ³¹Do not take a payment to save the life of a murderer who deserves to die. He must be put to death. ³²And do not take a payment from someone who ran to a city of refuge. Do not let him go back and live on his own land before the high priest dies. ³³Do not make the land where you live unclean, for killing makes the land unclean. No atonement can be made for land where blood is spilled, except by the blood of the one who spilled it. ³⁴Do not make the land unclean where you live and where I live. For I, the LORD, live among the Israelites."