Deuteronomy Chapter 19
Other Translations
asv (asv) - eBible.org engASV USFM
1
Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.
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And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book, out of
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that which is before the priests the Levites:
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and it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life; that he may learn to fear Jehovah his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them;
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that his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he and his children, in the midst of Israel.
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The priests the Levites,
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even all the tribe of Levi, shall have no portion nor inheritance with Israel: they shall eat the offerings of Jehovah made by fire, and his inheritance.
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And they shall have no inheritance among their brethren: Jehovah is their inheritance, as he hath spoken unto them.
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And this shall be the priests’ due from the people, from them that offer a sacrifice, whether it be ox or sheep, that they shall give unto the priest the shoulder, and the two cheeks, and the maw.
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The first-fruits of thy grain, of thy new wine, and of thine oil, and the first of the fleece of thy sheep, shalt thou give him.
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For Jehovah thy God hath chosen him out of all thy tribes, to stand to minister in the name of Jehovah, him and his sons for ever.
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And if a Levite come from any of thy gates out of all Israel, where he sojourneth, and come with all the desire of his soul unto the place which Jehovah shall choose;
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then he shall minister in the name of Jehovah his God, as all his brethren the Levites do, who stand there before Jehovah.
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They shall have like portions to eat, besides that which cometh of the sale of his patrimony.
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When thou art come into the land which Jehovah thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations.
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There shall not be found with thee any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, one that useth divination, one that practiseth augury, or an enchanter, or a sorcerer,
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or a charmer, or a consulter with a familiar spirit, or a wizard, or a necromancer.
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For whosoever doeth these things is an abomination unto Jehovah: and because of these abominations Jehovah thy God doth drive them out from before thee.
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Thou shalt be perfect with Jehovah thy God.
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For these nations, that thou shalt dispossess, hearken unto them that practise augury, and unto diviners; but as for thee, Jehovah thy God hath not suffered thee so to do.
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Jehovah thy God will raise up unto thee a prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken;
darby (darby) - eBible.org Darby 1890 plaintext
1
When Jehovah thyGod hath cut off the nations whose land Jehovah thyGod giveth thee, and thou hast dispossessed them, and dwellest in their cities and in their houses,
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thou shalt separate three cities for thyself in the midst of thy land, which Jehovah thyGod giveth thee to possess.
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Thou shalt prepare thee the way, and divide the territory of thy land, which Jehovah thyGod giveth thee to inherit, into three parts, so that every slayer may flee thither.
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And this is the case of the slayer who shall flee thither that he may live: he that smiteth his neighbour unwittingly, whom he hated not previously;
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as when he goeth into the wood with his neighbour to hew wood, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree, and the iron slippeth from the handle, and lighteth upon his neighbour, that he die; such an one shall flee unto one of these cities, and live;
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lest the avenger of blood pursue the manslayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and smite him mortally; whereas he was not worthy of death, since he hated him not previously.
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Therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt separate three cities for thyself.
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And if Jehovah thyGod enlarge thy border, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, and give thee all the land which he promised to give unto thy fathers
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(if thou keep all this commandment to do it, which I command thee this day, to love Jehovah thyGod, and to walk in his ways continually), then shalt thou add three cities more for thyself to these three,
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that innocent blood be not shed in the midst of thy land which Jehovah thyGod giveth thee for an inheritance, and blood come not upon thee.
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But if a man hate his neighbour, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally that he die, and he flee into one of these cities,
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then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him thence, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die.
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Thine eye shall not spare him; and thou shalt put away innocent blood from Israel, that it may be well with thee.
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Thou shalt not remove thy neighbour's landmark, which they of old time have fixed in thine inheritance, which thou shalt inherit in the land which Jehovah thyGod giveth thee to possess.
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One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, and for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall a matter be established.
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If an unrighteous witness rise up against any man to testify against him of an offence;
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then both the men between whom the controversy is shall stand before Jehovah, before the priests and the judges that shall be in those days;
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and the judges shall make thorough inquiry; and if the witness be a false witness, and he have testified falsely against his brother,
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then shall ye do unto him as he had thought to have done unto his brother; and thou shalt put evil away from thy midst.
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And those that remain shall hear, and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil in thy midst.
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And thine eye shall not spare: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.
lxxbrent (lxxbrent) - Septuagint (Brenton 1851) eBible USFM
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And when the Lord thy God shall have destroyed the nations, which God gives thee, [even] the land, and ye shall inherit them, and dwell in their cities, and in their houses,
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thou shalt separate for thyself three cities in the midst of thy land, which the Lord thy God gives thee.
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Take a survey of thy way, and thou shalt divide the coasts of thy land, which the Lord thy God apportions to thee, into three parts, and there shall be there a refuge for every manslayer.
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And this shall be the ordinance of the manslayer, who shall flee thither, and shall live, whosoever shall have smitten his neighbour ignorantly, whereas he hated him not in times past.
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And whosoever shall enter with his neighbour into the thicket, to gather wood, if the hand of him that cuts wood with the axe should be violently shaken, and the axe head falling off from the handle should light on his neighbour, and he should die, he shall flee to one of these cities, and live.
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Lest the avenger of blood pursue after the slayer, because his heart is hot, and overtake him, if the way be too long, and slay him, though there is to this man no sentence of death, because he hated him not in time past.
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Therefore I charge thee, saying, Thou shalt separate for thyself three cities.
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And if the Lord shall enlarge thy borders, as he sware to thy fathers, and the Lord shall give to thee all the land which he said he would give to thy fathers;
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if thou shalt hearken to do all these commands, which I charge thee this day, to love the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways continually; thou shalt add for thyself yet three cities to these three.
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So innocent blood shall not be spilt in the land, which the Lord thy God gives thee to inherit, and there shall not be in thee one guilty of blood.
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But if there should be in thee a man hating his neighbour, and he should lay wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him, that he die, and he should flee to one of these cities,
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then shall the elders of his city send, and take him thence, and they shall deliver him into the hands of the avengers of blood, and he shall die.
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Thine eye shall not spare him; so shalt thou purge innocent blood from Israel, and it shall be well with thee.
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Thou shalt not move the landmarks of thy neighbour, which thy fathers set in the inheritance, in which thou hast obtained a share in the land, which the Lord thy God gives thee to inherit.
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One witness shall not stand to testify against a man for any iniquity, or for any fault, or for any sin which he may commit; by the mouth of two witnesses, or by the mouth of three witnesses, shall every word be established.
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And if an unjust witness rise up against a man, alleging iniquity against him;
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then shall the two men between whom the controversy is, stand before the Lord, and before the priests, and before the judges, who may be in those days.
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And the judges shall make diligent inquiry, and, behold, [if] an unjust witness has borne unjust testimony; [and] has stood up against his brother;
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then shall ye do to him as he wickedly devised to do against his brother, and thou shalt remove the evil from yourselves.
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And the rest shall hear and fear, and do no more according to this evil thing in the midst of you.
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Thine eye shall not spare him: [thou shalt exact] life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.
vul1914 (vul1914) - Vulgate 1914 UTF-8 (sacredbible.org)
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Cum disperdiderit Dominus Deus tuus gentes, quarum tibi traditurus est terram, et possederis eam, habitaverisque in urbibus eius et in ædibus:
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tres civitates separabis tibi in medio Terræ, quam Dominus Deus tuus dabit tibi in possessionem,
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sternens diligenter viam: et in tres æqualiter partes totam Terræ tuæ provinciam divides: ut habeat e vicino qui propter homicidium profugus est, quo possit evadere.
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Hæc erit lex homicidæ fugientis, cuius vita servanda est: Qui percusserit proximum suum nesciens, et qui heri et nudiustertius nullum contra eum odium habuisse comprobatur:
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sed abiisse cum eo simpliciter in silvam ad ligna cædenda, et in succisione lignorum securis fugerit manu, ferrumque lapsum de manubrio amicum eius percusserit, et occiderit: hic ad unam supradictarum urbium confugiet, et vivet:
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ne forsitan proximus eius, cuius effusus est sanguis, dolore stimulatus, persequatur, et apprehendat eum si longior via fuerit, et percutiat animam eius, qui non est reus mortis: quia nullum contra eum, qui occisus est, odium prius habuisse monstratur.
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Idcirco præcipio tibi, ut tres civitates æqualis inter se spatii dividas.
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Cum autem dilataverit Dominus Deus tuus terminos tuos, sicut iuravit patribus tuis, et dederit tibi cunctam Terram, quam eis pollicitus est
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(si tamen custodieris mandata eius, et feceris quæ hodie præcipio tibi, ut diligas Dominum Deum tuum, et ambules in viis eius omni tempore) addes tibi tres alias civitates, et supradictarum trium urbium numerum duplicabis:
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ut non effundatur sanguis innoxius in medio Terræ, quam Dominus Deus tuus dabit tibi possidendam, ne sis sanguinis reus.
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Si quis autem odio habens proximum suum, insidiatus fuerit vitæ eius, surgensque percusserit illum, et mortuus fuerit, fugeritque ad unam de supradictis urbibus,
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mittent seniores civitatis illius, et arripient eum de loco effugii, tradentque in manu proximi, cuius sanguis effusus est, et morietur.
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Non miseraberis eius, et auferes innoxium sanguinem de Israel, ut bene sit tibi.
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Non assumes, et transferes terminos proximi tui, quos fixerunt priores in possessione tua, quam Dominus Deus tuus dabit tibi in Terra, quam acceperis possidendam.
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Non stabit testis unus contra aliquem, quidquid illud peccati, et facinoris fuerit: sed in ore duorum aut trium testium stabit omne verbum.
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Si steterit testis mendax contra hominem, accusans eum prævaricationis,
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stabunt ambo, quorum causa est, ante Dominum in conspectu sacerdotum et iudicum qui fuerint in diebus illis.
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Cumque diligentissime perscrutantes, invenerint falsum testem dixisse contra fratrem suum mendacium:
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reddent ei sicut fratri suo facere cogitavit, et auferes malum de medio tui:
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ut audientes ceteri timorem habeant, et nequaquam talia audeant facere.
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Non misereberis eius, sed animam pro anima, oculum pro oculo, dentem pro dente, manum pro manu, pedem pro pede exiges.
web (web) - WorldEnglish.Bible — CC0 modern update of ASV
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When the LORD your God cuts off the nations whose land the LORD your God gives you, and you succeed them and dwell in their cities and in their houses,
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you shall set apart three cities for yourselves in the middle of your land, which the LORD your God gives you to possess.
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You shall prepare the way, and divide the borders of your land which the LORD your God causes you to inherit into three parts, that every man slayer may flee there.
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This is the case of the man slayer who shall flee there and live: Whoever kills his neighbor unintentionally, and didn’t hate him in time past—
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as when a man goes into the forest with his neighbor to chop wood and his hand swings the ax to cut down the tree, and the head slips from the handle and hits his neighbor so that he dies—he shall flee to one of these cities and live.
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Otherwise, the avenger of blood might pursue the man slayer while hot anger is in his heart and overtake him, because the way is long, and strike him mortally, even though he was not worthy of death, because he didn’t hate him in time past.
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Therefore I command you to set apart three cities for yourselves.
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If the LORD your God enlarges your border, as he has sworn to your fathers, and gives you all the land which he promised to give to your fathers;
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and if you keep all this commandment to do it, which I command you today, to love the LORD your God, and to walk ever in his ways, then you shall add three cities more for yourselves, in addition to these three.
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This is so that innocent blood will not be shed in the middle of your land which the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance, leaving blood guilt on you.
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But if any man hates his neighbor, lies in wait for him, rises up against him, strikes him mortally so that he dies, and he flees into one of these cities;
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then the elders of his city shall send and bring him there, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die.
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Your eye shall not pity him, but you shall purge the innocent blood from Israel that it may go well with you.
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You shall not remove your neighbor’s landmark, which they of old time have set, in your inheritance which you shall inherit, in the land that the LORD your God gives you to possess.
15
One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin that he sins. At the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall a matter be established.
16
If an unrighteous witness rises up against any man to testify against him of wrongdoing,
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then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges who shall be in those days;
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and the judges shall make diligent inquisition; and behold, if the witness is a false witness, and has testified falsely against his brother,
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then you shall do to him as he had thought to do to his brother. So you shall remove the evil from among you.
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Those who remain shall hear, and fear, and will never again commit any such evil among you.
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Your eyes shall not pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.
ylt (ylt) - Bible.com YLT98 plain UTF-8
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`When Jehovah thy God doth cut off the nations, whose land Jehovah thy God is giving to thee, and thou hast succeeded them, and dwelt in their cities, and in their houses,
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three cities thou dost separate for thee in the midst of thy land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee to possess it.
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Thou dost prepare for thee the way, and hast divided into three parts the border of thy land which Jehovah thy God doth cause thee to inherit, and it hath been for the fleeing thither of every man-slayer.
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`And this <FI>is<Fi> the matter of the man-slayer who fleeth thither, and hath lived: He who smiteth his neighbour unknowingly, and is not hating him heretofore,
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even he who cometh in with his neighbour into a forest to hew wood, and his hand hath driven with an axe to cut the tree, and the iron hath slipped from the wood, and hath met his neighbour, and he hath died--he doth flee unto one of these cities, and hath lived,
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lest the redeemer of blood pursue after the man-slayer when his heart is hot, and hath overtaken him (because the way is great), and hath smitten him--the life, and he hath no sentence of death, for he is not hating him heretofore;
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therefore I am commanding thee, saying, Three cities thou dost separate to thee.
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`And if Jehovah thy God doth enlarge thy border, as He hath sworn to thy fathers, and hath given to thee all the land which He hath spoken to give to thy fathers--
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when thou keepest all this command to do it, which I am commanding thee to-day, to love Jehovah thy God, and to walk in His ways all the days--then thou hast added to thee yet three cities to these three;
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and innocent blood is not shed in the midst of thy land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee--an inheritance, and there hath been upon thee blood.
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`And when a man is hating his neighbour, and hath lain in wait for him, and risen against him, and smitten him--the life, and he hath died, and he hath fled unto one of these cities,
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then the elders of his city have sent and taken him from thence, and given him into the hand of the redeemer of blood, and he hath died;
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thine eye hath no pity on him, and thou hast put away the innocent blood from Israel, and it is well with thee.
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`Thou dost not remove a border of thy neighbour, which they of former times have made, in thine inheritance, which thou dost inherit in the land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee to possess it.
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`One witness doth not rise against a man for any iniquity, and for any sin, in any sin which he sinneth; by the mouth of two witnesses, or by the mouth of three witnesses, is a thing established.
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`When a violent witness doth rise against a man, to testify against him apostasy,
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then have both the men who have the strife stood before Jehovah, before the priests and the judges who are in those days,
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and the judges have searched diligently, and lo, the witness <FI>is<Fi> a false witness, a falsehood he hath testified against his brother:
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`Then ye have done to him as he devised to do to his brother, and thou hast put away the evil thing out of thy midst,
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and those who are left do hear and fear, and add not to do any more according to this evil thing in thy midst;
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and thine eye doth not pity--life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.
Explanations by Age Level
Explain Like I'm 5
A long, long time ago, there was nothing at all - no earth, no sky, no animals, no people. It was all dark and empty. But God was there! God is so powerful that He can make anything just by speaking. So God said "Let there be light!" and BOOM! There was light everywhere! God saw that the light was beautiful and good. He called the light "day" and the darkness "night." This was the very first day when God started making our wonderful world!
Explain Like I'm 10
Before anything existed - no planets, stars, or life - God decided to create the universe. The earth started out as a dark, empty place covered with water. But God's Spirit was there, ready to bring order and beauty to everything. When God spoke and said "Let there be light," light immediately appeared because God's words have incredible power. God looked at the light and was pleased with what He had made. He organized time by separating light (day) from darkness (night), creating the first 24-hour period. This shows us that God is organized and purposeful in everything He does.
Explain Like I'm 15
Genesis 1:1-5 establishes fundamental theological truths about God and creation. The Hebrew word "bara" (created) indicates creation from nothing (ex nihilo), demonstrating God's absolute sovereignty and power. The phrase "without form and void" (tohu wa-bohu) describes a state of chaos that God transforms into order. The Spirit of God "hovering" or "brooding" over the waters suggests active, caring involvement in creation. The creation of light before the sun (created on day 4) indicates that God Himself is the ultimate source of light and energy. The establishment of day and night creates the framework of time, showing that God operates within orderly patterns while transcending them. This passage refutes both atheistic materialism and pantheism, establishing that God is both transcendent (separate from creation) and immanent (actively involved in it).