And Jehovah spake unto Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying,
Command the children of Israel, that they give unto the Levites of the inheritance of their possession cities to dwell in; and {Or, pasture lands}suburbs for the cities round about them shall ye give unto the Levites.
And the cities shall they have to dwell in; and their suburbs shall be for their cattle, and for their substance, and for all their beasts.
And the suburbs of the cities, which ye shall give unto the Levites, shall be from the wall of the city and outward a thousand cubits round about.
And ye shall measure without the city for the east side two thousand cubits, and for the south side two thousand cubits, and for the west side two thousand cubits, and for the north side two thousand cubits, the city being in the midst. This shall be to them the suburbs of the cities.
And the cities which ye shall give unto the Levites, they shall be the six cities of refuge, which ye shall give for the manslayer to flee unto: and besides them ye shall give forty and two cities.
All the cities which ye shall give to the Levites shall be forty and eight cities; them shall ye give with their suburbs.
And concerning the cities which ye shall give of the possession of the children of Israel, from the many ye shall take many; and from the few ye shall take few: every one according to his inheritance which he inheriteth shall give of his cities unto the Levites.
And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying,
Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye pass over the Jordan into the land of Canaan,
then ye shall appoint you cities to be cities of refuge for you, that the manslayer that killeth any person unwittingly may flee thither.
And the cities shall be unto you for refuge from the avenger, that the manslayer die not, until he stand before the congregation for judgment.
And the cities which ye shall give shall be for you six cities of refuge.
Ye shall give three cities beyond the Jordan, and three cities shall ye give in the land of Canaan; they shall be cities of refuge.
For the children of Israel, and for the stranger and for the sojourner among them, shall these six cities be for refuge; that every one that killeth any person {Or, through error}unwittingly may flee thither.
But if he smote him with an instrument of iron, so that he died, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.
And if he smote him with a stone in the hand, whereby a man may die, and he died, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.
Or if he smote him with a weapon of wood in the hand, whereby a man may die, and he died, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.
The avenger of blood shall himself put the murderer to death: when he meeteth him, he shall put him to death.
And if he thrust him of hatred, or hurled at him, lying in wait, so that he died,
or in enmity smote him with his hand, so that he died; he that smote him shall surely be put to death; he is a murderer: the avenger of blood shall put the murderer to death, when he meeteth him.
But if he thrust him suddenly without enmity, or hurled upon him anything without lying in wait,
or with any stone, whereby a man may die, seeing him not, and cast it upon him, so that he died, and he was not his enemy, neither sought his harm;
then the congregation shall judge between the smiter and the avenger of blood according to these ordinances;
and the congregation shall deliver the manslayer out of the hand of the avenger of blood, and the congregation shall restore him to his city of refuge, whither he was fled: and he shall dwell therein until the death of the high priest, who was anointed with the holy oil.
But if the manslayer shall at any time go beyond the border of his city of refuge, whither he fleeth,
and the avenger of blood find him without the border of his city of refuge, and the avenger of blood slay the manslayer; {Or, there shall be no blood-guiltiness for him}he shall not be guilty of blood,
because he should have remained in his city of refuge until the death of the high priest: but after the death of the high priest the manslayer shall return into the land of his possession.
And these things shall be for a {Hebrew: statute of judgement.}statute and ordinance unto you throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
Whoso killeth any person, the murderer shall be slain at the mouth of witnesses: but one witness shall not testify against any person that he die.
Moreover ye shall take no ransom for the life of a murderer, that is guilty of death; but he shall surely be put to death.
And ye shall take no ransom for him that is fled to his city of refuge, that he may come again to dwell in the land, until the death of the priest.
So ye shall not pollute the land wherein ye are: for blood, it polluteth the land; and no expiation can be made for the land for the blood that is shed therein, but by the blood of him that shed it.
And thou shalt not defile the land which ye inhabit, in the midst of which I dwell: for I, Jehovah, dwell in the midst of the children of Israel.
Querverweise zu 4. Mose 35,33 4Mo 35,33
and the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land vomiteth out her inhabitants.
If one be found slain in the land which Jehovah thy God giveth thee to possess it, lying in the field, and it be not known who hath smitten him;
then thy elders and thy judges shall come forth, and they shall measure unto the cities which are round about him that is slain:
and it shall be, that the city which is nearest unto the slain man, even the elders of that city shall take a heifer of the herd, which hath not been wrought with, and which hath not drawn in the yoke;
and the elders of that city shall bring down the heifer unto a valley with running water, which is neither plowed nor sown, and shall break the heifer's neck there in the valley.
And the priests the sons of Levi shall come near; for them Jehovah thy God hath chosen to minister unto him, and to bless in the name of Jehovah; and according to their word shall every controversy and every stroke be.
And all the elders of that city, who are nearest unto the slain man, shall wash their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley;
and they shall answer and say, Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it.
Forgive, O Jehovah, thy people Israel, whom thou hast redeemed, and suffer not innocent blood to remain in the midst of thy people Israel. And the blood shall be forgiven them.
his body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt surely bury him the same day; for he that is hanged is {Hebrew: the curse of God.}accursed of God; that thou defile not thy land which Jehovah thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.
Notwithstanding, Jehovah turned not from the fierceness of his great wrath, wherewith his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations wherewith Manasseh had provoked him.
and also for the innocent blood that he shed; for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood: and Jehovah would not pardon.
They joined themselves also unto Baal-peor,And ate the sacrifices of the dead.
For, behold, Jehovah cometh forth out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.
Son of man, say unto her, Thou art a land that is not cleansed, nor rained upon in the day of indignation.
There is a conspiracy of her prophets in the midst thereof, like a roaring lion ravening the prey: they have devoured souls; they take treasure and precious things; they have made her widows many in the midst thereof.
Her priests have done violence to my law, and have profaned my holy things: they have made no distinction between the holy and the common, neither have they caused men to discern between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my sabbaths, and I am profaned among them.
Her princes in the midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy souls, that they may get dishonest gain.
There is nought but swearing and breaking faith, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery; they break out, and blood toucheth blood.
Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein shall languish, with the beasts of the field and the birds of the heavens; yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away.
And now many nations are assembled against thee, that say, Let her be defiled, and let our eye {Or, gaze upon}see our desire upon Zion.
Wherefore ye witness to yourselves, that ye are sons of them that slew the prophets.
Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.
Ye serpents, ye offspring of vipers, how shall ye escape the judgment of {Greek: Gehenna.}hell?
Therefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: some of them shall ye kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city:
that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of Abel the righteous unto the blood of Zachariah son of Barachiah, whom ye slew between the sanctuary and the altar.
that the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation;
from the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zachariah, who perished between the altar and the {Greek: house.}sanctuary: yea, I say unto you, it shall be required of this generation.