| King James Bible | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1When the LORD thy God hath cut off the nations, whose land the LORD thy God giveth thee, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their cities, and in their houses; | 1When the LORD your God annihilates the nations whose land He is giving you, so that you drive them out and live in their cities and houses, |
| 2Thou shalt separate three cities for thee in the midst of thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee to possess it. | 2you are to set apart three cities for yourselves within the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess. |
| 3Thou shalt prepare thee a way, and divide the coasts of thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee to inherit, into three parts, that every slayer may flee thither. | 3You are to determine the distances and divide the land the LORD your God is granting you as an inheritance into three regions, so that anyone who commits manslaughter can flee to these cities." |
| 4And this is the case of the slayer, which shall flee thither, that he may live: Whoso killeth his neighbour ignorantly, whom he hated not in time past; | 4Here is the law concerning a case of someone who kills a person and flees there to save his life, having killed his neighbor accidentally without previously hating him: |
| 5As when a man 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 head slippeth from the helve, and lighteth upon his neighbour, that he die; he shall flee unto one of those cities, and live: | 5If he goes into the forest with his neighbor to cut timber, and his hand swings the ax to chop down a tree, but the blade flies off the handle and strikes his neighbor so that he dies, that person may flee to one of these cities and live. |
| 6Lest the avenger of the blood pursue the slayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and slay him; whereas he was not worthy of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in time past. | 6Otherwise, the avenger of blood in the heat of his anger might pursue the one who committed manslaughter, overtake him because the distance is great, and strike him dead. Yet he did not deserve to die, since he did not previously hate his neighbor. |
| 7Wherefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt separate three cities for thee. | 7This is why I am commanding you to set apart three cities for yourselves. |
| 8And if the LORD thy God enlarge thy coast, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, and give thee all the land which he promised to give unto thy fathers; | 8If the LORD your God enlarges your territory as He swore to your fathers, and gives you all the land He promised to give them-- |
| 9If thou shalt keep all these commandments to do them, which I command thee this day, to love the LORD thy God, and to walk ever in his ways; then shalt thou add three cities more for thee, beside these three: | 9provided you keep every one of these commands I am giving you today and follow them, loving the LORD your God and walking in His ways at all times--you are to add three more cities to these three. |
| 10That innocent blood be not shed in thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon thee. | 10In this way, innocent blood will not be shed, and you will not become guilty of bloodshed in the land the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance. |
| 11But if any man hate his neighbour, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally that he die, and fleeth into one of these cities: | 11But if someone hates his neighbor, lies in ambush for him, attacks him, and strikes him fatally, and flees to one of these cities, |
| 12Then 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. | 12the elders of his city must send for him, take him from there, and hand him over to the avenger of blood and he will die. |
| 13Thine eye shall not pity him, but thou shalt put away the guilt of innocent blood from Israel, that it may go well with thee. | 13You must not look on him with pity but purge from Israel the guilt of shedding innocent blood, and you will prosper." |
| 14Thou shalt not remove thy neighbour's landmark, which they of old time have set in thine inheritance, which thou shalt inherit in the land that the LORD thy God giveth thee to possess it. | 14You must not move your neighbor's boundary marker, established at the start in the inheritance you will receive in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess." |
| 15One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established. | 15One witness cannot establish any wrongdoing or sin against a person, whatever that person has done. A fact must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses." |
| 16If a false witness rise up against any man to testify against him that which is wrong; | 16If a malicious witness testifies against someone accusing him of a crime, |
| 17Then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges, which shall be in those days; | 17the two people in the dispute must stand in the presence of the LORD before the priests and judges in authority at that time. |
| 18And the judges shall make diligent inquisition: and, behold, if the witness be a false witness, and hath testified falsely against his brother; | 18The judges are to make a careful investigation, and if the witness turns out to be a liar who has falsely accused his brother, |
| 19Then shall ye do unto him, as he had thought to have done unto his brother: so shalt thou put the evil away from among you. | 19you must do to him as he intended to do to his brother. You must purge the evil from you. |
| 20And those which remain shall hear, and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil among you. | 20Then everyone else will hear and be afraid, and they will never again do anything evil like this among you. |
| 21And thine eye shall not pity; but life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot. | 21You must not show pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, and foot for foot." |
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