19 `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,

² three cities thou dost separate for thee in the midst of thy land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee to possess it.

³ 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.

⁴ `And this [is] the matter of the man-slayer who fleeth thither, and hath lived: He who smiteth his neighbour unknowingly, and is not hating him heretofore,

⁵ 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,

⁶ 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;

⁷ therefore I am commanding thee, saying, Three cities thou dost separate to thee.

⁸ `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 --

⁹ 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;

¹⁰ 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.

¹¹ `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,

¹² 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;

¹³ thine eye hath no pity on him, and thou hast put away the innocent blood from Israel, and it is well with thee.

¹⁴ `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.

¹⁵ `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.

¹⁶ `When a violent witness doth rise against a man, to testify against him apostacy,

¹⁷ then have both the men who have the strife stood before Jehovah, before the priests and the judges who are in those days,

¹⁸ and the judges have searched diligently, and lo, the witness [is] a false witness, a falsehood he hath testified against his brother:

¹⁹ `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,

²⁰ and those who are left do hear and fear, and add not to do any more according to this evil thing in thy midst;

²¹ and thine eye doth not pity -- life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

20 `When thou goest out to battle against thine enemy, and hast seen horse and chariot -- a people more numerous than thou -- thou art not afraid of them, for Jehovah thy God [is] with thee, who is bringing thee up out of the land of Egypt;

² and it hath been, in your drawing near unto the battle, that the priest hath come nigh, and spoken unto the people,

³ and said unto them, Hear, Israel, ye are drawing near to-day to battle against your enemies, let not your hearts be tender, fear not, nor make haste, nor be terrified at their presence,

⁴ for Jehovah your God [is] He who is going with you, to fight for you with your enemies -- to save you.

⁵ `And the authorities have spoken unto the people, saying, Who [is] the man that hath built a new house, and hath not dedicated it? -- let him go and turn back to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man dedicate it.

⁶ `And who [is] the man that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not made it common? -- let him go and turn back to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man make it common.

⁷ `And who [is] the man that hath betrothed a woman, and hath not taken her? -- let him go and turn back to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man take her.

⁸ `And the authorities have added to speak unto the people, and said, Who [is] the man that is afraid and tender of heart? -- let him go and turn back to his house, and the heart of his brethren doth not melt like his heart;

⁹ and it hath come to pass as the authorities finish to speak unto the people, that they have appointed princes of the hosts at the head of the people.

¹⁰ `When thou drawest near unto a city to fight against it, then thou hast called unto it for Peace,

¹¹ and it hath been, if Peace it answer thee, and hath opened to thee, then it hath come to pass -- all the people who are found in it are to thee for tributaries, and have served thee.

¹² `And if it doth not make peace with thee, and hath made with thee war, then thou hast laid siege against it,

¹³ and Jehovah thy God hath given it into thy hand, and thou hast smitten every male of it by the mouth of the sword.

¹⁴ Only, the women, and the infants, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, all its spoil, thou dost seize for thyself, and thou hast eaten the spoil of thine enemies which Jehovah thy God hath given to thee.

¹⁵ So thou dost do to all the cities which are very far off from thee, which are not of the cities of these nations.

¹⁶ `Only, of the cities of these peoples which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee [for] an inheritance, thou dost not keep alive any breathing;

¹⁷ for thou dost certainly devote the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, as Jehovah thy God hath commanded thee,

¹⁸ so that they teach you not to do according to all their abominations which they have done to their gods, and ye have sinned against Jehovah your God.

¹⁹ `When thou layest siege unto a city many days, to fight against it, to capture it, thou dost not destroy its trees to force an axe against them, for of them thou dost eat, and them thou dost not cut down -- for man's [is] the tree of the field -- to go in at thy presence in the siege.

²⁰ Only, the tree, which thou knowest that it [is] not a fruit-tree, it thou dost destroy, and hast cut down, and hast built a bulwark against the city which is making with thee war till thou hast subdued it.