Numbers 35:19

THE MESSAGE

"In such cases the avenger has a right to kill the murderer when he meets him—he can kill him on the spot.

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
The avenger of blood shall himself put the murderer to death: when he meets him, he shall put him to death.

King James Version
The revenger of blood himself shall slay the murderer: when he meeteth him, he shall slay him.

Lexham English Bible
The blood avenger himself will put the killer to death; he must put him to death when meeting him.

English Standard Version
The avenger of blood shall himself put the murderer to death; when he meets him, he shall put him to death.

New Century Version
A relative of the dead person must put the murderer to death; when they meet, the relative must kill the murderer.

New English Translation
The avenger of blood himself must kill the murderer; when he meets him, he must kill him.

Amplified Bible
'The blood avenger shall himself put the murderer to death; he shall put him to death when he meets him.

New American Standard Bible
'The blood avenger himself shall put the murderer to death; he himself shall put him to death when he meets him.

Geneva Bible (1587)
The reuenger of the blood himselfe shall slay the murtherer: when he meeteth him, he shall slay him.

Legacy Standard Bible
The blood avenger himself shall put the murderer to death; he shall put him to death when he meets him.

Contemporary English Version
by one of the victim's relatives. He will take revenge for his relative's death as soon as he finds you.

Complete Jewish Bible
The next-of-kin avenger is to put the murderer to death himself — upon meeting him, he is to put him to death.

Darby Translation
the avenger of blood, he shall put the murderer to death; when he meeteth him, he shall put him to death.

Easy-to-Read Version
A member of the dead person's family can chase you and kill you.

George Lamsa Translation
The avenger of blood himself shall slay the murderer when he meets him.

Good News Translation
The dead person's nearest relative has the responsibility for putting the murderer to death. When he finds you, he is to kill you.

Christian Standard Bible®
The avenger of blood himself is to kill the murderer; when he finds him, he is to kill him.

Literal Translation
The avenger of blood shall cause the murderer to die; when he meets with him, he shall cause him to die.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
The auenger of bloude shal bringe ye murthurer to death. Whan he fyndeth him, he shal slaye him.

American Standard Version
The avenger of blood shall himself put the murderer to death: when he meeteth him, he shall put him to death.

Bible in Basic English
He whose right it is to give punishment for blood, may himself put to death the taker of life when he comes face to face with him.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
The reuenger of blood him selfe shal slay the murtherer: when he meeteth hym, he shall slay hym.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
The avenger of blood shall himself put the murderer to death; when he meeteth him, he shall put him to death.

King James Version (1611)
The reuenger of blood himselfe shall slay the murtherer: when he meeteth him, he shall slay him.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
The avenger of blood himself shall slay the murderer: whensoever he shall meet him he shall slay him.

English Revised Version
The avenger of blood shall himself put the manslayer to death: when he meeteth him, he shall put him to death.

Berean Standard Bible
The avenger of blood is to put the murderer to death; when he finds him, he is to kill him.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
The niy kynesman of hym that is slayn schal sle the mansleere; anoon as he takith hym, `that is, the manquellere, he schal sle hym.

Young's Literal Translation
`The redeemer of blood himself doth put the murderer to death; in his coming against him he doth put him to death.

Update Bible Version
The avenger of blood shall himself put the murderer to death: when he meets him, he shall put him to death.

Webster's Bible Translation
The avenger of blood himself shall slay the murderer: when he meeteth him, he shall slay him.

World English Bible
The avenger of blood shall himself put the murderer to death: when he meets him, he shall put him to death.

New King James Version
The avenger of blood himself shall put the murderer to death; when he meets him, he shall put him to death.

New Living Translation
The victim's nearest relative is responsible for putting the murderer to death. When they meet, the avenger must put the murderer to death.

New Life Bible
The man who wants to punish him for the killing will put the killer to death. He will put him to death when he meets him.

New Revised Standard
The avenger of blood is the one who shall put the murderer to death; when they meet, the avenger of blood shall execute the sentence.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
The blood-redeemer, he, shall put to death the man-slayer, - when he lighteth upon him, he, shall put him to death.

Douay-Rheims Bible
The kinsman of him that was slain, shall kill the murderer: as soon as he apprehendeth him, he shall kill him.

Revised Standard Version
The avenger of blood shall himself put the murderer to death; when he meets him, he shall put him to death.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
'The blood avenger himself shall put the murderer to death; he shall put him to death when he meets him.

Contextual Overview

⁹ God spoke to Moses: "Speak to the People of Israel. Tell them, When you cross the River Jordan into the country of Canaan, designate your asylum-cities, towns to which a person who accidentally kills someone can flee for asylum. They will be places of refuge from the avenger so that the alleged murderer won't be killed until he can appear before the community in court. Provide six asylum-cities. Designate three of the towns to the east side of the Jordan, the other three in Canaan proper—asylum-cities for the People of Israel, for the foreigner, and for any occasional visitors or guests—six asylum-cities to run to for anyone who accidentally kills another. ¹⁶ "But if the killer has used an iron object, that's just plain murder; he's obviously a murderer and must be put to death. ¹⁷ "Or if he has a rock in his hand big enough to kill and the man dies, that's murder; he's a murderer and must be put to death. ¹⁸ "Or if he's carrying a wooden club heavy enough to kill and the man dies, that's murder; he's a murderer and must be put to death. ¹⁹ "In such cases the avenger has a right to kill the murderer when he meets him—he can kill him on the spot. ²⁰"And if out of sheer hatred a man pushes another or from ambush throws something at him and he dies, or angrily hits him with his fist and kills him, that's murder—he must be put to death. The avenger has a right to kill him when he gets him. ²²"If, however, he impulsively pushes someone and there is no history of hard feelings, or he impetuously picks up something and throws it, or he accidentally drops a stone tool—a maul or hammer, say—and it hits and kills someone he didn't even know was there, and there's no suspicion that there was bad blood between them, the community is to judge between the killer and the avenger following these guidelines. It's the task of the community to save the killer from the hand of the avenger—the community is to return him to his asylum-city to which he fled. He must stay there until the death of the High Priest who was anointed with the holy oil. But if the murderer leaves the asylum-city to which he has fled, and the avenger finds him outside the borders of his asylum-city, the avenger has a right to kill the murderer. And he's not considered guilty of murder. ²⁸ "So it's important that he stay in his asylum-city until the death of the High Priest. After the death of the High Priest he is free to return to his own place. ²⁹ "These are the procedures for making judgments from now on, wherever you live. ³⁰ "Anyone who kills another may be executed only on the testimony of eyewitnesses. But no one can be executed on the testimony of only one witness.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Numbers 35:12, Numbers 35:21, Numbers 35:24, Numbers 35:27, Deuteronomy 19:6, Deuteronomy 19:12, Joshua 20:3, Joshua 20:5

Reciprocal: Genesis 4:14 - that Exodus 21:20 - punished 2 Samuel 14:7 - the whole 2 Samuel 14:11 - the revengers Romans 13:4 - revenger

Cross-References

Genesis 35:16
They left Bethel. They were still quite a ways from Ephrath when Rachel went into labor—hard, hard labor. When her labor pains were at their worst, the midwife said to her, "Don't be afraid—you have another boy."

Genesis 35:18
With her last breath, for she was now dying, she named him Ben-oni (Son-of-My-Pain), but his father named him Ben-jamin (Son-of-Good-Fortune).

Ruth 4:11
All the people in the town square that day, backing up the elders, said, "Yes, we are witnesses. May God make this woman who is coming into your household like Rachel and Leah, the two women who built the family of Israel. May God make you a pillar in Ephrathah and famous in Bethlehem! With the children God gives you from this young woman, may your family rival the family of Perez, the son Tamar bore to Judah."

Matthew 2:1
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem village, Judah territory— this was during Herod's kingship—a band of scholars arrived in Jerusalem from the East. They asked around, "Where can we find and pay homage to the newborn King of the Jews? We observed a star in the eastern sky that signaled his birth. We're on pilgrimage to worship him."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

The revenger of blood himself shall slay the murderer,.... Not only shall have power to do it, but, as it seems, should be obliged to do it; be the executioner of the murderer; but not before his case has been heard, examined, tried, and judged; wherefore the Targum of Jonathan adds,

"in judgment,''

that is, as Onkelos explains it,

"when he is condemned by judgment,''

the court of judicature:

when he meeteth him he shall slay him; the first opportunity he has, even though, as Jarchi says, if he meets him in the midst of one of the cities of refuge, and no judgment is passed on him.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The sense is: Inasmuch as to take another man’s life by any means whatsoever is murder, and exposes the murderer to the penalty of retaliation; so, if the deed is done in hostility, it is in truth actual murder, and the murderer shall be slain; but if it be not done in hostility, then the congregation shall interpose to stop the avenger’s hand.

Numbers 35:19

When he meeteth him - Provided, of course, it were without a city of refuge.

Numbers 35:24

The case of the innocent slayer is here contemplated. In a doubtful case there would necessarily have to be a judicial decision as to the guilt or innocence of the person who claimed the right of asylum.

Numbers 35:25

The homicide was safe only within the walls of his city of refuge. He became a virtual exile from his home. The provisions here made serve to mark the gravity of the act of manslaughter, even when not premeditated; and the inconveniences attending on them fell, as is right and fair, upon him who committed the deed.

Unto the death of the high priest - The atoning death of the Saviour cast its shadow before on the statute-book of the Law and on the annals of Jewish history. The high priest, as the head and representative of the whole chosen family of sacerdotal mediators, as exclusively entrusted with some of the chief priestly functions, as alone privileged to make yearly atonement within the holy of holies, and to gain, from the mysterious Urim and Thummim, special revelations of the will of God, was, preeminently, a type of Christ. And thus the death of each successive high priest presignified that death of Christ by which the captives were to be freed, and the remembrance of transgressions made to cease.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Numbers 35:19. The revenger of blood — גאל הדם goel haddam, the redeemer of blood; the next in blood to him who was slain. See on the preceding verse.