Numbers 35:34

THE MESSAGE

"Don't desecrate the land in which you live. I live here, too—I, God , live in the same neighborhood with the People of Israel."

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
You shall not defile the land which you inhabit, in the midst of which I dwell: for I, the LORD, dwell in the midst of the children of Yisra'el.

King James Version
Defile not therefore the land which ye shall inhabit, wherein I dwell: for I the Lord dwell among the children of Israel.

Lexham English Bible
You will not defile the land on which you are living because I am living in the midst of it; I am Yahweh; I am living in the midst of the Israelites.'"

English Standard Version
You shall not defile the land in which you live, in the midst of which I dwell, for I the Lord dwell in the midst of the people of Israel."

New Century Version
I am the Lord , and I live among the Israelites. I live in that land with you, so do not spoil it with murder.'"

New English Translation
Therefore do not defile the land that you will inhabit, in which I live, for I the Lord live among the Israelites."

Amplified Bible
'You shall not defile the land in which you live, in the midst of which I live, for I, the LORD, live among the people of Israel.'"

New American Standard Bible
'So you shall not defile the land in which you live, in the midst of which I dwell; for I the LORD am dwelling in the midst of the sons of Israel.'"

Geneva Bible (1587)
Defile not therefore the lande which yee shall inhabite, For I dwell in the middes thereof: for I the Lord dwel among the children of Israel.

Legacy Standard Bible
And you shall not defile the land in which you live, in the midst of which I dwell; for I Yahweh am dwelling in the midst of the sons of Israel.'"

Complete Jewish Bible
No, you are not to defile the land in which you live and in which I live; for I, Adonai , live among the people of Isra'el.'"

Darby Translation
And ye shall not defile the land that ye inhabit, in the midst whereof I dwell; for I am Jehovah who dwell in the midst of the children of Israel.

Easy-to-Read Version
I am the Lord . I will be living in your country with the Israelites, so don't make it unclean with the blood of innocent people."

George Lamsa Translation
Defile not therefore the land in which you dwell, and wherein I dwell; for I the LORD dwell among the children of Israel.

Good News Translation
Do not defile the land where you are living, because I am the Lord and I live among the people of Israel."

Christian Standard Bible®
Do not make the land unclean where you live and where I dwell; for I, the Lord, reside among the Israelites.”

Literal Translation
and you shall not defile the land in which you are living. I dwell in its midst, for I, Jehovah, am dwelling among the sons of Israel.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Defyle not ye the londe that ye dwell in, wherin I dwell also. For I am the LORDE, which dwell amoge ye children of Israel.

American Standard Version
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.

Bible in Basic English
Do not make unclean the land where you are living and in which is my House: for I the Lord am present among the children of Israel.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Defile not therefore the lande whiche ye shal inhabite, for I am in the middes therof: [euen] I the Lord dwell among the chyldren of Israel.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And thou shalt not defile the land which ye inhabit, in the midst of which I dwell; for I the LORD dwell in the midst of the children of Israel.'

King James Version (1611)
Defile not therefore the lande which yee shall inhabite, wherein I dwell: for I the Lord dwell among the children of Israel.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And ye shall not defile the land whereon ye dwell, on which I dwell in the midst of you; for I am the Lord dwelling in the midst of the children of Israel.

English Revised Version
And thou shalt not defile the land which ye inhabit, in the midst of which I dwell: for I the LORD dwell in the midst of the children of Israel.

Berean Standard Bible
Do not defile the land where you live and where I dwell. For I, the LORD, dwell among the Israelites."

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And so youre possessioun schal be clensid, for Y schal dwelle with you; for Y am the Lord, that dwelle among the sones of Israel.

Young's Literal Translation
and ye defile not the land in which ye are dwelling, in the midst of which I do tabernacle, for I Jehovah do tabernacle in the midst of the sons of Israel.'

Update Bible Version
And you shall not defile the land which you inhabit, in the midst of which I dwell: for I, Yahweh, dwell in the midst of the sons of Israel.

Webster's Bible Translation
Defile not therefore the land which ye shall inhabit, in which I dwell: for I the LORD dwell among the children of Israel.

World English Bible
You shall not defile the land which you inhabit, in the midst of which I dwell: for I, Yahweh, dwell in the midst of the children of Israel.

New King James Version
Therefore do not defile the land which you inhabit, in the midst of which I dwell; for I the LORD dwell among the children of Israel."'

New Living Translation
You must not defile the land where you live, for I live there myself. I am the Lord , who lives among the people of Israel."

New Life Bible
Do not make the land where you live unclean, in the place where I live. For I the Lord am living among the people of Israel.'"

New Revised Standard
You shall not defile the land in which you live, in which I also dwell; for I the Lord dwell among the Israelites.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
thou must not then make unclean the land wherein, ye, are dwelling, in the midst of which, I, have my habitation; for, I, - Yahweh, am making my habitation in the midst of the sons of Israel.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And thus shall your possession be cleansed, myself abiding with you. For I am the Lord that dwell among the children of Israel.

Revised Standard Version
You shall not defile the land in which you live, in the midst of which I dwell; for I the LORD dwell in the midst of the people of Israel."

New American Standard Bible (1995)
'You shall not defile the land in which you live, in the midst of which I dwell; for I the LORD am dwelling in the midst of the sons of Israel.'"

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

Defile not: Numbers 5:3, Leviticus 20:24-26

I dwell: Psalms 135:21, Isaiah 57:15, Hosea 9:3, 2 Corinthians 6:16, 2 Corinthians 6:17, Revelation 21:3, Revelation 21:27

dwell among: Numbers 5:3, Exodus 25:8, Exodus 29:45, Exodus 29:46, 1 Kings 6:13, Psalms 132:14, Isaiah 8:12

Reciprocal: Leviticus 18:25 - the land Numbers 16:3 - the Lord Deuteronomy 19:13 - but thou Deuteronomy 21:23 - thy land 1 Samuel 2:30 - Be it far Isaiah 24:5 - defiled Jeremiah 2:7 - ye defiled Jeremiah 16:18 - they have defiled Jeremiah 26:19 - Thus Ezekiel 36:17 - they defiled Daniel 2:11 - whose

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Defile not therefore the land which ye shall inherit,.... By the commission of such atrocious crimes, or suffering them to go unpunished, or by taking a compensation for the life of the guilty person:

wherein I dwell; which is added to strengthen the exhortation, and as giving a reason why care should be taken not to pollute it, because the Holy God dwells there; as he did in the tabernacle erected for him, and in such a peculiar manner as he did not in other lands:

for I the Lord dwell among the children of Israel; he now dwelt among them as their God, and their King; his tent or tabernacle being pitched in the midst of the camps of Israel; and so he would continue to dwell among them when they were come to the land of Canaan, so long as they observed his laws, statutes, and ordinances; and therefore it behoved them to be careful that they did not pollute themselves and their land, and cause him to depart from them.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

For I the Lord dwell ... - An emphatic protest against all enactment or relaxation of laws by men for their own private convenience.