Deuteronomy 19:4

Revised Standard Version

"This is the provision for the manslayer, who by fleeing there may save his life. If any one kills his neighbor unintentionally without having been at enmity with him in time past--

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
“Here 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:

Hebrew Names Version
This is the case of the manslayer, that shall flee there and live: whoever kills his neighbor unawares, and didn't hate him in time past;

King James Version
And 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;

Lexham English Bible
"Now this is the case of the manslayer who may flee there and live there who has killed his neighbor unintentionally, and he did not hate him previously.

English Standard Version
"This is the provision for the manslayer, who by fleeing there may save his life. If anyone kills his neighbor unintentionally without having hated him in the past—

New Century Version
This is the rule for someone who kills another person and runs to one of these cities in order to save his life. But the person must have killed a neighbor without meaning to, not out of hatred.

New English Translation
Now this is the law pertaining to one who flees there in order to live, if he has accidentally killed another without hating him at the time of the accident.

Amplified Bible
"Now this is the case of the offender (manslayer) who may escape there and live [protected from vengeance]: when he kills his neighbor unintentionally, not having hated him previously—

New American Standard Bible
"Now this is the case of the one who commits manslaughter, who may flee there and live: when he kills his friend unintentionally, not hating him previously—

Geneva Bible (1587)
This also is ye cause wherfore the manslaier shal flee thither, and liue: who so killeth his neighbor ignorantly, and hated him not in time passed:

Legacy Standard Bible
"Now this is the case of the manslayer who may flee there and live: when he strikes down his friend without premeditation, not hating him previously—

Complete Jewish Bible
The killer who will live if he flees there is someone who has killed his fellow member of the community by mistake, who did not hate him in the past.

Darby Translation
And this is the case of the slayer who shall flee thither that he may live: he that smiteth his neighbour unwittingly, whom he hated not previously;

Easy-to-Read Version
"This is the rule for someone who kills another person and runs to one of these three cities for safety: It must be someone who killed another person accidentally, not out of hatred.

George Lamsa Translation
And this is the law in the case of the slayer who kills his neighbor and flees there that he may live, whosoever kills his neighbor unintentionally, whom he hated not in time past;

Good News Translation
If you accidentally kill someone who is not your enemy, you may escape to any of these cities and be safe.

Literal Translation
And this is the case of the manslayer who shall flee there, that he may live: whoever strikes his neighbor unawares, and has not hated him yesterday and the day before;

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And this shalbe the cause, that whosoeuer hath committed a slaughter, maye flye thyther, and lyue.

American Standard Version
And this is the case of the manslayer, that shall flee thither and live: whoso killeth his neighbor unawares, and hated him not in time past;

Bible in Basic English
This is to be the rule for anyone who goes in flight there, after causing the death of his neighbour in error and not through hate;

Bishop's Bible (1568)
For this cause must the slayer flee thyther, that he may lyue: Who so kylleth his neighbour ignorauntly, and hated hym not in tyme passed:

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And this is the case of the manslayer, that shall flee thither and live: whoso killeth his neighbour unawares, and hated him not in time past;

King James Version (1611)
And this is the case of the slayer which shall flee thither, that hee may liue: who so killeth his neighbour ignorantly, whom he hated not in time past,

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And this shall be the ordinance of the manslayer, who shall flee thither, and shall live, whosoever shall have smitten his neighbour ignorantly, whereas he hated him not in times past.

English Revised Version
And this is the case of the manslayer, which shall flee thither and live: whoso killeth his neighbour unawares, and hated him not in time past;

Berean Standard Bible
Now this is the situation regarding the manslayer who flees to one of these cities to save his life, having killed his neighbor accidentally, without intending to harm him:

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
This schal be the lawe of a mansleere fleynge, whos lijf schal be kept. If a man smytith vnwityngli his neiybore, and which is preuyd to haue not had ony hatered ayens hym yistirdai and the thridde dai agoon,

Young's Literal Translation
`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,

Update Bible Version
And this is the case of the manslayer, that shall flee there and live: whoever kills his neighbor unawares, and did not hate him in time past;

Webster's Bible Translation
And this [is] the case of the slayer, who shall flee thither, that he may live: Whoever killeth his neighbor ignorantly, whom he hated not in time past;

World English Bible
This is the case of the manslayer, that shall flee there and live: whoever kills his neighbor unawares, and didn't hate him in time past;

New King James Version
"And this is the case of the manslayer who flees there, that he may live: Whoever kills his neighbor unintentionally, not having hated him in time past--

New Living Translation
"If someone kills another person unintentionally, without previous hostility, the slayer may flee to any of these cities to live in safety.

New Life Bible
"This is the law of the person who kills another and runs to a city to save his life. He might have killed his friend without meaning to, a friend he did not hate in the past.

New Revised Standard
Now this is the case of a homicide who might flee there and live, that is, someone who has killed another person unintentionally when the two had not been at enmity before:

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And, this, is the case of the manslayer, who shall flee thither and live, - Whoso shall smite his neighbour unwittingly, he, not having hated him aforetime;

Douay-Rheims Bible
This shall be the law of the slayer that fleeth, whose life is to be saved: He that killeth his neighbor ignorantly, and who is proved to have had no hatred against him yesterday and the day before:

THE MESSAGE
This is the guideline for the murderer who flees there to take refuge: He has to have killed his neighbor without premeditation and with no history of bad blood between them. For instance, a man goes with his neighbor into the woods to cut a tree; he swings the ax, the head slips off the handle and hits his neighbor, killing him. He may then flee to one of these cities and save his life. If the city is too far away, the avenger of blood racing in hot-blooded pursuit might catch him since it's such a long distance, and kill him even though he didn't deserve it. It wasn't his fault. There was no history of hatred between them. Therefore I command you: Set aside the three cities for yourselves.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Now this is the case of the manslayer who may flee there and live: when he kills his friend unintentionally, not hating him previously—

Contextual Overview

¹ "When the LORD your God cuts off the nations whose land the LORD your God gives you, and you dispossess them and dwell in their cities and in their houses, ² you shall set apart three cities for you in the land which the LORD your God gives you to possess. ³ You shall prepare the roads, and divide into three parts the area of the land which the LORD your God gives you as a possession, so that any manslayer can flee to them. ⁴ "This is the provision for the manslayer, who by fleeing there may save his life. If any one kills his neighbor unintentionally without having been at enmity with him in time past-- ⁵ as when a man goes into the forest with his neighbor to cut wood, and his hand swings the axe to cut down a tree, and the head slips from the handle and strikes his neighbor so that he dies--he may flee to one of these cities and save his life; ⁶ lest the avenger of blood in hot anger pursue the manslayer and overtake him, because the way is long, and wound him mortally, though the man did not deserve to die, since he was not at enmity with his neighbor in time past. ⁷ Therefore I command you, You shall set apart three cities. ⁸ And if the LORD your God enlarges your border, as he has sworn to your fathers, and gives you all the land which he promised to give to your fathers-- ⁹ provided you are careful to keep all this commandment, which I command you this day, by loving the LORD your God and by walking ever in his ways--then you shall add three other cities to these three, ¹⁰ lest innocent blood be shed in your land which the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance, and so the guilt of bloodshed be upon you.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

the slayer: Deuteronomy 4:42, Numbers 35:15-24

in time past: Heb. from yesterday the third day, Deuteronomy 19:6, Genesis 31:2, Joshua 3:4, 1 Chronicles 11:2, Isaiah 30:33, *marg.

Reciprocal: Exodus 21:13 - lie not Leviticus 4:2 - through Numbers 35:11 - unawares Deuteronomy 17:8 - between blood 2 Samuel 14:11 - the revengers 2 Kings 13:5 - beforetime Philippians 3:9 - be

Cross-References

Genesis 13:13
Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the LORD.

Genesis 18:20
Then the LORD said, "Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomor'rah is great and their sin is very grave,

Genesis 19:1
The two angels came to Sodom in the evening; and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and bowed himself with his face to the earth,

Genesis 19:6
Lot went out of the door to the men, shut the door after him,

Genesis 19:20
Behold, yonder city is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one. Let me escape there--is it not a little one? --and my life will be saved!"

Genesis 19:25
and he overthrew those cities, and all the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground.

Exodus 16:2
And the whole congregation of the people of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness,

Exodus 23:2
You shall not follow a multitude to do evil; nor shall you bear witness in a suit, turning aside after a multitude, so as to pervert justice;

Proverbs 4:16
For they cannot sleep unless they have done wrong; they are robbed of sleep unless they have made some one stumble.

Proverbs 6:18
a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil,

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And this is the case of the slayer, which shall flee thither, that he may live,.... It was not any slayer that might have protection in these cities, but such who were thus and thus circumstanced, or whose case was as follows:

whoso killeth his neighbour ignorantly; without intention, as the Targum of Jonathan, did not design it, but was done by him unawares:

whom he hated not in time past; had never shown by words or deeds that he had any hatred of him or enmity to him three days ago; so that if there were no marks of hatred, or proofs of it three days before this happened, it was reckoned an accidental thing, and not done on purpose, as this phrase is usually interpreted; see Exodus 21:29.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

This and the next two chapters contain enactments designed to protect human life, and to impress its sanctity on Israel.

In Deuteronomy 19:1-13 the directions respecting the preparation of the roads to the cities of refuge, the provision of additional cities in case of an extension of territory, and the intervention of the elders as representing the congregation, are unique to Deuteronomy and supplementary to the laws on the same subject given in the earlier books (compare the marginal reference).

Deuteronomy 19:1, Deuteronomy 19:2

The three cities of refuge for the district east of Jordan had been already named. Moses now directs that when the territory on the west of Jordan had been conquered, a like allotment of three other cities in it should be made. This was accordingly done; compare Joshua 20:1 ff,

Deuteronomy 19:3

Thou shalt prepare thee a way - It was the duty of the Senate to repair the roads that led to the cities of refuge annually, and remove every obstruction. No hillock was left, no river over which there was not a bridge; and the road was at least 32 cubits broad. At cross-roads there were posts bearing the words Refuge, Refuge, to guide the fugitive in his flight. It seems as if in Isaiah 40:3 ff the imagery were borrowed from the preparation of the ways to the cities of refuge.

Deuteronomy 19:5

With the axe - literally, “with the iron.” Note the employment of iron for tools, and compare Deuteronomy 3:11 note.

Deuteronomy 19:8, Deuteronomy 19:9

Provision is here made for the anticipated enlargement of the borders of Israel to the utmost limits promised by God, from the river of Egypt to the Euphrates (Genesis 15:18, note; Exodus 23:31, note). This promise, owing to the sins of the people, did not receive its fulfillment until after David had conquered the Philistines, Syrians, etc.; and this but a transient one, for many of the conquered peoples regained independence on the dissolution of Solomon’s empire.