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Deuteronomy 19

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The Law of Cities of Refuge 1–13

1
When Jehovah thy God shall cut off the nations, whose land Jehovah thy God giveth thee, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their cities, and in their houses; ​
2
thou shalt set apart three cities for thee in the midst of thy land, which Jehovah thy God giveth thee to possess it. ​
3
Thou shalt prepare thee the way, and divide the borders of thy land, which Jehovah thy God causeth thee to inherit, into three parts, that every manslayer may flee thither. ​
4
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;
5
as when a man goeth into the forest with his neighbor 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 neighbor, so that he dieth; he shall flee unto one of these cities and live: ​
6
lest the avenger of blood pursue the manslayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and smite him mortally; whereas he was not worthy of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in time past. ​
7
Wherefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt set apart three cities for thee.
8
And if Jehovah thy God enlarge thy border, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, and give thee all the land which he promised to give unto thy fathers; ​
9
if thou shalt keep all this commandment to do it, which I command thee this day, to love Jehovah thy God, and to walk ever in his ways; then shalt thou add three cities more for thee, besides these three: ​
10
that innocent blood be not shed in the midst of thy land, which Jehovah thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon thee. ​
11
But if any man hate his neighbor, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally so that he dieth, and he flee into one of these cities;
12
then 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.
13
Thine eye shall not pity him, but thou shalt put away the innocent blood from Israel, that it may go well with thee. ​

Landmarks, Witnesses, and Just Judgment 14–21

14
Thou shalt not remove thy neighbor’s landmark, which they of old time have set, in thine inheritance which thou shalt inherit, in the land that Jehovah thy God giveth thee to possess it. ​
15
One 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 a matter be established. ​
16
If an unrighteous witness rise up against any man to testify against him of wrong-doing,
17
then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before Jehovah, before the priests and the judges that shall be in those days; ​
18
and the judges shall make diligent inquisition: and, behold, if the witness be a false witness, and have testified falsely against his brother; ​
19
then shall ye do unto him, as he had thought to do unto his brother: so shalt thou put away the evil from the midst of thee. ​
20
And those that remain shall hear, and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil in the midst of thee.
21
And thine eyes shall not pity; life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot. ​

Bible text: American Standard Version (1901) · Public domain

Study Notes for Deuteronomy 19

Verse 1

cut off the nations — The law looks ahead to the settled land, when Israel 'succeedest them, and dwellest in their cities'. 'Cut off' is karath, used of the nations in the same way in Deut 12:29. The cities were part of the gift: 'great and goodly cities, which thou buildedst not' (Deut 6:10).

Verse 2

separate three cities — Badal, to set apart, is the verb of Deut 4:41, where Moses 'severed three cities' east of the Jordan: Bezer, Ramoth and Golan (Deut 4:43). These three lie 'in the midst of thy land', and Joshua names them: Kedesh, Shechem and Kirjatharba (Josh 20:7), making 'six cities' (Num 35:15).

Verse 3

prepare thee a way — Kun is to set up or make ready, and derek is a road. The land is divided 'into three parts' (shalash) so that 'every slayer may flee thither'. The refuge is for the one who killed 'unawares' (Num 35:11); the one who lay in wait is taken even from the altar (Ex 21:13–14).

Verse 5

the head slippeth from the helve — The example is a man cutting wood with his neighbour. In Hebrew ets serves for the 'wood', the 'tree' and the 'helve' (handle) alike, and garzen, 'axe', occurs only four times (here, Deut 20:19, 1 Kings 6:7, Isa 10:15). He 'shall flee… and live', where the murderer would not (vv.11–12).

Verse 6

the avenger of the blood — Go'el, from ga'al, is the next of kin, the same word as 'kinsman' in Ruth 3:12 and 4:6, where he redeems; here he is the one who pursues. The refuge stood 'from the avenger' until the slayer stood in judgment (Num 35:12). 'Not worthy of death' is, literally, no judgment of death on him.

Verse 8

enlarge thy coast — Rachab, to make broad. The enlargement rests on the oath to the fathers, 'Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates' (Gen 15:18). 'Coast' is gebul, a boundary, the word of vv.3 and 14.

Verse 9

to love the LORD thy God, and to walk ever in his ways — The condition for three more cities is the whole law summed up, as in Deut 11:22: 'to love the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, and to cleave unto him'. The cities Joshua appointed are six (Josh 20:7–8).

Verse 10

innocent blood — Naqiy is innocent, free of guilt. Blood shed in the land rests on it and on those who let it go unanswered: 'and so blood be upon thee'. Deut 21:8–9 gives the remedy for blood of unknown origin, 'the blood shall be forgiven them', and Judas confessed that he had 'betrayed the innocent blood' (Matt 27:4).

Verse 13

put away the guilt of innocent blood — 'Put away' is ba'ar, to clear out, the verb of 'put the evil away' in v.19 and of 'put away the guilt of innocent blood' in 21:9. The refuge covers the unwitting slayer (vv.4–6); for the murderer, 'Thine eye shall not pity him', a phrase that returns in v.21.

Verse 14

thy neighbour's landmark — Gebul, a boundary, is the word rendered 'coast' in vv.3 and 8. Each family's inheritance in the land was fixed by its boundary, and the one who moves it is cursed in Deut 27:17; 'Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set' (Prov 22:28).

Verse 15

two witnesses, or… three witnesses — The rule is the same in Num 35:30 and Deut 17:6. In Hebrew 'rise up' and 'be established' are one verb, qum: one witness cannot rise up against a man, but two or three make the matter stand. Matt 18:16, John 8:17, 2 Cor 13:1, 1 Tim 5:19 and Heb 10:28 all rely on it.

Verse 17

before the LORD — The two parties stand 'before the LORD, before the priests and the judges', at the place the LORD chooses (Deut 17:8–9). The court is his: Jehoshaphat told the judges, 'ye judge not for man, but for the LORD, who is with you in the judgment' (2 Chr 19:6).

Verse 18

diligent inquisition — Darash, to seek out, with yatab, 'well': the judges search the matter thoroughly, as Deut 13:14 requires: 'enquire, and make search, and ask diligently'. The accused is a 'brother' (ach), and the false witness has broken 'Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour' (Ex 20:16).

Verse 19

as he had thought to have done unto his brother — Zamam, to plan or devise. The perjurer receives the penalty he intended, as Haman was hanged 'on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai' (Esth 7:10). 'A false witness shall not be unpunished' (Prov 19:5).

Verse 21

life shall go for life, eye for eye — The rule first stands in Ex 21:23–25 and Lev 24:20; here it governs the court that has found a false witness. Christ quotes it, 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth', and sets beside it 'resist not evil' (Matt 5:38–39). 'Thine eye shall not pity' is the wording of v.13.