Atonement for Unsolved Murder

1

"If, in the land ADONAI your God is giving you to possess, a murder victim is found lying in the countryside; and the perpetrator of the murder is not known;

2

then your leaders and judges are to go out and measure the distance between it and the surrounding towns.

3

After it has been determined which town is the closest, the leaders of that town are to take a young female cow that has never been put to work or yoked for use as a draft animal.

4

The leaders of that town are to bring the heifer down to a vadi with a stream in it that never dries up, to a place that is neither plowed nor sown; and they are to break the cow's neck there in the vadi.

5

Then the cohanim, who are L'vi'im, are to approach; for ADONAI your God has chosen them to serve him and to pronounce blessings in the name of ADONAI; they will decide the outcome of every dispute and matter involving violence.

6

All the leaders of the town nearest the murder victim are to wash their hands over the cow whose neck was broken in the vadi.

7

Then they are to speak up and say, 'This blood was not shed by our hands, nor have we seen who did it.

8

ADONAI, forgive your people Isra'el, whom you redeemed; do not allow innocent blood to be shed among your people Isra'el.' And they will be forgiven this bloodshed.

9

Thus you will banish the shedding of innocent blood from among you, by doing what ADONAI sees as right.

Reading Style

Typeface

Font Size 19px

Reading Width 45 chars

Options