HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 527
NUM B ER S 36
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to death before being tried by the community.
13 Designate six cities of refuge for yourselves,
14 three on the east side of the Jordan River and
three on the west in the land of Canaan. 15 These
cities are for the protection of Israelites, foreigners living among you, and traveling merchants.
Anyone who accidentally kills someone may
flee there for safety.
16 “But if someone strikes and kills another
person with a piece of iron, it is murder, and
the murderer must be executed. 17 Or if someone
with a stone in his hand strikes and kills another
person, it is murder, and the murderer must be
put to death. 18 Or if someone strikes and kills another person with a wooden object, it is murder,
and the murderer must be put to death. 19 The
victim’s nearest relative is responsible for putting the murderer to death. When they meet, the
avenger must put the murderer to death. 20 So if
someone hates another person and waits in ambush, then pushes him or throws something at
him and he dies, it is murder. 21 Or if someone
hates another person and hits him with a fist and
he dies, it is murder. In such cases, the avenger
must put the murderer to death when they meet.
22 “But suppose someone pushes another
person without having shown previous hostility, or throws something that unintentionally
hits another person, 23 or accidentally drops a
huge stone on someone, though they were not
enemies, and the person dies. 24 If this should
happen, the community must follow these
regulations in making a judgment between the
slayer and the avenger, the victim’s nearest relative: 25 The community must protect the slayer
from the avenger and must escort the slayer
back to live in the city of refuge to which he fled.
There he must remain until the death of the high
priest, who was anointed with the sacred oil.
26 “But if the slayer ever leaves the limits of
the city of refuge, 27 and the avenger finds him
outside the city and kills him, it will not be considered murder. 28 The slayer should have stayed
inside the city of refuge until the death of the high
priest. But after the death of the high priest, the
slayer may return to his own property. 29 These
are legal requirements for you to observe from
generation to generation, wherever you may live.
30 “All murderers must be put to death, but
only if evidence is presented by more than one
witness. No one may be put to death on the testimony of only one witness. 31 Also, you must never
accept a ransom payment for the life of someone
35:33 Or can make atonement for murder.
judged guilty of murder and subject to execution;
murderers must always be put to death. 32 And
never accept a ransom payment from someone
who has fled to a city of refuge, allowing a slayer
to return to his property before the death of
the high priest. 33 This will ensure that the land
where you live will not be polluted, for murder
pollutes the land. And no sacrifice except the execution of the murderer can purify the land from
murder.* 34 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.”
Women Who Inherit Property
Then the heads of the clans of Gilead—
descendants of Makir, son of Manasseh,
son of Joseph—came to Moses and the family
leaders of Israel with a petition. 2 They said, “Sir,
the Lord instructed you to divide the land by
sacred lot among the people of Israel. You were
told by the Lord to give the grant of land owned
by our brother Zelophehad to his daughters.
3 But if they marry men from another tribe, their
grants of land will go with them to the tribe into
which they marry. In this way, the total area of
our tribal land will be reduced. 4 Then when the
Year of Jubilee comes, their portion of land will
be added to that of the new tribe, causing it to
be lost forever to our ancestral tribe.”
5 So Moses gave the Israelites this command
from the Lord: “The claim of the men of the
tribe of Joseph is legitimate. 6 This is what the
Lord commands concerning the daughters of
Zelophehad: Let them marry anyone they like,
as long as it is within their own ancestral tribe.
7 None of the territorial land may pass from tribe
to tribe, for all the land given to each tribe must
remain within the tribe to which it was first allotted. 8 The daughters throughout the tribes of
Israel who are in line to inherit property must
marry within their tribe, so that all the Israelites
will keep their ancestral property. 9 No grant of
land may pass from one tribe to another; each
tribe of Israel must keep its allotted portion
of land.”
10 The daughters of Zelophehad did as the Lord
commanded Moses. 11 Mahlah, Tirzah, Hoglah,
Milcah, and Noah all married cousins on their father’s side. 12 They married into the clans of Manasseh son of Joseph. Thus, their inheritance of
land remained within their ancestral tribe.
13 These are the commands and regulations
that the Lord gave to the people of Israel through
Moses while they were camped on the plains of
Moab beside the Jordan River, across from Jericho.
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