1tn Heb “the Lord your God.” The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy. 2sn These three cities, later designated by Joshua, were Kedesh of Galilee, Shechem, and Hebron (Josh 20:7-9). 3tn Heb “border.” 4tn Heb “and this is the word pertaining to the one who kills who flees there and lives.” 5tn Heb “who strikes his neighbor without knowledge.” 6tn Heb “yesterday and a third (day)” (likewise in v. 6). The point is that there was no animosity between the two parties at the time of the accident and therefore no motive for the killing. Cf. NAB “had previously borne no malice”; NRSV “had not been at enmity before.” 7tn Heb “his neighbor” (so NAB, NIV); NASB “his friend.” 8tn Heb “and he raises his hand with the iron.” 9tn Heb “the iron slips off.” 10tn Heb “finds.” 11tn Heb “his neighbor.” 12tn Heb “he”; the referent (the person responsible for his friend’s death) has been specified in the translation for clarity. 13tn Heb “and live.” 14tn Heb “and overtake him, for the road is long.” 15tn Heb “smite with respect to life,” that is, fatally. 16tn Heb “no judgment of death.” 17tn Heb “fathers.” 18tn Heb “he said to give to your ancestors.” The pronoun has been used in the translation instead for stylistic reasons. 19tn Heb “all this commandment.” This refers here to the entire covenant agreement of the Book of Deuteronomy as encapsulated in the Shema (Deut 6:4-5). 20tn Heb “commanding”; NAB “which I enjoin on you today.” 21sn You will add three more cities. Since these are alluded to nowhere else and thus were probably never added, this must be a provision for other cities of refuge should they be needed (cf. v. 8). See P. C. Craigie, Deuteronomy (NICOT), 267. 22tn Heb “innocent blood must not be shed.” The Hebrew phrase דָּם נָקִי (dam naqiy) means the blood of a person to whom no culpability or responsibility adheres because what he did was without malice aforethought (HALOT 224 s.v דָּם 4.b). 23tn Heb “and blood will be upon you” (cf. KJV, ASV); NRSV “thereby bringing bloodguilt upon you.” 24tn Heb “his neighbor.” 25tn Heb “rises against him and strikes him fatally.” 26tn The גֹאֵל הַדָּם (go’el haddam, “avenger of blood”) would ordinarily be a member of the victim’s family who, after due process of law, was invited to initiate the process of execution (cf. Num 35:16-28). See R. Hubbard, NIDOTTE 1:789-94. 27sn Purge out the blood of the innocent. Because of the corporate nature of Israel’s community life, the whole community shared in the guilt of unavenged murder unless and until vengeance occurred. Only this would restore spiritual and moral equilibrium (Num 35:33). 28tn Heb “border.” Cf. NRSV “You must not move your neighbor’s boundary marker.” 29tn Heb “which they set off from the beginning.” 30tn The Hebrew text includes “to possess it.” This phrase has been left untranslated to avoid redundancy. 31tn Heb “rise up” (likewise in v. 16). 32tn Heb “may stand.” 33tn Heb “violent” (חָמָס, khamas). This is a witness whose motivation from the beginning is to do harm to the accused and who, therefore, resorts to calumny and deceit. See I. Swart and C. VanDam, NIDOTTE 2:177-80. 34tn Or “rebellion.” Rebellion against God’s law is in view (cf. NAB “of a defection from the law”). 35tn The appositional construction (“before the Lord, that is, before the priests and judges”) indicates that these human agents represented the Lord himself, that is, they stood in his place (cf. Deut 16:18-20; 17:8-9). 36tn Heb “his brother” (also in the following verse). 37tn Heb “you will burn out” (בִּעַרְתָּ, bi’arta). Like a cancer, unavenged sin would infect the whole community. It must, therefore, be excised by the purging out of its perpetrators who, presumably, remained unrepentant (cf. Deut 13:6; 17:7, 12; 21:21; 22:21-22, 24; 24:7). 38sn This kind of justice is commonly called lex talionis or “measure for measure” (cf. Exod 21:23-25; Lev 24:19-20). It is likely that it is the principle that is important and not always a strict application. That is, the punishment should fit the crime and it may do so by the payment of fines or other suitable and equitable compensation (cf. Exod 22:21; Num 35:31). See T. S. Frymer-Kensky, “Tit for Tat: The Principle of Equal Retribution in Near Eastern and Biblical Law,” BA 43 (1980): 230-34.
1tn Heb “the Lord your God.” The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.
2sn These three cities, later designated by Joshua, were Kedesh of Galilee, Shechem, and Hebron (Josh 20:7-9).
3tn Heb “border.”
4tn Heb “and this is the word pertaining to the one who kills who flees there and lives.”
5tn Heb “who strikes his neighbor without knowledge.”
6tn Heb “yesterday and a third (day)” (likewise in v. 6). The point is that there was no animosity between the two parties at the time of the accident and therefore no motive for the killing. Cf. NAB “had previously borne no malice”; NRSV “had not been at enmity before.”
7tn Heb “his neighbor” (so NAB, NIV); NASB “his friend.”
8tn Heb “and he raises his hand with the iron.”
9tn Heb “the iron slips off.”
10tn Heb “finds.”
11tn Heb “his neighbor.”
12tn Heb “he”; the referent (the person responsible for his friend’s death) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
13tn Heb “and live.”
14tn Heb “and overtake him, for the road is long.”
15tn Heb “smite with respect to life,” that is, fatally.
16tn Heb “no judgment of death.”
17tn Heb “fathers.”
18tn Heb “he said to give to your ancestors.” The pronoun has been used in the translation instead for stylistic reasons.
19tn Heb “all this commandment.” This refers here to the entire covenant agreement of the Book of Deuteronomy as encapsulated in the Shema (Deut 6:4-5).
20tn Heb “commanding”; NAB “which I enjoin on you today.”
21sn You will add three more cities. Since these are alluded to nowhere else and thus were probably never added, this must be a provision for other cities of refuge should they be needed (cf. v. 8). See P. C. Craigie, Deuteronomy (NICOT), 267.
22tn Heb “innocent blood must not be shed.” The Hebrew phrase דָּם נָקִי (dam naqiy) means the blood of a person to whom no culpability or responsibility adheres because what he did was without malice aforethought (HALOT 224 s.v דָּם 4.b).
23tn Heb “and blood will be upon you” (cf. KJV, ASV); NRSV “thereby bringing bloodguilt upon you.”
24tn Heb “his neighbor.”
25tn Heb “rises against him and strikes him fatally.”
26tn The גֹאֵל הַדָּם (go’el haddam, “avenger of blood”) would ordinarily be a member of the victim’s family who, after due process of law, was invited to initiate the process of execution (cf. Num 35:16-28). See R. Hubbard, NIDOTTE 1:789-94.
27sn Purge out the blood of the innocent. Because of the corporate nature of Israel’s community life, the whole community shared in the guilt of unavenged murder unless and until vengeance occurred. Only this would restore spiritual and moral equilibrium (Num 35:33).
28tn Heb “border.” Cf. NRSV “You must not move your neighbor’s boundary marker.”
29tn Heb “which they set off from the beginning.”
30tn The Hebrew text includes “to possess it.” This phrase has been left untranslated to avoid redundancy.
31tn Heb “rise up” (likewise in v. 16).
32tn Heb “may stand.”
33tn Heb “violent” (חָמָס, khamas). This is a witness whose motivation from the beginning is to do harm to the accused and who, therefore, resorts to calumny and deceit. See I. Swart and C. VanDam, NIDOTTE 2:177-80.
34tn Or “rebellion.” Rebellion against God’s law is in view (cf. NAB “of a defection from the law”).
35tn The appositional construction (“before the Lord, that is, before the priests and judges”) indicates that these human agents represented the Lord himself, that is, they stood in his place (cf. Deut 16:18-20; 17:8-9).
36tn Heb “his brother” (also in the following verse).
37tn Heb “you will burn out” (בִּעַרְתָּ, bi’arta). Like a cancer, unavenged sin would infect the whole community. It must, therefore, be excised by the purging out of its perpetrators who, presumably, remained unrepentant (cf. Deut 13:6; 17:7, 12; 21:21; 22:21-22, 24; 24:7).
38sn This kind of justice is commonly called lex talionis or “measure for measure” (cf. Exod 21:23-25; Lev 24:19-20). It is likely that it is the principle that is important and not always a strict application. That is, the punishment should fit the crime and it may do so by the payment of fines or other suitable and equitable compensation (cf. Exod 22:21; Num 35:31). See T. S. Frymer-Kensky, “Tit for Tat: The Principle of Equal Retribution in Near Eastern and Biblical Law,” BA 43 (1980): 230-34.