Chapter 35
1 While the people of Israel were still camped in the lowlands of Moab across the Jordan River from Jericho, the Lord told Moses
2 to say to them: When you receive your tribal lands, you must give towns and pastures to the Levi tribe.
3 That way, the Levites will have towns to live in and pastures for their animals.
4 Six of the towns you give them will be Safe Towns where a person who has accidentally killed someone can run for protection. But you will also give the Levites 42 other towns,
5 so they will have a total of 48 towns with their surrounding pastures.
6 Since the towns for the Levites must come from Israel’s own tribal lands, the larger tribes will give more towns than the smaller ones.
7 The Lord then told Moses
8 to tell the people of Israel: After you have crossed the Jordan River and are settled in Canaan,
9 choose Safe Towns, where a person who has accidentally killed someone can run for protection.
10 If the victim’s relatives think it was murder, they might try to take revenge. Anyone accused of murder can run to one of these Safe Towns for protection and not be killed before a trial is held.
11 There are to be six of these Safe Towns,
12 three on each side of the Jordan River.
13 They will be places of protection for anyone who lives in Israel and accidentally kills someone. The Lord said:
14 by one of the victim’s relatives. He will take revenge for his relative’s death as soon as he finds you.
15 If they decide that you are innocent, you will be protected from the victim’s relative and sent to stay in one of the Safe Towns until the high priest dies.
16 But if you ever leave the Safe Town
17 and are killed by the victim’s relative, he cannot be punished for killing you.
18 You must stay inside the town until the high priest dies; only then can you go back home.
19 The community of Israel must always obey these laws.
20 Death is the penalty for murder. But no one accused of murder can be put to death unless there are at least two witnesses to the crime.
21 You cannot give someone money to escape the death penalty; you must pay with your own life!
22 And if you have been proven innocent of murder and are living in a Safe Town, you cannot pay to go back home; you must stay there until the high priest dies.