And the Lord spoke to Josue, saying: Speak to the children of Israel and say to them:

Et locutus est Dominus ad Josue, dicens: Loquere filiis Israël, et dic eis:

And now the Lord gave Josue this message for the sons of Israel;

Appoint cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you by the hand of Moses:

Separate urbes fugitivorum, de quibus locutus sum ad vos per manum Moysi:

You must choose out sanctuary towns, as Moses in my name commanded you.

That whosoever shall kill a person unawares may flee to them: and may escape the wrath of the kinsman, who is the avenger of blood:

ut confugiat ad eas quicumque animam percusserit nescius, et possit evadere iram proximi, qui ultor est sanguinis:

These will offer refuge to anyone who has slain a man by misadventure, and escaped from the vengeance of his kinsmen.

And when he shall flee to one of these cities: he shall stand before the gate of the city, and shall speak to the ancients of that city, such things as prove him innocent: and so shall they receive him, and give him a place to dwell in.

cum ad unam harum confugerit civitatum, stabit ante portam civitatis, et loquetur senioribus urbis illius ea quæ se comprobent innocentem: sicque suscipient eum, et dabunt ei locum ad habitandum.

Taking flight to one of these cities, he will stand before the gates and call upon the city elders to declare him innocent; whereupon they must admit him, and grant him a dwelling-place.

And when the avenger of blood shall pursue him, they shall not deliver him into his hands, because he slew his neighbour unawares, and is not proved to have been his enemy two or three days before.

Cumque ultor sanguinis eum fuerit persecutus, non tradent in manus ejus: quia ignorans percussit proximum ejus, nec ante biduum triduumve ejus probatur inimicus.

When the avenger comes in pursuit, demanding blood for blood, they will not give up the fugitive. He has slain his neighbour unwittingly, and cannot be shewn to have borne malice against him beforehand.

And he shall dwell in that city, till he stand before judgment to give an account of his fact, and till the death of the high priest, who shall be at that time: then shall the manslayer return, and go into his own city and house from whence he fled.

Et habitabit in civitate illa, donec stet ante judicium, causam reddens facti sui, et moriatur sacerdos magnus, qui fuerit in illo tempore: tunc revertetur homicida, et ingredietur civitatem et domum suam de qua fugerat.

In that city he will live, until he has been put on trial for his offence, and again until the death of the high priest who then holds office. After that, the man who has shed blood may return to his own city and home, taking sanctuary no longer.

And they appointed Cedes in Galilee of mount Nephtali, and Sichem in mount Ephraim, and Cariath-Arbe, the same is Hebron in the mountain of Juda.

Decreveruntque Cedes in Galilæa montis Nephthali, et Sichem in monte Ephraim, et Cariatharbe, ipsa est Hebron in monte Juda.

Their choice fell on Cedes, in the pale of the Nephthali hill-country, Sichem among the hills of Ephraim, and Cariath-Arbe (or Hebron) among the hills of Juda.

And beyond the Jordan to the east of Jericho, they appointed Bosor, which is upon the plain of the wilderness of the tribe of Ruben, and Ramoth in Galaad of the tribe of Gad, and Gaulon in Basan of the tribe of Manasses.

Et trans Jordanem contra orientalem plagam Jericho, statuerunt Bosor, quæ sita est in campestri solitudine de tribu Ruben, et Ramoth in Galaad de tribu Gad, et Gaulon in Basan de tribu Manasse.

Across the Jordan, east of Jericho, they agreed on Bosor, on the desert lowlands, for Ruben; Ramoth, in Galaad, for Gad; and Gaulon, in Basan, for Manasses.

These cities were appointed for all the children of Israel, and for the strangers, that dwelt among them: that whosoever had killed a person unawares might flee to them, and not die by the hand of the kinsman, coveting to revenge the blood that was shed, until he should stand before the people to lay open his cause.

Hæ civitates constitutæ sunt cunctis filiis Israël, et advenis qui habitabant inter eos, ut fugeret ad eas qui animam nescius percussisset, et non moreretur in manu proximi, effusum sanguinem vindicare cupientis, donec staret ante populum expositurus causam suam.

Israelite or alien who had shed blood unwittingly, and would escape from the vengeance of the next of kin, must make his way to one of the cities thus set apart, until he could stand his trial before the people.