Deuteronomy 19:12

19:12 The elders of his own city must send for him and remove him from there to deliver him over to the blood avenger to die.

Deuteronomy 19:17

19:17 then both parties to the controversy must stand before the Lord, that is, before the priests and judges who will be in office in those days.

tn The גֹאֵל הַדָּם (goel 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.

tn 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).