then the community must judge between the slayer and the avenger of blood according to these decisions.

and the avenger of blood finds him outside the borders of the town of refuge, and the avenger of blood kills the slayer, he will not be guilty of blood,

The avenger ¹  of blood himself must kill the murderer; when he meets him, he must kill him.

And they must stand as your towns of refuge from the avenger in order that the killer may not die until he has stood trial before the community.

When the avenger of blood comes after him, they must not hand over to him the one who committed manslaughter, for he accidentally killed his fellow man without premeditation. ¹ 

The elders of his own city must send for him and remove him from there to deliver him over to the blood avenger ¹  to die.

before the vindictive enemy who ridicules and insults me. ¹ 

Anyone who accidentally kills someone can escape there; ¹  these cities will be a place of asylum from the avenger of blood.

From the mouths of children and nursing babies you have ordained praise on account of your adversaries, ¹  so that you might put an end to the vindictive enemy. ² 

In this matter no one should violate the rights of his brother or take advantage of him, ¹  because the Lord is the avenger in all these cases, ²  as we also told you earlier and warned you solemnly.

Otherwise the blood avenger will chase after the killer in the heat of his anger, eventually overtake him, ¹  and kill him, ²  though this is not a capital case ³  since he did not hate him at the time of the accident.

The community must deliver the slayer out of the hand of the avenger of blood, and the community must restore him to the town of refuge to which he fled, and he must live there ¹  until the death of the high priest, who was anointed with the consecrated oil.

These were the cities of refuge ¹  appointed for all the Israelites and for resident foreigners living among them. Anyone who accidentally killed someone could escape there and not be executed by ²  the avenger of blood, at least until his case was reviewed by the assembly. ³ 

or with enmity he strikes him with his hand and he dies, the one who struck him must surely be put to death, for he is a murderer. The avenger of blood must kill the murderer when he meets him.

She replied, “In that case, ¹  let the king invoke the name of ²  the Lord your God so that the avenger of blood may not kill! Then they will not destroy my son!” He replied, “As surely as the Lord lives, not a single hair of your son’s head ³  will fall to the ground.”

O Lord our God, you answered them. They found you to be a forgiving God, but also one who punished their sinful deeds. ¹ 

for it is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be in fear, for it does not bear the sword in vain. It is God’s servant to administer retribution on the wrongdoer.

Therefore the Lord says, “I will stand up for your cause. I will pay the Babylonians back for what they have done to you. ¹  I will dry up their sea. I will make their springs run dry. ² 

Look, the pay you have held back from the workers who mowed your fields cries out against you, and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.