They are to tie the breastpiece by its rings to the rings of the ephod by blue cord, so that it may be above the waistband of the ephod, and so that the breastpiece will not be loose from the ephod.

You are to overlay it with pure gold – its top, ¹  its four walls, ²  and its horns – and make a surrounding border of gold for it. ³ 

They will stumble over each other as those who flee before a sword, though ¹  there is no pursuer, and there will be no one to take a stand ²  for you before your enemies.

¹ Moses ²  sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom: ³  “Thus says your brother Israel: ‘You know all the hardships we have experienced, ⁴ 

and then the border will turn from the south to the Scorpion Ascent, ¹  continue to Zin, and then its direction ²  will be from the south to Kadesh Barnea. Then it will go to Hazar Addar and pass over to Azmon.

These six towns will be places of refuge for the Israelites, and for the foreigner, and for the settler among them, so that anyone who kills any person accidentally may flee there.

Those nations that you are about to dispossess listen to omen readers and diviners, but the Lord your God has not given you permission to do such things.

However, suppose a person hates someone else ¹  and stalks him, attacks him, kills him, ²  and then flees to one of these cities.

The Lord will cause your enemies who attack ¹  you to be struck down before you; they will attack you from one direction ²  but flee from you in seven different directions.

How can one man chase a thousand of them, ¹  and two pursue ten thousand; unless their Rock had delivered them up, ²  and the Lord had handed them over?

When he held out his hand, the men waiting in ambush rose up quickly from their place and attacked. ¹  They entered the city, captured it, and immediately set it on fire.

When Joshua and all Israel saw that the men in ambush had captured the city and that the city was going up in smoke, ¹  they turned around and struck down the men of Ai.

It turned eastward toward Beth Dagon, touched Zebulun and the Valley of Iphtah El to the north, as well as the Valley of Emek and Neiel, and extended to Cabul on the north ¹ 

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

Now Sisera ran away on foot to the tent of Jael, wife of Heber the Kenite, for King Jabin of Hazor ¹  and the family of Heber the Kenite had made a peace treaty. ² 

They stood in order ¹  all around the camp. The whole army ran away; they shouted as they scrambled away. ² 

The woman ran at once and told her husband, ¹  “Come quickly, ²  the man who visited ³  me the other day has appeared to me!”

Then the Benjaminites said, “They are defeated just as before.” But the Israelites said, “Let’s retreat ¹  and lure them ²  away from the city into the main roads.”

On that day ¹  a Benjaminite ran from the battle lines and came to Shiloh. His clothes were torn and dirt was on his head.

Saul’s watchmen at Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin ¹  looked on ²  as the crowd of soldiers seemed to melt away first in one direction and then in another. ³