Joshua 20 – NIV & CCBT

New International Version

Joshua 20:1-9

Cities of Refuge

1Then the Lord said to Joshua: 2“Tell the Israelites to designate the cities of refuge, as I instructed you through Moses, 3so that anyone who kills a person accidentally and unintentionally may flee there and find protection from the avenger of blood. 4When they flee to one of these cities, they are to stand in the entrance of the city gate and state their case before the elders of that city. Then the elders are to admit the fugitive into their city and provide a place to live among them. 5If the avenger of blood comes in pursuit, the elders must not surrender the fugitive, because the fugitive killed their neighbor unintentionally and without malice aforethought. 6They are to stay in that city until they have stood trial before the assembly and until the death of the high priest who is serving at that time. Then they may go back to their own home in the town from which they fled.”

7So they set apart Kedesh in Galilee in the hill country of Naphtali, Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the hill country of Judah. 8East of the Jordan (on the other side from Jericho) they designated Bezer in the wilderness on the plateau in the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gilead in the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan in the tribe of Manasseh. 9Any of the Israelites or any foreigner residing among them who killed someone accidentally could flee to these designated cities and not be killed by the avenger of blood prior to standing trial before the assembly.

Chinese Contemporary Bible (Traditional)

約書亞記 20:1-9

避難城

1耶和華對約書亞說: 2「你吩咐以色列人,照我以前藉摩西所吩咐你們的,設立一些城邑作為避難城, 3好讓那些誤殺了人的可以逃到那裡,免遭仇人追殺。 4逃進城的人要先站在城門口,向避難城的長老陳明事情的經過,長老就把他們收容到城裡,給他們地方住。 5如果他們的仇人追到,長老們不可把他們交出來,因為他們是無意殺的,跟被殺者無冤無仇。 6這些人要住在城內,直到在會眾面前受了審訊,並且還要等到在任的大祭司死後,才可離城回鄉。」

7於是,民眾便設立拿弗他利山區加利利境內的基低斯以法蓮山區的示劍猶大山區的基列·亞巴,即希伯崙作為避難城。 8他們又在約旦河、耶利哥東面空曠的平原上設立呂便支派的比悉迦得支派基列境內的拉末瑪拿西支派巴珊境內的哥蘭作為避難城。 9這是為以色列人和那些從外地來寄居的人所設立的避難城,誤殺了人的可以逃到那裡,不致未在會眾面前受審便死在報仇的人手裡。