Numbers 35:12

New Century Version

There the person will be safe from the dead person’s relative who has the duty of punishing the killer. He will not die before he receives a fair trial in court.

Cross References

2 Samuel 14:7

Now all the family group is against me. They said to me, ‘Bring the son who killed his brother so we may kill him for killing his brother. That way we will also get rid of the one who would receive what belonged to his father.’ My son is like the last spark of a fire. He is all I have left. If they kill him, my husband’s name and property will be gone from the earth.”

Numbers 35:13

The six cities you give will be cities of safety.

Numbers 35:19

A relative of the dead person must put the murderer to death; when they meet, the relative must kill the murderer.

Deuteronomy 19:4

This is the rule for someone who kills another person and runs to one of these cities in order to save his life. But the person must have killed a neighbor without meaning to, not out of hatred.

Deuteronomy 19:6

Otherwise, the dead person’s relative who has the duty of punishing a murderer might be angry and chase him. If the city is far away, the relative might catch and kill the person, even though he should not be killed because there was no intent to kill his neighbor.

Joshua 20:2

“Tell the Israelites to choose the special cities of safety, as I had Moses command you to do.

Joshua 20:9

Any Israelite or anyone living among them who killed someone accidentally was to be allowed to run to one of these cities of safety. There he would not be killed, before he was judged, by the relative who had the duty of punishing a murderer.