Deuteronomy · chapter 19 of 34
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Deuteronomy 19 commands that three cities of refuge be set apart in Canaan for someone who kills without intent, so that he does not die without a trial, while the deliberate murderer must answer for his crime. It also forbids moving a neighbor's boundary marker and requires at least two or three witnesses to convict anyone, giving a false witness the penalty he sought for the accused.
Deuteronomy 19 continues the review of laws with which Moses prepares Israel to live in the promised land. After speaking of judges, kings, priests and prophets, the chapter focuses on protecting life, property and the innocent accused. It shows that God's justice cares both for the victim and for someone who might be punished unjustly.
Moses orders that, when Israel takes possession of the land, three cities of refuge be set apart and the roads to them prepared. Their purpose is that anyone who kills a person unintentionally, with no earlier hostility, can flee there and save his life. One example is two men cutting wood when the iron head slips from the axe and kills his companion. If God enlarges the territory, three more cities are to be added.
The text distinguishes carefully. Someone who kills out of hatred, lying in wait for his neighbor, is not saved in the city of refuge: the elders of his own city will hand him over to the avenger of blood, and Israel must purge innocent blood from its midst. Moses then adds that no one may move his neighbor's boundary marker, set by earlier generations in the inheritance.
Next he treats witnesses. A single witness is not enough to convict anyone of any wrongdoing; the testimony of two or three is required. If a malicious witness accuses another falsely, both parties appear before the Lord, before the priests and judges. If the witness is shown to have lied, he is to receive what he meant to do to his brother, so that others will be deterred. The chapter closes with the principle of showing no pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand and foot for foot.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
The city of refuge protects the one who killed his neighbor without meaning to and without having hated him before. The law separates accident from crime and seeks to keep innocent blood from being shed in the name of vengeance.
Moses calls for these cities so that innocent blood is not shed in the land the Lord gives as an inheritance. God is as concerned that the innocent not die as that the guilty not escape.
Moving a neighbor's boundary marker is stealing the inheritance God gave to each family. The command protects the weak from the abuse of the powerful and reminds Israel that the land is a gift of the Lord.
A single witness is not enough to convict anyone; two or three are needed. This rule guards against false accusation and is still cited in the New Testament as a principle of justice and church discipline.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: Three cities in the middle of the land. — Deuteronomy 19:2
Answer: Someone who killed his neighbor without intent and without having hated him before. — Deuteronomy 19:4
Answer: Two men cut wood, the iron head slips off the axe and kills the other man. — Deuteronomy 19:5
Answer: The elders of his city sent for him and handed him over to the avenger of blood to be put to death. — Deuteronomy 19:11-12
Answer: At least two or three; one witness is not enough. — Deuteronomy 19:15
Answer: He was given what he had meant to do to his brother. — Deuteronomy 19:19
This chapter shows a justice that protects the accused before condemning him. In our communities, where rumors and accusations travel fast, the demand for reliable witnesses reminds us not to repeat or believe what has not been verified. A small group can talk about how we speak of others and how we handle accusations in the church, with seriousness and fairness.
The city of refuge also teaches that God offers protection to those who need to escape real danger. Christians see in this image a reflection of Christ, in whom refuge is found. And the command about boundary markers invites us to respect what belongs to others, especially the most vulnerable.
Deuteronomy 19 joins mercy and justice: refuge for the innocent, judgment for the guilty and truth in the courts. In chapter 20 Moses moves from everyday life to war and explains how Israel is to conduct itself when it goes out to fight.
He was a close relative of the victim to whom ancient law gave the responsibility of seeking justice for a death. The cities of refuge kept that vengeance from falling on an innocent person without a trial in cases of accidental death.
In context it is a principle of judicial proportion: the punishment must match the harm and not exceed it. It was applied through judges in the case of a false witness, not as permission for personal revenge. Jesus later teaches believers to go beyond it in personal life.
Because a single voice can be mistaken or lie, and someone's life or reputation should not depend on it. The New Testament takes up this principle for resolving conflicts in the church.