| King James Bible | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1If one be found slain in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee to possess it, lying in the field, and it be not known who hath slain him: | 1If a murder victim is found lying in a field in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess, and it is not known who killed him, |
| 2Then thy elders and thy judges shall come forth, and they shall measure unto the cities which are round about him that is slain: | 2your elders and judges must come out and measure the distance from the victim to the nearby cities. |
| 3And it shall be, that the city which is next unto the slain man, even the elders of that city shall take an heifer, which hath not been wrought with, and which hath not drawn in the yoke; | 3The elders of the city nearest to the victim are to get a young cow that has not been yoked or used for work. |
| 4And the elders of that city shall bring down the heifer unto a rough valley, which is neither eared nor sown, and shall strike off the heifer's neck there in the valley: | 4The elders of that city will bring the cow down to a continually flowing stream, to a place not tilled or sown, and they will break its neck there by the stream. |
| 5And the priests the sons of Levi shall come near; for them the LORD thy God hath chosen to minister unto him, and to bless in the name of the LORD; and by their word shall every controversy and every stroke be tried: | 5Then the priests, the sons of Levi, will come forward, for Yahweh your God has chosen them to serve Him and pronounce blessings in His name, and they are to give a ruling in every dispute and case of assault. |
| 6And all the elders of that city, that are next unto the slain man, shall wash their hands over the heifer that is beheaded in the valley: | 6All the elders of the city nearest to the victim will wash their hands by the stream over the young cow whose neck has been broken. |
| 7And they shall answer and say, Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it. | 7They will declare, 'Our hands did not shed this blood; our eyes did not see it. |
| 8Be merciful, O LORD, unto thy people Israel, whom thou hast redeemed, and lay not innocent blood unto thy people of Israel's charge. And the blood shall be forgiven them. | 8 LORD, forgive Your people Israel You redeemed, and do not hold the shedding of innocent blood against them.' Then they will be absolved of responsibility for bloodshed. |
| 9So shalt thou put away the guilt of innocent blood from among you, when thou shalt do that which is right in the sight of the LORD. | 9You must purge from yourselves the guilt of shedding innocent blood, for you will be doing what is right in the LORD's sight." |
| 10When thou goest forth to war against thine enemies, and the LORD thy God hath delivered them into thine hands, and thou hast taken them captive, | 10When you go to war against your enemies and the LORD your God hands them over to you and you take some of them prisoner, and |
| 11And seest among the captives a beautiful woman, and hast a desire unto her, that thou wouldest have her to thy wife; | 11if you see a beautiful woman among the captives, desire her, and want to take her as your wife, |
| 12Then thou shalt bring her home to thine house; and she shall shave her head, and pare her nails; | 12you are to bring her into your house. She must shave her head, trim her nails, |
| 13And she shall put the raiment of her captivity from off her, and shall remain in thine house, and bewail her father and her mother a full month: and after that thou shalt go in unto her, and be her husband, and she shall be thy wife. | 13remove the clothes she was wearing when she was taken prisoner, live in your house, and mourn for her father and mother a full month. After that, you may have sexual relations with her and be her husband, and she will be your wife. |
| 14And it shall be, if thou have no delight in her, then thou shalt let her go whither she will; but thou shalt not sell her at all for money, thou shalt not make merchandise of her, because thou hast humbled her. | 14Then if you are not satisfied with her, you are to let her go where she wants, but you must not sell her for money or treat her as merchandise, because you have humiliated her." |
| 15If a man have two wives, one beloved, and another hated, and they have born him children, both the beloved and the hated; and if the firstborn son be hers that was hated: | 15If a man has two wives, one loved and the other unloved, and both the loved and the unloved bear him sons, and if the unloved wife has the firstborn son, |
| 16Then it shall be, when he maketh his sons to inherit that which he hath, that he may not make the son of the beloved firstborn before the son of the hated, which is indeed the firstborn: | 16when that man gives what he has to his sons as an inheritance, he is not to show favoritism to the son of the loved wife as his firstborn over the firstborn of the unloved wife. |
| 17But he shall acknowledge the son of the hated for the firstborn, by giving him a double portion of all that he hath: for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the firstborn is his. | 17He must acknowledge the firstborn, the son of the unloved wife, by giving him two shares of his estate, for he is the firstfruits of his virility; he has the rights of the firstborn." |
| 18If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father, or the voice of his mother, and that, when they have chastened him, will not hearken unto them: | 18If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who does not obey his father or mother and doesn't listen to them even after they discipline him, |
| 19Then shall his father and his mother lay hold on him, and bring him out unto the elders of his city, and unto the gate of his place; | 19his father and mother must take hold of him and bring him to the elders of his city, to the gate of his hometown. |
| 20And they shall say unto the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton, and a drunkard. | 20They will say to the elders of his city, 'This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious; he doesn't obey us. He's a glutton and a drunkard.' |
| 21And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear, and fear. | 21Then all the men of his city will stone him to death. You must purge the evil from you, and all Israel will hear and be afraid." |
| 22And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be to be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree: | 22If anyone is found guilty of an offense deserving the death penalty and is executed, and you hang his body on a tree, |
| 23His body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day; (for he that is hanged is accursed of God;) that thy land be not defiled, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance. | 23you are not to leave his corpse on the tree overnight but are to bury him that day, for anyone hung on a tree is under God's curse. You must not defile the land the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance." |
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