The Law · Chapter 19 of 34
Deuteronomy 19
Moses commands Israel to set apart cities of refuge where someone who kills accidentally may flee from the avenger of blood and receive a fair trial. Deliberate murderers, however, find no shelter. He forbids moving a neighbor's ancient landmark, requires two or three witnesses to establish any charge, and prescribes that a proven false witness suffer the penalty he intended for the accused.
What happens in Deuteronomy 19
Once Israel possesses the land, they must set apart three cities of refuge, with roads prepared, so anyone who kills a neighbor accidentally, without prior hatred, may flee and live. Moses gives the example of a man whose axe head flies off and kills his companion; such a person is not worthy of death and must be protected from the avenger of blood whose heart is hot. If God enlarges their territory, they add three more cities, so innocent blood is not shed. But the deliberate murderer who lay in wait finds no refuge; the elders fetch him and deliver him to the avenger, purging innocent blood from the land.
Moses forbids removing a neighbor's ancient boundary landmark. He establishes that no charge stands on one witness; two or three are required. A malicious false witness, exposed by careful investigation before the priests and judges, receives the very punishment he schemed against his brother: life for life, eye for eye.
Deuteronomy 19 in context
This chapter belongs to the covenant code's treatment of justice and the sanctity of life. Ancient societies practiced blood vengeance, where a slain person's kin pursued the killer. The cities of refuge introduce due process, distinguishing murder from manslaughter and protecting the accidental killer from hot blooded retaliation until a fair hearing.
The laws on witnesses and false testimony, and the principle of proportionate penalty, aim to protect the innocent and restrain both vengeance and lies.
Main themes of Deuteronomy 19
Deuteronomy 19 (KJV)
1When the LORD thy God hath cut off the nations, whose land the LORD thy God giveth thee, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their cities, and in their houses; 2Thou shalt separate three cities for thee in the midst of thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee to possess it. 3Thou shalt prepare thee a way, and divide the coasts of thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee to inherit, into three parts, that every slayer may flee thither. 4And this is the case of the slayer, which shall flee thither, that he may live: Whoso killeth his neighbour ignorantly, whom he hated not in time past; 5As when a man goeth into the wood with his neighbour to hew wood, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree, and the head slippeth from the helve, and lighteth upon his neighbour, that he die; he shall flee unto one of those cities, and live: 6Lest the avenger of the blood pursue the slayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and slay him; whereas he was not worthy of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in time past. 7Wherefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt separate three cities for thee. 8And if the LORD thy God enlarge thy coast, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, and give thee all the land which he promised to give unto thy fathers; 9If thou shalt keep all these commandments to do them, which I command thee this day, to love the LORD thy God, and to walk ever in his ways; then shalt thou add three cities more for thee, beside these three: 10That innocent blood be not shed in thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon thee. 11But if any man hate his neighbour, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally that he die, and fleeth into one of these cities: 12Then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him thence, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die. 13Thine eye shall not pity him, but thou shalt put away the guilt of innocent blood from Israel, that it may go well with thee. 14Thou shalt not remove thy neighbour’s landmark, which they of old time have set in thine inheritance, which thou shalt inherit in the land that the LORD thy God giveth thee to possess it. 15One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established. 16If a false witness rise up against any man to testify against him that which is wrong; 17Then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges, which shall be in those days; 18And the judges shall make diligent inquisition: and, behold, if the witness be a false witness, and hath testified falsely against his brother; 19Then shall ye do unto him, as he had thought to have done unto his brother: so shalt thou put the evil away from among you. 20And those which remain shall hear, and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil among you. 21And thine eye shall not pity; but life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.
Verses to carry from Deuteronomy 19
“And this is the case of the slayer, which shall flee thither, that he may live: Whoso killeth his neighbour ignorantly, whom he hated not in time past;”Deuteronomy 19:4
“That innocent blood be not shed in thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon thee.”Deuteronomy 19:10
“One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established.”Deuteronomy 19:15
Christian typology
How Deuteronomy 19 points to Jesus
The cities of refuge, where the one pursued could flee and find safety from the avenger, have long been seen as a picture of Christ, to whom sinners flee for refuge from judgment. The letter to the Hebrews speaks of those who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us, language echoing this provision. In Christ the guilty find a shelter the ancient cities could never give, for He absorbs the judgment rather than merely delaying it.
The chapter's insistence on two or three witnesses is taken up by Jesus in matters of the church, and its concern for innocent blood finds its answer in the truly innocent One whose blood, unlike Abel's, speaks not vengeance but mercy.
Questions about Deuteronomy 19
Why did Israel need cities of refuge?
In the ancient world, when someone was killed, the victim's near kinsman, the avenger of blood, would pursue the killer, often in the heat of grief and rage. This risked killing people who had caused death accidentally, without malice. The cities of refuge provided a safe place to flee and await a fair trial, so intent could be examined. They distinguished manslaughter from murder, protecting the innocent while ensuring deliberate murderers faced justice.
Why is false witness punished so severely?
Because a lie in court can destroy an innocent life as surely as a weapon. A false witness who schemes to have a brother condemned commits premeditated harm, using the justice system itself as a weapon. Moses requires careful investigation and then applies the principle that the liar receives the very penalty he intended to inflict. This deters malicious accusation, protects the innocent, and upholds the truth on which all justice depends.
Reflection
Justice in this chapter is careful, distinguishing accident from malice and guarding truth against lies. Consider how easily we rush to judgment or repeat an unverified accusation. Where do you need to slow down, seek the truth, and protect the innocent? And remember the refuge God provides in Christ for those who flee to Him.
A prayer from Deuteronomy 19
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