⁶He does this lest the avenger of blood might pursue after the killer, because he is hot with anger^g and he overtakes him, because it is a long distance to the city of refuge, and so he kills him,^h but he did not deserve a death sentence,ⁱ because he was not hating him before.^j

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Footnotes

gLiterally “is hot his heart”
hLiterally “he strikes him down as to his life/soul”
iLiterally “for him there was not a judgment of death”
jLiterally “from yesterday and the day before”

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

lest the avenger of blood in hot anger pursue the manslayer and overtake him, because the way is long, and strike him fatally, though the man did not deserve to die, since he had not hated his neighbor in the past.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

Otherwise, the avenger of blood might pursue him in a rage, overtake him if the distance is too great, and kill him even though he is not deserving of death, since he did it to his neighbor without malice aforethought.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Otherwise, the avenger of blood in the heat of his anger might pursue the one who committed manslaughter, overtake him because the distance is great, and strike him dead. Yet he did not deserve to die, since he did not previously hate his neighbor.

NLTNew Living Translation

“If the distance to the nearest city of refuge is too far, an enraged avenger might be able to chase down and kill the person who caused the death. Then the slayer would die unfairly, since he had never shown hostility toward the person who died.

KJV 1900King James Version

Lest 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.

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