Deuteronomy 19:2–9

^2ayou shall set apart three cities for yourself in the midst of your land, which Yahweh your God gives you to ¹possess.

³“You shall prepare the ¹roads for yourself, and divide into three parts the territory of your land which Yahweh your God will give you to inherit, ²so that any manslayer may flee there.

⁴“^aNow this is the case of the manslayer who may flee there and live: when he strikes down his friend ¹without premeditation, ²not hating him previously—

⁵as when a man goes into the forest with his friend to cut wood, and his hand ¹swings the axe to cut down the tree, and the iron head slips off the ²handle and ³strikes his friend so that he dies—he may flee to one of these cities and live;

⁶lest the avenger of blood pursue the manslayer when his heart is ¹angry, and overtake him, because the way is long, and ²strike down his life, though he was not deserving of death, since he had not hated him previously.

⁷“Therefore, I am commanding you, saying, ‘You shall set apart three cities for yourself.’

⁸“Now if Yahweh your God ^aenlarges your territory, just as He has sworn to your fathers, and gives you all the land which He ¹promised to give to your fathers—

⁹if you ¹be careful to do all this commandment which I am commanding you today, ^ato love Yahweh your God and to walk in His ways all your days—^bthen you shall add three more cities for yourself, besides these three.