Deuteronomy 17:8

Appeal to a Higher Court

17:8 If a matter is too difficult for you to judge – bloodshed, ¹  legal claim, ²  or assault ³  – matters of controversy in your villages ⁴  – you must leave there and go up to the place the Lord your God chooses. ⁵ 

Deuteronomy 21:5

21:5 Then the Levitical priests ⁶  will approach (for the Lord your God has chosen them to serve him and to pronounce blessings in his name, ⁷  and to decide ⁸  every judicial verdict ⁹ )

¹ tn Heb “between blood and blood.”

² tn Heb “between claim and claim.”

³ tn Heb “between blow and blow.”

⁴ tn Heb “gates.”

⁵ tc Several Greek recensions add “to place his name there,” thus completing the usual formula to describe the central sanctuary (cf. Deut 12:5, 11, 14, 18; 16:6). However, the context suggests that the local Levitical towns, and not the central sanctuary, are in mind.

⁶ tn Heb “the priests, the sons of Levi.”

⁷ tn Heb “in the name of the Lord.” See note on Deut 10:8. The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.

⁸ tn Heb “by their mouth.”

⁹ tn Heb “every controversy and every blow.”