9:6 “Whoever sheds human blood, 2
by other humans 3
must his blood be shed;
for in God’s image 4
God 5 has made humankind.”
21:12 6 “Whoever strikes someone 7 so that he dies 8 must surely be put to death. 9 21:13 But if he does not do it with premeditation, 10 but it happens by accident, 11 then I will appoint for you a place where he may flee. 21:14 But if a man willfully attacks his neighbor to kill him cunningly, 12 you will take him even from my altar that he may die.
35:16 “But if he hits someone with an iron tool so that he dies, 13 he is a murderer. The murderer must surely be put to death. 35:17 If he strikes him by throwing a stone large enough that he could die, and he dies, he is a murderer. The murderer must surely be put to death. 35:18 Or if he strikes him with a wooden hand weapon so that he could die, and he dies, he is a murderer. The murderer must surely be put to death. 35:19 The avenger 14 of blood himself must kill the murderer; when he meets him, he must kill him.
35:20 “But if he strikes him out of hatred or throws something at him intentionally 15 so that he dies, 35:21 or with enmity he strikes him with his hand and he dies, the one who struck him must surely be put to death, for he is a murderer. The avenger of blood must kill the murderer when he meets him.
28:17 The one who is tormented 16 by the murder 17 of another will flee to the pit; 18
let no one support him.
1 tn Or “strikes down” (so NRSV).
2 tn Heb “the blood of man.”
3 tn Heb “by man,” a generic term here for other human beings.
4 sn See the notes on the words “humankind” and “likeness” in Gen 1:26, as well as J. Barr, “The Image of God in the Book of Genesis – A Study of Terminology,” BJRL 51 (1968/69): 11-26.
5 tn Heb “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 sn The underlying point of this section remains vital today: The people of God must treat all human life as sacred.
7 tn The construction uses a Hiphil participle in construct with the noun for “man” (or person as is understood in a law for the nation): “the one striking [of] a man.” This is a casus pendens (independent nominative absolute); it indicates the condition or action that involves further consequence (GKC 361 §116.w).
8 tn The Hebrew word וָמֵת (vamet) is a Qal perfect with vav consecutive; it means “and he dies” and not “and killed him” (which require another stem). Gesenius notes that this form after a participle is the equivalent of a sentence representing a contingent action (GKC 333 §112.n). The word shows the result of the action in the opening participle. It is therefore a case of murder or manslaughter.
9 sn See A. Phillips, “Another Look at Murder,” JJS 28 (1977): 105-26.
10 tn Heb “if he does not lie in wait” (NASB similar).
11 tn Heb “and God brought into his hand.” The death is unintended, its circumstances outside human control.
12 tn The word עָרְמָה (’ormah) is problematic. It could mean with prior intent, which would be connected with the word in Prov 8:5, 12 which means “understanding” (or “prudence” – fully aware of the way things are). It could be connected also to an Arabic word for “enemy” which would indicate this was done with malice or evil intentions (U. Cassuto, Exodus, 270). The use here seems parallel to the one in Josh 9:4, an instance involving intentionality and clever deception.
13 tn the verb is the preterite of “die.” The sentence has :“if…he strikes him and he dies.” The vav (ו) consecutive is showing the natural result of the blow.
14 tn The participle גֹּאֵל (go’el) is the one who protects the family by seeking vengeance for a crime. This is the same verb used for levirate marriages and other related customs.
15 tn The Hebrew text is more vivid: “by lying in wait.”
16 tn The form is the Qal passive participle. The verb means “to oppress; to wrong; to extort”; here the idea of being “oppressed” would refer to the burden of a guilty conscience (hence “tormented”; cf. NAB, NRSV “burdened”). Some commentators have wanted to emend the text to read “suspected,” or “charged with,” or “given to,” etc., but if the motive is religious and not legal, then “oppressed” or “tormented” is preferred.
17 sn The text has “the blood of a life”; blood will be the metonymy of effect for the murder, the shedding of blood.
18 tn The verse is cryptic; it simply says that he will “flee to the pit.” Some have taken the “pit” to refer to the place of detention for prisoners, but why would he flee to that place? It seems rather to refer to death. This could mean that (1) since there is no place for him to go outside of the grave, he should flee to the pit (cf. TEV, NLT), or (2) he will be a fugitive until he goes to the grave (cf. NASB, NIV, NCV, NRSV, CEV). Neither one of these options is easily derived from the text. The verse seems to be saying that the one who is guilty of murder will flee, and no one should assist him. The meaning of “the pit” is unresolved.