⁴ “^(A)Now this is the case of the one who commits manslaughter, who may flee there and live: when he ^[a]kills his friend ^[b]unintentionally, ^[c]not hating him previously— ⁵ as when a person goes into the forest with his friend to cut wood, and his hand ^[d]swings the axe to cut down the tree, and the iron head slips off the ^[e]handle and ^[f]strikes his friend so that he dies—he may flee to one of these cities and live. ⁶ Otherwise, the avenger of blood might pursue ^[g]him ^[h]in the heat of his anger, and overtake him because the way is long, and ^[i]take his life, though he was not sentenced to death since he had not hated him previously.

² “Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘^[a]Designate ^(A)the cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you ^[b]through Moses, ³ so that one who commits manslaughter by ^[c]killing a person unintentionally, without premeditation, may flee there, and they shall become your refuge from the avenger of blood.