Or if someone with a stone in his hand strikes and kills another person, it is murder, and the murderer must be put to death.
Parallel translations
- WEB If he struck him with a stone in the hand, by which a man may die, and he died, he is a murderer. The murderer shall surely be put to death.
- KJV And if he smite him with throwing a stone, wherewith he may die, and he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.
- BSB Or if anyone has in his hand a stone of deadly size, and he strikes and kills another, he is a murderer; the murderer must surely be put to death.
- NKJV And if he strikes him with a stone in the hand, by which one could die, and he does die, he is a murderer; the murderer shall surely be put to death.
- NASB And if he struck him with a stone in the hand, by which he would die, and as a result he did die, he is a murderer; the murderer must be put to death.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
One who kills another with a deadly stone in hand is a murderer and must be put to death. Killing with a lethal stone weapon brings the death penalty.
Overview
Like the iron instrument, a stone capable of causing death signaled deliberate intent to kill. The repeated standard ensured that murderers could not escape justice by the choice of weapon. This consistent application of the law underscores God's unwavering concern for justice and the value of human life.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 1
- Exod 21:18“If men quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone, or with his fist, and he doesn’t die, but is confined to bed;
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Christ at the center
In the wilderness Christ is the water from the rock, the bronze serpent lifted up that the dying might look and live (John 3:14), and the star and scepter that Balaam saw rising out of Jacob.
How Numbers 35:17 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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