Deuteronomy 19 sets out a careful system for handling the death of one person caused by another. Its central concern is justice: protecting an innocent person from revenge after an accidental death while ensuring that deliberate murder is not excuses or ignored.

The chapter introduces the cities of refuge, places where a person involved in an unintentional killing could flee for safety and receive a proper hearing. Beneath these instructions is a lasting theological truth: human life has immense value because men and women are made in the image of God.