Deuteronomy 21:7
New International Version
and they shall declare: “Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it done.

New Living Translation
Then they must say, ‘Our hands did not shed this person’s blood, nor did we see it happen.

English Standard Version
and they shall testify, ‘Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it shed.

Berean Standard Bible
and they shall declare, “Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it.

King James Bible
And they shall answer and say, Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it.

New King James Version
Then they shall answer and say, ‘Our hands have not shed this blood, nor have our eyes seen it.

New American Standard Bible
and they shall respond and say, ‘Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see who did.

NASB 1995
and they shall answer and say, ‘Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it.

NASB 1977
and they shall answer and say, ‘Our hands have not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it.

Legacy Standard Bible
and they shall answer and say, ‘Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it.

Amplified Bible
and they shall respond, and say, ‘Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it.

Christian Standard Bible
They will declare, ‘Our hands did not shed this blood; our eyes did not see it.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
They will declare, ‘Our hands did not shed this blood; our eyes did not see it.

American Standard Version
and they shall answer and say, Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it.

Contemporary English Version
and say, "We had no part in this murder, and we don't know who did it.

English Revised Version
and they shall answer and say, Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Then they must make this formal statement: "We didn't commit this murder, and we didn't witness it.

Good News Translation
and say, 'We did not murder this one, and we do not know who did it.

International Standard Version
and they are to make this declaration: 'Our hands didn't shed this blood, nor were we witnesses to the crime.

Majority Standard Bible
and they shall declare, “Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it.

NET Bible
Then they must proclaim, "Our hands have not spilled this blood, nor have we witnessed the crime.

New Heart English Bible
and they shall answer and say, "Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it.

Webster's Bible Translation
And they shall answer and say, Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it.

World English Bible
They shall answer and say, “Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
and they have answered and said, Our hands have not shed this blood, and our eyes have not seen—

Young's Literal Translation
and they have answered and said, Our hands have not shed this blood, and our eyes have not seen --

Smith's Literal Translation
And they answered and said, Our hands poured not out this blood, and our eyes saw not.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
And shall say: Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it.

Catholic Public Domain Version
And they shall say: ‘Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it.

New American Bible
and shall declare, “Our hands did not shed this blood, and our eyes did not see the deed.

New Revised Standard Version
and they shall declare: “Our hands did not shed this blood, nor were we witnesses to it.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
And they shall answer and say, Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen the victim.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And they shall answer and they shall say: 'Our hand has not shed this blood and our eyes have not seen.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
And they shall speak and say: 'Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
and they shall answer and say, Our hands have not shed this blood, and our eyes have not seen it.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Atonement for an Unsolved Murder
6Then all the elders of the city nearest the victim shall wash their hands by the stream over the heifer whose neck has been broken, 7and they shall declare, “Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it. 8Accept this atonement, O LORD, for Your people Israel whom You have redeemed, and do not hold the shedding of innocent blood against them.” And the bloodshed will be atoned for.…

Cross References
Numbers 35:33-34
Do not pollute the land where you live, for bloodshed pollutes the land, and no atonement can be made for the land on which the blood is shed, except by the blood of the one who shed it. / Do not defile the land where you live and where I dwell. For I, the LORD, dwell among the Israelites.”

Genesis 9:6
Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man his blood will be shed; for in His own image God has made mankind.

Psalm 19:12-13
Who can discern his own errors? Cleanse me from my hidden faults. / Keep Your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then I will be blameless and cleansed of great transgression.

1 Samuel 26:9-11
But David said to Abishai, “Do not destroy him, for who can extend a hand against the LORD’s anointed and be guiltless?” / David added, “As surely as the LORD lives, the LORD Himself will strike him down; either his day will come and he will die, or he will go into battle and perish. / But the LORD forbid that I should extend my hand against the LORD’s anointed. Instead, take the spear and water jug by his head, and let us go.”

2 Samuel 3:28-29
Afterward, David heard about this and said, “I and my kingdom are forever guiltless before the LORD concerning the blood of Abner son of Ner. / May it whirl over the head of Joab and over the entire house of his father, and may the house of Joab never be without one having a discharge or skin disease, or one who leans on a staff or falls by the sword or lacks food.”

1 Kings 2:31-33
And the king replied, “Do just as he says. Strike him down and bury him, and so remove from me and from the house of my father the innocent blood that Joab shed. / The LORD will bring his bloodshed back upon his own head, for without the knowledge of my father David he struck down two men more righteous and better than he when he put to the sword Abner son of Ner, commander of Israel’s army, and Amasa son of Jether, commander of Judah’s army. / Their blood will come back upon the heads of Joab and his descendants forever; but for David, his descendants, his house, and his throne, there shall be peace from the LORD forever.”

Isaiah 1:15-16
When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes from you; even though you multiply your prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are covered with blood. / Wash and cleanse yourselves. Remove your evil deeds from My sight. Stop doing evil!

Jeremiah 2:34-35
Moreover, your skirts are stained with the blood of the innocent poor, though you did not find them breaking in. But in spite of all these things / you say, ‘I am innocent. Surely His anger will turn from me.’ Behold, I will judge you, because you say, ‘I have not sinned.’

Ezekiel 18:20
The soul who sins is the one who will die. A son will not bear the iniquity of his father, and a father will not bear the iniquity of his son. The righteousness of the righteous man will fall upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked man will fall upon him.

Hosea 4:2-3
Cursing and lying, murder and stealing, and adultery are rampant; one act of bloodshed follows another. / Therefore the land mourns, and all who dwell in it will waste away with the beasts of the field and the birds of the air; even the fish of the sea disappear.

Matthew 27:24
When Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but that instead a riot was breaking out, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “You bear the responsibility.”

Acts 18:6
But when they opposed and insulted him, he shook out his garments and told them, “Your blood be on your own heads! I am innocent of it. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”

Acts 20:26
Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men.

Romans 3:25-26
God presented Him as an atoning sacrifice in His blood through faith, in order to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance He had passed over the sins committed beforehand. / He did this to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and to justify the one who has faith in Jesus.

1 Corinthians 4:4
My conscience is clear, but that does not vindicate me. It is the Lord who judges me.


Treasury of Scripture

And they shall answer and say, Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it.

Numbers 5:19-28
And the priest shall charge her by an oath, and say unto the woman, If no man have lain with thee, and if thou hast not gone aside to uncleanness with another instead of thy husband, be thou free from this bitter water that causeth the curse: …

2 Samuel 16:8
The LORD hath returned upon thee all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose stead thou hast reigned; and the LORD hath delivered the kingdom into the hand of Absalom thy son: and, behold, thou art taken in thy mischief, because thou art a bloody man.

Job 21:21-23
For what pleasure hath he in his house after him, when the number of his months is cut off in the midst? …

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Blood Death Declare Eyes Hands Shed Speak Testify Work
Deuteronomy 21
1. The Atonement for an Unsolved Murder
10. The usage of a captive taken to wife
15. The firstborn is not to be disinherited upon private affection
18. A rebellious son is to be stoned to death
22. The malefactor must not hang all night on a tree














and they shall declare
This phrase indicates a formal proclamation or testimony. In the Hebrew context, the act of declaring is not merely speaking but making a solemn statement before God and the community. The Hebrew word for "declare" is "עָנָה" (anah), which can also mean to answer or respond. This reflects the seriousness of the situation, where the elders of the city are responding to a divine requirement for justice and truth. It underscores the importance of communal responsibility and the need for leaders to uphold righteousness.

Our hands did not shed this blood
The phrase emphasizes innocence and the rejection of guilt. In ancient Israel, the shedding of innocent blood was a grave sin that defiled the land (Numbers 35:33). The hands symbolize action and responsibility. By stating "our hands did not shed this blood," the elders are asserting their non-involvement in the crime. This declaration is part of a ritual to absolve the community from the guilt of unsolved murder, highlighting the value placed on life and the community's role in seeking justice.

nor did our eyes see it done
This part of the verse speaks to the concept of witness and accountability. In Hebrew culture, seeing was equated with knowing and bearing witness. The phrase implies that the elders had no knowledge or complicity in the crime. It reflects the biblical principle that those who witness wrongdoing have a responsibility to act (Leviticus 5:1). The absence of witnesses in this case necessitates a ritual to cleanse the community from bloodguilt, demonstrating the importance of maintaining purity and justice in the land.

Verses 7, 8. - This act they were to accompany with a solemn declaration of their innocence of this crime, and of their entire ignorance of the perpetrator of it; and with an earnest cry to God that the sin which had been done might be forgiven. Be merciful... unto; be propitiated towards (literally, cover, כַּפֵּר לְעַמְך; for the phrase, כַּפֵר לְ, see Leviticus 1:4). And lay not innocent blood; the blood of the innocent man who has been slain.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
and they shall declare,
וְעָנ֖וּ (wə·‘ā·nū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 6030: To answer, respond

“Our hands
יָדֵ֗ינוּ (yā·ḏê·nū)
Noun - fdc | first person common plural
Strong's 3027: A hand

did not
לֹ֤א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

shed
שָֽׁפְכוּ֙ (šā·p̄ə·ḵū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 8210: To spill forth, to expend, to sprawl out

this
הַזֶּ֔ה (haz·zeh)
Article | Pronoun - masculine singular
Strong's 2088: This, that

blood,
הַדָּ֣ם (had·dām)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 1818: Blood, of man, an animal, the juice of the grape, bloodshed

nor did
לֹ֥א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

our eyes
וְעֵינֵ֖ינוּ (wə·‘ê·nê·nū)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - cdc | first person common plural
Strong's 5869: An eye, a fountain

see it.
רָאֽוּ׃ (rā·’ū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 7200: To see


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OT Law: Deuteronomy 21:7 And they shall answer and say Our (Deut. De Du)
Deuteronomy 21:6
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