Deuteronomio 21

EL LIBRO DEL PUEBLO DE DIOS	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 Si en la tierra que el Señor, tu Dios, te da en posesión, alguien encuentra un hombre muerto, tendido en medio del campo, y no se sabe quién lo mató,	1 “When there will have been found in the land, which the Lord your God will give to you, the corpse of a man who has been killed, and it is not known who is guilty of the murder,
2 tus ancianos y tus jueces irán a medir las distancias que hay entre la víctima y las ciudades de alrededor.	2 your judges and those greater by birth shall go out and measure, from the place of the corpse, the distance to each of the surrounding cities.
3 Luego los ancianos de la ciudad más cercana tomarán una ternera que no haya sido sometida a ningún trabajo ni haya estado bajo el yugo;	3 And in whichever one they perceive to be closer than the others, the elders shall take a calf from the herd, one which has not pulled with a yoke, nor tilled with a plow.
4 la llevarán hasta un arroyo de agua perenne, a un lugar donde no se cultiva ni se siembra, y la desnucarán junto al arroyo.	4 And they shall lead it into a rough and stony valley, one which has never been tilled or sown. And in that place, they shall cut the neck of the calf.
5 También se harán presentes los sacerdotes levitas, porque el Señor los eligió para que estuvieran a su servicio y para que estuvieran a su servicio y para que bendijeran en su Nombre. y a ellos les corresponde resolver los litigios y los casos de agresión.	5 And the priests the sons of Levi shall approach, those whom the Lord your God has chosen to minister to him, and to bless in his name, and to decide every controversy by their word, and to judge which things are clean and which are unclean.
6 Luego los ancianos de la ciudad más cercana a la víctima se levarán las manos en el arroyo, sobre la ternera desnucada.	6 And those greater by birth of that city, nearest to the one who was slain, shall go and shall wash their hands over the calf that was killed in the valley.
7 y pronunciarán éstas palabras: «Nuestras manos no han derramado esa sangre y nuestros ojos no han visto nada.	7 And they shall say: ‘Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it.
8 Perdona, Señor, a tu pueblo Israel, ese pueblo que tú rescataste, y no dejes recaer sangre inocente sobre tu pueblo Israel». Así quedarán absueltos del delito de sangre.	8 Be merciful to your people Israel, whom you have redeemed, O Lord, and do not charge them with innocent blood in the midst of your people Israel.’ And so the guilt of the blood will be taken away from them.
9 De esta manera harás desaparecer de entre ustedes la sangre inocente. haciendo lo que es recto a los ojos del Señor.	9 Then you will be free from the blood that was shed against the innocent, when you will have done as the Lord has instructed you.
10 Cuando salgas a combatir contra tus enemigos, y el Señor, tu Dios, los ponga en tus manos, si tomas algunos prisioneros	10 If you have gone out to fight against your enemies, and the Lord your God has delivered them into your hand, and if, as you are leading away the captives,
11 y entre ellos ves una mujer hermosa que te resulta atrayente, y por eso la quieres tomar por esposa,	11 you see among the number of the captives a beautiful woman, and you love her, and you are willing to have her as a wife:
12 deberás llevarla a tu casa. Entonces ella se rapará la cabeza, se cortará las uñas,	12 then you shall lead her into your house. And she shall shave off her hair, and cut her nails short,
13 se quitará su ropa de cautiva y permanecerá en tu casa durante un mes entero, llorando a su padre y a su madre. Sólo después de esto podrás unirte a ella para ser su esposo, y ella será tu mujer.	13 and remove the garment in which she was captured. And she shall sit in your house and weep for her father and mother, for one month. And after that, you shall enter to her and sleep with her, and she shall be your wife.
14 Pero si más tarde dejas de quererla, le permitirás disponer de sí misma, y no podrás venderla por dinero ni maltratarla, porque la has violentado.	14 But if afterwards she does not sit well in your mind, you shall set her free. You cannot sell her for money, nor can you oppress her by force. For you have humiliated her.
15 Si un hombre que tiene dos mujeres, ama a una y a la otra no, a las dos le dan hijos, pero el primogénito es hijo de la mujer que no ama,	15 If a man has two wives, one beloved and the other hated, and they have produced children by him, and if the son of the hated wife is the firstborn,
16 Cuando reparta la herencia entre sus hijos, no podrá considerar como primogénito al hijo de la mujer que ama, en perjuicio del verdadero primogénito.	16 and if he wishes to divide his substance among his sons: he cannot make the son of the beloved wife the firstborn, and so prefer him before the son of the hated wife.
17 El deberá reconocer como primogénito al hijo de la mujer que no ama, dándole dos partes de todo lo que posee, porque este hijo es el primer fruto de su vigor, y por eso le corresponde el derecho de primogenitura.	17 Instead, he shall acknowledge the son of the hated wife as the firstborn, and he shall give to him a double portion of all that he has. For he is the first among his children, and the rights of the firstborn are owed to him.
18 Si un hombre tiene un hijo indócil y rebelde, que desobedece a su padre y a su madre, y no les hace caso cuando ellos lo reprenden,	18 If a man produces a disobedient and reckless son, who will not listen to the orders of his father or mother, and, having been corrected, shows contempt for obedience:
19 su padre y su madre lo presentarán ante los ancianos del lugar, en la puerta de la ciudad,	19 they shall take him and lead him to the elders of the city and to the gate of judgment.
20 y dirán a los ancianos: «Este hijo nuestro es indócil y rebelde; no quiere obedecernos, y es un libertino y un borracho».	20 And they shall say to them: ‘This our son is reckless and disobedient. He shows contempt when listening to our admonitions. He occupies himself with carousing, and self-indulgence, and feasting.’
21 Entonces todos los habitantes de su ciudad lo matarán a pedradas. Así harás desaparecer el mal de entre ustedes, y todo Israel, cuando se entere, sentirá temor.	21 Then the people of the city shall stone him to death. And he shall die, so that you may take away the evil from your midst. And so may all of Israel, upon hearing it, be very afraid.
22 Si un hombre, culpable de un crimen que merece la pena de muerte, es ejecutado y colgado de un árbol,	22 When a man will have sinned in a matter which is punished by death, and, having been judged unto death, he has been hanged on a gallows:
23 su cadáver no quedará en el árbol durante la noche, sino que lo enterrarás ese mismo día, porque el que está colgado de un árbol es una maldición de Dios. Y tú no mancharás el suelo que el Señor, tu Dios, te da como herencia.	23 his corpse shall not remain on the tree. Instead, he shall be buried on the same day. For he who hangs from a tree has been cursed by God, and you shall not defile your land, which the Lord your God will give to you as a possession.”