Numbers 35:17
“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.”
What does Numbers 35:17 mean?
When someone deliberately uses any weapon, including a stone, to strike another person with lethal force, and that person dies, the act is classified as murder. This passage reflects the ancient legal principle that intentional killing requires the ultimate penalty. The emphasis on "in the hand" and specifying "by which a man may die" shows the law was concerned with what the person *intended* to do, not just what happened. If you were trying to kill someone, you bear full responsibility for that choice and its consequences, even if you used something as simple as a stone.