The meaning is: Since taking another person’s life by any means whatever is murder and exposes the murderer to the penalty of retaliation, if the d…

Or if he smote him with an hand weapon of wood
A stick, or staff, or club:

wherewith he may die, …

To show plainly the abhorrence of murder, and to provide more effectively for the punishment of the murderer, the nearest relation of the deceased,…