Deuteronomy 20

1 When you go out to war against your enemies and see horses, chariots, and an army larger than yours, do not be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, is with you.

2 When you are about to go into battle, the priest is to come forward and address the army,

3 saying to them, “Hear, O Israel, today you are going into battle with your enemies. Do not be fainthearted or afraid; do not be alarmed or terrified because of them.

4 For the LORD your God goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory.”

5 Furthermore, the officers are to address the army, saying, “Has any man built a new house and not dedicated it? Let him return home, or he may die in battle and another man dedicate it.

6 Has any man planted a vineyard and not begun to enjoy its fruit? Let him return home, or he may die in battle and another man enjoy its fruit.

7 Has any man become pledged to a woman and not married her? Let him return home, or he may die in battle and another man marry her.”

8 Then the officers shall speak further to the army, saying, “Is any man afraid or fainthearted? Let him return home, so that the hearts of his brothers will not melt like his own.”

9 When the officers have finished addressing the army, they are to appoint commanders to lead it.

10 When you approach a city to fight against it, you are to make an offer of peace.

11 If they accept your offer of peace and open their gates, all the people there will become forced laborers to serve you.

12 But if they refuse to make peace with you and wage war against you, lay siege to that city.

13 When the LORD your God has delivered it into your hand, you must put every male to the sword.

14 But the women, children, livestock, and whatever else is in the city—all its spoil—you may take as plunder, and you shall use the spoil of your enemies that the LORD your God gives you.

15 This is how you are to treat all the cities that are far away from you and do not belong to the nations nearby.

16 However, in the cities of the nations that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, you must not leave alive anything that breathes.

17 For you must devote them to complete destruction—the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—as the LORD your God has commanded you,

18 so that they cannot teach you to do all the detestable things they do for their gods, and so cause you to sin against the LORD your God.

19 When you lay siege to a city for an extended time while fighting against it to capture it, you must not destroy its trees by putting an axe to them, because you can eat their fruit. You must not cut them down. Are the trees of the field human, that you should besiege them?

20 But you may destroy the trees that you know do not produce fruit. Use them to build siege works against the city that is waging war against you, until it falls.

1 ¶ When thou goest out to battle against thine enemies, and seest horses, and chariots, [and] a people more than thou, be not afraid of them: for the LORD thy God [is] with thee, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

2 And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people,

3 And shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them;

4 For the LORD your God [is] he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.

5 And the officers shall speak unto the people, saying, What man [is there] that hath built a new house, and hath not dedicated it? let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man dedicate it.

6 And what man [is he] that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not [yet] eaten of it? let him [also] go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man eat of it.

7 And what man [is there] that hath betrothed a wife, and hath not taken her? let him go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man take her.

8 And the officers shall speak further unto the people, and they shall say, What man [is there that is] fearful and fainthearted? let him go and return unto his house, lest his brethren's heart faint as well as his heart.

9 And it shall be, when the officers have made an end of speaking unto the people, that they shall make captains of the armies to lead the people.

10 ¶ When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it.

11 And it shall be, if it make thee answer of peace, and open unto thee, then it shall be, [that] all the people [that is] found therein shall be tributaries unto thee, and they shall serve thee.

12 And if it will make no peace with thee, but will make war against thee, then thou shalt besiege it:

13 And when the LORD thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword:

14 But the women, and the little ones, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, [even] all the spoil thereof, shalt thou take unto thyself; and thou shalt eat the spoil of thine enemies, which the LORD thy God hath given thee.

15 Thus shalt thou do unto all the cities [which are] very far off from thee, which [are] not of the cities of these nations.

16 But of the cities of these people, which the LORD thy God doth give thee [for] an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth:

17 But thou shalt utterly destroy them; [namely], the Hittites, and the Amorites, the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee:

18 That they teach you not to do after all their abominations, which they have done unto their gods; so should ye sin against the LORD your God.

19 When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them: for thou mayest eat of them, and thou shalt not cut them down (for the tree of the field [is] man's [life]) to employ [them] in the siege:

20 Only the trees which thou knowest that they [be] not trees for meat, thou shalt destroy and cut them down; and thou shalt build bulwarks against the city that maketh war with thee, until it be subdued.

1 When thou goest forth to war against thine enemies, and seest horses and chariots of a people greater than thyself, fear them not: for the LORD thy God, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt, is with thee.

2 And it shall come to pass, when ye are come to the battle, that the priest shall come and speak unto the people.

3 And say unto them: Israel, hearken! Ye go this day to battle against your enemies. Let not your heart be troubled; fear not, nor be dismayed, nor be afraid of them;

4 For the LORD your God goeth with you, to fight for you with your enemies, to save you.

5 And the officers shall speak unto the people, saying, Whosoever hath built a new house, and hath not yet dedicated it, let him go and dwell in his house, lest he die in battle, and another dedicate it.

6 Whosoever hath planted a vineyard, and hath not yet made it common, let him go and tarry at home, lest he die in the war, and another make it common.

7 Whosoever hath trusted a wife unto him, and hath not yet brought her home, let him go and tarry at home, lest he die in battle, and another bring her home.

8 And the officers shall continue to speak unto the people, saying: Whosoever is afraid and fainthearted, let him go and tarry at home, lest he also make his brethren's heart faint, as his heart is.

9 And when the officers have reasoned with the people, they shall set the captains before the people at the head.

10 When thou comest before a city to dispute with it, then thou shalt offer peace unto it.

11 If she answer thee peaceably, and open unto thee, then all the people that are found within shall be interestable unto thee, and subject unto thee.

12 But if she will not deal peaceably with thee, and will have war with thee, besiege her.

13 And when the LORD thy God giveth them into thine hand, then shalt thou smite all that is male therein with the edge of the sword;

14 Without the wives, and the children, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, and all the spoil, thou shalt divide among thyself: and thou shalt eat of the spoil of thine enemies, which the LORD thy GOD hath given thee.

15 So shalt thou do unto all the cities that are very far from thee, and are not of the cities of these nations.

16 But in the cities of these nations, which the LORD thy God shall give thee for an inheritance, thou shalt not suffer any to live that hath breath,

17 But thou shalt utterly destroy them, even the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, as the LORD thy God commanded thee,

18 Lest they teach you all the abominations which they do unto their gods, and ye sin against the LORD your God.

19 If thou lie a long time before a city, against which thou contendest to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees, to cut them down with the axe: for thou mayest eat thereof; therefore thou shalt not cut them down. For it is wood in the field, and not man, that it may be a stronghold before thee.

20 And those trees, which thou knowest not to eat of, thou shalt destroy, and cut them down, and build them strong holds against the city that warreth with thee, until thou be mighty over it.