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.

When you go out to war against other nations, and come face to face with horses and war-carriages and armies greater in number than yourselves, have no fear of them: for the Lord your God is with you, who took you up out of the land of Egypt.

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

And when you are on the point of attacking, let the priest come forward and say to the people,

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.

Give ear, O Israel: today you are going forward to the fight; let your heart be strong; do not let uncontrolled fear overcome you because of those who are against you;

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

For the Lord your God goes with you, fighting for you to give you salvation from those who are against you.

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.

And let the overseers say to the people, If there is any man who has made for himself a new house and has not gone into it, let him go back to his house, so that in the event of his death in the fight, another may not take his house for himself.

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.

Or if any man has made a vine-garden without taking the first-fruits of it, let him go back to his house, so that in the event of his death in the fight, another may not be the first to make use of the 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.”

Or if any man is newly married and has had no sex relations with his wife, let him go back to his house, so that in the event of his death in the fight, another man may not take 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.”

And let the overseers go on to say to the people, If there is any man whose heart is feeble with fear, let him go back to his house before he makes the hearts of his countrymen feeble.

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

Then, after saying these words to the people, let the overseers put captains over the army.

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

When you come to a town, before attacking it, 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.

And if it gives you back an answer of peace, opening its doors to you, then all the people in it may be put to forced work as your servants.

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

If however it will not make peace with you, but war, then let it be shut in on all sides:

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

And when the Lord your God has given it into your hands, let every male in it be put to death without mercy.

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.

But the women and the children and the cattle and everything in the town and all its wealth, you may take for yourselves: the wealth of your haters, which the Lord your God has given you, will be your food.

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.

So you are to do to all the towns far away, which are not the towns of these nations.

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.

But in the towns of these peoples whose land the Lord your God is giving you for your heritage, let no living thing be kept from death:

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,

Give them up to the curse; the Hittite, the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, as the Lord your God has given you orders:

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.

So that you may not take them as your example and do all the disgusting things which they do in the worship of their gods, so sinning 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?

If in war a town is shut in by your armies for a long time, do not let its trees be cut down and made waste; for their fruit will be your food; are the trees of the countryside men for you to take up arms against 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.

Only those trees which you are certain are not used for food may be cut down and put to destruction: and you are to make walls of attack against the town till it is taken.