Deuteronomy 20

1 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.

“When you go out to battle against your enemy, and have seen horse and chariot—a people more numerous than you—you are not afraid of them, for your God YHWH [is] with you, who is bringing you up out of the land of Egypt;

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

and it has been, in your drawing near to the battle, that the priest has come near, and spoken to the people,

3 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;

and said to them, Hear, O Israel: You are drawing near today to battle against your enemies, do not let your hearts be tender, do not fear, nor make haste, nor be terrified at their presence,

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

for your God YHWH [is] He who is going with you, to fight for you with your enemies—to save you.

5 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.

And the authorities have spoken to the people, saying, Who [is] the man that has built a new house and has not dedicated it? Let him go and return to his house, lest he die in battle and another man dedicate it.

6 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.

And who [is] the man that has planted a vineyard and has not made it common? Let him go and return to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man make it common.

7 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.

And who [is] the man that has betrothed a woman and has not taken her? Let him go and return to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man take her.

8 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.

And the authorities have added to speak to the people and said, Who [is] the man that is afraid and tender of heart? Let him go and return to his house, and the heart of his brothers does not melt like his heart.

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

And it has come to pass, as the authorities finish to speak to the people, that they have appointed princes of the hosts at the head of the people.

10 When you come to a town, before attacking it, make an offer of peace.

When you draw near to a city to fight against it, then you have called to it for peace,

11 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.

and it has been, if it answers you [with] peace, and has opened to you, then it has come to pass, all the people who are found in it are for tributaries to you, and have served you.

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

And if it does not make peace with you, and has made war with you, then you have laid siege against it,

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

and your God YHWH has given it into your hand, and you have struck every male of it by the mouth of the sword.

14 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.

Only, the women, and the infants, and the livestock, and all that is in the city, all its spoil, you seize for yourself, and you have eaten the spoil of your enemies which your God YHWH has given to you.

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

So you do to all the cities which are very far off from you, which are not of the cities of these nations.

16 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:

Only, of the cities of these peoples which your God YHWH is giving to you [for] an inheritance, you do not keep alive any [that are] breathing;

17 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:

for you certainly devote the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, as your God YHWH has commanded you,

18 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.

so that they do not teach you to do according to all their abominations which they have done for their gods, and you have sinned against your God YHWH.

19 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?

When you lay siege to a city [for] many days to fight against it, to capture it, you do not destroy its trees to force an axe against them, for you eat of them, and you do not cut them down—for the tree of the field [is] man’s—to go in at your presence in the siege.

20 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.

Only, the tree of which you know that it [is] not a fruit-tree, you destroy it, and have cut [it] down, and have built a bulwark against the city which is making war with you until you have subdued it.”