Deuteronomy 20

1 When thou goest out to battle against thy enemies, and thou seest horse, and chariot, people more in number than thou: be not afraid of them; for the Lord thy God is with thee, who brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

And if you should go forth to war against your enemies, and should see horse, and rider, and a people more numerous than yourself; you shall not be afraid of them, for the Lord your God [is] with you, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.

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

And it shall come to pass whenever you shall draw near to battle, that the priest shall draw near and speak to the people, and shall say to them,

3 And he shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel, ye come nigh this day unto the battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and be not downcast, and do not tremble because of them:

Hear, O Israel; you are going this day to battle against your enemies: let not your heart faint, fear not, neither be confounded, neither turn aside from their face.

4 For the Lord your God it is who goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to help you.

For [it is] the Lord your God who advances with you, to fight with you against your enemies, [and] to save you.

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

And the scribes shall speak to the people, saying, What man [is] he that has built a new house, and has not dedicated it? let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the war, and another man dedicate it.

6 And what man is there who hath planted a vineyard, and hath not redeemed it? let him go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man redeem it.

And what man [is] he that has planted a vineyard, and not been made merry with it? let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man be made merry with 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.

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

8 And the officers shall speak yet farther unto the people, and they shall say, What man is there that is fearful and faint-hearted? let him go and return unto his house, that the heart of his brethren become not as faint as his heart.

And the scribes shall speak further to the people, and say, What man [is] he that fears and is cowardly in his heart? Let him go and return to his house, lest he make the heart of his brother fail, as his own.

9 And it shall be, when the officers have made an end of speaking unto the people, that they shall appoint captains of the armies at the head of the people.

And it shall come to pass when the scribes shall have ceased speaking to the people, that they shall appoint generals of the army to be leaders of the people.

10 When thou comest nigh unto a city to make war against it, then summon it with words of peace.

And if you shall draw near to a city to overcome them by war, then call them out peaceably.

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

If then they should answer peaceably to you, and open to you, it shall be that all the people found in it shall be tributary and subject to you.

12 But if it will not make peace with thee, and wageth war against thee; then shalt thou besiege it;

But if they will not listen to you, but wage war against you, you shall invest it;

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

until the Lord your God shall deliver it into your hands, and you shall strike every male of it with the edge of the sword:

14 But the women, and the little ones, and the cattle, and all that may be in the city, all the spoil thereof, shalt thou take as booty unto thyself; and thou shalt enjoy the spoil of thy enemies, which the Lord thy God hath given thee.

except the women and the stuff: and all the cattle, and whatever shall be in the city, and all the plunder you shall take as spoil for yourself, and shall eat all the plunder of your enemies whom the Lord your God gives you.

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.

Thus shall you do to all the cities that are very far off from you, not [being] of the cities of these nations which the Lord your God gives you to inherit their land.

16 But of the cities of these people, which the Lord thy God doth give thee for an inheritance, shalt thou not let live a single soul.

[Of these] you shall not take any thing alive;

17 But thou shalt utterly devote them; namely, the Hittites, and the Emorites, the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites; as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee;

but you shall surely curse them, the Chettite, and the Amorite, and the Chananite, and the Pherezite, and the Evite, and the Jebusite, and the Gergesite; as the Lord your God commanded you:

18 In order that they may not teach you to do in accordance with all their abominations, which they have done unto their gods; and ye would thus sin against the Lord your God.

that they may not teach you to do all their abominations, which they did to their gods, and [so] you should sin before the Lord your God.

19 When thou besiegest a city a long time, to make war against it to capture it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them; for of them thou mayest eat, and thou shalt not cut them down, [for man liveth of the trees of the field, ] to employ them in thy siege;

And if you should besiege a city many days to prevail against it by war to take it, you shall not destroy its trees, by applying an iron tool to them, but you shall eat of it, and shall not cut it down: Is the tree that is in the field a man, to enter before you into the work of the siege?

20 Only those trees of which thou knowest that they are not fruit-trees, thou mayest destroy and cut down; and [thus] thou canst build bulwarks against the city that wageth war with thee, until it be subdued.

But the tree which you know to be not fruit-bearing, this you shall destroy and cut down; and you shall construct a mound against the city, which makes war against you, until it be delivered up.