Deuteronomy 20

1 “When your [soldiers] go to fight your enemies, and you see that they have many horses and chariots and that their army is much bigger than yours, do not be afraid of them, because Yahweh our God, who brought your [ancestors safely] out of Egypt, will be with you.

When you march out to battle against your enemies, and see horses, chariots, and a people more numerous than you, you must not be afraid of them; for Yahweh your God is with you, he who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.

2 When you are ready to start the battle, the Supreme Priest must stand in front of the troops.

When you are about to enter into battle, the priest must approach and speak to the people.

3 He must say to them, ‘You Israeli men, listen to me! Today you are going to fight against your enemies. Do not be timid or afraid [DOU] or tremble or panic [DOU],

He must say to them, 'Listen, Israel, you are going to battle against your enemies. Do not let your hearts faint. Do not fear or tremble. Do not be afraid of them.

4 because Yahweh our God will go with you. He will fight your enemies for you, and he will enable you to defeat them.’

For Yahweh your God is the one who is going with you to fight for you against your enemies and to save you.'

5 Then the army officers must say to the troops, ‘If anyone among you has just built a new house [RHQ] and has not dedicated it [to God], he should go home [and dedicate the house]. If he does not do that, if he dies in the battle, someone else will dedicate the house [and live in it].

The officers must speak to the people and say, 'What man is there who has built a new house and has not dedicated it? Let him go and return to his house, so that he does not die in battle and another man dedicates it.

6 If anyone among you has planted a vineyard and has not yet harvested any grapes from it [RHQ], he should go home. If he [stays here and] dies in the battle, someone else will [harvest the grapes and] enjoy [the wine made from them].

Is there anyone who has planted a vineyard and has not enjoyed its fruit? Let him go home, so he will not die in battle and another man enjoy its fruit.

7 If anyone among you has become engaged to marry a woman [but has not married her yet] [RHQ], he should go home. If [he stays here and] dies in the battle, someone else will marry her.’

What man is there who is engaged to marry a woman but has not yet married her? Let him go home so that he does not die in battle and another man marries her.'

8 “Then the officers must also say, ‘If anyone among you is afraid or timid [RHQ], he should go home, in order that he does not cause his fellow soldiers to also stop being courageous.’

The officers must speak further to the people and say, 'What man is there who is fearful or fainthearted? Let him go and return to his house, so that his brother's heart does not melt like his own heart.'

9 And when the officers have finished speaking to the troops, they must appoint commanders [to lead the groups of soldiers].

When the officers have finished speaking to the people, they must appoint commanders over them.

10 “When you come near a city [that is far away] to attack it, first tell the people there that if they surrender, you will not attack them.

When you march up to attack a city, make those people an offer of peace.

11 If they open the gates of the city and surrender, they all will become your slaves to work for you.

If they accept your offer and open their gates to you, all the people who are found in it must become forced labor for you and must serve you.

12 But if they refuse to [surrender] peacefully, and decide instead to fight against you, your troops must surround the city [and break through the walls].

But if it makes no offer of peace to you, but instead makes war against you, then you must besiege it,

13 Then, when Yahweh our God enables you to capture [IDM] the city, you must kill all the men in the city.

and when Yahweh your God gives you victory and puts them under your control, you must kill every man in the town.

14 But you are allowed to take for yourselves the women, the children, the livestock, and everything else [that you want to take] from the city. You will be allowed to enjoy all the things that belonged to your enemies; it is Yahweh our God who has given those things to you.

But the women, the little ones, the cattle, and everything that is in the city, and all its spoil, you will take as booty for yourself. You will consume the booty of your enemies, whom Yahweh your God has given to you.

15 You should do that in all the cities that are far from the land in which you will settle.

You must act in this way toward all the cities that are very far from you, cities that are not of the cities of these following nations.

16 “But in the cities that are in the land that Yahweh our God is giving to you, you must kill all the people and all the animals [LIT].

In the cities of these peoples that Yahweh your God is giving you as an inheritance, you must save alive nothing that breathes.

17 You must get rid of them completely. Get rid of the Heth people-group, the Amor people-group, the Canaan people-group, the Periz people-group, the Hiv people-group, and the Jebus people-group; that is what Yahweh our God commanded you to do.

Instead, you must completely destroy them: the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, as Yahweh your God has commanded you.

18 If you do not do that, they will teach you to sin against Yahweh our God and do the disgusting things that they do when they worship their gods.

Do this so that they do not teach you to act in any of their abominable ways, as they have done with their gods. If you do, you will sin against Yahweh your God.

19 “When you surround a city for a long time, trying to capture it, do not cut down the fruit trees [outside the city]. You are allowed to eat the fruit from the trees, but do not get rid of the trees, because they certainly are not [RHQ] your enemies.

When you will besiege a city for a long time, as you wage war against it to capture it, you must not destroy its trees by wielding an ax against them. For you may eat from them, so you must not cut them down. For is the tree of the field a man whom you should besiege?

20 You are permitted to cut down the other trees and use the wood to make ladders and towers to enable you to [go over the walls and] capture the city.”

Only the trees that you know are not trees for food, you may destroy and cut down; you will build siege works against the city that makes war with you, until it falls.