Deuteronomy 20

1 When thou goest out to battle against thy 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, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt.

If thou go out to war against thy enemies, and see horsemen and chariots, and the numbers of the enemy’s army greater than thine, thou shalt not fear them: because the Lord thy God is with thee, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt.

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

And when the battle is now at hand, the priest shall stand before the army, and shall speak to the people in this manner:

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

Hear, O Israel, you join battle this day against your enemies, let not your heart be dismayed, be not afraid, do not give back, fear ye them not:

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

Because the Lord your God is in the midst of you, and will fight for you against your enemies, to deliver you from danger.

5 And the officers shall speak to 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 should die in the battle, and another man should dedicate it.

And the captains shall proclaim through every band in the hearing of the army: 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 to his house, lest he should die in the battle, and another man should eat of it.

What man is there, that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not as yet made it to be common, whereof all men may eat? let him go, and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man execute his office.

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

What man is there, that hath espoused a wife, and not taken her? let him go, and return to his house, lest he die in the war, and another man take her.

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

After these things are declared they shall add the rest, and shall speak to the people: What man is there that is fearful, and faint hearted? let him go, and return to his house, lest he make the hearts of his brethren to fear, as he himself is possessed with fear.

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

And when the captains of the army shall hold their peace, and have made an end of speaking, every man shall prepare their bands to fight.

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

If at any time thou come to fight against a city, thou shalt first offer it peace.

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

If they receive it, and open the gates to thee, all the people that are therein, shall be saved, and shall serve thee paying tribute.

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

But if they will not make peace, and shall begin war against thee, thou shalt besiege it.

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

And when the Lord thy God shall deliver it into thy bands, thou shalt slay all that are therein of the male sex, 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 of it, shalt thou take to thyself: and thou shalt eat the spoil of thy enemies, which the LORD thy God hath given thee.

Excepting women and children, cattle and other things, that are in the city. And thou shalt divide all the prey to the army, and thou shalt eat the spoils of thy enemies, which the Lord thy God shall give thee.

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

So shalt thou do to all cities that are at a great distance from thee, and are not of these cities which thou shalt receive in possession.

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:

But of those cities that shall be given thee, thou shalt suffer none at all to live:

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:

But shalt kill them with the edge of the sword, to wit, the Hethite, and the Amorrhite, and the Chanaanite, the Pherezite, and the Hevite, and the Jebusite, as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee:

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

Lest they teach you to do all the abominations which they have done to their gods: and you should 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 of it by forcing an ax 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:

When thou hast besieged a city a long time, and hath compassed it with bulwarks to take it, thou shalt not cut down the trees that may be eaten of, neither shalt thou spoil the country round about with axes: for it is a tree, and not a man, neither can it increase the number of them that fight against thee.

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

But if there be any trees that are not fruitful, but wild, and fit for other uses, cut them down, and make engines, until thou take the city, which fighteth against thee.