Laws of Warfare 1 Brenton And if thou shouldest go forth to war against thine enemies, and shouldest see horse, and rider, and a people more numerous than thyself; thou shalt not be afraid of them, for the Lord thy God is with thee, who brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. BSB BSB: 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.
2 Brenton And it shall come to pass whenever thou shalt draw nigh to battle, that the priest shall draw nigh and speak to the people, and shall say to them, BSB BSB: When you are about to go into battle, the priest is to come forward and address the army,
3 Brenton Hear, O Israel; ye 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. BSB BSB: 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.
4 Brenton For it is the Lord your God who advances with you, to fight with you against your enemies, and to save you. BSB BSB: For the LORD your God goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory.”
5 Brenton 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. BSB BSB: 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.
6 Brenton 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. BSB BSB: 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.
7 Brenton 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. BSB BSB: 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.”
8 Brenton 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. BSB BSB: 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.”
9 Brenton 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. BSB BSB: When the officers have finished addressing the army, they are to appoint commanders to lead it.
10 Brenton And if thou shalt draw nigh to a city to overcome them by war, then call them out peaceably. BSB BSB: When you approach a city to fight against it, you are to make an offer of peace.
11 Brenton If then they should answer peaceably to thee, and open to thee, it shall be that all the people found in it shall be tributary and subject to thee. BSB BSB: If they accept your offer of peace and open their gates, all the people there will become forced laborers to serve you.
12 Brenton But if they will not hearken to thee, but wage war against thee, thou shalt invest it; BSB BSB: But if they refuse to make peace with you and wage war against you, lay siege to that city.
13 Brenton until the Lord thy God shall deliver it into thy hands, and thou shalt smite every male of it with the edge of the sword: BSB BSB: When the LORD your God has delivered it into your hand, you must put every male to the sword.
14 Brenton except the women and the stuff: and all the cattle, and whatsoever shall be in the city, and all the plunder thou shalt take as spoil for thyself, and shalt eat all the plunder of thine enemies whom the Lord thy God gives thee. BSB BSB: 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.
15 Brenton Thus shalt thou do to all the cities that are very far off from thee, not being of the cities of these nations which the Lord thy God gives thee to inherit their land. BSB BSB: This is how you are to treat all the cities that are far away from you and do not belong to the nations nearby.
16 Brenton Of these ye shall not take any thing alive;BSB BSB: 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.
17 Brenton but ye 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 thy God commanded thee: BSB BSB: For you must devote them to complete destruction—the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—as the LORD your God has commanded you,
18 Brenton that they may not teach you to do all their abominations, which they did to their gods, and so ye should sin before the Lord your God. BSB BSB: 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.
19 Brenton And if thou shouldest besiege a city many days to prevail against it by war to take it, thou shalt not destroy its trees, by applying an iron tool to them, but thou shalt eat of it, and shalt not cut it down: Is the tree that is in the field a man, to enter before thee into the work of the siege? BSB BSB: 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?
20 Brenton But the tree which thou knowest to be not fruit-bearing, this thou shalt destroy and cut down; and thou shalt construct a mound against the city, which makes war against thee, until it be delivered up. BSB BSB: 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.
Select verses for actions: Enter goes to them and Escape comes back.