Deuteronomy 20

1 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.

'When thou goest out to battle against thine enemy, and hast seen horse and chariot — a people more numerous than thou — thou art not afraid of them, for Jehovah thy God [is] with thee, who is bringing thee up out of the land of Egypt;

2 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,

and it hath been, in your drawing near unto the battle, that the priest hath come nigh, and spoken unto the people,

3 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.

and said unto them, Hear, Israel, ye are drawing near to-day to battle against your enemies, let not your hearts be tender, fear not, nor make haste, nor be terrified at their presence,

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

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

5 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.

'And the authorities have spoken unto the people, saying, Who [is] the man that hath built a new house, and hath not dedicated it? — let him go and turn back to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man dedicate it.

6 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.

'And who [is] the man that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not made it common? — let him go and turn back to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man make it common.

7 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.

'And who [is] the man that hath betrothed a woman, and hath not taken her? — let him go and turn back to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man take her.

8 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.

'And the authorities have added to speak unto the people, and said, Who [is] the man that is afraid and tender of heart? — let him go and turn back to his house, and the heart of his brethren doth not melt like his heart;

9 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.

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

10 And if thou shalt draw nigh to a city to overcome them by war, then call them out peaceably.

'When thou drawest near unto a city to fight against it, then thou hast called unto it for Peace,

11 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.

and it hath been, if Peace it answer thee, and hath opened to thee, then it hath come to pass — all the people who are found in it are to thee for tributaries, and have served thee.

12 But if they will not hearken to thee, but wage war against thee, thou shalt invest it;

'And if it doth not make peace with thee, and hath made with thee war, then thou hast laid siege against it,

13 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:

and Jehovah thy God hath given it into thy hand, and thou hast smitten every male of it by the mouth of the sword.

14 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.

Only, the women, and the infants, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, all its spoil, thou dost seize for thyself, and thou hast eaten the spoil of thine enemies which Jehovah thy God hath given to thee.

15 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.

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

16 [Of these] ye shall not take any thing alive;

'Only, of the cities of these peoples which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee [for] an inheritance, thou dost not keep alive any breathing;

17 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:

for thou dost certainly devote the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, as Jehovah thy God hath commanded thee,

18 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.

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

19 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?

'When thou layest siege unto a city many days, to fight against it, to capture it, thou dost not destroy its trees to force an axe against them, for of them thou dost eat, and them thou dost not cut down — for man's [is] the tree of the field — to go in at thy presence in the siege.

20 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.

Only, the tree, which thou knowest that it [is] not a fruit-tree, it thou dost destroy, and hast cut down, and hast built a bulwark against the city which is making with thee war till thou hast subdued it.