Parallel Bible results for "deuteronomy 20"

Deuteronomy 20

New Revised Standard NRS

1 When you go out to war against your enemies, and see horses and chariots, an army larger than your own, you shall not be afraid of them; for the Lord your God is with you, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.

2 Before you engage in battle, the priest shall come forward and speak to the troops,

3 and shall say to them: "Hear, O Israel! Today you are drawing near to do battle against your enemies. Do not lose heart, or be afraid, or panic, or be in dread of them;

4 for it is the Lord your God who goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to give you victory."

5 Then the officials shall address the troops, saying, "Has anyone built a new house but not dedicated it? He should go back to his house, or he might die in the battle and another dedicate it.

6 Has anyone planted a vineyard but not yet enjoyed its fruit? He should go back to his house, or he might die in the battle and another be first to enjoy its fruit.

7 Has anyone become engaged to a woman but not yet married her? He should go back to his house, or he might die in the battle and another marry her."

8 The officials shall continue to address the troops, saying, "Is anyone afraid or disheartened? He should go back to his house, or he might cause the heart of his comrades to melt like his own."

9 When the officials have finished addressing the troops, then the commanders shall take charge of them.

10 When you draw near to a town to fight against it, offer it terms of peace.

11 If it accepts your terms of peace and surrenders to you, then all the people in it shall serve you at forced labor.

12 If it does not submit to you peacefully, but makes war against you, then you shall besiege it;

13 and when the Lord your God gives it into your hand, you shall put all its males to the sword.

14 You may, however, take as your booty the women, the children, livestock, and everything else in the town, all its spoil. You may enjoy the spoil of your enemies, which the Lord your God has given you.

15 Thus you shall treat all the towns that are very far from you, which are not towns of the nations here.

16 But as for the towns of these peoples that the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, you must not let anything that breathes remain alive.

17 You shall annihilate them—the Hittites and the Amorites, the Canaanites and the Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites—just as the Lord your God has commanded,

18 so that they may not teach you to do all the abhorrent things that they do for their gods, and you thus sin against the Lord your God.

19 If you besiege a town for a long time, making war against it in order to take it, you must not destroy its trees by wielding an ax against them. Although you may take food from them, you must not cut them down. Are trees in the field human beings that they should come under siege from you?

20 You may destroy only the trees that you know do not produce food; you may cut them down for use in building siegeworks against the town that makes war with you, until it falls.

The Bible in Basic English BBE

1 When you go out to war against other nations, and come face to face with horses and war-carriages and armies greater in number than yourselves, have no fear of them: for the Lord your God is with you, who took you up out of the land of Egypt.

2 And when you are on the point of attacking, let the priest come forward and say to the people,

3 Give ear, O Israel: today you are going forward to the fight; let your heart be strong; do not let uncontrolled fear overcome you because of those who are against you;

4 For the Lord your God goes with you, fighting for you to give you salvation from those who are against you.

5 And let the overseers say to the people, If there is any man who has made for himself a new house and has not gone into it, let him go back to his house, so that in the event of his death in the fight, another may not take his house for himself.

6 Or if any man has made a vine-garden without taking the first-fruits of it, let him go back to his house, so that in the event of his death in the fight, another may not be the first to make use of the fruit.

7 Or if any man is newly married and has had no sex relations with his wife, let him go back to his house, so that in the event of his death in the fight, another man may not take her.

8 And let the overseers go on to say to the people, If there is any man whose heart is feeble with fear, let him go back to his house before he makes the hearts of his countrymen feeble.

9 Then, after saying these words to the people, let the overseers put captains over the army.

10 When you come to a town, before attacking it, make an offer of peace.

11 And if it gives you back an answer of peace, opening its doors to you, then all the people in it may be put to forced work as your servants.

12 If however it will not make peace with you, but war, then let it be shut in on all sides:

13 And when the Lord your God has given it into your hands, let every male in it be put to death without mercy.

14 But the women and the children and the cattle and everything in the town and all its wealth, you may take for yourselves: the wealth of your haters, which the Lord your God has given you, will be your food.

15 So you are to do to all the towns far away, which are not the towns of these nations.

16 But in the towns of these peoples whose land the Lord your God is giving you for your heritage, let no living thing be kept from death:

17 Give them up to the curse; the Hittite, the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, as the Lord your God has given you orders:

18 So that you may not take them as your example and do all the disgusting things which they do in the worship of their gods, so sinning against the Lord your God.

19 If in war a town is shut in by your armies for a long time, do not let its trees be cut down and made waste; for their fruit will be your food; are the trees of the countryside men for you to take up arms against them?

20 Only those trees which you are certain are not used for food may be cut down and put to destruction: and you are to make walls of attack against the town till it is taken.