Laws of Warfare

1When thou shalt go forth to war against thine enemy, and thou sawest horse and chariot, a multitude of people more than thou, thou shalt not be afraid of them, for Jehovah thy God is with thee, he bringing thee up out of the land of Egypt. 2And it was in your coming near to the war, and the priest approached and spake to the people, 3And he said to them, Hear, O Israel; ye come near this day to war against your enemies: your heart shall not be cast down, ye shall not fear, and ye shall not take flight, and ye shall not be terrified from their face. 4For Jehovah your God goes with you to war with you against your enemies, to save you. 5And the scribes spake to the people, saying, What man who built a new house and consecrated it not? be shall go and turn back to his house, lest he shall die in the war, and another man shall consecrate it. 6And what man who planted a vineyard, and made it not common? He Shall go and turn back to his house lest he shall die in the war, and another man shall make it common. 7And what man betrothed a wife and took her not? he shall go and turn back to his house lest he shall die in the war, and another man shall take her. 8And the scribes shall add to speak to the people, and they said, What man was afraid and cast down of heart? he shall go and turn back to his house, and he shall not melt his brother's heart as his heart. 9And it was as the scribes finished to speak to the people, and they appointed captains of the armies in the head of the people.

10When thou shalt come near to a city to war against it, and call peace to it. 11And it was, if it shall answer thee peace, and it opened to thee, and it was all the people being found in it shall be to thee for tribute and serve thee. 12And if it will not be at peace with thee, and it made war with thee, and thou besieged against it. 13And Jehovah thy God gave it into thy hand, and thou didst cut off every one of its males by the mouth of the sword. 14Only the women and the little ones, and the cattle, and all that shall be in the city, all its spoil thou shalt plunder to thyself: and eat thou the spoil of thine enemies which Jehovah thy God gave to thee. 15Thus shalt thou do to all the cities greatly far off from thee which are not of the cities of these nations. 16Only of the cities of these peoples which Jehovah thy God gave to thee an inheritance, thou shalt not preserve alive and breathing: 17For destroying, thou shalt destroy them, the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, as Jehovah thy God commanded thee: 18So that they shall not teach you to do according to all their abominations to their gods; and ye sinned to Jehovah your God.

19When thou shalt besiege against a city many days to war against it, to capture it, thou shalt not destroy its wood to thrust an axe upon it; for from it thou shalt eat: and thou shalt not cut it down; for the man the tree of the field, to go from before thee into the fortress. 20Only the tree which thou shalt know that it is not a tree of food, thou shalt destroy it, and cut down, and build a fortress against the city which made way with thee, till it came down.