Deuteronomy 20:19-20
Lexham English Bible
19 “If[a] you besiege a town for many days to make war against it in order to seize it, you shall not destroy its trees by wielding an ax against them,[b] for you may eat from them,[c] and so you must not cut them[d] down. Are the trees of the field humans that they should come in siege against you?[e] 20 Only[f] the trees[g] that you know are not fruit trees[h] you may destroy and you may cut down, and you may build siege works against that city that is making war with you until it falls.”[i]
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Deuteronomy 20:19 Or “when”
- Deuteronomy 20:19 Hebrew “it”
- Deuteronomy 20:19 Hebrew “it”
- Deuteronomy 20:19 Hebrew “it”
- Deuteronomy 20:19 Literally “from your face”
- Deuteronomy 20:20 Or “But”
- Deuteronomy 20:20 Hebrew “tree”
- Deuteronomy 20:20 Literally “not a tree of food”
- Deuteronomy 20:20 Literally “it to fall”
Deuteronomy 20:19-20
Common English Bible
19 Now if you have been attacking a city for some time, fighting against it and trying to conquer it, don’t destroy its trees by cutting them down with axes. You can eat from those trees; don’t cut them down! Do you think a tree of the field is some sort of warrior to be attacked by you in battle? 20 That said, if you know that a tree is not a food-producing tree, you are allowed to destroy it, cutting it down and using it in the siege against the city that is fighting against you until it falls.
Read full chapter2012 by Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible