Deuteronomy Chapter 20
So when you head into battle against your foes and peep horses, chariots, and a crew way larger than yours, don’t trip: the Lord your God is rolling with you, the one who pulled you outta Egypt.
When thou goest out to battle against thine enemies, and seest horses, and chariots, {and} a people more than thou, be not afraid of them: for the LORD thy God {is} with thee, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
Then the priest's gotta step up when you get close to the fight and holler at the squad,
And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people,
He’ll be like, “Yo, Israel, you’re about to throw down against your enemies: don’t let fear hit you, and don't be shook by them;
And shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them; {faint: Heb. be tender} {tremble: Heb. make haste}
Because the Lord your God is rolling with you, battling for you against your enemies, to save you.
For the LORD your God {is} he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.
The officers will say to the people, “What dude just built a new crib and hasn’t dedicated it? He can bounce back home, or he might not make it back from the battle, and someone else will take it.
And the officers shall speak unto the people, saying, What man {is there} that hath built a new house, and hath not dedicated it? let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man dedicate it.
And what guy planted a vineyard but hasn’t tasted the fruits? Let him dip back home, or he might not make it in the battle, and someone else will enjoy it.
And what man {is he} that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not {yet} eaten of it? let him {also} go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man eat of it. {eaten...: Heb. made it common}
What dude is engaged but hasn’t tied the knot with his girl? Let him head back home, or he might not make it in the fight, and someone else will take her.
And what man {is there} that hath betrothed a wife, and hath not taken her? let him go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man take her.
The officers will keep vibing with the people, saying, “What guy is scared and has weak energy? Let him head back home, or his bros might catch his vibes too.
And the officers shall speak further unto the people, and they shall say, What man {is there that is} fearful and fainthearted? let him go and return unto his house, lest his brethren's heart faint as well as his heart. {faint: Heb. melt}
Once the officers finish talking to the crew, they’ll set captains to lead the squad.
And it shall be, when the officers have made an end of speaking unto the people, that they shall make captains of the armies to lead the people. {to lead...: Heb. to be in the head of the people}
As you get close to a city to fight, shout peace to it.
When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it.
If they respond with peace and open the door, then everyone inside will be chill with you and serve you.
And it shall be, if it make thee answer of peace, and open unto thee, then it shall be, {that} all the people {that is} found therein shall be tributaries unto thee, and they shall serve thee.
But if they ain’t down with peace and wanna fight, you gotta lay siege to it:
And if it will make no peace with thee, but will make war against thee, then thou shalt besiege it:
When the Lord your God hands it to you, you’ll take out every dude with the sword:
And when the LORD thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword:
But the women, kids, livestock, and all the loot, you’ll keep for yourself; you’ll enjoy the spoils from your enemies that the Lord your God blessed you with.
But the women, and the little ones, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, {even} all the spoil thereof, shalt thou take unto thyself; and thou shalt eat the spoil of thine enemies, which the LORD thy God hath given thee. {take: Heb. spoil}
This is how you’ll roll with all the cities that are far from you, not from the cities of these nations.
Thus shalt thou do unto all the cities {which are} very far off from thee, which {are} not of the cities of these nations.
But for the cities of these people that the Lord your God gives you as your inheritance, you won’t leave anyone alive:
But of the cities of these people, which the LORD thy God doth give thee {for} an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth:
You’ll wipe them out; like, the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites; as the Lord your God commanded:
But thou shalt utterly destroy them; {namely}, the Hittites, and the Amorites, the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee:
So they don’t teach you to do their wild stuff that they did to their gods; that’s how you’d mess up against the Lord your God.
That they teach you not to do after all their abominations, which they have done unto their gods; so should ye sin against the LORD your God.
When you’re laying siege to a city for a minute, don’t wreck the trees by chopping them down: you can munch on them, but don’t destroy them (the trees are life) to use them in the siege:
When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them: for thou mayest eat of them, and thou shalt not cut them down (for the tree of the field {is} man's {life}) to employ {them} in the siege: {for the...: or, for, O man, the tree of the field is to be employed in the siege} {to employ...: Heb. to go from before thee}
Only the trees you know aren’t for food, you’ll take out and chop down; then you’ll build defenses against the city that’s gonna war with you until it’s taken down.
Only the trees which thou knowest that they {be} not trees for meat, thou shalt destroy and cut them down; and thou shalt build bulwarks against the city that maketh war with thee, until it be subdued. {it...: Heb. it come down}