Font Size
Deuteronomy 20:18-20
New English Translation
Deuteronomy 20:18-20
New English Translation
18 so that they cannot teach you all the abhorrent ways they worship[a] their gods, causing you to sin against the Lord your God. 19 If you besiege a city for a long time while attempting to capture it,[b] you must not chop down its trees,[c] for you may eat fruit[d] from them and should not cut them down. A tree in the field is not human that you should besiege it![e] 20 However, you may chop down any tree you know is not suitable for food,[f] and you may use it to build siege works[g] against the city that is making war with you until that city falls.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Deuteronomy 20:18 tn Heb “to do according to all their abominations which they do for their gods.”
- Deuteronomy 20:19 tn Heb “to fight against it to capture it.”
- Deuteronomy 20:19 tn Heb “you must not destroy its trees by chopping them with an iron” (i.e., an ax).
- Deuteronomy 20:19 tn Heb “you may eat from them.” The direct object is not expressed; the word “fruit” is supplied in the translation for clarity.
- Deuteronomy 20:19 tn Heb “to go before you in siege.”
- Deuteronomy 20:20 tn Heb “however, a tree which you know is not a tree for food you may destroy and cut down.”
- Deuteronomy 20:20 tn Heb “[an] enclosure.” The term מָצוֹר (matsor) may refer to encircling ditches or to surrounding stagings. See R. de Vaux, Ancient Israel, 238.
New English Translation (NET)
NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.