The Law · Chapter 20 of 34
Deuteronomy 20
Moses gives Israel laws for war. Facing larger armies, they need not fear, for God goes with them. A priest encourages the troops, and officers release those with new houses, vineyards, brides, or fearful hearts. Cities far off are offered peace before siege; the Canaanite nations within the land are devoted to destruction. Even in war, fruit trees are to be spared.
What happens in Deuteronomy 20
When Israel goes to battle against greater forces, they must not fear the enemy's horses and chariots, for the LORD who brought them from Egypt goes with them to fight and save them. Before battle, a priest urges the army not to lose heart. Officers then grant exemptions: any man who has built a new house, planted a vineyard, or betrothed a wife but not yet enjoyed it is sent home, lest he die and another take it; the fearful and fainthearted are released too, lest their fear spread.
When approaching a distant city, Israel must first offer peace; if accepted, its people become tributaries, if refused, the city is besieged and its men struck down, though women, children, and spoil are spared. But the Canaanite cities within the inheritance are devoted to destruction, so their abominations do not corrupt Israel. Even in siege, Israel must not cut down fruit bearing trees, for the tree of the field is man's life.
Deuteronomy 20 in context
Part of the covenant code's civil laws, this chapter governs Israel's conduct in the coming conquest and later wars. The conflict is framed as God's war, in which trust in Him, not military strength, secures victory. The exemptions reveal a striking humaneness, valuing individual lives and homes over sheer manpower.
The distinction between distant cities and the Canaanite nations reflects the specific, historically bounded judgment on those peoples' entrenched abominations, including child sacrifice.
Main themes of Deuteronomy 20
Deuteronomy 20 (KJV)
1When 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. 2And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people, 3And 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; 4For the LORD your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you. 5And 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. 6And 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. 7And 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. 8And 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. 9And 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. 10When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it. 11And 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. 12And if it will make no peace with thee, but will make war against thee, then thou shalt besiege it: 13And when the LORD thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword: 14But 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. 15Thus shalt thou do unto all the cities which are very far off from thee, which are not of the cities of these nations. 16But of the cities of these people, which the LORD thy God doth give thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth: 17But 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: 18That 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. 19When 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: 20Only 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.
Verses to carry from Deuteronomy 20
“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.”Deuteronomy 20:1
“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.”Deuteronomy 20:8
“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:”Deuteronomy 20:19
Thematic connection
How Deuteronomy 20 points to Jesus
Israel's wars were fought under God's specific command against entrenched wickedness, and the priest's charge, do not fear, for the LORD goes with you, points beyond earthly battle. The New Testament reveals that the deepest war is spiritual, and that Christ has won the decisive victory. He is the true Priest who goes before His people, and He tells His followers repeatedly, do not be afraid.
Where the fearful were once sent home, Christ strengthens the fainthearted and fights for them. He came first offering peace, proclaiming peace to those far off, and He conquers not by shedding the blood of enemies but by shedding His own, disarming the powers at the cross. The land Israel fought for foreshadows the eternal inheritance He secures.
Questions about Deuteronomy 20
Why were soldiers with new homes, vineyards, or brides sent home?
These exemptions reveal that God values human life and its ordinary joys over sheer military manpower. A man who had built a house, planted a vineyard, or betrothed a wife had begun a life that deserved to be lived. Sending him home guarded against dying before enjoying God's gifts. Even in war, Israel was not to treat people as expendable; the goal was flourishing life in the land, not conquest at any human cost.
How should we understand the command to destroy the Canaanite cities?
This was a specific, historically bounded judgment on nations whose entrenched practices, including child sacrifice, are described as abominations that had filled up their guilt. It was not a general endorsement of conquest; distant cities were offered peace first. The severity aimed to keep Israel from being corrupted. Christians read this as God's just judgment at a particular moment in redemptive history, not a pattern for the church, whose warfare is spiritual.
Reflection
Even Israel's laws of war carry a surprising regard for life, joy, and peace, and a repeated call not to fear. Where is fear governing you, and where might you need to hear that God goes with you into the battle? Consider, too, where you can offer peace first rather than rushing into conflict.
A prayer from Deuteronomy 20
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