In this chapter rules are given to be observed in times of war. When a battle was near, a priest was to address the soldiers, and encourage them to fight, Deut. 20:1–4, then the officers were to declare who might return home, Deut.

When thou goest out to battle against thine enemies There were two sorts of war the Israelites were engaged in, one commanded and another permitted, as Maimonides [[2]] distinguishes; one was by the order and appointment of God, as against the seven nations of Canaan; the other was voluntary and…

And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle When all things are preparing for it, and it seems unavoidable: that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people; not any priest, but one appointed for this service; who is called the anointed of war, as Jarchi and Aben Ezra observe,…

And shall say unto them, hear, O Israel Exciting their attention to what he was about to say, and which, as Jarchi observes, was spoken in the holy tongue, or in the Hebrew language: you approach this day unto battle against your enemies; were marching or ready to march, preparing to engage with…

For the Lord your God is he that goeth with you To battle, and therefore they had no reason to fear and be dismayed, to be fainthearted, terrified, and tremble: fear not, I am with thee , this, according to the Misnah [[5]], respects the ark, and so Jarchi, which was a symbol of the divine…

And the officers shall speak unto the people What these officers were is not easy to say; they seem not to be officers of the army, for they are distinguished from captains of the armies, , unless they can be thought to be general officers; but the word for them is the same that is used of such…

And what man is he that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not yet eaten of it? &c.] Which he has a right to do, and it is hard for him to be deprived of it, or “hath not made it common” [[9]]; according to the law in .

And what man is there that hath betrothed a wife, and hath not taken her? &c.] Home to his house and bedded with her; has only betrothed her, but is not properly married to her, the nuptials are not completed; this the Jews understand of anyone betrothed to him, whether a virgin or a widow, or the…

And the officers shall speak further unto the people According to Maimonides [[12]], the priest the anointed of war spoke to the end of and which the officers repeated after him to the people aloud, as before observed; and then after that an officer speaks of himself, or in his own words, and not…

And it shall be, when the officers have made an end of speaking unto the people By reciting what the anointed of war said unto them, and by speeches of their own framing, to encourage to the battle; and all were dismissed that had leave to depart, and chose to take it: that they shall make captains…

When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it This is to be understood of an arbitrary war, as Jarchi observes; which they engaged in of themselves, or were provoked to by their enemies; which was their own choice, and according to their own will and pleasure; and their conduct towards…

And it shall be, if it make thee answer of peace Comply with the terms of peace offered: and open unto thee; the gates of the city and its garrisons, and deliver all into their hands: then it shall be that all the people that is found therein; some having made their escape before the surrender of…

And if it will make no peace with thee Will not accept of terms of peace offered: but will make war against thee; come out and fight, or prepare to defend themselves: then thou shall besiege it; surround and block it up on all sides with their forces; the Jews say only on three sides, leaving one…

And when the Lord thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, &c.] When, what with pressures without, and calamities within, the city is obliged to surrender: this is not to be imputed to the methods and arts of war used in besieging, or to the courage and skill of the besiegers; but to the power…

But the women, the little ones, and the cattle These were to be spared; women, because of the weakness of their sex, and subjection to their husbands; and little ones, which take in males as well as females, as Jarchi observes, because of their tender age; and cattle because of their insensibility;…

Thus shalt thou do unto all the cities which are very far off from thee As all such were reckoned that were without the land of Israel, even all in their neighbouring nations, the Moabites, Edomites, Ammonites, Syrians for the children of Israel never went to war with any very distant nations,…

But of the cities of those people, which the Lord thy God doth give thee for an inheritance The cities of the seven nations, six of which are mentioned by name in the next verse: thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth; the reason of this severity was because of their wickedness, the capital…

But thou shalt utterly destroy them Men, women, and children: some think this is to be understood only of such cities which did not accept of terms of peace; for they are of opinion that Joshua made proclamation of peace to all the cities of Canaan; which being not complied with, he destroyed them…

That they teach you not to do after all their abominations, &c.] This is another reason why they were to be utterly destroyed, not only because of the abominations which they committed, but to prevent the Israelites being taught by them to do the same; wherefore, as before observed from Jarchi,…

When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it Before it will surrender; it holding out the siege a considerable time: the Hebrew text says, “many days” [[2]]; which the Targum of Jonathan interprets of all the seven days, to make war against it, in order to subdue…

Only the trees which thou knowest that they be not trees for meat Which might be known not only by their not having fruit upon them, but by other tokens, and even at a time of year when there was no fruit on any, which might be sometimes the season of a siege: thou shalt destroy and cut them down;…