Deuteronomy 7:2
New International Version
and when the LORD your God has delivered them over to you and you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally. Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy.

New Living Translation
When the LORD your God hands these nations over to you and you conquer them, you must completely destroy them. Make no treaties with them and show them no mercy.

English Standard Version
and when the LORD your God gives them over to you, and you defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. You shall make no covenant with them and show no mercy to them.

Berean Standard Bible
and when the LORD your God has delivered them over to you to defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. Make no treaty with them and show them no mercy.

King James Bible
And when the LORD thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them:

New King James Version
and when the LORD your God delivers them over to you, you shall conquer them and utterly destroy them. You shall make no covenant with them nor show mercy to them.

New American Standard Bible
and when the LORD your God turns them over to you and you defeat them, you shall utterly destroy them. You shall not make a covenant with them nor be gracious to them.

NASB 1995
and when the LORD your God delivers them before you and you defeat them, then you shall utterly destroy them. You shall make no covenant with them and show no favor to them.

NASB 1977
and when the LORD your God shall deliver them before you, and you shall defeat them, then you shall utterly destroy them. You shall make no covenant with them and show no favor to them.

Legacy Standard Bible
and when Yahweh your God gives them over before you and you strike them down, then you shall devote them to destruction. You shall cut no covenant with them and show no favor to them.

Amplified Bible
and when the LORD your God gives them over to you and you defeat them, then you shall utterly destroy them. You shall not make a covenant (treaty) with them nor show mercy and compassion to them.

Christian Standard Bible
and when the LORD your God delivers them over to you and you defeat them, you must completely destroy them. Make no treaty with them and show them no mercy.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
and when the LORD your God delivers them over to you and you defeat them, you must completely destroy them. Make no treaty with them and show them no mercy.

American Standard Version
and when Jehovah thy God shall deliver them up before thee, and thou shalt smite them; then thou shalt utterly destroy them: thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor show mercy unto them;

Contemporary English Version
the LORD will force them out of the land. Then you must destroy them without mercy. Don't make any peace treaties with them,

English Revised Version
and when the LORD thy God shall deliver them up before thee, and thou shalt smite them; then thou shalt utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them:

GOD'S WORD® Translation
When the LORD your God gives them to you and you defeat them, destroy every one of them because they have been claimed by the LORD. Don't make any treaties with them or show them any mercy.

Good News Translation
When the LORD your God places these people in your power and you defeat them, you must put them all to death. Do not make an alliance with them or show them any mercy.

International Standard Version
So when the LORD your God delivers them to you and you have defeated them, then utterly destroy them. You are not to make any covenant with them nor be gracious to them.

Majority Standard Bible
and when the LORD your God has delivered them over to you to defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. Make no treaty with them and show them no mercy.

NET Bible
and he delivers them over to you and you attack them, you must utterly annihilate them. Make no treaty with them and show them no mercy!

New Heart English Bible
and when the LORD your God shall deliver them up before you, and you shall strike them; then you shall utterly destroy them: you shall make no covenant with them, nor show mercy to them;

Webster's Bible Translation
And when the LORD thy God shall deliver them before thee, thou shalt smite them and utterly destroy them, thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor show mercy to them:

World English Bible
and when Yahweh your God delivers them up before you, and you strike them, then you shall utterly destroy them. You shall make no covenant with them, nor show mercy to them.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
and your God YHWH has given them before you, then you have struck them—you utterly devote them—you do not make a covenant with them, nor do you favor them.

Young's Literal Translation
and Jehovah thy God hath given them before thee, and thou hast smitten them -- thou dost utterly devote them -- thou dost not make with them a covenant, nor dost thou favour them.

Smith's Literal Translation
And Jehovah thy God gave them before thee, and thou didst smite them: exterminating, thou shalt exterminate them; thou shalt not make to them a covenant and thou shalt not show them mercy.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
And the Lord thy God shall have delivered them to thee, thou shalt utterly destroy them. Thou shalt make no league with them, nor shew mercy to them:

Catholic Public Domain Version
and when the Lord your God will have delivered them to you, you shall strike them down unto utter annihilation. You shall not enter into a pact with them, nor shall you show any pity to them.

New American Bible
and when the LORD, your God, gives them over to you and you defeat them, you shall put them under the ban. Make no covenant with them and do not be gracious to them.

New Revised Standard Version
and when the LORD your God gives them over to you and you defeat them, then you must utterly destroy them. Make no covenant with them and show them no mercy.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
And when the LORD your God shall deliver them before you, and you shall defeat them; then you shall utterly destroy them; you shall make no covenant with them, nor show mercy to them;

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And LORD JEHOVAH your God shall deliver them before you and you shall strike them, and you shall certainly destroy them; you shall not make a covenant with them and you shall not have mercy upon them:
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
and when the LORD thy God shall deliver them up before thee, and thou shalt smite them; then thou shalt utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor show mercy unto them;

Brenton Septuagint Translation
and the Lord thy God shall deliver them into thy hands, then thou shalt smite them: thou shalt utterly destroy them: thou shalt not make a covenant with them, neither shall ye pity them:

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Casting out the Nations
1When the LORD your God brings you into the land that you are entering to possess, and He drives out before you many nations—the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, seven nations larger and stronger than you— 2and when the LORD your God has delivered them over to you to defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. Make no treaty with them and show them no mercy. 3Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons,…

Cross References
Exodus 23:32-33
You shall make no covenant with them or with their gods. / They must not remain in your land, lest they cause you to sin against Me. For if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you.”

Exodus 34:12-16
Be careful not to make a treaty with the inhabitants of the land you are entering, lest they become a snare in your midst. / Rather, you must tear down their altars, smash their sacred stones, and chop down their Asherah poles. / For you must not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. ...

Joshua 23:12-13
For if you turn away and cling to the rest of these nations that remain among you, and if you intermarry and associate with them, / know for sure that the LORD your God will no longer drive out these nations before you. Instead, they will become for you a snare and a trap, a scourge in your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from this good land that the LORD your God has given you.

Judges 2:2-3
and you are not to make a covenant with the people of this land, but you shall tear down their altars.’ Yet you have not obeyed My voice. What is this you have done? / So now I tell you that I will not drive out these people before you; they will be thorns in your sides, and their gods will be a snare to you.”

1 Kings 11:2
These women were from the nations about which the LORD had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, for surely they will turn your hearts after their gods.” Yet Solomon clung to these women in love.

Ezra 9:12
Now, therefore, do not give your daughters in marriage to their sons or take their daughters for your sons. Never seek their peace or prosperity, so that you may be strong and may eat the good things of the land, leaving it as an inheritance to your sons forever.’

Psalm 106:34-36
They did not destroy the peoples as the LORD had commanded them, / but they mingled with the nations and adopted their customs. / They worshiped their idols, which became a snare to them.

2 Corinthians 6:14-17
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership can righteousness have with wickedness? Or what fellowship does light have with darkness? / What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? / What agreement can exist between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be My people.” ...

Romans 12:2
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

1 Corinthians 5:9-11
I wrote you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people. / I was not including the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters. In that case you would have to leave this world. / But now I am writing you not to associate with anyone who claims to be a brother but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or a verbal abuser, a drunkard or a swindler. With such a man do not even eat.

1 Corinthians 10:20-21
No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God. And I do not want you to be participants with demons. / You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot partake in the table of the Lord and the table of demons too.

Ephesians 5:11
Have no fellowship with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.

2 John 1:10-11
If anyone comes to you but does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your home or even greet him. / Whoever greets such a person shares in his evil deeds.

Revelation 18:4
Then I heard another voice from heaven say: “Come out of her, My people, so that you will not share in her sins or contract any of her plagues.

Leviticus 20:23
You must not follow the statutes of the nations I am driving out before you. Because they did all these things, I abhorred them.


Treasury of Scripture

And when the LORD your God shall deliver them before you; you shall smite them, and utterly destroy them; you shall make no covenant with them, nor show mercy to them:

deliver

Deuteronomy 7:23,24
But the LORD thy God shall deliver them unto thee, and shall destroy them with a mighty destruction, until they be destroyed…

Deuteronomy 3:3
So the LORD our God delivered into our hands Og also, the king of Bashan, and all his people: and we smote him until none was left to him remaining.

Deuteronomy 23:14
For the LORD thy God walketh in the midst of thy camp, to deliver thee, and to give up thine enemies before thee; therefore shall thy camp be holy: that he see no unclean thing in thee, and turn away from thee.

utterly

Deuteronomy 20:16,17
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: …

Leviticus 27:28,29
Notwithstanding no devoted thing, that a man shall devote unto the LORD of all that he hath, both of man and beast, and of the field of his possession, shall be sold or redeemed: every devoted thing is most holy unto the LORD…

Numbers 33:52
Then ye shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their pictures, and destroy all their molten images, and quite pluck down all their high places:

make no

Deuteronomy 20:10,11
When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it…

Exodus 23:32,33
Thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor with their gods…

Exodus 34:12-16
Take heed to thyself, lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land whither thou goest, lest it be for a snare in the midst of thee: …

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Deuteronomy 7
1. All communion with the nations is forbidden
5. for fear of idolatry,
6. for the holiness of the people,
9. for the nature of God in his mercy and justice,
17. and for the assuredness of victory which God will give over them.














and when the LORD your God has delivered them over to you
This phrase emphasizes the sovereignty and active involvement of God in the affairs of Israel. The Hebrew root for "delivered" is "nathan," which means to give or to hand over. This indicates that the victory over the nations is not by Israel's might but by God's providence. Historically, this reflects the belief that God is the ultimate authority who orchestrates events for His purposes. It reassures believers that God is in control and that His plans will prevail.

and you have defeated them
The word "defeated" comes from the Hebrew "nakah," meaning to strike or smite. This implies a decisive victory, one that is complete and overwhelming. In the context of ancient warfare, this was not merely a military conquest but a spiritual victory, as Israel was acting as an instrument of divine justice. It serves as a reminder that spiritual battles require reliance on God's strength rather than human power.

then you must devote them to complete destruction
The phrase "devote them to complete destruction" is derived from the Hebrew word "herem," which means to ban or to consecrate for destruction. This was a command for total annihilation, often seen as a difficult concept. However, from a conservative Christian perspective, it underscores the holiness of God and the seriousness of sin. The Canaanite nations were seen as irredeemably corrupt, and their destruction was necessary to prevent Israel from being led astray. It highlights the need for purity and separation from sin in the believer's life.

Make no treaty with them
The instruction to "make no treaty" is a call for separation from ungodly influences. The Hebrew word for "treaty" is "berith," which means covenant. In ancient times, treaties often involved mutual obligations and could lead to spiritual compromise. This command reflects the importance of maintaining spiritual integrity and not forming alliances that could lead to idolatry or moral corruption.

and show them no mercy
The phrase "show them no mercy" is rooted in the Hebrew word "chanan," which means to show favor or compassion. This command is challenging but reflects the severity of God's judgment against sin. It serves as a sobering reminder of the consequences of sin and the importance of obedience to God's commands. From a theological perspective, it points to the ultimate justice of God, who is both loving and just.

(2) And when the Lord thy God shall deliver them before thee. . . .--It would be possible to read, "Then the Lord thy God shall deliver them before thee, and thou shalt smite." Or the sentence might also be divided thus: "When the Lord thy God shall bring thee in, and shall have delivered the nations from before thee, and thou hast smitten them, then thou shalt utterly destroy them"--i.e., shalt make them cherem, a devoted or accursed thing. Perhaps this last way of dividing the clauses is, upon the whole, to be preferred. But in any case it should be noted that Jehovah's deliverance of the nations into Israel's hand is to precede their defeat and extermination. Indiscriminate attack and massacre are not to be thought of. (See for a further Note on this, Joshua 13) All the operations described in Joshua--the sieges of Jericho and Ai, the southern campaign and the northern campaign--were alike undertaken under Divine direction. The same may be said of the battles in Moses' lifetime, whether against Amalek, Sihon, Og, Arad, or Midian. The same is true of the judges, and of David's operations against the Philistines after he came to the throne (2Samuel 5:19, &c). The principle was acknowledged by Ahab in his attack on Ramoth-gilead (1 Kings 22).

Thou shalt make no covenant with them.--The reason for this is too obvious to need comment. If Israelites and idolaters were united--still more if they were intermingled in marriage--there was an end to the distinction of race and religion--an end to the supremacy of Israel or the isolation of the people of Jehovah, as exhibiting His Law and the blessings of His government to mankind. It must be remembered, however, that the isolation here commanded was only a means to an end; it was not the end itself. It may be further observed that as soon as the danger of idolatry was at an end, the isolation of Israel in a great measure ceased. The object of giving the people a land of their own, and supremacy among the surrounding nations, was to enable them to develop the religion which was to prepare the way for Christianity. When the religious principles of the nation were sufficiently fixed to make their political supremacy unnecessary, this supremacy was taken away.



Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
and when the LORD
יְהוָ֧ה (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel

your God
אֱלֹהֶ֛יךָ (’ĕ·lō·he·ḵā)
Noun - masculine plural construct | second person masculine singular
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative

has delivered them over
וּנְתָנָ֞ם (ū·nə·ṯā·nām)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - third person masculine singular | third person masculine plural
Strong's 5414: To give, put, set

to you
לְפָנֶ֖יךָ (lə·p̄ā·ne·ḵā)
Preposition-l | Noun - common plural construct | second person masculine singular
Strong's 6440: The face

to defeat them,
וְהִכִּיתָ֑ם (wə·hik·kî·ṯām)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hifil - Conjunctive perfect - second person masculine singular | third person masculine plural
Strong's 5221: To strike

then you must completely destroy them.
הַחֲרֵ֤ם (ha·ḥă·rêm)
Verb - Hifil - Infinitive absolute
Strong's 2763: To seclude, to devote to religious uses, to be blunt as to the nose

Make
תִכְרֹ֥ת (ṯiḵ·rōṯ)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 3772: To cut, to destroy, consume, to covenant

no
לֹא־ (lō-)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

treaty
בְּרִ֖ית (bə·rîṯ)
Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 1285: A covenant

with them
לָהֶ֛ם (lā·hem)
Preposition | third person masculine plural
Strong's Hebrew

and show them no
וְלֹ֥א (wə·lō)
Conjunctive waw | Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

mercy.
תְחָנֵּֽם׃ (ṯə·ḥān·nêm)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular | third person masculine plural
Strong's 2603: To bend, stoop in kindness to an inferior, to favor, bestow, to implore


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OT Law: Deuteronomy 7:2 And when Yahweh your God shall deliver (Deut. De Du)
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