| King James Bible | New International Version |
| 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. | 1When you go to war against your enemies and see horses and chariots and an army greater than yours, do not be afraid of them, because the LORD your God, who brought you up out of Egypt, will be with you. |
| 2And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people, | 2When you are about to go into battle, the priest shall come forward and address the army. |
| 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; | 3He shall say: "Hear, Israel: Today you are going into battle against your enemies. Do not be fainthearted or afraid; do not panic or be terrified by them. |
| 4For the LORD your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you. | 4For the LORD your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory." |
| 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. | 5The officers shall say to the army: "Has anyone built a new house and not yet begun to live in it? Let him go home, or he may die in battle and someone else may begin to live in 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. | 6Has anyone planted a vineyard and not begun to enjoy it? Let him go home, or he may die in battle and someone else enjoy 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. | 7Has anyone become pledged to a woman and not married her? Let him go home, or he may die in battle and someone else marry 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. | 8Then the officers shall add, "Is anyone afraid or fainthearted? Let him go home so that his fellow soldiers will not become disheartened too." |
| 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. | 9When the officers have finished speaking to the army, they shall appoint commanders over it. |
| 10When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it. | 10When you march up to attack a city, make its people an offer of peace. |
| 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. | 11If they accept and open their gates, all the people in it shall be subject to forced labor and shall work for you. |
| 12And if it will make no peace with thee, but will make war against thee, then thou shalt besiege it: | 12If they refuse to make peace and they engage you in battle, lay siege to that city. |
| 13And when the LORD thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword: | 13When the LORD your God delivers it into your hand, put to the sword all the men in it. |
| 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. | 14As for the women, the children, the livestock and everything else in the city, you may take these as plunder for yourselves. And you may use the plunder the LORD your God gives you from your enemies. |
| 15Thus shalt thou do unto all the cities which are very far off from thee, which are not of the cities of these nations. | 15This is how you are to treat all the cities that are at a distance from you and do not belong to the nations nearby. |
| 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: | 16However, in the cities of the nations the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, do not leave alive anything that breathes. |
| 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: | 17Completely destroy them--the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites--as the LORD your God has commanded you. |
| 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. | 18Otherwise, they will teach you to follow all the detestable things they do in worshiping their gods, and you will 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: | 19When you lay siege to a city for a long time, fighting against it to capture it, do not destroy its trees by putting an ax to them, because you can eat their fruit. Do not cut them down. Are the trees people, that you should besiege them? |
| 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. | 20However, you may cut down trees that you know are not fruit trees and use them to build siege works until the city at war with you falls. |
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