Deuteronomy 20:3

Deuteronomy 20:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And 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;
• New International Version (NIV)He 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.
• English Standard Version (ESV)and shall say to them, 'Hear, O Israel, today you are drawing near for battle against your enemies: let not your heart faint. Do not fear or panic or be in dread of them,
• New King James Version (NKJV)And he shall say to them, ‘Hear, O Israel: Today you are on the verge of battle with your enemies. Do not let your heart faint, do not be afraid, and do not tremble or be terrified because of them;

Context of Deuteronomy 20:3

1Do not be afraid when you go out to fight a war against your enemies. You may see that their armies have more horses, chariots and soldiers than you have. Do not be afraid of them! Remember that the Lord your God is with you. He rescued you from Egypt. 2As you prepare to fight a battle, the priest must come to speak to your soldiers. He must say, ‘Israelites, listen to me! Today you will fight against your enemies. Do not be afraid. Be brave! Do not shake with fear because your enemy is so strong. 4The Lord your God is going into battle with you. He will fight for you against your enemies. He will cause you to win.’ 5Then the officers must say to the soldiers, ‘Has any of you built a new house but he has not yet asked God to bless it? If so, he may go home. If he does not, he may die in the battle. Then someone else will ask God to bless his home.

Deuteronomy 20:3 word by word

וְאָמַ֤ר אֲלֵהֶם֙ שְׁמַ֣ע יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אַתֶּ֨ם קְרֵבִ֥ים הַיּ֛וֹם לַמִּלְחָמָ֖ה עַל־אֹיְבֵיכֶ֑ם אַל־יֵרַ֣ךְ לְבַבְכֶ֗ם אַל־תִּֽירְא֧וּ וְאַֽל־תַּחְפְּז֛וּ וְאַל־תַּֽעַרְצ֖וּ מִפְּנֵיהֶֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And shall sayאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• unto them, Hearשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: hearH8085
• O Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• ye approachקָרֵבqârêb · approachingH7131
• this dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• unto battleמִלְחָמָהmilchâmâh · battleH4421
• against your enemiesאֹיֵב'ôyêb 'ôyêb · enemyH341
• let not your heartsלֵבָבlêbâb · heartH3824
• faintרָכַךְrâkak · be tenderH7401
• fearיָרֵאyârê' · to fearH3372
• not, and do not trembleחָפַזchâphaz · to hurryH2648
• neither be ye terrifiedעָרַץ‛ârats · to trembleH6206
• becauseפָּנֶהpânîym · face ofH6440

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 20:3

• Psalms 27:1The Lord gives me light in my life and he makes me safe. So I am not afraid of anyone! The Lord takes care of my life. Nobody can make me afraid!
• Isaiah 35:3If your hands feel weak, now be strong! If your knees are shaking, now be brave!
• Isaiah 41:10I am with you, so do not be afraid. I am your God, so do not be upset. I will make you strong and I will help you. My powerful right hand will keep you safe.”
• Matthew 10:16Jesus then said to his disciples, ‘Listen well. I am sending you to people who will want to kill you. You will be like sheep among wild animals. You must watch carefully, like snakes do. But you must also be good and kind like doves.
• Ephesians 6:11Use all the help that God gives to us. Then you can be like a soldier who fights against the Devil. You must put on the whole armour that God gives to us. The Devil attacks us in clever ways, and we need to be strong.
• 1 Thessalonians 5:15If someone does something bad against you, do not do anything bad against them in return. Never do that. Instead, always try to do good things that will help one other and help everyone else.
• Hebrews 12:12So be strong as servants of God! If your hands feel weak, lift them up! If your knees are not strong, stand up straight!
• Revelation 2:10I know that trouble will soon come to you. But do not be afraid. Listen! The Devil will cause some of you to go to prison. He wants to see whether you will continue to believe in me. As a result, you will suffer for ten days. But continue to trust me, even if you die. Then you will win against the Devil. I will give you a gift, as they give a crown to the winner of a race. You will have life with me for ever.
• Isaiah 28:16So the Almighty Lord says this: ‘Look! I am putting a special stone in Zion. It is a valuable stone, because it makes a strong foundation at the corner of my building. Anyone who trusts in that foundation will never be disappointed.
• Psalms 3:6Even if 10,000 enemies are all around me to attack me, I will not be afraid of them.
• Isaiah 8:12‘Those people are talking about an agreement to turn against the rulers. But do not agree with what they say. Do not be afraid of the things that frighten them. Do not be afraid, as they are.
• Isaiah 57:7You go up to the tops of high hills, and you lie down there to have sex. You go there to offer sacrifices to your gods.
• Matthew 8:26Jesus said to them, ‘You should not be so afraid. You should trust me more than you do!’ Then he stood up and he spoke strongly to the wind and the water. ‘Stop!’ he said. Then the wind and the water became quiet again.
• Mark 16:6The young man said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. You are looking for Jesus from Nazareth. The soldiers killed him on a cross, but he has become alive again. He is not here. Look! You can see the place where the men put him.
• Acts 18:9But one night, the Lord appeared to Paul in a vision. He said, ‘Do not be afraid of those people who are against you. Continue to speak my message to the people here. Do not stop speaking to them.
• Acts 27:24The angel said, “Paul, do not be afraid. You must go to Rome and Caesar will judge you there. Because of you, God will be kind to all the people on the ship with you. None of them will die.”

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 20:3

• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2-42-4. when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people--Jewish writers say that there was a war priest appointed by a special ceremonial to attend the army. It was natural that the solemn objects and motives of religion should have been applied to animate patriotism, and so give additional impulse to valor; other people have done this. But in the case of Israel, the regular attendance of a priest on the…Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 20:3

• Armies
• Priest

In the dictionaries

• Israel
• Israel, Israelites
• Jacob, Israel
• Faint
• Fearful
• Army
• Atonement, Day of
• Criticism
• Deuteronomy
• Exodus, the Book of

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 20

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings