Deuteronomy 20:16

Deuteronomy 20:16 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)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:
• New International Version (NIV)However, in the cities of the nations the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, do not leave alive anything that breathes.
• English Standard Version (ESV)But in the cities of these peoples that the Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance, you shall save alive nothing that breathes,
• New King James Version (NKJV)“But of the cities of these peoples which the Lord your God gives you as an inheritance, you shall let nothing that breathes remain alive,

Context of Deuteronomy 20:16

14However, the women, the children, the animals, and everything that is in the city, all of its spoils, you shall take as plunder for yourself; and you shall use the spoils of your enemies which the Lord your God has given you. 15This is what you shall do to all the cities that are very far from you, which are not of the cities of these nations nearby. Only in the cities of these peoples that the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, you shall not leave anything that breathes alive. 17Instead, you shall utterly destroy them, the Hittite and the Amorite, the Canaanite and the Perizzite, the Hivite and the Jebusite, just as the Lord your God has commanded you, 18so that they will not teach you to do all the same detestable practices of theirs which they have done for their gods, by which you would sin against the Lord your God.

Deuteronomy 20:16 word by word

רַ֗ק מֵעָרֵ֤י הָֽעַמִּים֙ הָאֵ֔לֶּה אֲשֶׁר֙ יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ נֹתֵ֥ן לְךָ֖ נַחֲלָ֑ה לֹ֥א תְחַיֶּ֖ה כָּל־נְשָׁמָֽה׃Read the interlinear

• in the citiesעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
• of theseאֵ֫לֶּה'êlleh · theseH428
• peoplesעַם‛am · peopleH5971
• that the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• your Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• is givingנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
• you as an inheritanceנַחֲלָהnachălâh · inheritanceH5159
• anythingכֹּלkôl kôl · allH3605
• that breathesנְשָׁמָהneshâmâh · breathH5397

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 20:16

• Deuteronomy 7:1“When the Lord your God brings you into the land where you are entering to take possession of it, and He drives away many nations from before you, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than you,
• Numbers 21:2So Israel made a vow to the Lord and said, “If You will indeed hand over this people to me, then I will utterly destroy their cities.”
• Numbers 33:52you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from you, and destroy all their idolatrous sculptures, destroy all their cast metal images, and eliminate all their high places;
• Joshua 6:17But the city shall be designated for destruction, it and everything that is in it belongs to the Lord; only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in the house shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent.
• Joshua 9:24So they answered Joshua and said, “Since your servants were fully informed that the Lord your God had commanded His servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land before you, we feared greatly for our lives because of you, and did this thing.
• Joshua 10:28Now Joshua captured Makkedah on that day, and struck it and its king with the edge of the sword; he utterly destroyed it and every person who was in it. He left no survivor. So he did to the king of Makkedah just as he had done to the king of Jericho.
• Joshua 11:11They struck every person who was in it with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying them; there was no one left who breathed. And he burned Hazor with fire.
• Joshua 11:12Joshua captured all the cities of these kings, and all their kings; and he struck them with the edge of the sword and utterly destroyed them, just as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded.

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 20:16

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 10-20Verses 10-20 Directions intended to prevent wanton destruction of life and property in sieges. Deuteronomy 20:16 Forbearance, however, was not to be shown toward the Canaanite nations, which were to be utterly exterminated (compare Deuteronomy 7:1-4). The command did not apply to beasts as well as men (compare Joshua 11:11, Joshua 11:14). Deuteronomy 20:19 The parenthesis may he more literally rendered “for man is a tree of the field,” i. e., has his life…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 10-2010-20. When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it--An important principle is here introduced into the war law of Israel regarding the people they fought against and the cities they besieged. With "the cities of those people which God doth give thee" in Canaan, it was to be a war of utter extermination (De 20:17, 18). But when on a just occasion, they went against other nations, they were first to make a proclamation…Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 20:16

• Massacre
• War

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Booty
• Canaanites
• Faint
• Fearful
• Accursed
• Atonement, Day of
• Criticism
• Deuteronomy

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