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Deuteronomy Chapter
Twenty
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 20
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, Deuteronomy 20:1,
then the officers were to declare who might return home, Deuteronomy 20:5
when an enemy's city was approached, peace was to be proclaimed on certain
conditions, which, if accepted of, the inhabitants were to be tributaries and
servants, but if not, when taken, all were to be put to the sword, excepting
women, children, and cattle, Deuteronomy 20:10,
but those of the seven nations were to be utterly destroyed, Deuteronomy 20:16,
and, during a siege, no trees bearing fruit fit for food were to be cut down, Deuteronomy 20:19.
Deuteronomy 20:1 “When you go out to battle against your enemies, and see
horses and chariots and people more numerous than you, do not be afraid
of them; for the Lord your God is with you, who brought you up from the land
of Egypt.
YLT
1`When thou goest out to
battle against thine enemy, and hast seen horse and chariot -- a people more
numerous than thou -- thou art not afraid of them, for Jehovah thy God [is]
with thee, who is bringing thee up out of the land of Egypt;
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 MaimonidesF3Hilchot Melachim, c. 7. sect. 1.
distinguishes; one was by the order and appointment of God, as against the
seven nations of Canaan; the other was voluntary and arbitrary, which was left
to their own discretion and will, as they saw fit, when they were provoked or
distressed, or were invaded by their enemies, or they saw reason to go out
against them, and either act the offensive or defensive part, or both; and of
each of these some things are said in this chapter:
and seest horses and chariots, and a people more than thou; the Israelites
had no horses, and so no chariots, their armies were all infantry; but their
neighbouring nations that made war with them had a large cavalry, and
multitudes of chariots, which made them very formidable; thus Shishak, king of
Egypt, in the times of Rehoboam, came against Jerusalem with 1200 chariots and
60,000, horsemen, and people without number; and Zerah the Ethiopian, in the
times of Asa, came against him with an host of 100,000 men, and three hundred
chariots, 2 Chronicles 12:2.
be not afraid of them; because of the strength
of their cavalry, the terrible approaches of their chariots, and the number of
their men:
for the Lord thy God is with thee; hence, as Hezekiah says,
more would be with them than with their enemies, with whom was an arm of flesh,
but with them the Lord their God, 2 Chronicles 32:7
and so the Targum of Jonathan,"for all of them shall be reckoned as one
horse and one chariot before the Lord your God;'with whom numbers are nothing;
and which adds,"for his Word shall be your help;'the eternal Logos, or
Word of God; so Onkelos; and if God and his Word, his only begotten Son, are on
the side of his people, they have nothing to fear from enemies, though ever so
many and mighty:
which brought thee out of the land of Egypt; which is
observed for the encouragement of their faith and confidence in him; for he
that did that for them, what is it he cannot or will not do?
Deuteronomy 20:2 2 So
it shall be, when you are on the verge of battle, that the priest shall
approach and speak to the people.
YLT
2and it hath been, in your
drawing near unto the battle, that the priest hath come nigh, and spoken unto
the people,
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 concerning whom MaimonidesF4Hilchot Melachim, c. 7.
sect. 1,2. is more particular; he says,"they appoint a priest to speak to
the people at the time of war, and they anoint him with the anointing oil, and
he is called the anointed of war; twice the anointed of war speaks unto the
people, once in a book at the time they go forth, before they set in battle
array, he says to the people, "what man is there", &c. and when
he has caused his words to be heard, he returns; at another time, when they are
set in array, he says, "fear not", &c.'this man seems to be an
emblem of Gospel ministers, who are anointed with the gifts and graces of the
Spirit of God, and whose business it is to encourage the people of God to fight
the Lord's battles against sin, Satan, and the world, and not to be afraid of
their spiritual enemies; directing them to take to them the whole armour of
God, and to endure hardness as good soldiers of Christ, to follow him the
captain of their salvation, assuring them of victory through him who makes them
more than conquerors, and that their warfare is or shortly will be
accomplished.
Deuteronomy 20:3 3 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;
YLT
3and said unto them, Hear,
Israel, ye are drawing near to-day to battle against your enemies, let not your
hearts be tender, fear not, nor make haste, nor be terrified at their presence,
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 them, and a battle seemed near at
hand:
let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither
be ye terrified because of them; many words are made use of to animate them
against those fears which the strength, number, and appearance of their
enemies, would be apt to cause in them. Jarchi observes, that here are four
exhortations, answerable to four things which the kings of the nations do (in
order to inject terror into their enemies); they shake their shields, to clash
them one against another, that hearing their noise they may be afraid of them
and flee; they prance their horses, and make them neigh, to cause the noise of
the hoofs of their horses to be heard; they shout with their voices, and blow
with their trumpets: and accordingly these several clauses are so interpreted
in the MisnahF5Misn. Sotah, c. 8. sect. 1. ""and let not
your hearts faint"; at the neighing of the horses, and the brightness of
swords: "fear not"; at the clashing of shields: "and do not
tremble"; at the sound of trumpets: "neither be ye terrified" at
the voice of shouting;'and no doubt but it takes in everything that has a tendency
to cause fear, faintness, and dismay, which they are cautioned against.
Deuteronomy 20:4 4 for
the Lord your God is He who goes with you, to fight for you
against your enemies, to save you.’
YLT
4for Jehovah your God [is]
He who is going with you, to fight for you with your enemies -- to save you.
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,.... Isaiah 41:10, this,
according to the MisnahF6Ut supra. (Misn. Sotab, c. 8. sect. 1.) ,
respects the ark, and so Jarchi, which was a symbol of the divine Presence, and
went with them to battle; see Joshua 6:4.
to fight for you against your enemies, to save you; to annoy and
destroy the one, and to protect and save the other; thus far the anointed
priest addressed the people in an oration to this purpose: the account
Maimonides gives of it is, that"when they have set their ranks, and are
near to a battle, the anointed of war stands on an high place, and all the
ranks before him, and says to them in the holy tongue, "hear, O
Israel", &c. unto to save you; and then another priest under him
causes it to be heard by all the people with an high voiceF7Hilchot
Melachim, c. 7. sect. 3. ;'he repeated what the anointed of war had said, and
expressed it with a loud voice, that all might hear.
Deuteronomy 20:5 5 “Then the officers shall speak to the people, saying:
‘What man is there who has built a new house and has not dedicated it?
Let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man
dedicate it.
YLT
5`And the authorities have
spoken unto the people, saying, Who [is] the man that hath built a new house,
and hath not dedicated it? -- let him go and turn back to his house, lest he
die in battle, and another man dedicate it.
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, Deuteronomy 20:9,
unless they can be thought to be general officers; but the word for them is the
same that is used of such that attended the judges and were ministers to them, Deuteronomy 16:18,
and perhaps they were a sort of heralds that published and proclaimed what the
anointed of war had said; and so the above writerF8Hilchot Melachim,
c. 7. sect. 3. affirms, that what here follows was first spoken by him, and
after that (what is said, Deuteronomy 20:3)
the anointed of war speaks, saying:
what man is there,.... (to the end of Deuteronomy 20:7)
thus far the anointed of war speaks, and then an officer causes all the people
to hear it with an high voice, saying:
what man is there that hath built a new house, and hath not
dedicated it? or perfected it, as the Targum of Jonathan, not quite finished
it, has not, as that paraphrast says, fixed in it the door posts, or rather
perhaps he means the Mezuzah, or writing, which the Jews thought themselves
obliged to fasten to the door posts of their houses; see Deuteronomy 11:20
until this was done, an house was not thought to be completed; though Jarchi
interprets this of inhabitation; of a man's having built a house, but has not
yet dwelt in it; see Deuteronomy 28:30,
so JosephusF9Antiqu. l. 4. c. 8. sect. 41. explains it, of its not
having been used and enjoyed by a man a full year; but there seems to be
something more than all this in dedication; for though it does not signify a
consecration or dedication of it to holy uses, as the dedication of the
tabernacle and temple, yet there was something done, some ceremony used at
entrance into a new house; a good man entered into it, no doubt, with prayer
and praise, as the thirtieth psalm was composed by David at the dedication of
his house; see Nehemiah 12:27 and
perhaps it was usual to have their friends together, and make a cheerful
entertainment on the occasion. Ben Melech on the place, assures us it was a
custom to make a feast and merriment at eating the first meal in a new house:
let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and
another man dedicate it; or perfect it, as the above Targum, or dwell in it, as well as
have the pleasure of entertaining his friends in it at the first opening of it;
this was either a command, enjoining a man, in such a circumstance, to return,
and so the rest that follow, or a permission to him, allowing him to do it if
he thought fit.
Deuteronomy 20:6 6 Also what man is there who has planted a
vineyard and has not eaten of it? Let him go and return to his house, lest he
die in the battle and another man eat of it.
YLT
6`And who [is] the man that
hath planted a vineyard, and hath not made it common? -- let him go and turn
back to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man make it common.
And what man is he that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not yet
eaten of it?.... Which he has a right to do, and it is hard for him to be
deprived of it, 1 Corinthians 9:7
or "hath not made it common"F11לא
חללו "necdum fecit eam esse communem", V.
L. "et non fecit eam communem", Vatablus, Fagius. ; according to the
law in Leviticus 19:23.
Three years the fruit of trees, and so of vines, might not be eaten; in the
fourth, they were devoted to the Lord, and might be redeemed from the priest,
and so made common; and on the fifth year were eaten in course; so the Targums
of Jerusalem, Jonathan, and Jarchi, interpret it: "let him also go and
return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man eat of
it"; or make it common, according to the above law: Aben Ezra seems to
have another sense of this passage, deriving the word from another, which
signifies piping and dancing, and observes, that it was a custom to sing, pipe,
and dance in vineyards; and the Septuagint version is, "hath not been made
merry of it"; though that may signify not having drank of the wine of it,
to be made merry with it.
Deuteronomy 20:7 7 And what man is there who is betrothed to a
woman and has not married her? Let him go and return to his house, lest he die
in the battle and another man marry her.’
YLT
7`And who [is] the man that
hath betrothed a woman, and hath not taken her? -- let him go and turn back to
his house, lest he die in battle, and another man take her.
And what man is there that hath betrothed a wife, and hath not
taken her?.... 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 wife of a deceased brother (yea, they say, if his brother is dead in war,
he returns and comes home), but not of a former wife divorced and received
againF13Misn. Sotah, ib. sect. 2. :
let him go and return unto his house, lest he die in battle, and
another man take her; or marry her.
Deuteronomy 20:8 8 “The officers shall speak further to the people, and
say, ‘What man is there who is fearful and fainthearted? Let him go and
return to his house, lest the heart of his brethren faint[a] like his
heart.’
YLT
8`And the authorities have
added to speak unto the people, and said, Who [is] the man that is afraid and
tender of heart? -- let him go and turn back to his house, and the heart of his
brethren doth not melt like his heart;
And the officers shall speak further unto the people,.... According
to MaimonidesF14Ut supra. (Hilchot Melachim, c. 7. sect. 3.) , the
priest the anointed of war spoke to the end of Deuteronomy 20:7
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 in those of the priest, as follows:
what man that is fearful, &c. and then another
officer causes all the people to hear it:
and they shall say, what man is there that is fearful and
fainthearted? that has not courage to face his enemies, to whom the terrors of
war, and especially of death, are dreadful; the Targum of Jonathan
adds,"because of his sin;'whose sins stare him in the face, and lie heavy
on his conscience; so that he is afraid he shall die in battle, and in his
sins, and suffer divine vengeance; both these senses are observed in the MisnahF25Misn.
Sotah, c. 8. sect. 5. . According to R. Akiba, a fearful and fainthearted man
is one"that cannot stand in battle array, or behold a drawn sword; but R.
Jose the Galilean says, he is one that is afraid of the transgressions he has
committed; and therefore the law joins to this all those things for which a man
may return;'as having built a new house, planted a vineyard, and betrothed a
wife; that so it might be thought it was on account of one or other of these
that he returned, and not through faintheartedness, either because of the
terrors of war, or of his own conscience for his sins:
let him go and return to his house, lest his brethren's heart
faint as well as his heart; lest, by his pale looks and trembling
joints, his fainting fits and swoons, he discourage the rest in the same
company with him, and by his example make them unfit for war also.
Deuteronomy 20:9 9 And so it shall be, when the officers have finished
speaking to the people, that they shall make captains of the armies to lead the
people.
YLT
9and it hath come to pass as
the authorities finish to speak unto the people, that they have appointed
princes of the hosts at the head of the people.
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 of armies to lead on the people; on to battle;
that is, either the officers should do this, which may seem to confirm what has
been hinted, that they might be generals of the army, who constituted captains
under them, to lead the people on to battle: unless this is to be understood of
the princes of Israel, or of the king when they had one, and his ministers; for
it does not appear in any instance that the people chose their own officers
over them, to go out before them, and lead them on to battle; or "to be at
the head of them"F26בראש העם "in capite populi", Pagninus, Montanus. ;
which the Jewish writers understand in a very different sense; not to head
them, or be at the head of them, to direct and command them, but to keep them
from deserting: their sense is, that the officers having dismissed persons in
the circumstances before described, and set stout men before them, and others
behind them (i.e. the army of the people), with iron hatchets in their hands,
and every one that sought to return, they had power to cut off his legs; since
flight is the beginning of falling before their enemiesF1Misn. ut
supra (Sotah, c. 8.), sect. 6. .
Deuteronomy 20:10 10 “When you go near a city to fight against it, then
proclaim an offer of peace to it.
YLT
10`When thou drawest near
unto a city to fight against it, then thou hast called unto it for Peace,
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
their enemies in it was different from that in a war with the seven nations,
commanded by the Lord, and distinguished from it, Deuteronomy 20:15.
then proclaim peace unto it; that is, offer them
terms of peace; which were, that the inhabitants of it should renounce
idolatry, and become their tributaries and servants.
Deuteronomy 20:11 11 And it shall be that if they accept your offer of
peace, and open to you, then all the people who are found in it shall be
placed under tribute to you, and serve you.
YLT
11and it hath been, if Peace
it answer thee, and hath opened to thee, then it hath come to pass -- all the
people who are found in it are to thee for tributaries, and have served thee.
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 the city:
shall be tributaries unto thee: pay a yearly tax imposed
upon them, as the Moabites sometimes did, and which was paid in lambs and rams
with the wool, 2 Kings 3:4
and they shall serve thee; not as slaves, or be in
continual bondage and servitude; but upon occasion be called out to any public
service, as joining them against their enemies, rebuilding palaces and cities,
or repairing walls of cities, and the like; and in general acknowledge their
dominion over them, and their own subjection to them, by paying an annual
tribute, or sending gifts unto them; thus the Moabites, Syrians, and Edomites,
became the servants of David, 2 Samuel 8:2.
Deuteronomy 20:12 12 Now if the city will not make peace with you,
but makes war against you, then you shall besiege it.
YLT
12`And if it doth not make
peace with thee, and hath made with thee war, then thou hast laid siege against
it,
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 for any to flee and make their escape if they thought fit; See Gill on Numbers 31:7.
Deuteronomy 20:13 13 And when the Lord your God
delivers it into your hands, you shall strike every male in it with the edge of
the sword.
YLT
13and Jehovah thy God hath
given it into thy hand, and thou hast smitten every male of it by the mouth of
the sword.
And when the Lord thy God hath delivered it into thine hands,.... 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 and
providence of God succeeding means used, and sending famine or pestilence among
the besieged, and inclining their hearts to deliver up their city:
thou shall smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword; the men in
it, grown persons, as distinguished from little ones in the next verse; because
it was owing to these it was not surrendered at once, when terms of peace were
offered.
Deuteronomy 20:14 14 But the women, the little ones, the livestock, and all
that is in the city, all its spoil, you shall plunder for yourself; and you
shall eat the enemies’ plunder which the Lord your God
gives you.
YLT
14Only, the women, and the
infants, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, all its spoil, thou dost
seize for thyself, and thou hast eaten the spoil of thine enemies which Jehovah
thy God hath given to thee.
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; all these having had no concern in holding out the siege:
and all that is in the city, even all the spoil thereof, shall
thou take unto thyself; gold, silver, merchandise, household goods, utensils in trade,
and whatever was of any worth and value to be found in their houses:
and thou shall eat the spoil of thine enemies, which the Lord thy
God hath given thee; that is, enjoy all their wealth and riches, estates and
possessions; for this is not to be restrained to things eatable only.
Deuteronomy 20:15 15 Thus you shall do to all the cities which are
very far from you, which are not of the cities of these nations.
YLT
15So thou dost do to all the
cities which are very far off from thee, which are not of the cities of these
nations.
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, &c. for the children of Israel never went to war with
any very distant nations, unless they came unto them and invaded them; nor did
they seek to carry their conquests to any great distance, when the most
powerful and victorious, as in the days of David and Solomon:
which are not of the cities of these nations; of these
seven nations, as the Targum of Jonathan, the seven nations of the land of
Canaan; all that were not of them were accounted foreign cities, and at a
distance.
Deuteronomy 20:16 16 “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,
YLT
16`Only, of the cities of
these peoples which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee [for] an inheritance,
thou dost not keep alive any breathing;
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 crimes and gross
abominations they were guilty of, and for which they deserved to die; and on
account whereof they were reserved to this destruction, when the measure of
their iniquities was full, such as idolatry, incest, witchcraft, soothsaying,
necromancy, &c. see Leviticus 18:3.
Deuteronomy 20:17 17 but you shall utterly destroy them: the Hittite and
the Amorite and the Canaanite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the
Jebusite, just as the Lord your God has commanded you,
YLT
17for thou dost certainly
devote the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, and the Perizzite, the
Hivite, and the Jebusite, as Jehovah thy God hath commanded thee,
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 as they fell into his hands; and they suppose that the
Gibeonites had not heard of such a proclamation, and therefore were spared; and
it is certain that there were many who were suffered to live among them, who it
may be thought were allowed on their becoming proselytes, which was one of the
terms of peace, as Rahab and her household did, and which is the sense of some
of the Jewish writers. Jarchi on the following verse observes, that if they
repented, and became proselytes, they might be received: namely:
the Hittites and the Amorites, the Canaanites and the Perizzites,
the Hivites and the Jebusites; one of the seven nations is here omitted,
the Girgashites, as they are also in Exodus 23:23. It is
saidF2T. Hieros. Shebiith, fol. 37. 3. Debarim Rabba, sect. 5. fol.
241. 2. Vid. Maimon. Hilchot Melachim, c. 6. sect. 5. & Migdol Oz in ib. ,
that"Joshua sent three letters into the land of Israel before they went
into it; in the first, whoever would turn (and flee) might; in the second,
whoever would make peace might; in the third, whoever would make war might: the
Girgashites, believing God, went to Africa, according to Isaiah 36:17, the
land there is Africa; the Gibeonites made peace and dwelt in the land; thirty
one kings made war, and fell:"
as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee; Deuteronomy 7:1.
Deuteronomy 20:18 18 lest they teach you to do according to all their
abominations which they have done for their gods, and you sin against the Lord your God.
YLT
18so that they teach you not
to do according to all their abominations which they have done to their gods,
and ye have sinned against Jehovah your God.
That they teach you not to do after all their abominations,.... 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, such as
became proselytes were suffered to live among them, because there was no danger
of idolatry from them, which even proselytes of the gate renounced; and though
all other abominations are included, yet this is particularly respected, as
appears from the following clause:
which they have done unto their gods; to the honour
of whom not only many superstitious rites and ceremonies were performed, and
idolatrous actions committed, but acts of lewdness, and even unnatural
uncleanness:
so should ye sin against the Lord your God; a sin the
most provoking to him, as the sin of idolatry was; and cause his anger to rise
to such a degree, as to suffer them to be carried captive from the land he gave
them to inherit; and which afterwards, was the case, and that through learning
the manners and customs of these people; see Psalm 106:34.
Deuteronomy 20:19 19 “When you besiege a city for a long time, while making
war against it to take it, you shall not destroy its trees by wielding an ax
against them; if you can eat of them, do not cut them down to use in the siege,
for the tree of the field is man’s food.
YLT
19`When thou layest siege unto
a city many days, to fight against it, to capture it, thou dost not destroy its
trees to force an axe against them, for of them thou dost eat, and them thou
dost not cut down -- for man's [is] the tree of the field -- to go in at thy
presence in the siege.
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"F3ימים רבים "diebus
multis", Pagninus, Montanus, Tigurine version, &c. ; which the Targum
of Jonathan interprets of all the seven days, to make war against it, in order
to subdue it on the sabbath day. Jarchi observes, that "days" signify
two, and "many" three; hence it is said, they do not besiege cities
of the Gentiles less than three days before the sabbath; and he also says it
teaches that peace is opened or proclaimed two or three days first:
thou shall not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against
them; that is, not cut them down with an axe, such trees as were
without the city, and in the power of the besiegers: what sort of trees are
meant appears by what follows:
for thou mayest eat of them; the fruit of them, which
shows them to be fruit trees, and gives a reason for not cutting them down,
since they would be useful in supplying them with what was agreeable to eat:
and thou shalt not cut them down to employ them in the siege; in building
bulwarks and batteries, and making of machines to cast out stones, and the
like, to the annoyance of the besieged; which might as well or better be made
of other trees, as in the next verse:
for the tree of the field is man's life; by the fruit
of which, among other things, his life is supported and maintained: but some
give a different version and sense of this clause, for the tree of the field is
manF4כי האדם עץ השדה "quia homo lignum
agri", Montanus; "quoniam homo est arbor agri", Drusius. , or is
man's; it is his property; but this is not a sufficient reason why it should
not be cut down, whether the property of the besieger, in whose hand it is, or
of the besieged, to whom it belonged: or, "for, is the tree of the field a
man"F5"An putas lignum agri esse hominem?" Munster;
"num enim homo est arbor?" Fagius. ? that has given any reason of
being thus used? no; it is no cause of the war, nor of the holding out of the
siege; and had it a voice, as JosephusF6Antiqu. l. 4. c. 8. sect.
42. observes, it would complain of injury done it, and apologize for itself.
Some supply the negative, "for the tree of the field is not a man";
so the Targum of Onkelos, as well as makes it a comparative form of
speech;"for not as a man is the tree of the field, to come out against
thee in a siege;'the Targum of Jonathan is,
"for
not as a man is the tree of the field, to be hid from you in a siege;'or, as
some in Aben Ezra express it,"it is not as a man, that it should flee from
before thee;'it can neither annoy thee, nor get out of thy way; and therefore
to lift up an axe against it, to cut it down, as if it was a man, and an enemy
that stood in the way, is ridiculous and weak; though the sense of the said
writer himself is the same with that of our version; but what seems best is to
read the words, "for, O man, of the trees of the field" (there is
enough of them) to bring "before thee for a bulwark"F7Vid.
Reinbeck de Accent. Heb. p. 326. ; to make use of, without cutting down fruit
trees: though some understand it metaphorically, that as the tree of the field
is, so is man, or should be, bring forth fruit, that he may not be cut down;
see Matthew 3:10.
PlutarchF8De lside, p. 365. relates, that it was forbidden the
worshippers of Osiris to destroy garden trees.
Deuteronomy 20:20 20 Only the trees which you know are not trees for
food you may destroy and cut down, to build siegeworks against the city that
makes war with you, until it is subdued.
YLT
20Only, the tree, which thou
knowest that it [is] not a fruit-tree, it thou dost destroy, and hast cut down,
and hast built a bulwark against the city which is making with thee war till
thou hast subdued it.
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; if so to do
was of any disservice to the enemy, or of any service to them, as follows; they
had a liberty to destroy them if they would:
and thou shall build bulwarks against the city that maketh war,
until it be subdued; build bulwarks of the trees cut down, and raise batteries with
them, or make machines and engines of the wood of them, to cast stones into the
city to annoy the inhabitants of it, in order to make them surrender, and until
they do it. All this may be an emblem of the axe being to be laid to fruitless
trees in a moral and spiritual sense; and of trees of righteousness, laden with
the fruits of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, being preserved and
never to be cut down or rooted up; see Matthew 3:10.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)