1When you roll out to battle against your enemies and see horses, chariots, and a squad way bigger than yours, don’t sweat it: the Lord your God is with you, the one who brought you outta Egypt.

2And when you get close to the battle, the priest's gotta step up and talk to the crew,

3And he’ll say, “Yo, Israel, you’re about to pop off in battle against your enemies: don’t let your hearts drop, fear not, and don’t be shook by them;

4For the Lord your God is rolling with you, fighting for you against your enemies, to save you.

5And the officers will tell the people, “What dude built a new crib and hasn’t dedicated it? He can bounce back home, or he might not make it in the battle, and someone else will take it.

6And what guy planted a vineyard but hasn’t tasted the vibes? Let him dip back home, or he might not make it in the battle, and someone else will enjoy it.

7And what dude is engaged but hasn’t married his girl? Let him go back home, or he might not make it in the battle, and someone else will take her.

8And the officers will keep talking to the people, saying, “What guy is scared and has weak vibes? Let him go back home, or his bros might catch his fear too.

9And when the officers finish talking to the people, they’ll set captains to lead the squad.

10When you get close to a city to fight it, shout peace to it.

11And if it responds with peace and opens the door, then all the peeps inside will be chill with you and serve you.

12But if they don’t vibe with peace and wanna throw down, then you gotta lay siege to it:

13And when the Lord your God hands it over to you, you’ll take out every male with the sword:

14But the women, kids, cattle, and all the loot, you’ll take for yourself; you’ll enjoy the spoils from your enemies that the Lord your God gave you.

15This is how you’ll roll with all the cities that are far away from you, not from the cities of these nations.

16But for the cities of these people that the Lord your God gives you as your inheritance, you won’t leave a single breath alive:

17You’ll totally wipe them out; like, the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites; as the Lord your God commanded you:

18So they don’t teach you to do their wild stuff that they did to their gods; that’s how you’d mess up against the Lord your God.

19When you’re laying siege to a city for a long time, don’t wreck the trees by chopping them down: you can munch on them, but don’t cut them down (the trees are life) to use them in the siege:

20Just the trees you know aren’t for food, you’ll destroy and chop down; and you’ll build defenses against the city that’s going to war with you until it’s taken down.

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.

2And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people,

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;

4For the Lord your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

10When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it.

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.

12And if it will make no peace with thee, but will make war against thee, then thou shalt besiege it:

13And when the Lord thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword:

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.

15Thus shalt thou do unto all the cities which are very far off from thee, which are not of the cities of these nations.

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:

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:

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.

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:

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.