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J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible

Deuteronomy 20:16

But of the cities of these peoples which Yahweh thy God is giving unto thee as an inheritance, shalt thou not save alive, any breathing thing.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Massacre;   War;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Ethics;   War;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Devote, Devoted;   War, Holy War;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Alms;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Canaanites;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Anathema;   Booty;   Jericho;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Anathema;   Breath;   Canaan, History and Religion of;   History;   Joshua, the Book of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Crimes and Punishments;   Deuteronomy;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Peculiarities of the Law of Moses;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Accursed;   Criticism (the Graf-Wellhausen Hypothesis);   Deuteronomy;   Israel, Religion of;   Siege;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Captives;   Gentile;   War;  

Parallel Translations

Geneva Bible (1587)
But of the cities of this people, which the Lorde thy God shall giue thee to inherite, thou shalt saue no person aliue,
Hebrew Names Version
But of the cities of these peoples, that the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance, you shall save alive nothing that breathes;
Easy-to-Read Version
"But when you take cities in the land that the Lord your God is giving you, you must kill everyone.
English Standard Version
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,
American Standard Version
But of the cities of these peoples, that Jehovah thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth;
Bible in Basic English
But in the towns of these peoples whose land the Lord your God is giving you for your heritage, let no living thing be kept from death:
Contemporary English Version
Whenever you capture towns in the land the Lord your God is giving you, be sure to kill all the people and animals.
Complete Jewish Bible
"As for the towns of these peoples, which Adonai your God is giving you as your inheritance, you are not to allow anything that breathes to live.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Howbeit of the cities of these peoples, that the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth,
King James Version (1611)
But of the cities of these people which the Lord thy God doth giue thee for an inheritance, thou shalt saue aliue nothing that breatheth:
Amplified Bible
"Only in the cities of these peoples that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, you shall not leave alive anything that breathes.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Of these ye shall not take any thing alive;
English Revised Version
But of the cities of these peoples, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth:
Berean Standard Bible
However, in the cities of the nations that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, you must not leave alive anything that breathes.
Lexham English Bible
But from the cities of these peoples that Yahweh your God is giving to you as an inheritance, you shall not let anything live that breathes.
Literal Translation
But of the cities of these peoples which Jehovah your God is giving to you as an inheritance, you shall not keep alive any that breathes.
New Century Version
But leave nothing alive in the cities of the land the Lord your God is giving you.
New English Translation
As for the cities of these peoples that the Lord your God is going to give you as an inheritance, you must not allow a single living thing to survive.
New King James Version
"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,
New Living Translation
In those towns that the Lord your God is giving you as a special possession, destroy every living thing.
New Life Bible
But in the cities of these nations that the Lord your God is giving you for your own, do not leave alive anything that breathes.
Douay-Rheims Bible
But of those cities that shall be given thee, thou shalt suffer none at all to live:
George Lamsa Translation
But of the cities of these people which the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance, you shall save alive nothing that breathes;
Good News Translation
"But when you capture cities in the land that the Lord your God is giving you, kill everyone.
New American Standard Bible
"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.
King James Version
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:
Darby Translation
But of the cities of these peoples which Jehovah thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth,
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Sotheli of these citees that schulen be youun to thee, thou schalt not suffre eny to lyue,
Young's Literal Translation
`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;
World English Bible
But of the cities of these peoples, that Yahweh your God gives you for an inheritance, you shall save alive nothing that breathes;
Revised Standard Version
But in the cities of these peoples that the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance, you shall save alive nothing that breathes,
Update Bible Version
But of the cities of these peoples, that Yahweh your God gives you for an inheritance, you shall save alive nothing that breathes;
Webster's Bible Translation
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:
Bishop's Bible (1568)
But of the cities of these nations which the Lorde thy God shall geue thee to inherite, thou shalt saue alyue nothyng that breatheth:
Christian Standard Bible®
However, you must not let any living thing survive among the cities of these people the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
But in the cities of these nacions, which the LORDE thy God shall geue the to enheritauce, thou shalt leaue nothinge alyue that hath breth,
THE MESSAGE
But with the towns of the people that God , your God, is giving you as an inheritance, it's different: don't leave anyone alive. Consign them to holy destruction: the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, obeying the command of God , your God. This is so there won't be any of them left to teach you to practice the abominations that they engage in with their gods and you end up sinning against God , your God.
New Revised Standard
But as for the towns of these peoples that the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, you must not let anything that breathes remain alive.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Only in the cities of these peoples that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, you shall not leave alive anything that breathes.
Legacy Standard Bible
Only in the cities of these peoples that Yahweh your God is giving you as an inheritance, you shall not leave alive anything that breathes.

Contextual Overview

10 When thou shalt come nigh unto a city, to fight against it, - then shalt thou proclaim unto it - peace, 11 and it shall be if peace, be the answer it giveth thee, and it open unto thee, then shall it be, that, all the people that are found therein, shall become thy tributaries and shall serve thee. 12 But if it will not make peace with thee, but will make war with thee, then shalt thou lay siege to it; 13 and Yahweh thy God will deliver it into thy hand, - and thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword; 14 but the women and the little ones and the cattle and all that shall be in the city - all the spoil thereof, shalt thou take as thy prey, - so shalt thou eat the spoil of thine enemies, whom Yahweh thy God hath delivered unto thee. 15 Thus, shalt thou do unto all the cities that are very far away from thee, - which are not of the cities of those nations. 16 But of the cities of these peoples which Yahweh thy God is giving unto thee as an inheritance, shalt thou not save alive, any breathing thing. 17 But thou shalt devote them to destruction - the Hittites and the Amorites the Canaanites and the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, - as Yahweh thy God hath commanded thee: 18 lest they teach you to do, according to all their abominations, which they have done unto their gods, - and so ye sin against Yahweh your God. 19 When thou shalt besiege a city for many days to fight against it, to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by wielding against them an axe, when of them, thou mightest eat, them, there-fore shalt thou not cut down, - for, Is the tree of the field, a man, that it should enter, because of thee into the siege?

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Deuteronomy 7:1-4, Deuteronomy 7:16, Numbers 21:2, Numbers 21:3, Numbers 21:35, Numbers 33:52, Joshua 6:17-21, Joshua 9:24, Joshua 9:27, Joshua 10:28, Joshua 10:40, Joshua 11:11, Joshua 11:12, Joshua 11:14

Reciprocal: Leviticus 27:28 - no devoted Numbers 31:15 - General Deuteronomy 2:33 - the Lord Deuteronomy 2:34 - utterly destroyed Deuteronomy 3:6 - we utterly Deuteronomy 7:2 - utterly Deuteronomy 31:5 - according Joshua 6:21 - utterly Joshua 9:7 - how shall Joshua 11:20 - as the Lord Judges 2:2 - And ye shall 1 Samuel 15:3 - utterly destroy Psalms 106:34 - concerning Ezekiel 20:11 - which

Cross-References

Genesis 20:3
Then God went in unto Abimelech, in a dream of the night, - and said to him, Behold thee dead! because of the woman whom thou hast taken, seeing that, she, is a married woman.
Genesis 20:5
Had not, he himself, said to me, My sister, is she? and even she herself, said, My brother, is he? In the integrity of my heart and in the pureness of my hand, have I done this!
Genesis 20:6
And God said unto him in a dream, I, also, knew, that in the integrity of thy heart, thou didst this, so then, even I myself, withheld thee from sinning against me, for this reason, have I not suffered thee to touch her.
Genesis 20:8
So Ahimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and spake all these words in their ears, and the men feared greatly.
Genesis 20:9
Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said to him, What hast thou done to us? and wherein had I sinned against thee, that thou shouldst have brought in over me and over my kingdom, a sin so great? Deeds, which should not be done, hast thou done with me.
Genesis 24:65
and said unto the servant, Who is this man that is walking in the field to meet us? And the servant said, That, is my lord. So she took the veil and covered herself.
Genesis 26:11
And Abimelech commanded all the people saying, - He that toucheth this man or his wife, shall surely be put to death
Proverbs 12:1
He that loveth correction, loveth knowledge, but, he that hateth reproof, is brutish.
Proverbs 25:12
A ring of gold, and a vessel of precious metal, is a wise reprover, on a hearing ear.
Proverbs 27:5
Better is a rebuke that is open, than love carefully concealed.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

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.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

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 from the tree of the field, is supported in life by it (compare Deuteronomy 24:6). The Egyptians seem invariably to have cut down the fruit-trees in war.


 
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