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Deuteronomy 20

Deut. 20:19 KJV (With Strong’s)

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19

When 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 (πfor the tree of the field is man’s life) ρto employ them in the siege:

π

or, for, O man, the tree of the field is to be employed in the siege.

ρ

to go from before thee.

More on:

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Ax; Axe,

Life,

Man,

Siege,

War

Cross References

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thou shalt not.

Matt. 3:10• ¹⁰And already the axe is applied to the root of the trees; every tree therefore not producing good fruit is cut down and cast into the fire. (Matt. 3:10)

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Matt. 7:15‑20• ¹⁵But beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but within are ravening wolves.
¹⁶By their fruits ye shall know them. Do men gather a bunch of grapes from thorns, or from thistles figs?
¹⁷So every good tree produces good fruits, but the worthless tree produces bad fruits.
¹⁸A good tree cannot produce bad fruits, nor a worthless tree produce good fruits.
¹⁹Every tree not producing good fruit is cut down and cast into the fire.
²⁰By their fruits then surely ye shall know them. (Matt. 7:15‑20)

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Matt. 21:19• ¹⁹And seeing one fig-tree in the way, he came to it and found on it nothing but leaves only. And he says to it, Let there be never more fruit of thee for ever. And the fig-tree was immediately dried up. (Matt. 21:19)

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Luke 13:7‑9• ⁷And he said to the vinedresser, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig-tree and find none: cut it down; why does it also render the ground useless?
⁸But he answering says to him, Sir, let it alone for this year also, until I shall dig about it and put dung,
⁹and if it shall bear fruit--but if not, after that thou shalt cut it down. (Luke 13:7‑9)

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John 15:2‑8• ²As to every branch in me not bearing fruit, he takes it away; and as to every one bearing fruit, he purges it that it may bring forth more fruit.
³Ye are already clean by reason of the word which I have spoken to you.
⁴Abide in me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abide in the vine, thus neither can ye unless ye abide in me.
⁵I am the vine, ye are the branches. He that abides in me and I in him, *he* bears much fruit; for without me ye can do nothing.
⁶Unless any one abide in me he is cast out as the branch, and is dried up; and they gather them and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
⁷If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will and it shall come to pass to you.
⁸In this is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit, and ye shall become disciples of mine. (John 15:2‑8)

for the tree, etc.

or, for, O man, the tree of the field isto be employed in the siege. The original is exceedingly difficult.

The LXX. has it, "Is the tree in the field a man, to enter the trench before thee?" The Latin Vulgate:

"For it is a tree, and not a man, neither can it increase the number of those who war against thee;" Onkelos, "For the tree of the field is not as a man, that it should come against thee in the siege;" and to the same purpose the Arabic, Philo, and Josephus who say, "If trees could speak, they would cry out, that it is unjust that they, who were no cause of the war, should suffer the miseries of it."

However rendered, the sense is sufficiently clear:

and it is a merciful provision to spare all the fruit trees for the support of both the besieged and besiegers.

Deut. 26:6• ⁶And the Egyptians evil-entreated us, and afflicted us, and laid upon us hard bondage; (Deut. 26:6)

to employ, etc.

Heb. to go from before thee.

J. N. Darby Translation

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19

When thou shalt besiege a city many days, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by lifting up an axe against them; for thou canst eat of them; and thou shalt not cut them down, for is the tree of the field a man that it should be besiegedb?

JND Translation Notes

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b

Others, "not cut them down (for the tree of the field is man's [life]), to employ them in the siege."