Pray Thru the Bible

God Speaks

“When you go out to fight your enemies and you face horses and chariots and an army greater than your own, do not be afraid. The Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, is with you! ² When you prepare for battle, the priest must come forward to speak to the troops. ³ He will say to them, ‘Listen to me, all you men of Israel! Do not be afraid as you go out to fight your enemies today! Do not lose heart or panic or tremble before them. ⁴ For the Lord your God is going with you! He will fight for you against your enemies, and he will give you victory!’

⁵ “Then the officers of the army must address the troops and say, ‘Has anyone here just built a new house but not yet dedicated it? If so, you may go home! You might be killed in the battle, and someone else would dedicate your house. ⁶ Has anyone here just planted a vineyard but not yet eaten any of its fruit? If so, you may go home! You might die in battle, and someone else would eat the first fruit. ⁷ Has anyone here just become engaged to a woman but not yet married her? Well, you may go home and get married! You might die in the battle, and someone else would marry her.’

⁸ “Then the officers will also say, ‘Is anyone here afraid or worried? If you are, you may go home before you frighten anyone else.’ ⁹ When the officers have finished speaking to their troops, they will appoint the unit commanders.

¹⁰ “As you approach a town to attack it, you must first offer its people terms for peace. ¹¹ If they accept your terms and open the gates to you, then all the people inside will serve you in forced labor. ¹² But if they refuse to make peace and prepare to fight, you must attack the town. ¹³ When the Lord your God hands the town over to you, use your swords to kill every man in the town. ¹⁴ But you may keep for yourselves all the women, children, livestock, and other plunder. You may enjoy the plunder from your enemies that the Lord your God has given you.

¹⁵ “But these instructions apply only to distant towns, not to the towns of the nations in the land you will enter. ¹⁶ In those towns that the Lord your God is giving you as a special possession, destroy every living thing. ¹⁷ You must completely destroy the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, just as the Lord your God has commanded you. ¹⁸ This will prevent the people of the land from teaching you to imitate their detestable customs in the worship of their gods, which would cause you to sin deeply against the Lord your God.

¹⁹ “When you are attacking a town and the war drags on, you must not cut down the trees with your axes. You may eat the fruit, but do not cut down the trees. Are the trees your enemies, that you should attack them? ²⁰ You may only cut down trees that you know are not valuable for food. Use them to make the equipment you need to attack the enemy town until it falls.

Source: New Living Translation: BibleGateway.com

We Respond

Reflection: Consider the following questions regarding Deuteronomy 20: 

1. What does this chapter tell me about God?

2. What does this chapter tell me about the human beings He created?

Here is one possible answer to each of these questions. Ask the Holy Spirit if there are any others for you personally to ponder.  

1. God expects there will be wars and directs His people as to how to conduct themselves in such cases. 

2. People have situations and obligations which could interfere with their serving whole-heartedly as soldiers. 

Prayer:

3. How might I pray regarding Deuteronomy 20?  

Dear Sovereign LORD, thank You that You know all our circumstances and inclinations. You know all my fears and motivations. Thank You that You are always with me, and You will always give me victory, if I trust You and do as You direct. Help me to listen to and obey the spiritual and physical leaders You put over me (as long as they are following You). May these leaders confront and remove those who are disheartened and/or would discourage others. May I first seek peace with people I meet: help me to strive for common ground and their wellbeing, but if they are belligerent, contentious, or display evil intentions, give me the courage and strength to stand up against and totally defeat them. Show me the fruitful “trees” that I need to preserve and protect for future use. Alert me to the resources You provide for the battles I face. I desire to do everything for Your glory, LORD. AMEN     

Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)

4. What action does the LORD want me to take in response to Deuteronomy 20?

• I will not let myself give in to fear when the LORD calls me to engage in physical or spiritual battle.  
• I will ask God who my true enemies are and how to deal with them.
• I will study the Scriptures to gain a better understanding of God so that I will fear Him more than anything that may frighten me.
• I will ask someone who truly knows them about the “rules of engagement” followed by my nation’s military.

Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.