Deuteronomy 20:1-4

LESSON SIXTEEN Deuteronomy 20:1-20; Deuteronomy 21:10-14; Deuteronomy 23:9-14

g. RULES FOR CONDUCTING THE HOLY WAR
(Deuteronomy 20:1-20; Deuteronomy 21:10-14; Deuteronomy 23:9-14)

(1) ENCOURAGEMENT OF THE PRIEST (Deuteronomy 20:1-4)

When thou goest forth to battle against thine enemies, and seest horses, and chariots, and a people more than thou, thou shalt not be afraid of them; for Jehovah thy God is with thee, who brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. 2 And it shall be, when ye draw nigh unto battle, that the priests shall approach and speak unto the people, 3 and shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel, ye draw nigh this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your heart faint; fear not, nor tremble, neither be ye affrighted at them; 4 for Jehovah your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.

THOUGHT QUESTIONS 20:1-4

330.

It is one thing to say be not afraid, it is another matter to fulfill this attitude. What element makes it possible?

331.

What was the particular job for the priest of these verses?

332.

This was truly a holy war. What so characterized it?

333.

There must be a lesson in this for other nations, What is it?

AMPLIFIED TRANSLATION 20:1-4

When you go forth to battle against your enemies, and see horses and chariots and an army greater than your own, do not be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt, is with you.
2 And when you come near to the battle, the priest shall approach and speak to the men,
3 And shall say to them, Hear, O Israel, you draw near this day to battle against your enemies; let not your [minds and] hearts faint; fear not, and do not tremble, or be terrified (and in dread) because of them.

4 For the Lord your God is He Who goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you. [1 Samuel 17:45.]

COMMENT 20:1-4

The instructions of this chapter are peculiar to Deuteronomy. As the people of God, Israel was not a warlike nation; they were rather to abstain from warfare, and as a general rule to cultivate the arts of peace. But they had before them the prospect of a serious and protracted conflict before they could occupy the land which God assigned to them; and they might in future years have to go to war to maintain their independence and repel aggression. In view of this, instructions are here given regarding military services (Pulpit).

THOU SHALT NOT BE AFRAID (Deuteronomy 20:1)See Deuteronomy 3:22, Deuteronomy 7:17-24, etc. See also our remarks under Deuteronomy 1:30.

THE PRIEST (Deuteronomy 20:2)The Hebrew word Kohen is consistently so translated, and normally refers to that body of Levites that ministered to the Lord (Deuteronomy 18:1, notes). If that is so here, the priest designated to accompany Israel to war would call on Jehovah for help, and also act as exhorter and inspiration to the soldiersa chaplain. This was the Lord'S war, fought by his people and against his enemies![38] See Numbers 31:6, 1 Samuel 4:3-4, Numbers 10:8-9, 2 Chronicles 13:10-12.

[38] We see no need to give priest an abnormal meaning here. Gesenius remarks that there is a very old opinion of Hebrew writers, that Kohen also signifies prince. But the places in scripture where that definition might apply are, at best, few, and even those few are questioned. His function here was basically a religious one.. the field preacher, not the high priest (Lange).

It was also the custom for a sacrifice to be offered (1 Samuel 13) as a further appeal for God's blessing in battle. And sometimes Jehovah was consulted by the high priest before war, Judges 20:27-28. It should be seen from all this that Israel's warespecially those having to do with conquering their promised landwere Holy Wars. Because of this, God's chosen ministers were closely involved in its progress and success.