BRAGADAYJAH
566
Final
Instructions as to War.
Anyone
does not understand the mind of God and in particular God’s absolute aversion
to sin, may have a difficult time reconciling with what follows. But God’s instructions to his people with
regard to the treatment of the conquered nations is best understood in light
of God’s desire to have his people
absolutely separated from the ways of sinful men and evil people. So God instructed His people, to deal with the
cities that they conquer with absolute severity to the end that they “destroy
everything that breathe.” “Thou shalt
utterly destroy them, namely, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the
Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites, as the Lord has commanded you.”
and
here comes the rationale; ”that they teach you not to do after all their
abomination which they have done unto their gods, and cause you to sin against
your God.”
“When
you besiege a city over a long period of time, in the course of making war
against it in order to take it, thou shall not destroy the fruit trees by
cutting them down with axes, that you may eat of them during the siege. Only
the trees which you know are not fruit trees may you cut down and use for
strengthening your defenses against the city until it is subdued.
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