Negative Commandment #604 of 613
Do not destroy fruit trees even during the siege
Commandment #604 — a prohibition from Deuteronomy 20:19, classified under War and Battles in the 613 commandments of the Torah.
Scripture
“"When you besiege a city a long time, to make war against it in order to capture it, you shall not destroy its trees by swinging an axe against them; for you may eat from them, and you shall not cut them down. For is the tree of the field a man, that it should be besieged by you?”
— Deuteronomy 20:19
Hebrew
יט כִּי-תָצוּר אֶל-עִיר יָמִים רַבִּים לְהִלָּחֵם עָלֶיהָ לְתָפְשָׂהּ, לֹא-תַשְׁחִית אֶת-עֵצָהּ לִנְדֹּחַ עָלָיו גַּרְזֶן--כִּי מִמֶּנּוּ תֹאכֵל, וְאֹתוֹ לֹא תִכְרֹת: כִּי הָאָדָם עֵץ הַשָּׂדֶה, לָבֹא מִפָּנֶיךָ בַּמָּצוֹר.
Greek (Septuagint)
19 Ἐὰν δὲ περικαθίσῃς περὶ πόλιν ἡμέρας πλείους ἐκπολεμῆσαι αὐτὴν εἰς κατάλημψιν αὐτῆς, οὐχὶ ἐξολεθρεύσεις τὰ δένδρα αὐτῆς ἐπιβαλεῖν ἐπ᾿ αὐτὰ σίδηρον, ἀλλ᾿ ἢ ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῦ φάγῃ, αὐτὸ δὲ οὐκ ἐκκόψεις. μὴ ἄνθρωπος τὸ ξύλον τὸ ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ εἰσελθεῖν ἀπὸ προσώπου σου εἰς τὸν χάρακα;
Classification
- Type
- Negative (Thou Shalt Not)
- Category
- War and Battles
- Book
- deuteronomy
- Chapter
- 20
Scholarly References
- Parashah
- Shoftim
- Sefer HaChinuch
- #529
- Mishneh Torah
- JudgesKings and Wars
Related Commandments in “War and Battles”
#164: Do not prevent a third-generation Egyptian convert from marrying into the Covenant people
Deuteronomy 23:7
#165: Do not refrain from marrying a third generation Edomite convert
Deuteronomy 23:7
#596: Destroy the seven Canaanite nations
Deuteronomy 20:17
#597: Do not let any of the seven Canaanite nations remain alive
Deuteronomy 20:16
#598: Wipe out the descendants of Amalek
Deuteronomy 25:19
#599: Remember what Amalek did to the Israelites
Deuteronomy 25:17
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