and shall tell them, “Hear, Israel, you draw near today to battle against your enemies. Don’t let your heart faint! Don’t be afraid, nor tremble, neither be scared of them;
Parallel Translations
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and shall tell them, “Hear, Israel, you draw near today to battle against your enemies. Don’t let your heart faint! Don’t be afraid, nor tremble, neither be scared of them;
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And shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them;
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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 be alarmed, neither be ye affrighted at them;
Examined in Scripture Analysis
Commandments (1)
The laws of the Torah, each cited and shown as a primary source.
Cross-references (22)
Passages linked to Deuteronomy 20:3 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Psalms 3:6 I will not be afraid of tens of thousands of people who have set themselves against me on every side.
- Hebrews 13:6 So that with good courage we say, “The Lord is my helper. I will not fear. What can man do to me?”
- Revelation 2:10 Don’t be afraid of the things which you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested; and you will have oppression for ten days. Be faithful to death, and I will give you the crown of life.
- Joshua 23:10 One man of you shall chase a thousand; for it is Yahweh your God who fights for you, as he spoke to you.
- Psalms 27:1-3 Yahweh is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? Yahweh is the strength of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid? When evildoers came at me to eat up my flesh, even my adversaries and my foes, they stumbled and fell. Though an army should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear. Though war should rise against me, even then I will be confident.
- Isaiah 8:12-13 “Don’t say, ‘A conspiracy!’ concerning all about which this people say, ‘A conspiracy!’ neither fear their threats, nor be terrorized. Yahweh of Armies is who you must respect as holy. He is the one you must fear. He is the one you must dread.
- Matthew 10:28 Don’t be afraid of those who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul. Rather, fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.
- Ephesians 6:11-18 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world’s rulers of the darkness of this age, and against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having the utility belt of truth buckled around your waist, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having fitted your feet with the preparation of the Good News of peace, above all, taking up the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; with all prayer and requests, praying at all times in the Spirit, and being watchful to this end in all perseverance and requests for all the saints:
- 1 Timothy 6:12 Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you confessed the good confession in the sight of many witnesses.
- Hebrews 12:12-13 Therefore lift up the hands that hang down and the feeble knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed.
- Matthew 10:31 Therefore don’t be afraid. You are of more value than many sparrows.
- Isaiah 28:16 Therefore the Lord Yahweh says, “Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone of a sure foundation. He who believes shall not act hastily.
- Isaiah 35:3-4 Strengthen the weak hands, and make the feeble knees firm. Tell those who have a fearful heart, “Be strong! Don’t be afraid! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, God’s retribution. He will come and save you.
- Isaiah 41:10-14 Don’t you be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. Yes, I will help you. Yes, I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness. Behold, all those who are incensed against you will be disappointed and confounded. Those who strive with you will be like nothing, and shall perish. You will seek them, and won’t find them, even those who contend with you. Those who war against you will be as nothing, as a non-existent thing. For I, Yahweh your God, will hold your right hand, saying to you, ‘Don’t be afraid. I will help you.’ Don’t be afraid, you worm Jacob, and you men of Israel. I will help you,” says Yahweh. “Your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
- Isaiah 57:7-8 On a high and lofty mountain you have set your bed. You also went up there to offer sacrifice. You have set up your memorial behind the doors and the posts, for you have exposed yourself to someone besides me, and have gone up. You have enlarged your bed and made you a covenant with them. You loved what you saw on their bed.
- Matthew 8:26 He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then he got up, rebuked the wind and the sea, and there was a great calm.
- Matthew 10:16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep among wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.
- Mark 16:6 He said to them, “Don’t be amazed. You seek Jesus, the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen. He is not here. Behold, the place where they laid him!
- Mark 16:18 they will take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it will in no way hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
- Acts 18:9-10 The Lord said to Paul in the night by a vision, “Don’t be afraid, but speak and don’t be silent; for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many people in this city.”
- Acts 27:24 saying, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul. You must stand before Caesar. Behold, God has granted you all those who sail with you.’
- 1 Thessalonians 5:15 See that no one returns evil for evil to anyone, but always follow after that which is good for one another and for all.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (6 sources)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Deu 20:3 And shall say unto them, Hear, O…
Deu 20:3 And shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them;
Ver. 4. For the Lord your God is he.] Quid metuit homo in sinu Dei positus, Deo armatus? Creatures of an inferior nature will be courageous in the presence of their masters: and shall not men, when they have God with them? Xerxes was wont to pitch his tent on high, and stand looking on his army when in fight, to encourage them. So God.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Faint, Heb. be soft or tender. Softness or tenderness…
Faint, Heb. be soft or tender. Softness or tenderness of heart towards God is commended, 2Ki 22:19, but towards enemies it is condemned, here and Deu 20:8; Lev 26:36; 2Ch 13:7; Isa 7:4.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And shall say unto them, hear, O Israel,.... Exciting…
And shall say unto them, hear, O Israel,.... Exciting their attention to what he was about to say, and which, as Jarchi observes, was spoken in the holy tongue, or in the Hebrew language:
you approach this day unto battle against your enemies; were marching or ready to march, preparing to engage with them, and a battle seemed near at hand:
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let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them; many words are made use of to animate them against those fears which the strength, number, and appearance of their enemies, would be apt to cause in them. Jarchi observes, that here are four exhortations, answerable to four things which the kings of the nations do (in order to inject terror into their enemies); they shake their shields, to clash them one against another, that hearing their noise they may be afraid of them and flee; they prance their horses, and make them neigh, to cause the noise of the hoofs of their horses to be heard; they shout with their voices, and blow with their trumpets: and accordingly these several clauses are so interpreted in the Misnah (e)""and let not your hearts faint"; at the neighing of the horses, and the brightness of swords: "fear not"; at the clashing of shields: "and do not tremble"; at the sound of trumpets: "neither be ye terrified" at the voice of shouting;''and no doubt but it takes in everything that has a tendency to cause fear, faintness, and dismay, which they are cautioned against.
(e) Misn. Sotah, c. 8. sect. 1.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Back. Hebrew, "do not quake," (Haydock) or fall into…
Back. Hebrew, "do not quake," (Haydock) or fall into disorder, hurry, &c.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 3. fear not, etc.] neither the standing phrase of…
3. fear not, etc.] neither the standing phrase of Pl. nor that of Sg.: see on Deu_1:29.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (3) Let not your hearts faint, fear not.—In these…
(3) Let not your hearts faint, fear not.—In these words Isaiah strengthened Ahaz (Deu_7:4): “fear not, neither be faint-hearted.”
Tremble.—As in the Margin, “make haste.” (Comp. 2Sa_4:4, and 2Ki_7:15.)
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Be ye terrified.—A strong word. The idea is, “do not even be unnerved, much less alarmed, at the sight of them.”
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.