15 thou shalt surely smite the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, destroying it utterly, and all that is therein, and the cattle thereof, with the edge of the sword.
15 You shall surely smite the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, destroying it utterly and all who are in it and its beasts with the edge of the sword.
15 thou shalt surely smite the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, destroying it utterly, and all that is therein and the cattle thereof, with the edge of the sword.
15 you must completely strike down the inhabitants of that city with the sword. Place it and all that is in it under the ban. Put its animals to the sword.
15 you shall promptly strike down the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword. And you shall destroy it, along with all the things that are in it, even the flocks.
15 Thou shalt forthwith kill the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, and shalt destroy it and all things that are in it, even the cattle.
So the people of Israel that came back to Jerusalem agreed to accept that plan. Ezra the priest chose men that were family leaders. He chose one man from each family group. Each man was chosen by name. On the first day of the tenth month {\cf2\super [59]} those men that were chosen sat down to study each of the cases.
“If any person makes a sacrifice [143] to a false god, then that person should be destroyed. The Lord God is the only one you should make sacrifices to.
“Don’t worship the gods of those people. Don’t ever bow down to those gods. You must never live the way those people live. You must destroy their idols. [151] And you must break the stones that help them remember their gods. [152]
“There is a special kind of gift [468] that people give to the Lord. That gift belongs only to the Lord. That gift cannot be bought back or sold. That gift belongs to the Lord. That type of gift includes people, animals, and fields from the family property.
If you hear this kind of news, you must do all you can to learn if it is true. If you learn that it is true—if you prove that such a terrible thing really did happen—
Also, you must kill that prophet or person that explains dreams. Why? Because he told you to turn against the Lord your God. And it was the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, where you were slaves. That person tried to pull you away from the life the Lord your God commanded you to live. So you must kill that person to remove that evil from your people.
If you hear bad news like this, then you must check it carefully. You must learn if it is true that this terrible thing has really happened in Israel. If you prove that it is true,
We captured all the cities that belonged to King Sihon at that time. We completely destroyed the people in every city—the men, women, and children. We did not leave anyone alive!
You must destroy all the people that the Lord your God helps you defeat. Don’t feel sorry for them. Don’t worship their gods! Why? Because they are a trap—{they will ruin your life}.
The Lord your God will put these nations under your power. And you will defeat them. You must destroy them completely. Don’t make an agreement with them. Don’t show them mercy.
Then the people of Israel burned the whole city. They burned everything in the city except the things made from silver, gold, bronze, and iron. They put those things in the Lord’s treasury.
The animal and the ten horns (ten rulers) you saw will hate the prostitute. They will take everything she has and leave her naked. They will eat her body and burn her with fire.
The people from the family group of Benjamin heard that the people of Israel were meeting together in Mizpah. The people of Israel said, “Tell us how this terrible thing happened.”
The men of Israel went back to the land of Benjamin. They killed the people in every city they came to. They also killed all the animals. They destroyed everything they could find. They burned every city they came to.