Neville Goddard on Deuteronomy 20:10-20 - Mystical Bible Interpretation

Read Deuteronomy 20 in context

Scripture Focus

10When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it.

11And it shall be, if it make thee answer of peace, and open unto thee, then it shall be, that all the people that is found therein shall be tributaries unto thee, and they shall serve thee.

12And if it will make no peace with thee, but will make war against thee, then thou shalt besiege it:

13And when the LORD thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword:

14But the women, and the little ones, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, even all the spoil thereof, shalt thou take unto thyself; and thou shalt eat the spoil of thine enemies, which the LORD thy God hath given thee.

15Thus shalt thou do unto all the cities which are very far off from thee, which are not of the cities of these nations.

16But of the cities of these people, which the LORD thy God doth give thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth:

17But thou shalt utterly destroy them; namely, the Hittites, and the Amorites, the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee:

18That they teach you not to do after all their abominations, which they have done unto their gods; so should ye sin against the LORD your God.

19When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them: for thou mayest eat of them, and thou shalt not cut them down (for the tree of the field is man's life) to employ them in the siege:

20Only the trees which thou knowest that they be not trees for meat, thou shalt destroy and cut them down; and thou shalt build bulwarks against the city that maketh war with thee, until it be subdued.

Deuteronomy 20:10-20

Biblical Context

These verses describe a policy of negotiation first, then conquest. Offer peace, and if accepted, the people become tributaries and serve; if not, besiege and defeat them, taking spoil, while sparing life only where it serves the aim of subduing the land.

Neville's Inner Vision

The city is a symbol of a state of consciousness. As I approach a fortress of limitation with the I AM, I declare peace to it, and if the image answers peace and opens its gates, all within become tributaries to my wider life, bringing service, energy, and abundance. If the old belief resists, I endure the siege not with complaint but with unwavering attention, pruning away the habit that feeds the former fear until the belief yields. I claim the spoil—the new strength, clarity, and vitality—knowing these are mine by the God within. I do not destroy life but remove that which feeds the old worship of fear, and I guard the living tree of mind, cutting only what would undermine the city’s subjugation. By obedience to I AM and building bulwarks of stillness, the inner city submits and the outer world follows.

Practice This Now

In a present challenge, declare peace to the inner city of belief around it, feel the gates open, and allow abundance to enter. Then revise by affirming: 'This conflict is resolved now; I am secure, powerful, and at peace within.'