Neville Goddard on Deuteronomy 20:9-12 - Mystical Bible Interpretation

Read Deuteronomy 20 in context

Scripture Focus

9And it shall be, when the officers have made an end of speaking unto the people, that they shall make captains of the armies to lead the people.

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:

Deuteronomy 20:9-12

Biblical Context

These verses describe a military sequence, but Neville would frame it as an inner negotiation: proclaim peace to an approaching city, then decide by response whether inner cooperation awaits or whether you persist.

Neville's Inner Vision

Let the city near you be a state of mind, not a place. The officers and captains are the new ideas and feelings you appoint to lead your life. When you proclaim peace to that inner city, you test whether your heart is ready to welcome cooperation. If the doors open, all within you align to serve the new rule; the prior beliefs become tributaries and acknowledge your sovereignty. If peace is refused, you press on with revision—alternate images, reframe the goal, feel the resolve until fear yields. The I AM, your eternal awareness, is the commander; the Kingdom of God within becomes tangible as you dwell in the feeling that your imagination has already created the outcome. This is how the text translates: you are not conquering a city but converting a state of consciousness by the imagination you hold and the feeling you accept.

Practice This Now

Imaginative act: Sit quietly, assume the feeling that this inner city has already opened in peace; declare, 'I am at peace with this situation,' and dwell in the sensation of all parts of me serving the higher purpose.