Deuteronomy 13:16

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

And you shall gather all the plunder of it into the middle of the street there, and shall burn with fire the city, and all the plunder there every whit, unto Jehovah your God: and it shall be a heap for ever; it shall not be built again.

Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

הַכֵּ֣ה תַכֶּ֗ה אֶת־יֹ֥שְׁבֵ֛י הָעִ֥יר *ההוא **הַהִ֖יא לְפִי־חָ֑רֶב הַחֲרֵ֨ם אֹתָ֧הּ וְאֶת־כָּל־אֲשֶׁר־בָּ֛הּ וְאֶת־בְּהֶמְתָּ֖הּ לְפִי־חָֽרֶב׃

Transliteration

hakkēh takkeh ʾet-yōšĕbê the-hāʿîr the-hahîʾ to-lĕpî-ḥāreb haḥărēm ʾōtāh and-ʾet-all-which-in-her and-ʾet-bĕhemtāh to-lĕpî-ḥāreb.

Grammar Details

*hakkēh*: hiphil infinitive absolute - surely striking
*takkeh*: hiphil imperfect, 2nd person masculine singular - you shall strike
*yōšĕbê*: qal participle, masculine plural construct - inhabitants of
*hāʿîr*: noun, feminine singular with definite article - the city
*hahîʾ*: demonstrative pronoun, feminine singular - that
*lĕpî*: preposition lamed + noun, masculine singular construct - by the mouth of
*ḥāreb*: noun, feminine singular - sword
*haḥărēm*: hiphil infinitive absolute - utterly destroying
*ʾōtāh*: direct object marker with 3rd person feminine singular suffix - it
*bĕhemtāh*: noun, feminine singular with 3rd person feminine singular suffix - its cattle

Word Meanings

*nākāh*: strike/hit/smite/kill
*yāšab*: dwell/inhabit/sit
*ʿîr*: city/town
*peh*: mouth/edge/opening
*ḥereb*: sword/knife
*ḥāram*: devote to destruction/utterly destroy
*bĕhēmāh*: beast/cattle/animal

ℹ️

About this Translation

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

Formal EquivalenceSource: American Standard VersionBest for: Word studies and original-language research

🎯 Translation Approach

A highly literal, word-for-word translation (ASV, 1901) augmented with Strong's numbering to connect English words to underlying Hebrew and Greek terms for study.

Word-for-word

5/5

Readability

2/5

💎 Distinctive Features

Integrated Strong's numbering: Links English terms to underlying Hebrew and Greek words for deeper lexical study.
Formal equivalence: Prioritizes close alignment with source-language forms and structures.
Divine name rendering: Frequently renders the Tetragrammaton as Jehovah in the Old Testament, following ASV tradition.
Study-focused formatting: Optimized for reference and research rather than casual reading.

✅ Strengths

High fidelity to original languages
Includes Strong's numbers for precise word study
Consistent lexical choices aid exegesis
Stable, longstanding scholarly text

⚠️ Considerations

Archaic language reduces readability
Older textual basis compared to some modern translations
Strong's numbers are a concordance index, not full lexical definitions

👥 Who is this for?

Ideal for

Pastors and teachers
Seminary students
Serious Bible students
Readers conducting word studies
Those referencing Hebrew/Greek tools

Consider alternatives for

Casual readers
Children and early teens
ESL learners seeking simple English
Readers preferring contemporary language

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Additional Resources

Referenced Verses

Josh 8:28 : 28 So Joshua burnt Ai, and made it a heap for ever, even a desolation, unto this day.
Jer 49:2 : 2 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that I will cause an alarm of war to be heard against Rabbah of the children of Ammon; and it shall become a desolate heap, and her daughters shall be burned with fire: then shall Israel possess them that did possess him, saith Jehovah.
Isa 17:1 : 1 The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.
Isa 25:2 : 2 For thou hast made of a city a heap, of a fortified city a ruin, a palace of strangers to be no city; it shall never be built.
Josh 6:24 : 24 And they burnt the city with fire, and all that was therein; only the silver, and the gold, and the vessels of brass and of iron, they put into the treasury of the house of Jehovah.
Josh 6:26 : 26 And Joshua charged them with an oath at that time, saying, Cursed be the man before Jehovah, that riseth up and buildeth this city Jericho: with the loss of his first-born shall he lay the foundation thereof, and with the loss of his youngest son shall he set up the gates of it.
Mic 1:6 : 6 Therefore I will make Samaria as a heap of the field, [and] as places for planting vineyards; and I will pour down the stones thereof into the valley, and I will uncover the foundations thereof.
Num 21:2-3 : 2 And Israel vowed a vow unto Jehovah, and said, If thou wilt indeed deliver this people into my hand, then I will utterly destroy their cities. 3 And Jehovah hearkened to the voice of Israel, and delivered up the Canaanites; and they utterly destroyed them and their cities: and the name of the place was called Hormah.

Similar Verses (AI)

These verses are found using AI-powered semantic similarity based on meaning and context. Results may occasionally include unexpected connections.

Deut 13:15
85%
15you shall surely strike the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, destroying it utterly, and all that is in it and the cattle there, with the edge of the sword.
Deut 20:13-17
5 verses
79%
13and when Jehovah thy God delivereth it into thy hand, 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 for a prey unto thyself; and thou shalt eat the spoil of thine enemies, which Jehovah 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 peoples, that Jehovah thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth;
17but thou shalt utterly destroy them: the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite; as Jehovah thy God hath commanded thee;
Deut 13:17
78%
17And there shall cleave nothing of the devoted thing to your hand; that Jehovah may turn from the fierceness of his anger, and show you mercy, and have compassion upon you, and multiply you, as he has sworn unto your fathers;
Josh 8:7-8
2 verses
76%
7and ye shall rise up from the ambush, and take possession of the city: for Jehovah your God will deliver it into your hand.
8And it shall be, when ye have seized upon the city, that ye shall set the city on fire; according to the word of Jehovah shall ye do: see, I have commanded you.
Josh 8:27-28
2 verses
76%
27Only the cattle and the spoil of that city Israel took for prey unto themselves, according unto the word of Jehovah which he commanded Joshua.
28So Joshua burnt Ai, and made it a heap for ever, even a desolation, unto this day.
Isa 25:2
76%
2For thou hast made of a city a heap, of a fortified city a ruin, a palace of strangers to be no city; it shall never be built.
Jer 50:26
75%
26Come against her from the utmost border; open her store-houses; cast her up as heaps, and destroy her utterly; let nothing of her be left.
Josh 6:24
75%
24And they burnt the city with fire, and all that was therein; only the silver, and the gold, and the vessels of brass and of iron, they put into the treasury of the house of Jehovah.
Num 31:10
74%
10And all their cities in the places wherein they dwelt, and all their encampments, they burnt with fire.
Jer 31:40
74%
40And the whole valley of the dead bodies and of the ashes, and all the fields unto the brook Kidron, unto the corner of the horse gate toward the east, shall be holy unto Jehovah; it shall not be plucked up, nor thrown down any more for ever.
Jer 51:26
74%
26And they shall not take of thee a stone for a corner, nor a stone for foundations; but thou shalt be desolate for ever, saith Jehovah.
Jer 34:22
74%
22Behold, I will command, saith Jehovah, and cause them to return to this city; and they shall fight against it, and take it, and burn it with fire: and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation, without inhabitant.
Deut 12:2-3
2 verses
73%
2Ye shall surely destroy all the places wherein the nations that ye shall dispossess served their gods, upon the high mountains, and upon the hills, and under every green tree:
3and ye shall break down their altars, and dash in pieces their pillars, and burn their Asherim with fire; and ye shall hew down the graven images of their gods; and ye shall destroy their name out of that place.
Josh 11:13
73%
13But as for the cities that stood on their mounds, Israel burned none of them, save Hazor only; that did Joshua burn.
Deut 7:25
73%
25The graven images of their gods shall ye burn with fire: thou shalt not covet the silver or the gold that is on them, nor take it unto thee, lest thou be snared therein; for it is an abomination to Jehovah thy God.
Ezek 26:12
73%
12And they shall make a spoil of thy riches, and make a prey of thy merchandise; and they shall break down thy walls, and destroy thy pleasant houses; and they shall lay thy stones and thy timber and thy dust in the midst of the waters.
Jer 17:3
73%
3O my mountain in the field, I will give thy substance and all thy treasures for a spoil, [and] thy high places, because of sin, throughout all thy borders.
Jer 19:12
73%
12Thus will I do unto this place, saith Jehovah, and to the inhabitants thereof, even making this city as Topheth:
Deut 7:2
73%
2and when Jehovah thy God shall deliver them up before thee, and thou shalt smite them; then thou shalt utterly destroy them: thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor show mercy unto them;
Ezek 35:9
73%
9I will make thee a perpetual desolation, and thy cities shall not be inhabited; and ye shall know that I am Jehovah.
Josh 7:15
73%
15And it shall be, that he that is taken with the devoted thing shall be burnt with fire, he and all that he hath; because he hath transgressed the covenant of Jehovah, and because he hath wrought folly in Israel.
Deut 7:16
73%
16And thou shalt consume all the peoples that Jehovah thy God shall deliver unto thee; thine eye shall not pity them: neither shalt thou serve their gods; for that will be a snare unto thee.
Jer 5:10
72%
10Go ye up upon her walls, and destroy; but make not a full end: take away her branches; for they are not Jehovah's.
Mic 5:14
72%
14and I will pluck up thine Asherim out of the midst of thee; and I will destroy thy cities.
Jer 51:62
72%
62and say, O Jehovah, thou hast spoken concerning this place, to cut it off, that none shall dwell therein, neither man nor beast, but that it shall be desolate for ever.
Deut 6:10
72%
10And it shall be, when Jehovah thy God shall bring thee into the land which he sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give thee, great and goodly cities, which thou buildest not,
Mic 1:7
72%
7And all her graven images shall be beaten to pieces, and all her hires shall be burned with fire, and all her idols will I lay desolate; for of the hire of a harlot hath she gathered them, and unto the hire of a harlot shall they return.
Mic 3:12
72%
12Therefore shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.
Deut 3:6
72%
6And we utterly destroyed them, as we did unto Sihon king of Heshbon, utterly destroying every inhabited city, with the women and the little ones.
Num 33:52
72%
52then ye shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their figured [stones], and destroy all their molten images, and demolish all their high places:
Deut 7:5
72%
5But thus shall ye deal with them: ye shall break down their altars, and dash in pieces their pillars, and hew down their Asherim, and burn their graven images with fire.
Jer 50:40
72%
40As when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbor cities thereof, saith Jehovah, so shall no man dwell there, neither shall any son of man sojourn therein.
Jer 21:10
72%
10For I have set my face upon this city for evil, and not for good, saith Jehovah: it shall be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire.
Josh 6:21
72%
21And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, both young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword.
Jer 48:8
72%
8And the destroyer shall come upon every city, and no city shall escape; the valley also shall perish, and the plain shall be destroyed; as Jehovah hath spoken.
Deut 29:23
72%
23[ and that] the whole land thereof is brimstone, and salt, [and] a burning, [that] it is not sown, nor beareth, nor any grass groweth therein, like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which Jehovah overthrew in his anger, and in his wrath:
Zeph 1:13
72%
13And their wealth shall become a spoil, and their houses a desolation: yea, they shall build houses, but shall not inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, but shall not drink the wine thereof.
Jer 15:13
72%
13[Thy substance] [and thy treasures] [will I give] [for a spoil] [without price,] [and that for all thy sins,] [even in all thy borders.]
2 Kgs 3:19
72%
19And ye shall smite every fortified city, and every choice city, and shall fell every good tree, and stop all fountains of water, and mar every good piece of land with stones.
Isa 13:19
71%
19And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldeans' pride, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.
Deut 31:4
71%
4And Jehovah will do unto them as he did to Sihon and to Og, the kings of the Amorites, and unto their land; whom he destroyed.
Ezek 5:4
71%
4And of these again shalt thou take, and cast them into the midst of the fire, and burn them in the fire; therefrom shall a fire come forth into all the house of Israel.
Jer 19:8
71%
8And I will make this city an astonishment, and a hissing; every one that passeth thereby shall be astonished and hiss because of all the plagues thereof.