What Does the Torah Say About War?

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The horrors of the October 7th massacre and the resulting war against Hamas have placed Israel into a familiar situation – Israel must once again battle against its enemies.

As in all other areas of life, the Torah has crucial insight into the topic of war–when to wage it, whether to siege a city, how to treat non-combatants and property, and many other issues. The following is a brief discussion of the main topics that arise in the Torah concerning war and peace.

When Is War Justified?

The Torah speaks of mandatory and discretionary wars. Mandatory wars are those commanded by G-d or the Torah. Discretionary wars are those the Jewish People engage in to accomplish specific goals, such as conquering a city.

Examples of wars G-d commanded us to wage include Yehoshua’s war against the seven Canaanite nations¹ and the war against Amalek². A third category of mandatory wars are those that are defensive after an enemy has already launched an attack.

However, the commandment to blot out the memory of Amalek and wipe out the entire people is only incumbent upon a King in the times of Moshiach³.

There is also the problem of determining precisely who Amalek is. The Ridvaz explains that, since the identity of nations became confused during the Babylonian exile, it’s impossible to determine the identity of Amalek⁴.

The Torah clearly states that if you know that someone is preparing to attack and kill you, a preemptive attack is allowed “If someone comes to kill you, get up early in the morning and kill him first.”

Although we can’t determine whether any enemy group is descended from Amalek, there is no doubt that, if the enemy expresses an intent to destroy the Jewish People, war is justified against them.

Giving a Warning

Prior to waging war on a city, the Torah indicates that a warning should be given first; “When you approach a city to wage war against it, you shall propose peace to it.”⁶

There is a discussion in the Talmud about whether this warning is required in the case of a divinely ordained war or in a discretionary war. Rambam’s opinion was that this warning is mandatory both in a required and a discretionary war⁷.

Sieging a City

In addition to giving the enemy a warning and the option to surrender, there is a prohibition of sieges, or surrounding an area from all sides to prevent escape and supplies from getting in.

The Rambam makes it clear that sieges are forbidden; “On besieging a city in order to seize it, we must not surround it on all four sides but only on three sides, thus leaving a path of escape for whoever wishes to flee to save his life.”⁸

However, the Ramban allows a siege in the cases of divinely-ordained wars, such as the war against Amalek or wars in defensive wars. The Ramban’s opinion is that the prohibition against a siege is only in the case of optional wars to expand territory⁹.

Harming Civilians

According to the Chumash, if an enemy doesn’t respond to the warning or accept terms of surrender, a Jewish army is allowed to put all males to the sword¹⁰. Maimonides interprets this to mean that women and children shouldn’t be harmed¹¹.

However, the involvement of civilians in terrorism and the use of public buildings to hide troops, weapons, and terrorist headquarters has changed the definition of what is a civilian in many of Israel’s conflicts.

In response, in 2006, leaders of the Rabbinical Council of America issued a statement regarding cases in which an enemy “unconscionably using their own civilians, hospitals, ambulances, mosques… as human shields, cannon fodder, and weapons of asymmetric warfare. We believe that Judaism would neither require nor permit a Jewish soldier to sacrifice himself in order to save deliberately endangered enemy civilians.”¹²

Destroying Property During a War

In addition, the Torah forbids wanton destruction during a war. This means laying waste to a territory and causing damage without purpose. This is represented by the prohibition of destroying fruit-yielding trees¹³.

“When you besiege a city for a long time, making war against it in order to take it, you shall not destroy its trees by wielding an axe against them; for you may eat of them, but you shall not cut them down. For is the tree of the field man, that it should be besieged by you?”¹⁴

The Rambam insists that it’s forbidden to destroy fruit trees or in general, to wantonly cause damage in any kind of war.¹⁵ However, if trees are being felled not simply to destroy them, but to make room for a necessary military operation, it isn’t forbidden, because it isn’t destruction for no reason.

Also, the Ramban identifies a special reason for this commandment in the case of a city that is being conquered. Not only should the property of an enemy be not destroyed meaninglessly, but given that the city is falling into the control of the Jewish People, such destruction isn’t allowed because it’s forbidden to destroy one’s own property¹⁶.

The recent war between Israel and Hamas has affected every member of the Jewish People. In the media and in everyday life, we hear people debate the ethics and raise questions about the war. The Torah provides insight into every aspect of our lives and this includes the current war. The Torah’s guidance on the subject of war can affect a more humane outcome for inevitable conflict.

¹ Deut. 20:17.

² Deuteronomy 25:17–19

³ Sefer Ye’erim

⁴ Ridvaz, Melachim perek 5 halacha 4

⁵ Berakhot 58a, Yoma 85b, Sanhedrin, 72h

⁶ Deutoronomy 20:10

⁷ Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Melachim 6:1

⁸ Mishneh, Melachim v’Milchamot, 12

⁹ Comments on Sefer Ha-Mitzvos, Assin 5

¹⁰ Deuteronomy 20:12-13

¹¹ Melachim v’milchamot 6:4

¹² Rebecca Spence ” Rabbis: Israel Too Worried Over Civilian Deaths”, in The Jewish Daily Forward, issue of August 25, 2006. http://www.forward.com/articles/1438/

¹³ Mishneh, Melachim v’Milchamot, 14

¹⁴ Deuteronomy–20:19

¹⁵ Melachim 6:8

¹⁶ Nachmanides commentary Deuteronomy 20:19-20