42 Bible Verses about Warfare, Examples Of

"When the LORD your God brings you into the land that you are entering to possess, he will drive out many nations before you: the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, seven nations who are more numerous and stronger than you. So when the LORD your God delivers them to you and you have defeated them, then utterly destroy them. You are not to make any covenant with them nor be gracious to them.

"I'll go ahead of you and terrorize all the people to whom you are coming. I'll confuse your enemies and make them turn their backs on you and run away. I'll send hornets ahead of you and they'll drive out the Hivites, the Canaanites, and the Hittites before you. I won't drive them out before you in a single year, so that the land does not become desolate and so that wild animals do not overrun you. read more.
I'll drive them out ahead of you little by little until you increase in numbers and possess the land. "I'll set your borders from the Reed Sea to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the desert to the River, bringing the inhabitants of the land under your control, and you are to drive them out ahead of you.

"Listen, Israel! Today you are about to cross the Jordan to enter and dispossess greater and mightier nations than you, who live in large cities that are fortified to the sky. The Anakim are strong and tall, and you know them. You've heard it said, "Who can stand up against the Anakim?' But know today that the LORD your God is going ahead of you as a consuming fire. He will destroy and subdue them before you. He will dispossess and destroy them quickly, just as the LORD told you. read more.
After the LORD has expelled them before you, you are not to say to yourselves, "The LORD caused me to enter and possess this land because of my righteousness.' On the contrary, it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the LORD is dispossessing them before you to confirm what the LORD promised by an oath to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

"You are not to leave even one person alive in the cities of these nations that the LORD your God is about to give you as an inheritance. You must completely destroy the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, just as the LORD your God commanded you, so they won't teach you to do all the detestable things that they do for their gods. If you do what they teach you, you will sin against the LORD your God."

Joshua conquered the entire land, in accordance with everything that the LORD had told Moses. Joshua presented it as an inheritance to Israel, dividing it according to tribal allotments. Then the land enjoyed rest from war.

The LORD told Joshua, "Look! I have given Jericho over to your control, along with its kings and valiant soldiers.

The LORD then told Joshua, "Don't be afraid or lose heart! Take all the fighting men with you, and go up right now to Ai. Take note that I have handed over the king of Ai into your control, along with his people, his city, and his land. Do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king, but take its spoil and its livestock as war booty for yourselves. Set an ambush around the city."

So Joshua conquered the entire land, the hill country, the Negev, the Shephelah, and the wilderness highlands, along with all of their kings. He left none of them remaining, but completely destroyed every living person, just as the LORD God of Israel had commanded. Joshua conquered them from Kadesh-barnea to Gaza, including the entire territory of Goshen as far as Gibeon. Joshua conquered all of these kings and their territories in one campaign, because the LORD God of Israel fought for Israel.

So their descendants entered and took possession of the land. Before their eyes you subdued those living in the land the Canaanites putting them under their control, along with their kings and the nations of the land, so they could do with them as they pleased.

God, we heard it with our ears; our ancestors told us about what you did in their day a long time ago. With your hand you expelled the nations and established our ancestors. You afflicted nations and cast them out. It was not with their sword that they inherited the land, nor did their own arm deliver them. But it was by your power, your strength, and by the light of your face; because you were pleased with them.

The LORD was with the army of Judah, and they captured the hill country, but did not expel the inhabitants of the valley because they were equipped with iron chariots.

When Israel had grown strong, they subjected the Canaanites to conscripted labor and never did expel them completely.

Some time later, the angel of the LORD came up from Gilgal to Bochim and announced to Israel, "I brought you up from Egypt and led you into the land that I promised to your ancestors. I had told them, "I'll never breach my covenant with you. As for you, you must not make any treaties with the inhabitants of this land. Instead, tear down their altars.' But you haven't obeyed me. What have you done? Therefore I'm now saying, "I won't expel them before you. Instead, they'll remain at your side, and their gods will ensnare you.'"

The Israelis again practiced evil in full view of the LORD. So the LORD strengthened Eglon king of Moab in his control over Israel, because they had practiced evil in full view of the LORD. Eglon assembled together the Ammonites and the Amalekites, proceeded to attack Israel, and captured the cities of palms. So the Israelis served king Eglon of Moab for eighteen years.

"But if you won't listen to me and obey all these commands, and if you refuse my statutes, loathe my ordinances, and fail to carry out all of my commands, thereby breaching my covenant, then I will certainly do this to you: I'll appoint sudden terror to infect you like tuberculosis and fever. Your eyes will fail and your life will waste away. You'll plant in vain, because your enemies will consume what you plant. read more.
I'll set my face against you so that you'll be defeated before your enemies. Those who hate you will have dominion over you and you'll keep fleeing even when no one is pursuing you.

"But if you don't obey the LORD your God and faithfully carry out all his commands and statutes that I'm giving you today, then all these curses will come upon you and overwhelm you:

The Israelis kept on practicing evil in full view of the LORD. They forgot the LORD their God and served Canaanite male and female deities. Then in his burning anger against Israel, the LORD delivered them to domination by King Cushan-rishathaim of Aram-naharaim. So the Israelis served Cushan-rishathaim for eight years.

Later on, the Israelis practiced what the LORD considered to be evil, so the LORD handed them over to the domination of Midian for seven years. Midian's control predominated throughout Israel, and because of Midian the Israelis went out to find temporary hiding places for themselves in the mountains, caves, and fortified places. Whenever the Israelis sowed their crops, the Midianites, the Amalekites, and certain groups from the east would come up and invade them.

At the height of his power, after he had consolidated his rule, Rehoboam abandoned the LORD's Law, along with all of Israel with him. Because he had been unfaithful to the LORD, during the fifth year of King Rehoboam's reign, King Shishak of Egypt attacked Jerusalem with 1,200 chariots and 60,000 cavalry. The Lubim, Sukkiim, and the Ethiopians who invaded from Egypt with Shishak were innumerable. read more.
Shishak captured the fortified cities of Judah and invaded as far as Jerusalem.

At the end of that year, the Aramean army attacked Joash. They invaded Judah and Jerusalem, destroyed every senior official among the people, and sent all of their possessions to the king of Damascus. The Aramean army attacked with only a small force, but the LORD delivered a much larger army into their control because Judah had abandoned the LORD God of their ancestors. And so the Aramean army carried out God's judgment on Joash.

The army got up early the next morning and headed out into the wilderness of Tekoa. Jehoshaphat stood up and addressed them. "Listen to me, you inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem," he said. "Have faith in the LORD your God and you'll be established! Have faith in his prophets and you'll succeed!"

"Indeed, if you diligently obey the LORD your God to carry out all his commands that I'm giving you today, then the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth.

On that day they fasted there and said, "We have sinned against the LORD." Then Samuel judged the Israelis at Mizpah. When the Philistines heard that the Israelis had gathered at Mizpah, the Philistine lords came up against Israel. When the Israelis heard this, they were afraid of the Philistines. The Israelis told Samuel, "Don't stop crying out to the LORD our God for us that he may deliver us from the hand of the Philistines." Then Samuel took a nursing lamb and offered it as a whole burnt offering to the LORD. Samuel cried out to the LORD on behalf of Israel, and the LORD answered him. read more.
While Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering, the Philistines approached to attack Israel. But that day the LORD thundered against the Philistines and threw them into panic, and they were defeated before Israel. The men of Israel went out from Mizpah, pursued the Philistines, and struck them down as far as a point below Beth-car. Then Samuel took a stone, placed it between Mizpah and Shen and named it Ebenezer. He said, "The LORD has helped us this far." The Philistines were subdued, and they did not continue to enter the territory of Israel. The LORD continued to oppose the Philistines all during Samuel's life time. The towns that the Philistines had taken from Israel were returned to Israel, from Ekron to Gath, and Israel delivered their territory from Philistine control. There was also peace between Israel and the Amorites.

Meanwhile, Nahash, king of the Ammonites, had been severely oppressing the descendants of Gad and descendants of Reuben, gouging out their right eyes and not allowing Israel to have a deliverer. No one was left among the Israelis across the Jordan whose right eye Nahash, king of the Ammonites, had not gouged out. However, 7,000 men had escaped from the Ammonites and entered Jabesh-gilead. Nahash the Ammonite told them, "I'll make a covenant with you on the condition that I gouge out the right eye of every one of you and so bring disgrace on all Israel." The elders of Jabesh told him, "Leave us alone for seven days so that we may send messengers through all the territory of Israel. Then if no one delivers us, we will come out to you and surrender." read more.
When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and reported the terms to the people, all the people cried loudly. Just then Saul was coming in from the field behind the oxen and he said, "What's with the people? Why are they crying?" They reported to him what the men of Jabesh had said. When Saul heard these words, the Spirit of God came on him, and he was very angry. He took a yoke of oxen, cut them in pieces, and sent the pieces by messengers through all the territory of Israel: "This is what will be done to the oxen of anyone who does not come out and join Saul and Samuel!" The fear of the LORD fell on the people and they came out as one man. Saul mustered them at Bezek, and there were 300,000 Israelis and 30,000 men of Judah. They told the messengers who had come, "You are to say this to the men of Jabesh-gilead, "Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot, you will be delivered.'" The messengers went and reported to the men of Jabesh, and they rejoiced. The men of Jabesh said, "Tomorrow we will come out to you and surrender. Then you can do whatever you want to us." The next day Saul separated the people into three companies. They came into the camp during the morning watch, and struck down the Ammonites until the heat of the day. Those who survived were scattered so that no two of them remained together.

"Pay attention, everyone in Judah, in Jerusalem, and you, too, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the LORD says to you: "Stop being afraid, and stop being discouraged because of this vast invasion force, because the battle doesn't belong to you, but to God. Tomorrow you are to go down to attack them. Pay attention, now they'll be coming up near the ascent of Ziz. You'll find them at the end of the valley that looks out over the Jeruel wilderness. You won't be fighting in this battle. Take your stand, but stand still, and watch the LORD's salvation on your behalf, Judah and Jerusalem! Never fear and never be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, since the LORD is with you.'"read more.
Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground, and all the assembled inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem fell face down in the LORD's presence and worshipped the LORD. Descendants of Levi from the descendants of Kohath and from the descendants of Korah stood up to praise the LORD God of Israel in a very loud voice that ascended to heaven. The army got up early the next morning and headed out into the wilderness of Tekoa. Jehoshaphat stood up and addressed them. "Listen to me, you inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem," he said. "Have faith in the LORD your God and you'll be established! Have faith in his prophets and you'll succeed!" After he had consulted with the people, Jehoshaphat appointed some choir members to sing to the LORD and to praise him in sacred splendor as they marched out in front of the armed forces. They kept saying "Give thanks to the LORD, because his gracious love is eternal!" Right on time, as they began to sing and praise, the LORD ambushed the Ammonites, Moabites, and the inhabitants of Mount Seir who had attacked Judah, and they were defeated. The Ammonites and Moabites attacked the inhabitants of Mount Seir, destroying them, and after they had finished with the inhabitants of Mount Seir, they worked on destroying one another! When the army of Judah arrived at the remotest watchtower in the wilderness, they looked around at the invasion force, and to their surprise, there were dead bodies lying all around on the ground not one had escaped!

After this, a state of protracted war existed between Saul's dynasty and David's dynasty, and the dynasty of David continued to grow and become strong while the dynasty of Saul continued to grow weaker.

As soon as Rehoboam returned to Jerusalem, he assembled 180,000 elite soldiers from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, intending to attack the dynasty of Israel and restore the kingdom to Solomon's son Rehoboam.

Meanwhile, Ner's son Abner, the commander of Saul's army, had taken Saul's son Ish-bosheth and brought him to Mahanaim. He installed him as king over Gilead, the Ashurites, Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin, and all of the rest of Israel. Ish-bosheth began to reign over Israel at the age of 40 years, and he reigned for two years, even though Judah's lineage followed David. read more.
The period of David's kingship in Hebron lasted seven years and six months. Ner's son Abner and the servants of Saul's son Ish-bosheth set out from Mahanaim for Gibeon. Zeruiah's son Joab and some of David's staff went out to meet them at the pool of Gibeon. One side encamped on one side of the pool while the other encamped on the other side of the pool. Abner told Joab, "Let's have the young men get up and fight in our presence." Joab replied, "Let them come." So they got up and twelve were counted to represent Benjamin and Saul's son Ish-bosheth and twelve to represent members of David's staff. Each man grabbed his opponent by the head, plunged his sword into his opponent's side, and then they both fell together. That's why the place at Gibeon was named The Field of Swords. The battle was very violent that day, with Abner and the men of Israel being defeated in the presence of David's servants.

So David told all of his staff who were with him in Jerusalem, "Let's get up and get out of here! Otherwise, none of us will escape from Absalom. Hurry, or he'll overtake us quickly, bring disaster on all of us, and execute the inhabitants of the city!"

There was continual military conflict between Rehoboam and Jeroboam throughout his entire lifetime. The rest of Abijah's accomplishments, including everything he undertook, are written in the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, are they not? And a state of war continued to exist between Abijah and Jeroboam.

The rest of Joash's activities, including everything he did and the vehemence with which he fought against King Amaziah of Judah are recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel, are they not?

But King Jehoash of Israel sent this message to King Amaziah of Judah: "The thorn bush in Lebanon sent this message to the cedar of Lebanon: "Give your daughter to my son in marriage.' But just then a wild beast from Lebanon wandered by and trampled down the thorn bush. You just defeated Edom and you're arrogant. Bask in your victory and stay home. Why incite trouble so that you yes, you! fall, along with Judah with you?" But Amaziah refused to listen. So Israel's King Jehoash and Judah's King Amaziah faced each other at Beth-shemesh, which is part of Judah. read more.
Judah was defeated by Israel, and everybody fled to their own tents. Then King Jehoash of Israel captured Judah's King Amaziah, the son of Jehoash and grandson of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh. He went to Jerusalem and demolished 400 cubits of the wall of Jerusalem from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate. He confiscated all the gold and silver, all the instruments he could find in the LORD's Temple and in the palace treasuries. He also captured some hostages and then returned to Samaria. The rest of Jehoash's activities that he undertook, including his valor in fighting King Amaziah of Judah, are recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel, are they not?

But they were unfaithful to the God of their ancestors by prostituting themselves to the gods of the nations of the land, whom God had exterminated right in front of them. So the God of Israel incited King Pul of Assyria (also known as King Tiglath-pileser of Assyria), who took them prisoner and brought the descendants of Reuben, the descendants of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh to Halah, Habor, Hara, and to the Gozan River, where they remain to this day.

After this, the king of Assyria invaded the entire land, approached Samaria, and began a three year siege. As a result, during the ninth year of the reign of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and took the Israelis off to Assyria, placing them in Halah, along the Habor River in Gozan, and in cities ruled by the Medes. This happened because the Israelis had sinned against the LORD their God, who had brought them up from the land of Egypt and from the domination of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, because they were fearing other gods, read more.
and because they were following the rules of the nations whom the LORD had expelled before the Israelis and that the kings of Israel had practiced.

but they mocked God's messengers, despised his words, and scoffed at his prophets, until there was no remedy for the wrath of the LORD that arose to punish his people. Therefore he brought up the king of the Chaldeans against them, who executed their young men in the holy Temple, showing no compassion on young man or young virgin, adult men or the aged. God gave them all into the king's control,

Zedekiah then rebelled against the king of Babylon, so on the tenth day of the tenth month of the ninth year of Zedekiah's reign, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and his entire army approached Jerusalem, attacked it, encamped against it, and built a siege wall that surrounded the city.

and in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came against Jerusalem with all his army. He encamped near it and set up siege works all around it. The city was under siege until the eleventh year of the reign of King Zedekiah.

On the seventh day of the fifth month, which was during the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar's reign as king of Babylon, captain of the guard Nebuzaradan, a servant of the king of Babylon, arrived in Jerusalem and set fire to the LORD's Temple, the royal palace, and all the houses of Jerusalem. He even incinerated the lavish homes. The Chaldean army that accompanied the captain of the guard demolished the walls that surrounded Jerusalem. read more.
Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, carried the survivors of the people who remained in the city, those who had deserted to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the multitude into exile.

In the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month it was the nineteenth year of the reign of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard who served the king of Babylon, entered Jerusalem. He burned the LORD's Temple, the king's house, and all the houses in Jerusalem. He also burned every public building with fire. All the Chaldean troops who were with the captain of the guard tore down all the walls around Jerusalem. read more.
Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried into exile some of the poorest of the people, the rest of the people left in the city, the deserters who had defected to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the craftsmen.

where the king of Babylon executed them in the land of Hamath. And so Judah was transported into exile from the land.

The king of Babylon struck them down and killed them at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah went into exile from the land.

This message from the LORD came to me a second time: "What do you see?" I replied, "I see a boiling pot, and its mouth is tilted away from the north." Then the LORD told me, "From the north disaster will pour out on all who live in the land, because I'm about to summon all the families and kingdoms from the north," declares the LORD. "They'll come and each one will set up his seat at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, against all of its surrounding walls, and against all of the towns of Judah.read more.
"I'll pronounce my judgments against them because of all their wickedness. They have forsaken me, they have burned incense to other gods, and they have bowed down in worship to the works of their own hands."