8 Then all the rulers of the Edomites, all the leaders of the Moabites, and the commanders of the coastland came to him and said:
9 "May our master listen to our advice, and your army won’t suffer any losses.
10 These people, the Israelites, don’t rely on their spears but on the height of the hills where they live, because it isn’t easy to climb up to their hilltops.
11 Therefore, Master, don’t fight them in the usual way, and not one of your men will fall.
12 Instead, wait in your camp, keeping all the men of your army there, and let your servants seize the spring of water that flows out from the base of the hill,
13 because this is the water source for all those who live in Bethulia. Thirst will be their undoing, and it will force them to surrender their city. In the meantime, we and our people will go up to occupy the tops of the nearby hills and set up guard, to make sure that no man leaves the city.
14 Then they, their wives, and their children will wither with hunger in the streets where they live before a sword even comes near them.