‘When you go out to war against your enemies, and the Lord your God delivers them into your hands, and you take captives; and you see among the captives a woman of beautiful form, and you desire her, you may take her for yourself as a wife.’
– Devarim (Deuteronomy) 21:10–11

Behold, Rabbi Tzadok HaKohen of Lublin, in his holy book Pri Tzaddik, writes in the name of Rabbi Mipshiskha, ztz”l [may the memory of the righteous be a blessing], that this passage refers to the war against the yetzer hara [evil inclination], and adds that this is not simply a homiletical interpretation, but rather the plain meaning of the verse.

And according to the simple explanation of the verse: when a person wages war against the evil inclination and does not succumb to it, then the Torah says, ‘and HaShem your G-d delivers it into your hand.’ A person must not despair from the magnitude of the battle with the evil inclination, for when one wishes to go in the proper path, they lead him along that way. And after he conquers the evil inclination and goes in the good path, then the verse continues, ‘and you take captives.’ This means that even what the soul sinned with and transgressed, those very sins will be transformed into merits.

However, it is known that the battle with the evil inclination is not a one-time war that ends in peace; rather, it is a continual battle, without end [in this world]. And were it not for the Holy One, blessed be He, helping a person, he would not be able to overcome it, as it says (Kiddushin 30b). Therefore, a person should ask himself: ‘What shall I do? My yetzer hara overpowers me.’ If the Holy One goes with him, he will prevail; but if He does not, then he cannot prevail, as it says (Berachos 60b), ‘Were it not that G-d helps me, my evil inclination would not allow me to succeed.’

And the Holy One, blessed be He, already answered regarding this: ‘I created the yetzer hara, and I created the Torah as its antidote.’

Together with the study of Torah, a person must distance himself from temptations and not come close to sin (as we explained earlier in Parashas Chayei Sarah).

Furthermore, one must know a general principle: even if there was some loss in battle, one does not despair from fighting; so too in the war against the yetzer hara. Even if a person fell once, he must immediately have compassion on himself, repent, and strengthen himself not to be a servant of the evil inclination, for man is not meant to be in servitude to evil. For a person is not righteous in the land who does good and does not sin (Koheles / Ecclesiastes 7:20). And regarding this, it was said in the Midrash (Bereishis Rabbah 22:1), ‘Happy is the man whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered’ (Tehillim / Psalms 32:1)—meaning that even if a person is high and elevated, if he sinned, once he repents, his evil inclination is subdued.

Therefore, even if the righteous one falls seven times, he will rise again, for it is written, ‘For a righteous man falls seven times and rises’ (Mishlei / Proverbs 24:16). But the wicked stumble in evil—once they fall, they do not rise. And the explanation is that the wicked, when they become haughty and sin, do not humble themselves to repent and to be servants of G-d.