Judges 20:35

King James Version:

(The Lord speaking is red text)

And the LORD smote Benjamin before Israel: and the children of Israel destroyed of the Benjamites that day twenty and five thousand and an hundred men: all these drew the sword.

Complete Jewish Bible:

For ADONAI routed Binyamin in Isra'el's presence; that day the army of Isra'el destroyed 25,100 men of Binyamin, all of whom carried swords;

Berean Standard Bible:

The LORD defeated Benjamin in the presence of Israel, and on that day the Israelites slaughtered 25,100 Benjamites, all armed with swords.

American Standard Version:

And Jehovah smote Benjamin before Israel; and the children of Israel destroyed of Benjamin that day twenty and five thousand and a hundred men: all these drew the sword.

KJV with Strong’s Numbers:

And the LORD^{H3068} smote^{H5062} Benjamin^{H1144} before^{H6440} Israel^{H3478}: and the children^{H1121} of Israel^{H3478} destroyed^{H7843} of the Benjamites^{H1145} that day^{H3117} twenty^{H6242} and five^{H2568} thousand^{H505} and an hundred^{H3967} men^{H376}: all these drew^{H8025} the sword^{H2719}.

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Commentary for Judges 20:35

Judges 20:35 recounts a tragic event within the broader narrative of the Israelite tribes during a period characterized by a lack of central leadership and moral decline. The verse is part of a chapter detailing the civil war between the tribe of Benjamin and the other tribes of Israel. The conflict arose after a Levite's concubine was brutally assaulted and murdered by men from the tribe of Benjamin in Gibeah, leading to a call for justice that the Benjamites refused to heed.

In the verse, the Lord is said to have granted victory to the Israelites over Benjamin. This divine intervention resulted in a severe loss for the Benjamites, with 25,100 men falling in battle. The high casualty count underscores the gravity of the conflict and the extent of divine judgment against Benjamin for their refusal to punish the perpetrators of the heinous crime. This event is emblematic of the chaos and violence that pervaded the era, as described in the Book of Judges, where "everyone did what was right in their own eyes" (Judges 21:25).

The historical context of this verse reflects a time when the Israelites were settled in the land of Canaan but had not yet established a unified monarchy. The tribes operated independently, and without a central authority, they struggled to maintain law and order. The story serves as a cautionary tale about the consequences of moral failure and the importance of accountability within a community. It also highlights the theme of God's involvement in the affairs of His people, even when they are embroiled in self-inflicted turmoil. The severe punishment meted out to the Benjamites foreshadows the harsher judgments that would come upon Israel for their collective sins as narrated later in the history of the Israelite monarchy.

*This commentary is produced by Microsoft/WizardLM-2-8x22B AI model

Strong's Numbers and Definitions:

Note: H = Hebrew (OT), G = Greek (NT)

1. Strong's Number: H3068
   There are 5521 instances of this translation in the Bible
   Lemma: יְהֹוָה
   Transliteration: Yᵉhôvâh
   Pronunciation: yeh-ho-vaw'
   Description: from הָיָה; (the) self-Existent or Eternal; Jehovah, Jewish national name of God; Jehovah, the Lord. Compare יָהּ, יְהֹוִה.
   
2. Strong's Number: H5062
   There are 46 instances of this translation in the Bible
   Lemma: נָגַף
   Transliteration: nâgaph
   Pronunciation: naw-gaf'
   Description: a primitive root; to push, gore, defeat, stub (the toe), inflict (a disease); beat, dash, hurt, plague, slay, smite (down), strike, stumble, [idiom] surely, put to the worse.
   
3. Strong's Number: H1144
   There are 156 instances of this translation in the Bible
   Lemma: בִּנְיָמִין
   Transliteration: Binyâmîyn
   Pronunciation: bin-yaw-mene'
   Description: from בֵּן and יָמִין; son of (the) right hand; Binjamin, youngest son of Jacob; also the tribe descended from him, and its territory; Benjamin.
   
4. Strong's Number: H6440
   There are 1890 instances of this translation in the Bible
   Lemma: פָּנִים
   Transliteration: pânîym
   Pronunciation: paw-neem'
   Description: plural (but always as singular) of an unused noun פָּנֶה; from פָּנָה); the face (as the part that turns); used in a great variety of applications (literally and figuratively); also (with prepositional prefix) as a preposition (before, etc.); [phrase] accept, a-(be-) fore(-time), against, anger, [idiom] as (long as), at, [phrase] battle, [phrase] because (of), [phrase] beseech, countenance, edge, [phrase] employ, endure, [phrase] enquire, face, favour, fear of, for, forefront(-part), form(-er time, -ward), from, front, heaviness, [idiom] him(-self), [phrase] honourable, [phrase] impudent, [phrase] in, it, look(-eth) (-s), [idiom] me, [phrase] meet, [idiom] more than, mouth, of, off, (of) old (time), [idiom] on, open, [phrase] out of, over against, the partial, person, [phrase] please, presence, propect, was purposed, by reason of, [phrase] regard, right forth, [phrase] serve, [idiom] shewbread, sight, state, straight, [phrase] street, [idiom] thee, [idiom] them(-selves), through ([phrase] -out), till, time(-s) past, (un-) to(-ward), [phrase] upon, upside ([phrase] down), with(-in, [phrase] -stand), [idiom] ye, [idiom] you.
   
5. Strong's Number: H3478
   There are 2229 instances of this translation in the Bible
   Lemma: יִשְׂרָאֵל
   Transliteration: Yisrâʼêl
   Pronunciation: yis-raw-ale'
   Description: from שָׂרָה and אֵל; he will rule as God; Jisrael, a symbolical name of Jacob; also (typically) of his posterity; Israel.
   
6. Strong's Number: H1121
   There are 3654 instances of this translation in the Bible
   Lemma: בֵּן
   Transliteration: bên
   Pronunciation: bane
   Description: from בָּנָה; a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etc., (like father or brother), etc.); [phrase] afflicted, age, (Ahoh-) (Ammon-) (Hachmon-) (Lev-) ite, (anoint-) ed one, appointed to, ([phrase]) arrow, (Assyr-) (Babylon-) (Egypt-) (Grec-) ian, one born, bough, branch, breed, [phrase] (young) bullock, [phrase] (young) calf, [idiom] came up in, child, colt, [idiom] common, [idiom] corn, daughter, [idiom] of first, [phrase] firstborn, foal, [phrase] very fruitful, [phrase] postage, [idiom] in, [phrase] kid, [phrase] lamb, ([phrase]) man, meet, [phrase] mighty, [phrase] nephew, old, ([phrase]) people, [phrase] rebel, [phrase] robber, [idiom] servant born, [idiom] soldier, son, [phrase] spark, [phrase] steward, [phrase] stranger, [idiom] surely, them of, [phrase] tumultuous one, [phrase] valiant(-est), whelp, worthy, young (one), youth.
   
7. Strong's Number: H7843
   There are 136 instances of this translation in the Bible
   Lemma: שָׁחַת
   Transliteration: shâchath
   Pronunciation: shaw-khath'
   Description: a primitive root; to decay, i.e. (causatively) ruin (literally or figuratively); batter, cast off, corrupt(-er, thing), destroy(-er, -uction), lose, mar, perish, spill, spoiler, [idiom] utterly, waste(-r).
   
8. Strong's Number: H1145
   There are 18 instances of this translation in the Bible
   Lemma: בֶּן־יְמִינִי
   Transliteration: Ben-yᵉmîynîy
   Pronunciation: ben-yem-ee-nee'
   Description: sometimes (with the article inserted) בֵּן־הַיּמִינִי; with אִישׁ inserted (1 Samuel 9:1) בֶּן־אִישׁ ימִינִי; son of a man of Jemini; or shortened אִישׁ יְמִינִי; (1 Samuel 9:4; Esther 2:5) a man of Jemini, or (1 Samuel 20:1) simply יְמִינִיxlit Yᵉmînîy corrected to Yᵉmîynîy; a Jeminite; (plural) בְּנֵי יְמִינִיxlit Bᵉnîy corrected to Bᵉnêy; patron from בִּנְיָמִין; a Benjaminite, or descendent of Benjamin; Benjamite, of Benjamin.
   
9. Strong's Number: H3117
   There are 1931 instances of this translation in the Bible
   Lemma: יוֹם
   Transliteration: yôwm
   Pronunciation: yome
   Description: from an unused root meaning to be hot; a day (as the warm hours), whether literal (from sunrise to sunset, or from one sunset to the next), or figurative (a space of time defined by an associated term), (often used adverb); age, [phrase] always, [phrase] chronicals, continually(-ance), daily, ((birth-), each, to) day, (now a, two) days (agone), [phrase] elder, [idiom] end, [phrase] evening, [phrase] (for) ever(-lasting, -more), [idiom] full, life, as (so) long as (... live), (even) now, [phrase] old, [phrase] outlived, [phrase] perpetually, presently, [phrase] remaineth, [idiom] required, season, [idiom] since, space, then, (process of) time, [phrase] as at other times, [phrase] in trouble, weather, (as) when, (a, the, within a) while (that), [idiom] whole ([phrase] age), (full) year(-ly), [phrase] younger.
   
10. Strong's Number: H6242
    There are 281 instances of this translation in the Bible
    Lemma: עֶשְׂרִים
    Transliteration: ʻesrîym
    Pronunciation: es-reem'
    Description: from עֶשֶׂר; twenty; also (ordinal) twentieth; (six-) score, twenty(-ieth).
    
11. Strong's Number: H2568
    There are 273 instances of this translation in the Bible
    Lemma: חָמֵשׁ
    Transliteration: châmêsh
    Pronunciation: khaw-maysh'
    Description: masculine חֲמִשָּׁה; a primitive numeral; five; fif(-teen), fifth, five ([idiom] apiece).
    
12. Strong's Number: H505
    There are 496 instances of this translation in the Bible
    Lemma: אֶלֶף
    Transliteration: ʼeleph
    Pronunciation: eh'-lef
    Description: prop, the same as אֶלֶף; hence (the ox's head being the first letter of the alphabet, and this eventually used as a numeral) a thousand; thousand.
    
13. Strong's Number: H3967
    There are 512 instances of this translation in the Bible
    Lemma: מֵאָה
    Transliteration: mêʼâh
    Pronunciation: may-aw'
    Description: or מֵאיָה; properly, a primitive numeral; a hundred; also as a multiplicative and a fraction; hundred((-fold), -th), [phrase] sixscore.
    
14. Strong's Number: H376
    There are 1507 instances of this translation in the Bible
    Lemma: אִישׁ
    Transliteration: ʼîysh
    Pronunciation: eesh
    Description: contracted for אֱנוֹשׁ (or perhaps rather from an unused root meaning to be extant); a man as an individual or a male person; often used as an adjunct to a more definite term (and in such cases frequently not expressed in translation); also, another, any (man), a certain, [phrase] champion, consent, each, every (one), fellow, (foot-, husband-) man, (good-, great, mighty) man, he, high (degree), him (that is), husband, man(-kind), [phrase] none, one, people, person, [phrase] steward, what (man) soever, whoso(-ever), worthy. Compare אִשָּׁה.
    
15. Strong's Number: H8025
    There are 24 instances of this translation in the Bible
    Lemma: שָׁלַף
    Transliteration: shâlaph
    Pronunciation: saw-laf'
    Description: a primitive root; to pull out, up or off; draw (off), grow up, pluck off.
    
16. Strong's Number: H2719
    There are 372 instances of this translation in the Bible
    Lemma: חֶרֶב
    Transliteration: chereb
    Pronunciation: kheh'-reb
    Description: from חָרַב; drought; also a cutting instrument (from its destructive effect), as a knife, sword, or other sharp implement; axe, dagger, knife, mattock, sword, tool.