King James Version:
(The Lord speaking is red text)
Howbeit we may not give them wives of our daughters: for the children of Israel have sworn, saying, Cursed [be] he that giveth a wife to Benjamin.
Complete Jewish Bible:
Yet we can't give them our daughters as wives." For the people of Isra'el had sworn, "Cursed be whoever gives a wife to Binyamin."
Berean Standard Bible:
But we cannot give them our daughters as wives.” For the Israelites had sworn, “Cursed is he who gives a wife to a Benjamite.”
American Standard Version:
Howbeit we may not give them wives of our daughters, for the children of Israel had sworn, saying, Cursed be he that giveth a wife to Benjamin.
KJV with Strong’s Numbers:
Howbeit we may{H3201} not give{H5414} them wives{H802} of our daughters{H1323}: for the children{H1121} of Israel{H3478} have sworn{H7650}, saying{H559}, Cursed{H779} be he that giveth{H5414} a wife{H802} to Benjamin{H1144}.
Cross-References (KJV):
Judges 21:1
- ¶ Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpeh, saying, There shall not any of us give his daughter unto Benjamin to wife.
Judges 11:35
- And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me: for I have opened my mouth unto the LORD, and I cannot go back.
Explore This Verse Across Other Resources:
Commentary for Judges 21:18
Judges 21:18 is set within the broader context of a tragic and violent episode in the history of ancient Israel, often referred to as the "Concubine at Gibeah" or the "Benjamite War." The verse itself is part of the resolution to a civil conflict that arose when the tribe of Benjamin was nearly wiped out due to their refusal to punish the men of Gibeah, who had committed a heinous crime against a Levite and his concubine.
In response to this crime, the other tribes of Israel waged war against Benjamin, leading to significant loss of life on both sides. The tribe of Benjamin was almost entirely decimated, with only a few hundred men surviving. The remaining Israelites were then faced with the dilemma of how to preserve the tribe of Benjamin without breaking their oath not to give their daughters in marriage to them—an oath they had made before the conflict began.
Judges 21:18 captures the Israelites' recognition of this oath and their commitment to it: "Howbeit we may not give them wives of our daughters: for the children of Israel have sworn, saying, Cursed [be] he that giveth a wife to Benjamin." This verse reflects the tension between the desire to maintain tribal unity and the need to uphold a sacred vow, even at the cost of one tribe's survival. The oath was seen as inviolable, and the curse pronounced on anyone who would break it by providing a wife to a Benjaminite underscores the gravity of the situation and the cultural importance of oath-keeping in ancient Israel.
The resolution to this dilemma is found in the subsequent verses, where the Israelites devise a plan to allow the remaining Benjaminite men to obtain wives without directly violating their oath, by permitting them to abduct women during a festival at Shiloh. This event is emblematic of the moral and social chaos described in the book of Judges, where "every man did that which was right in his own eyes" (Judges 21:25). The themes present in this verse and its surrounding narrative include the consequences of sin, the complexities of justice and mercy, the importance of tribal identity and unity, and the challenges of maintaining covenantal obligations in the face of extreme circumstances.
*This commentary is produced by Microsoft/WizardLM-2-8x22B AI model
Strong's Numbers and Definitions:
Note: H = Hebrew (OT), G = Greek (NT)
- Strong's Number: H3201
There are 182 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: יָכֹל
Transliteration: yâkôl
Pronunciation: yaw-kole'
Description: or (fuller) יָכוֹל; a primitive root; to be able, literally (can, could) or morally (may, might); be able, any at all (ways), attain, can (away with, (-not)), could, endure, might, overcome, have power, prevail, still, suffer. - Strong's Number: H5414
There are 1816 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: נָתַן
Transliteration: nâthan
Pronunciation: naw-than'
Description: a primitive root; to give, used with greatest latitude of application (put, make, etc.); add, apply, appoint, ascribe, assign, [idiom] avenge, [idiom] be (healed), bestow, bring (forth, hither), cast, cause, charge, come, commit, consider, count, [phrase] cry, deliver (up), direct, distribute, do, [idiom] doubtless, [idiom] without fail, fasten, frame, [idiom] get, give (forth, over, up), grant, hang (up), [idiom] have, [idiom] indeed, lay (unto charge, up), (give) leave, lend, let (out), [phrase] lie, lift up, make, [phrase] O that, occupy, offer, ordain, pay, perform, place, pour, print, [idiom] pull, put (forth), recompense, render, requite, restore, send (out), set (forth), shew, shoot forth (up), [phrase] sing, [phrase] slander, strike, (sub-) mit, suffer, [idiom] surely, [idiom] take, thrust, trade, turn, utter, [phrase] weep, [phrase] willingly, [phrase] withdraw, [phrase] would (to) God, yield. - Strong's Number: H802
There are 729 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: אִשָּׁה
Transliteration: ʼishshâh
Pronunciation: ish-shaw'
Description: feminine of אִישׁ or אֱנוֹשׁ; irregular plural, נָשִׁים;(used in the same wide sense as אֱנוֹשׁ); a woman; (adulter) ess, each, every, female, [idiom] many, [phrase] none, one, [phrase] together, wife, woman. Often unexpressed in English. - Strong's Number: H1323
There are 499 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: בַּת
Transliteration: bath
Pronunciation: bath
Description: from בָּנָה (as feminine of בֵּן); a daughter (used in the same wide sense as other terms of relationship, literally and figuratively); apple (of the eye), branch, company, daughter, [idiom] first, [idiom] old, [phrase] owl, town, village. - 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. - 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. - Strong's Number: H7650
There are 175 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: שָׁבַע
Transliteration: shâbaʻ
Pronunciation: shaw-bah'
Description: a primitive root; properly to be complete, but used only as a denominative from שֶׁבַע; to seven oneself, i.e. swear (as if by repeating a declaration seven times); adjure, charge (by an oath, with an oath), feed to the full (by mistake for שָׂבַע), take an oath, [idiom] straitly, (cause to, make to) swear. - Strong's Number: H559
There are 4434 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: אָמַר
Transliteration: ʼâmar
Pronunciation: aw-mar'
Description: a primitive root; to say (used with great latitude); answer, appoint, avouch, bid, boast self, call, certify, challenge, charge, [phrase] (at the, give) command(-ment), commune, consider, declare, demand, [idiom] desire, determine, [idiom] expressly, [idiom] indeed, [idiom] intend, name, [idiom] plainly, promise, publish, report, require, say, speak (against, of), [idiom] still, [idiom] suppose, talk, tell, term, [idiom] that is, [idiom] think, use (speech), utter, [idiom] verily, [idiom] yet. - Strong's Number: H779
There are 177 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: אָרַר
Transliteration: ʼârar
Pronunciation: aw-rar'
Description: a primitive root; to execrate; [idiom] bitterly curse. - 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.