Lectionary Calendar
Friday, August 15th, 2025
the Week of Proper 14 / Ordinary 19
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Read the Bible

Green's Literal Translation

Judges 21:3

And they said, O Jehovah, God of Israel, Why has this happened in Israel, to be lacking one tribe today from Israel?

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Nation;   Rashness;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Benjamin, Tribe of;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Gibeah;   Mizpah;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Offerings and Sacrifices;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Bethel;   Judges, Book of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Benjamin;   Jabesh, Jabesh-Gilead;   Marriage;   Priests and Levites;   Samson;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Gibeah;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
and cried out, “Why, Lord God of Israel, has it occurred that one tribe is missing in Israel today?”
Hebrew Names Version
They said, the LORD, the God of Yisra'el, why has this happened in Yisra'el, that there should be today one tribe lacking in Yisra'el?
King James Version
And said, O Lord God of Israel, why is this come to pass in Israel, that there should be to day one tribe lacking in Israel?
Lexham English Bible
And they said, "Why, Yahweh, God of Israel, has it happened today in Israel that one tribe is lacking from Israel?"
English Standard Version
And they said, "O Lord , the God of Israel, why has this happened in Israel, that today there should be one tribe lacking in Israel?"
New Century Version
They said, " Lord , God of Israel, why has this terrible thing happened to us so that one tribe of Israel is missing today?"
New English Translation
They said, "Why, O Lord God of Israel, has this happened in Israel?" An entire tribe has disappeared from Israel today!"
Amplified Bible
They said, "O LORD, God of Israel, why has this come about in Israel, that there should be today one tribe missing from Israel?"
New American Standard Bible
And they said, "Why, LORD, God of Israel, has this happened in Israel, that one tribe is missing today from Israel?"
Geneva Bible (1587)
And sayde, O Lorde God of Israel, why is this come to passe in Israel, that this day one tribe of Israel should want?
Legacy Standard Bible
en gesê: Waarom, o HERE, God van Israel, het dit in Israel gebeur dat daar vandag een stam uit Israel vermis word?
Contemporary English Version
and prayed, "Our Lord , you are the God of Israel. Why did you let this happen? Now one of our tribes is almost gone."
Complete Jewish Bible
They said: " Adonai , why has this come about in Isra'el? Why should there be today in Isra'el one tribe missing?"
Darby Translation
and said, Jehovah, God of Israel, why is it come to pass in Israel, that there should be this day one tribe lacking in Israel?
Easy-to-Read Version
They said to God, " Lord , you are the God of the Israelites. Why has this terrible thing happened to us? Why has one tribe of the Israelites been taken away?"
George Lamsa Translation
And said, O LORD God of Israel, why has this disaster come to pass in Israel, that there should be today one tribe missing from Israel?
Good News Translation
" Lord God of Israel, why has this happened? Why is the tribe of Benjamin about to disappear from Israel?"
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
and sayde: O LORDE God of Israel, wherfore is this come to passe in Israel this daye?
American Standard Version
And they said, O Jehovah, the God of Israel, why is this come to pass in Israel, that there should be to-day one tribe lacking in Israel?
Bible in Basic English
And they said, O Lord, the God of Israel, why has this fate come on Israel, that today one tribe has been cut off from Israel?
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And sayde: O Lorde God of Israel, why is this come to passe in Israel, that there shoulde be this day one tribe lacking in Israel?
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And they said: 'O LORD, the God of Israel, why is this come to pass in Israel, that there should be to-day one tribe lacking in Israel?'
King James Version (1611)
And said, O Lord God of Israel, why is this come to passe in Israel, that there should bee to day one tribe lacking in Israel?
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
and said, Wherefore, O Lord God of Israel, has this come to pass, that to-day one tribe should be counted as missing from Israel?
English Revised Version
And they said, O LORD, the God of Israel, why is this come to pass in Israel, that there should be today one tribe lacking in Israel?
Berean Standard Bible
"Why, O LORD God of Israel," they cried out, "has this happened in Israel? Today in Israel one tribe is missing!"
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
and seiden, Lord God of Israel, whi is this yuel don in thi puple, that to dai o lynage be takun awey of vs?
Young's Literal Translation
and say, `Why, O Jehovah, God of Israel, hath this been in Israel -- to be lacking to-day, from Israel, one tribe?'
Update Bible Version
And they said, O Yahweh, the God of Israel, why has this come to pass in Israel, that there should be today one tribe lacking in Israel?
Webster's Bible Translation
And said, O LORD God of Israel, why is this come to pass in Israel, that there should be to-day one tribe lacking in Israel?
World English Bible
They said, Yahweh, the God of Israel, why has this happened in Israel, that there should be today one tribe lacking in Israel?
New King James Version
and said, "O LORD God of Israel, why has this come to pass in Israel, that today there should be one tribe missing in Israel?"
New Living Translation
"O Lord , God of Israel," they cried out, "why has this happened in Israel? Now one of our tribes is missing from Israel!"
New Life Bible
"O Lord, God of Israel, why has this happened in Israel? Why should there be one family group missing in Israel today?"
New Revised Standard
They said, "O Lord , the God of Israel, why has it come to pass that today there should be one tribe lacking in Israel?"
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
and said, Wherefore, O Yahweh, God of Israel, hath this come about in Israel, - that there should be lacking, to-day, out of Israel, one tribe?
Douay-Rheims Bible
O Lord God of Israel, why is so great an evil come to pass in thy people, that this day one tribe should be taken away from among us?
Revised Standard Version
And they said, "O LORD, the God of Israel, why has this come to pass in Israel, that there should be today one tribe lacking in Israel?"
New American Standard Bible (1995)
They said, "Why, O LORD, God of Israel, has this come about in Israel, so that one tribe should be missing today in Israel?"

Contextual Overview

1 And the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpeh, saying, Not one of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin for a wife. 2 And the people came to Bethel, and sat there before God until the evening. And they lifted up their voices and wept a great weeping. 3 And they said, O Jehovah, God of Israel, Why has this happened in Israel, to be lacking one tribe today from Israel? 4 And it happened on the next day, the people rose early and built an altar there, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. 5 And the sons of Israel said, Who is he that did not come up in the assembly out of all the tribes of Israel to Jehovah? For a great oath had been undertaken concerning him that did not comeup to Jehovah to Mizpeh saying, Dying he shall die. 6 And the sons of Israel repented concerning their brother Benjamin. And they said, One tribe from Israel has been cut off today. 7 What shall we do for them, for those who are left, for wives? For we surely have sworn by Jehovah not to give them of our daughters for wives. 8 And they said, What one out of the tribes of Israel did not come up to Jehovah to Mizpeh? And, behold, no one had come into the camp from Jabesh-gilead to the assembly. 9 And the people numbered themselves. And, behold, there was not a man of those living in Jabesh-gilead. 10 And the assembly sent twelve thousand men there of the mighty sons, and commanded them, saying, Go, and you shall strike the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead with the mouth of the sword, even the women and the little ones.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

why is: Deuteronomy 29:24, Joshua 7:7-9, Psalms 74:1, Psalms 80:12, Proverbs 19:3, Isaiah 63:17, Jeremiah 12:1

Reciprocal: Judges 17:6 - no king

Cross-References

Genesis 17:19
And God said, Your wife Sarah truly shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. And I have established My covenant with him for a perpetual covenant with his seed after him.
Genesis 21:6
And Sarah said, God has made laughter for me; all who hear will laugh with me.
Genesis 21:12
And God said to Abraham, Let it not be evil in your eyes because of the boy, and on account of your slave-girl. All that Sarah says to you, listen to her voice, for in Isaac your Seed shall be called.
Genesis 22:2
And He said, Now take your son, Isaac, your only one whom you love, and go into the land of Moriah. And there offer him for a burnt offering on one of the mountains which I will say to you.
Joshua 24:3
And I took your father Abraham from Beyond the River, and caused him to go through all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his seed, and gave Isaac to him.
Matthew 1:2
Abraham fathered Isaac, and Isaac fathered Jacob, and Jacob fathered Judah and his brothers.
Acts 7:8
And He gave to him a covenant of circumcision; and so he fathered Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day. And Isaac fathered Jacob, and Jacob the twelve patriarchs.
Romans 9:7
nor because they are Abraham's seed are all children, but "In Isaac a Seed shall be called to you." Gen. 21:12
Hebrews 11:18
as to whom it was said, "In Isaac your Seed shall be called;" Gen. 21:12

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And said, O Lord God of Israel,.... Jehovah, the only living and true God, the Being of beings, eternal, immutable, omnipotent and omnipresent, the God of all Israel, of the twelve tribes of Israel, their covenant God and Father; who had shown favour to them in such a peculiar and gracious manner, as he had not to other nations, and therefore hoped he would still have a kind regard unto them, and suffer them to expostulate with him in the following manner:

why is this come to pass in Israel; expressing, as Abarbinel thinks, a concern for the 40,000 men of Israel which fell in the two first battles; but it manifestly refers to the case in the next words:

that there should be today one tribe lacking in Israel; meaning the tribe of Benjamin, which was all destroyed, excepting six hundred men, and these had no wives to propagate the tribe; and therefore, unless some provision could be made for that, it must in a short time be totally extinct; for which they express great concern, it not being their intention when they made the above oath to extirpate them; but such were now the circumstances of things in Providence, that it must perish unless some way could be found to relieve it, and which their oath seemed to preclude; and this threw them into great perplexity.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The repetition of the name of Israel is very striking in connection with the title of Yahweh as “God of Israel.” It contains a very forcible pleading of the covenant, and memorial of the promises. The very name “Israel” comprehended all the twelve tribes; with one of them blotted out, the remnant would not be Israel.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Judges 21:3. Why is this come to pass — This was a very impertinent question. They knew well enough how it came to pass. It was right that the men of Gibeah should be punished, and it was right that they who vindicated them should share in that punishment; but they carried their revenge too far, they endeavoured to exterminate both man and beast, Judges 20:48.


 
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