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Wednesday, July 23rd, 2025
the Week of Proper 11 / Ordinary 16
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Read the Bible

New American Standard Bible (1995)

Judges 21:3

They said, "Why, O LORD, God of Israel, has this come about in Israel, so that one tribe should be missing today in 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?"
Literal Translation
And they said, O Jehovah, God of Israel, Why has this happened in Israel, to be lacking one tribe today 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?"

Contextual Overview

1 Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpah, saying, "None of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin in marriage." 2 So the people came to Bethel and sat there before God until evening, and lifted up their voices and wept bitterly. 3 They said, "Why, O LORD, God of Israel, has this come about in Israel, so that one tribe should be missing today in Israel?"4 It came about the next day that the people arose early and built an altar there and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. 5 Then the sons of Israel said, "Who is there among all the tribes of Israel who did not come up in the assembly to the LORD?" For they had taken a great oath concerning him who did not come up to the LORD at Mizpah, saying, "He shall surely be put to death." 6 And the sons of Israel were sorry for their brother Benjamin and said, "One tribe is cut off from Israel today. 7 "What shall we do for wives for those who are left, since we have sworn by the LORD not to give them any of our daughters in marriage?" 8 And they said, "What one is there of the tribes of Israel who did not come up to the LORD at Mizpah?" And behold, no one had come to the camp from Jabesh-gilead to the assembly. 9 For when the people were numbered, behold, not one of the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead was there. 10 And the congregation sent 12,000 of the valiant warriors there, and commanded them, saying, "Go and strike the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead with the edge of the sword, with 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
But God said, "No, but Sarah your wife will bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac; and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him.
Genesis 21:6
Sarah said, "God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me."
Genesis 21:12
But God said to Abraham, "Do not be distressed because of the lad and your maid; whatever Sarah tells you, listen to her, for through Isaac your descendants shall be named.
Genesis 22:2
He said, "Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you."
Joshua 24:3
'Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River, and led him through all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his descendants and gave him Isaac.
Matthew 1:2
Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers.
Acts 7:8
"And He gave him the covenant of circumcision; and so Abraham became the father of Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day; and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs.
Romans 9:7
nor are they all children because they are Abraham's descendants, but: "THROUGH ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS WILL BE NAMED."
Hebrews 11:18
it was he to whom it was said, "IN ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS SHALL BE CALLED."

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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