Text -- Judges 21:1-7 (NET)

600 Brides for 600 Brothers

21:1 The Israelites had taken an oath in Mizpah, saying, “Not one of us will allow his daughter to marry a Benjaminite.” 21:2 So the people came to Bethel and sat there before God until evening, weeping loudly and uncontrollably. 21:3 They said, “Why, O Lord God of Israel, has this happened in Israel?” An entire tribe has disappeared from Israel today!” 21:4 The next morning the people got up early and built an altar there. They offered up burnt sacrifices and token of peace. 21:5 The Israelites asked, “Who from all the Israelite tribes has not assembled before the Lord?” They had made a solemn oath that whoever did not assemble before the Lord at Mizpah must certainly be executed. 21:6 The Israelites regretted what had happened to their brother Benjamin. They said, “Today we cut off an entire tribe from Israel! 21:7 How can we find wives for those who are left? After all, we took an oath in the Lord’s name not to give them our daughters as wives.”

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Jdg 21:2

¹ map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.

² tn Heb “and they lifted up their voice[s] and wept with great weeping.” Both the cognate accusative בְּכִי (bekhi, “weeping”) and the attributive adjective גָדוֹל (gadol, “great”) emphasize their degree of sorrow.

NET Notes: Jdg 21:3

¹ tn Heb “one.”

NET Notes: Jdg 21:4

¹ tn Or “peace offerings.”

NET Notes: Jdg 21:5

¹ tn Heb “A great oath there was concerning the one who did not go up before the Lord at Mizpah, saying, ‘He must surely be put to death.’”

NET Notes: Jdg 21:6

¹ tn Or “felt sorry for.”

² tn Heb “cut off one.”

NET Notes: Jdg 21:7

¹ tn Heb “What should we do for them, for the remaining ones, concerning wives?”