Judges 20:16

Judges 20:16 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Among all this people there were seven hundred chosen men lefthanded; every one could sling stones at an hair breadth, and not miss.
• New International Version (NIV)Among all these soldiers there were seven hundred select troops who were left-handed, each of whom could sling a stone at a hair and not miss.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Among all these were 700 chosen men who were left-handed; every one could sling a stone at a hair and not miss.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Among all this people were seven hundred select men who were left-handed; every one could sling a stone at a hair’s breadth and not miss.

Context of Judges 20:16

14Then the [tribe of the] sons of Benjamin gathered from the cities to Gibeah, to go out to battle against the [other] sons of Israel. 15And the Benjamites assembled out of their cities at that time twenty-six thousand men who drew the sword, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah, who assembled seven hundred chosen men. Out of all these people were seven hundred choice left-handed men; each one could sling stones at [a target no wider than] a hair and not miss. 17Then the men of Israel, other than Benjamin, assembled four hundred thousand men who drew the sword; all of these were men of war. 18The men of Israel arose and went up to Bethel and asked of God and said, “Which of us shall take the lead to battle against the sons [tribe] of Benjamin?” And the Lord said, “Judah [shall go up] first.”

Judges 20:16 word by word

מִכֹּ֣ל׀ הָעָ֣ם הַזֶּ֗ה שְׁבַ֤ע מֵאוֹת֙ אִ֣ישׁ בָּח֔וּר אִטֵּ֖ר יַד־יְמִינ֑וֹ כָּל־זֶ֗ה קֹלֵ֧עַ בָּאֶ֛בֶן אֶל־הַֽשַּׂעֲרָ֖ה וְלֹ֥א יַחֲטִֽא׃ פRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Among all this peopleעַם‛am · people: soldiersH5971
• sevenשֶׁ֫בַעsheba‛ shib‛âh · sevenH7651
• hundredמֵאָהmê'âh mê'yâh · hundredH3967
• chosenבָּחַרbâchar · to chooseH977
• menאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
• lefthandedיָמִיןyâmîyn · rightH3225
• lefthandedיָדyâd · handH3027
• lefthandedאִטֵּר'iţţêr · lefthandedH334
• every one could slingקָלַעqâla‛ · to slingH7049
• stonesאֶ֫בֶן'eben · stoneH68
• at an hairשַׂעֲרָהώa‛ărâh · hairH8185
• and not missחָטָאchâţâ' · to sinH2398

Cross-references for Judges 20:16

• Judges 3:15But when the Israelites cried out to the Lord [for help], the Lord raised up a man to rescue them, Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a left-handed man. And the Israelites sent a gift of tribute by him to Eglon king of Moab.
• 1 Chronicles 12:2They were armed with bows, and could use the right hand or the left to sling stones and shoot arrows from the bow; they were Saul’s relatives from [the tribe of] Benjamin.
• 1 Samuel 17:40Then he took his [shepherd’s] staff in his hand and chose for himself five smooth stones out of the stream bed, and put them in his shepherd’s bag which he had, that is, in his shepherd’s pouch. With his sling in his hand, he approached the Philistine.
• 1 Samuel 25:29Should anyone rise up to pursue you and to seek your life, then the life of my lord will be bound in the [precious] bundle of the living with the Lord your God; but the lives of your enemies—those He will hurl out as from the center of a sling.
• 2 Chronicles 26:14Moreover, Uzziah prepared shields, spears, helmets, body armor, bows, and sling stones for the entire army.

Commentaries on Judges 20:16

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16Left-handed - They were ambidexters - could use the right hand and the left with equal ease and effect. See the note on Judges 3:15. Could sling stones at a hair - and not miss - יחטא ולא velo yachati, and not sin: ; Sept. Here we have the true import of the term sin; it signifies simply to miss the mark, and is well translated in the New Testament by ̔, from , negative, and , to hit the mark. Men miss the mark of true happiness in aiming at sensual…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15-17Verses 15-17 Comparing the numbers here with those in Judges 20:16 See Judges 3:15, and note. In the Septuagint and Vulgate the 700 chosen men of Gibeah are represented as the seven hundred left-handed slingers.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16left-handeders: See study note on Judges 3:15. The sling was like the one David used to kill Goliath (1 Samuel 17:40–51). The slinger placed a stone in a small pouch attached to a leather strap. He swung it around his head to build speed, then released one end to launch the stone. A slinger could attack from a distance, unlike a swordsman.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 14-1714-17. the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together out of the cities unto Gibeah--Allowing their valor to be ever so great, nothing but blind passion and unbending obstinacy could have impelled them to take the field against their brethren with such a disparity of numbers.Read the comment

Topics related to Judges 20:16

• Benjamin
• Left-Handed
• Sling
• Stones

In the dictionaries

• Chosen
• Congregation
• Fetch
• Games
• Gibeah
• Glean
• Lefthanded
• Sling
• Trust
• Wickedness

Commentaries on Judges 20

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• Darby Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary