Judges 6:1

Judges 6:1 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord: and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years.
• New International Version (NIV)The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and for seven years he gave them into the hands of the Midianites.
• English Standard Version (ESV)The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord gave them into the hand of Midian seven years.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord. So the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian for seven years,

Context of Judges 6:1

Then the Israelites did evil in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord gave them into the hand of Midian for seven years. 2The [powerful] hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. Because of Midian the sons of Israel made for themselves the dens (hideouts) which were in the mountains, and the caves and the [mountain] strongholds. 3For it was whenever Israel had sown [their seed] that the Midianites would come up with the Amalekites and the people of the east and go up against them.

Judges 6:1 word by word

וַיַּעֲשׂ֧וּ בְנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל הָרַ֖ע בְּעֵינֵ֣י יְהוָ֑ה וַיִּתְּנֵ֧ם יְהוָ֛ה בְּיַד־מִדְיָ֖ן שֶׁ֥בַע שָׁנִֽים׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
• of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• didעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
• evilרַעra‛ râ‛âh · bad: evilH7451
• in the sightעַ֫יִן‛ayin · eye: seeingH5869
• of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• deliveredנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
• them into the handיָדyâd · hand: powerH3027
• of Midianמִדְיָןmidyân · MidianH4080
• sevenשֶׁ֫בַעsheba‛ shib‛âh · sevenH7651
• yearsשָׁנָהshâneh shânâh · yearH8141

Cross-references for Judges 6:1

• Judges 2:13So they abandoned the Lord and served Baal [the pagan god of the Canaanites] and the Ashtaroth.
• Leviticus 26:14‘But if you do not obey Me and do not [obediently] do all these commandments,
• Deuteronomy 28:15“But it shall come about, if you do not listen to and obey the voice of the Lord your God, being careful to do all His commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today, then all these curses will come upon you and overtake you:
• Nehemiah 9:26“Yet they were disobedient and rebelled against You, And cast Your law behind their backs And killed Your prophets who warned them To return to You; And they committed great [and contemptible] blasphemies.
• Psalms 106:34They did not destroy the [pagan] peoples [in Canaan], As the Lord commanded them,
• Genesis 25:2She gave birth to Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah.
• Numbers 25:17“Provoke hostilities with the Midianites and attack them,
• Habakkuk 3:7I [Habakkuk, in my vision] saw the tents of Cushan under distress; The tent curtains of the land of Midian were trembling.

Commentaries on Judges 6:1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1Delivered them unto the hand of Midian - The Midianites were among the most ancient and inveterate of the enemies of Israel. They joined with the Moabites to seduce them to idolatry, and were nearly extirpated by them; Numbers 31:1-12. The Midianites dwelt on the eastern borders of the Dead Sea, and their capital was Arnon.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1Midian - See Genesis 25:2 note. They were remarkable not only for the vast number of their cattle Judges 6:5; Numbers 31:32-39, but also for their great wealth in gold and other metal ornaments, showing their connection with a gold country. (Compare Numbers 31:22, Numbers 31:50-54, with Judges 8:24:26.) At this time they were allies of the Amalekites and of the Arabian tribes called collectively “the children of the East” Judges 6:3. They seem to have…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1Israel oppressed by Midianites. (1-6) Israel rebuked by a prophet. (7-10) Gideon set to deliver Israel. (11-24) Gideon destroys Baal's altar. (25-32) Signs given him. (33-40) Verses 1-6 Israel's sin was renewed, and Israel's troubles were repeated. Let all that sin expect to suffer. The Israelites hid themselves in dens and caves; such was the effect of a guilty conscience. Sin dispirits men. The invaders left no food for Israel, except what was taken…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-6After forty years of peace, religious blending caused political instability, and roaming nomads forced the Israelites to live as fugitives. The Midianites, once thought to be purely nomadic and based in northwest Arabia, are now known to have built cities and, for a time, controlled much of the Arabian Peninsula and southern Transjordan (the area east of the Jordan). They are joined by the Amalekites (who were earlier part of a Moabite coalition; see…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-61. and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian--Untaught by their former experiences, the Israelites again apostatized, and new sins were followed by fresh judgments. Midian had sustained a severe blow in the time of Moses (Nu 31:1-18); and the memory of that disaster, no doubt, inflamed their resentment against the Israelites. They were wandering herdsmen, called "children of the East," from their occupying the territory east of the Red Sea…Read the comment

In the dictionaries

• Israel
• Midian
• Children of Israel
• Den
• Gideon
• God
• Mighty
• Sign
• Wherewith
• Wring

Commentaries on Judges 6

• 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
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings