Judges 21:25

Judges 21:25 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
• New International Version (NIV)In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.
• English Standard Version (ESV)In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
• New King James Version (NKJV)In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

Context of Judges 21:25

23The Benjamites did as instructed and carried away the number of women they needed from the dancers they caught. They went back to their own inheritance, rebuilt their cities, and settled in them. 24And at that time, each of the Israelites returned from there to his own tribe and clan, each to his own inheritance. In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

Judges 21:25 word by word

בַּיָּמִ֣ים הָהֵ֔ם אֵ֥ין מֶ֖לֶךְ בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל אִ֛ישׁ הַיָּשָׁ֥ר בְּעֵינָ֖יו יַעֲשֶֽׂה׃Read the interlinear

• In thoseהֵ֫מָּהhêm hêmmâh · they(masc.)H1992
• daysיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• there was noאַ֫יִן'ayin · nothingH369
• kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• in Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• everyoneאִישׁ'îysh · man: anyoneH376
• didעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
• rightיָשָׁרyâshâr · uprightH3477
• in his own eyesעַ֫יִן‛ayin · eyeH5869

Cross-references for Judges 21:25

• Judges 17:6In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
• Judges 18:1In those days there was no king in Israel, and the tribe of the Danites was looking for territory to occupy. For up to that time they had not come into an inheritance among the tribes of Israel.
• Judges 18:7So the five men departed and came to Laish, where they saw that the people were living securely, like the Sidonians, quiet and unsuspecting. There was nothing lacking in the land and no oppressive ruler. And they were far away from the Sidonians and had no alliance with anyone.
• Deuteronomy 12:8You are not to do as we are doing here today, where everyone does what seems right in his own eyes.
• Psalms 12:4They say, “With our tongues we will prevail. We own our lips—who can be our master?”
• Proverbs 3:5Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;
• Proverbs 14:12There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.
• Ecclesiastes 11:9Rejoice, O young man, while you are young, and let your heart be glad in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and in the sight of your eyes, but know that for all these things God will bring you to judgment.
• Micah 2:1Woe to those who devise iniquity and plot evil on their beds! At morning’s light they accomplish it because the power is in their hands.

Commentaries on Judges 21:25

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 25In those days there was no king in Israel - Let no one suppose that the sacred writer, by relating the atrocities in this and the preceding chapters, justifies the actions themselves; by no means. Indeed, they cannot be justified; and the writer by relating them gives the strongest proof of the authenticity of the whole, by such an impartial relation of facts that were highly to be discredit of his country. I Have already referred to the rape of the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 25The repetition of this characteristic phrase (compare Judges 17:6; Judges 18:1; Judges 19:1) is probably intended to impress upon us the idea that these disorders arose from the want of a sufficient authority to suppress them. The preservation of such a story, of which the Israelites must have been ashamed, is a striking evidence of the divine superintendence and direction as regards the Holy Scriptures. sa180Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 25The conclusion of Judges 17–21 explains the reason for the social disorder of the time. After the period of the judges, God would establish a new covenant with Israel involving King David (2 Samuel 7) and the promise of a messianic rule. The fulfillment of that promise would exceed anything imaginable during the time when Israel had no king.Read the comment

Topics related to Judges 21:25

• Government
• Liberty

In the dictionaries

• Israel
• Israel, Israelites
• Jacob, Israel
• JabeshGilead
• Micah
• Spring
• Wolf
• Israel, History of
• Jabesh-Gilead
• Judges, Book of

Commentaries on Judges 21

• 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