EasyEnglish Bible 2018
Judges 12:4
4Jephthah brought together all the men of Gilead. They fought against the men of Ephraim's tribe. The men of Gilead won the fight. They were angry because the men of Ephraim had insulted them. They had said, ‘You people of Gilead have run away to live on the land of Ephraim and Manasseh.’
Judges 12:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim: and the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because they said, Ye Gileadites are fugitives of Ephraim among the Ephraimites, and among the Manassites.
- New International Version (NIV)Jephthah then called together the men of Gilead and fought against Ephraim. The Gileadites struck them down because the Ephraimites had said, “You Gileadites are renegades from Ephraim and Manasseh.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)Then Jephthah gathered all the men of Gilead and fought with Ephraim. And the men of Gilead struck Ephraim, because they said, "You are fugitives of Ephraim, you Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim and Manasseh."
- New King James Version (NKJV)Now Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead and fought against Ephraim. And the men of Gilead defeated Ephraim, because they said, “You Gileadites are fugitives of Ephraim among the Ephraimites and among the Manassites.”
Context of Judges 12:4
2Jephthah replied, ‘I did ask for your help! That was when my people and I first had a quarrel with the Ammonites. But you refused to rescue us. 3When I realized that you would not come to help us, we attacked the Ammonites ourselves. I put my life in danger. But the Lord put the Ammonites under my power. So why have you come to attack me now?’ Jephthah brought together all the men of Gilead. They fought against the men of Ephraim's tribe. The men of Gilead won the fight. They were angry because the men of Ephraim had insulted them. They had said, ‘You people of Gilead have run away to live on the land of Ephraim and Manasseh.’ 5After that, Gilead's army put guards at the places where people could go across the Jordan River. They wanted to stop people from Ephraim going across the river. If one of Ephraim's soldiers was trying to escape, they would ask him, ‘Do you belong to Ephraim's tribe?’ The man would say, ‘No, I do not!’ 6Then they would tell him, ‘Say, “Shibboleth!” ’ People from Ephraim could not say that word properly. So if the man said, ‘Sibboleth,’ they would take hold of him and kill him. That day, they killed 42,000 soldiers of Ephraim at those places on the Jordan River.
Read all of Judges 12Judges 12:4 word by word
וַיִּקְבֹּ֤ץ יִפְתָּח֙ אֶת־כָּל־אַנְשֵׁ֣י גִלְעָ֔ד וַיִּלָּ֖חֶם אֶת־אֶפְרָ֑יִם וַיַּכּוּ֩ אַנְשֵׁ֨י גִלְעָ֜ד אֶת־אֶפְרַ֗יִם כִּ֤י אָמְרוּ֙ פְּלִיטֵ֤י אֶפְרַ֙יִם֙ אַתֶּ֔ם גִּלְעָ֕ד בְּת֥וֹךְ אֶפְרַ֖יִם בְּת֥וֹךְ מְנַשֶּֽׁה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Then Jephthahיִפְתָּחyiphtâch · JephthahH3316
- gathered togetherקָבַץqâbats · to gatherH6908
- all the menאֱנוֹשׁ'ĕnôsh · humanH582
- of Gileadגִּלְעָדgil‛âd · GileadH1568
- and foughtלָחַםlâcham · to fightH3898
- with Ephraimאֶפְרַ֫יִם'ephrayim · EphraimH669
- smoteנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
- because they saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- fugitivesפָּלִיטpâlîyţ pâlêyţ pâlêţ · survivorH6412
- amongתָּ֫וֶךְtâvek · midstH8432
- the Manassitesמְנַשֶּׁהmenashsheh · ManassehH4519
Cross-references for Judges 12:4
- Judges 11:10The leaders of Gilead said, ‘We promise to do that. The Lord will judge between us if we do not do what you have said.’
- Numbers 32:39The descendants of Makir, the son of Manasseh, attacked Gilead. They sent away the people who lived there.
- Deuteronomy 3:12When we had taken power over all that land, I gave some of it to the tribes of Reuben and Gad. I gave them the land north of Aroer near the Arnon valley. I also gave them half of the hill country of Gilead and the cities there.
- 1 Samuel 25:10Nabal answered David's young men, ‘Who is this David? Do I know this son of Jesse? Many servants run away from their masters these days.
- Nehemiah 4:4So I prayed, ‘Hear us, our God. Our enemies think that we are fools. Make them seem like fools themselves! Let their enemies take them away as slaves.
- Psalms 78:9The soldiers of Ephraim had bows and arrows, but they ran away when the battle started!
- Proverbs 12:13The lies of evil people put them in trouble. But righteous people escape from trouble.
- Proverbs 15:1If you answer people in a kind way, it stops them being angry. But if you say cruel things, it makes people angry.
Commentaries on Judges 12:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4And fought with Ephraim - Some commentators suppose that there were two battles in which the Ephraimites were defeated: the first mentioned in the above clause; and the second occasioned by the taunting language mentioned in the conclusion of the verse, Ye Gileadites are fugitives of Ephraim. Where the point of this reproach lies, or what is the reason of it, cannot be easily ascertained.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Because they said - This passage is extremely obscure. Render: - “The men of Gilead smote Ephraim, for they (the Gileadites) said, Ye are. the fugitives of Ephraim. (Gilead lies between Ephraim and Manasseh; and Gilead took the fords of Jordan before Ephraim, and it came to pass, when the fugitives of Ephraim said Let me pass over, and the Gileadites asked him, art thou an Ephraimite, and he answered No, Then (the Gileadites) said to him say Shibboleth…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4The reason the people of Ephraim taunted the men of Gilead is unclear. They might have resented or looked down on the Israelites living east of the Jordan River.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 4-154-6. the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because they said, Ye Gileadites are fugitives of Ephraim--The remonstrances of Jephthah, though reasonable and temperate, were not only ineffectual, but followed by insulting sneers that the Gileadites were reckoned both by the western Manassites and Ephraimites as outcasts--the scum and refuse of their common stock. This was addressed to a peculiarly sensitive people. A feud immediately ensued. The Gileadites…Read the comment
Topics related to Judges 12:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Judges 12
- 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
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