Judges 20:3

Judges 20:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)(Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel were gone up to Mizpeh.) Then said the children of Israel, Tell us, how was this wickedness?
• New International Version (NIV)(The Benjamites heard that the Israelites had gone up to Mizpah.) Then the Israelites said, “Tell us how this awful thing happened.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)(Now the people of Benjamin heard that the people of Israel had gone up to Mizpah.) And the people of Israel said, "Tell us, how did this evil happen?"
• New King James Version (NKJV)(Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel had gone up to Mizpah.) Then the children of Israel said, “Tell us, how did this wicked deed happen?”

Context of Judges 20:3

1All the people of Israel from Dan to Beersheba and from Gilead came to Mizpah. The congregation stood united in the presence of the Lord. 2The leaders of all Israel’s tribes took their places in the congregation of God’s people. There were 400,000 foot soldiers with swords. The people of Benjamin heard that Israel had come to Mizpah. The people of Israel said, “Tell us how such an evil thing could happen.” 4The Levite, the husband of the murdered woman, answered, “My concubine and I went to Gibeah in Benjamin to spend the night. 5The citizens of Gibeah came to attack me. They surrounded the house ⌞where I was staying⌟ that night. They intended to kill me, but instead, they raped my concubine until she died.

Judges 20:3 word by word

וַֽיִּשְׁמְעוּ֙ בְּנֵ֣י בִנְיָמִ֔ן כִּֽי־עָל֥וּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל הַמִּצְפָּ֑ה וַיֹּֽאמְרוּ֙ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל דַּבְּר֕וּ אֵיכָ֥ה נִהְיְתָ֖ה הָרָעָ֥ה הַזֹּֽאת׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Now the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
• of Benjaminבִּנְיָמִיןbinyâmîyn · BenjaminH1144
• heardשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: hearH8085
• of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• were gone upעָלָה‛âlâh · to ascend: riseH5927
• to Mizpehמִצְפָּהmitspâh · MizpahH4709
• Then saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• Tellדָבַרdâbar · to speak: speakH1696
• how wasהָיָהhâyâh · to beH1961
• this wickednessרָעָהra‛ râ‛âh · distress: evilH7451

Cross-references for Judges 20:3

• Proverbs 22:3Sensible people foresee trouble and hide ⌞from it⌟, but gullible people go ahead and suffer ⌞the consequence⌟.
• Matthew 5:25“Make peace quickly with your opponent while you are on the way to court with him. Otherwise, he will hand you over to the judge. Then the judge will hand you over to an officer, who will throw you into prison.
• Luke 12:58For instance, when an opponent brings you to court in front of a ruler, do your best to settle with him before you get there. Otherwise, he will drag you in front of a judge. The judge will hand you over to an officer who will throw you into prison.
• Luke 14:31“Or suppose a king is going to war against another king. He would first sit down and think things through. Can he and his 10,000 soldiers fight against a king with 20,000 soldiers?
• Judges 19:22While they were enjoying themselves, some worthless men from the city surrounded the house and pounded on the door. They told the old man, the owner of the house, “Bring out the man who came to your house so that we can have sex with him.”

Commentaries on Judges 20:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Tell us, how was this wickedness? - They had heard before, by the messengers he sent with the fragments of his wife's body; but they wish to hear it, in full council, from himself.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3The tribe of Benjamin likely got the message (Judges 19:29), so they knew trouble was coming.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel were gone up to Mizpeh--Some suppose that Benjamin had been passed over, the crime having been perpetrated within the territory of that tribe [Jud 19:16]; and that, as the concubine's corpse had been divided into twelve pieces [Jud 19:29]--two had been sent to Manasseh, one respectively to the western and eastern divisions. It is more probable that Benjamin had received a formal summons…Read the comment

Topics related to Judges 20:3

• Mizpah

In the dictionaries

• Benjamin
• Israel
• Children of Israel
• Congregation
• Fetch
• Gibeah
• Glean
• Mizpah
• 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