God’s Word Translation
Judges 4:3
3The people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help. King Jabin had 900 chariots made of iron and had cruelly oppressed Israel for 20 years.
Judges 4:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And the children of Israel cried unto the Lord: for he had nine hundred chariots of iron; and twenty years he mightily oppressed the children of Israel.
- New International Version (NIV)Because he had nine hundred chariots fitted with iron and had cruelly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years, they cried to the Lord for help.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Then the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help, for he had 900 chariots of iron and he oppressed the people of Israel cruelly for twenty years.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And the children of Israel cried out to the Lord; for Jabin had nine hundred chariots of iron, and for twenty years he had harshly oppressed the children of Israel.
Context of Judges 4:3
1After Ehud died, the people of Israel again did what the Lord considered evil. 2So the Lord used King Jabin of Canaan, who ruled at Hazor, to defeat them. The commander of King Jabin’s army was Sisera, who lived at Harosheth Haggoyim. The people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help. King Jabin had 900 chariots made of iron and had cruelly oppressed Israel for 20 years. 4Deborah, wife of Lappidoth, was a prophet. She was the judge in Israel at that time. 5She used to sit under the Palm Tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the mountains of Ephraim. The people of Israel would come to her for legal decisions.
Read all of Judges 4Judges 4:3 word by word
וַיִּצְעֲק֥וּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל אֶל־יְהוָ֑ה כִּ֠י תְּשַׁ֨ע מֵא֤וֹת רֶֽכֶב־בַּרְזֶל֙ ל֔וֹ וְ֠הוּא לָחַ֞ץ אֶת־בְּנֵ֧י יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל בְּחָזְקָ֖ה עֶשְׂרִ֥ים שָׁנָֽה׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- criedצָעַקtsâ‛aq · to cryH6817
- unto the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- for he had nineתֵּ֫שַׁעtêsha‛ tish‛âh · nineH8672
- hundredמֵאָהmê'âh mê'yâh · hundredH3967
- chariotsרֶ֫כֶבrekeb · chariotH7393
- of ironבַּרְזֶלbarzel · ironH1270
- and twentyעֶשְׂרִים‛eώrîym · twentyH6242
- yearsשָׁנָהshâneh shânâh · yearH8141
- he mightilyחׇזְקָהchozqâh · forceH2394
- oppressedלָחַץlâchats · to oppressH3905
Cross-references for Judges 4:3
- Judges 3:9Then the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help. The Lord sent a savior to rescue them. It was Othniel, son of Caleb’s younger brother Kenaz.
- Judges 10:16Then they got rid of the foreign gods they had and served the Lord. So the Lord could not bear to have Israel suffer any longer.
- 1 Samuel 7:8The Israelites said to Samuel, “Don’t turn a deaf ear to us! Don’t stop crying to the Lord our God for us! Ask him to save us from the Philistines!”
- Psalms 50:15Call on me in times of trouble. I will rescue you, and you will honor me.”
- Psalms 78:34When he killed ⌞some of⌟ them, ⌞the rest⌟ searched for him. They turned from their sins and eagerly looked for God.
- Jeremiah 2:27You call wood your father. You call stone your mother. You’ve turned your backs, not your faces, to me. But when you’re in trouble, you ask me to come and rescue you.
- Judges 1:19The Lord was with the men of Judah so that they were able to take possession of the mountains. But they could not force out the people living in the valley who had chariots made of iron.
- Joshua 17:16Joseph’s descendants responded, “The mountains are not enough for us either. Besides, all the Canaanites living in the valley, in Beth Shean and its villages, and in the valley of Jezreel have chariots made of iron.”
- Judges 5:8When the people chose new gods, war broke out inside the city gates. Not a weapon was seen among 40,000 in Israel.
- Deuteronomy 28:29You will grope in broad daylight as blind people grope in their blindness. You won’t be successful in anything you do. As long as you live, you will be oppressed and robbed with no one to rescue you.
- Psalms 106:42Their enemies oppressed them and made them subject to their power.
Commentaries on Judges 4:3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Nine hundred chariots of iron - Chariots armed with iron scythes, as is generally supposed; they could not have been made all of iron, but they might have been shod with iron, or had iron scythes projecting from the axle on each side, by which infantry might be easily cut down or thrown into confusion. The ancient Britons are said to have had such chariots.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3Oppressed - The same word is used Exodus 3:9 of the oppression of Israel by the Egyptians. If they were put to task-work in hewing timber, their condition was very like that of their ancestors making bricks.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3Historical records show that armies like Sisera's had many iron chariots. They expected to easily defeat the lightly armed Israelite foot soldiers.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2-32-3. Jabin king of Canaan--"Jabin," a royal title (see on Jos 11:1). The second Jabin built a new capital on the ruins of the old (Jos 11:10, 11). The northern Canaanites had recovered from the effect of their disastrous overthrow in the time of Joshua, and now triumphed in their turn over Israel. This was the severest oppression to which Israel had been subjected. But it fell heaviest on the tribes in the north, and it was not till after a grinding…Read the comment
Topics related to Judges 4:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Judges 4
- 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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