King James Version
Judges 21:2
2And the people came to the house of God, and abode there till even before God, and lifted up their voices, and wept sore;
Judges 21:2 in other versions
- New International Version (NIV)The people went to Bethel, where they sat before God until evening, raising their voices and weeping bitterly.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And the people came to Bethel and sat there till evening before God, and they lifted up their voices and wept bitterly.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then the people came to the house of God, and remained there before God till evening. They lifted up their voices and wept bitterly,
- New Living Translation (NLT)Now the people went to Bethel and sat in the presence of God until evening, weeping loudly and bitterly.
Context of Judges 21:2
1Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpeh, saying, There shall not any of us give his daughter unto Benjamin to wife. And the people came to the house of God, and abode there till even before God, and lifted up their voices, and wept sore; 3And said, O Lord God of Israel, why is this come to pass in Israel, that there should be to day one tribe lacking in Israel? 4And it came to pass on the morrow, that the people rose early, and built there an altar, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings.
Read all of Judges 21Judges 21:2 word by word
וַיָּבֹ֤א הָעָם֙ בֵּֽית־אֵ֔ל וַיֵּ֤שְׁבוּ שָׁם֙ עַד־הָעֶ֔רֶב לִפְנֵ֖י הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים וַיִּשְׂא֣וּ קוֹלָ֔ם וַיִּבְכּ֖וּ בְּכִ֥י גָדֽוֹל׃Read the interlinear
- And the peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
- cameבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
- to the houseבֵּיתbayith · betweenH1004
- of Godבֵּֽיתְ־אֵלbêyth-'êl · BethelH1008
- of Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- and abodeיָשַׁבyâshab · to dwellH3427
- there till evenעֶ֫רֶב‛ereb · eveningH6153
- beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
- Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- and lifted upנָשָׂאnâώâ' nâsâh · to lift: loudH5375
- their voicesקוֹלqôl qôl · voiceH6963
- and weptבְּכִיbekîy · weepingH1065
- and weptבָּכָהbâkâh · to weepH1058
- soreגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419
Cross-references for Judges 21:2
- Judges 21:12And they found among the inhabitants of Jabesh–gilead four hundred young virgins, that had known no man by lying with any male: and they brought them unto the camp to Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan.
- Judges 20:18And the children of Israel arose, and went up to the house of God, and asked counsel of God, and said, Which of us shall go up first to the battle against the children of Benjamin? And the Lord said, Judah shall go up first.
- Joshua 18:1And the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled together at Shiloh, and set up the tabernacle of the congregation there. And the land was subdued before them.
- Judges 2:4And it came to pass, when the angel of the Lord spake these words unto all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voice, and wept.
- Genesis 27:38And Esau said unto his father, Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my father. And Esau lifted up his voice, and wept.
- 1 Samuel 30:4Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep.
Commentaries on Judges 21:2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2The people came to the house of God - Literally, the people came בית־אל to Bethel; this is considered as the name of a place by the Chaldee, Syriac, Arabic, and Septuagint. And wept sore - Their revenge was satisfied, and now reflection brings them to contrition for what they had done.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2To the house of God - It should be, “to Bethel.” See Judges 20:18.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-25These two epilogues (Judges 17–18 and 19–21) show that inspired but unstructured leadership cannot last. As society moved toward chaos and civil war, the phrase, In those days there was no king in Israel appears four times. The phrase, everyone did what was right in his own eyes is added twice (Judges 17:6; 18:1; 19:1; 21:25). The era of inspired leadership declined and ended in disorder. Something important was missing.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-152-5. the people came to the house of God, ... and lifted up their voices, and wept sore--The characteristic fickleness of the Israelites was not long in being displayed; for scarcely had they cooled from the fierceness of their sanguinary vengeance, than they began to relent and rushed to the opposite extreme of self-accusation and grief at the desolation which their impetuous zeal had produced. Their victory saddened and humbled them. Their feelings on…Read the comment
Topics related to Judges 21:2
In the dictionaries
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
King James Version — Public Domain except in the United Kingdom (Crown rights)
Commentaries