New English Translation
Judges 20:6
6I grabbed hold of my concubine and carved her up and sent the pieces throughout the territory occupied by Israel, because they committed such an unthinkable atrocity in Israel.
Judges 20:6 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And I took my concubine, and cut her in pieces, and sent her throughout all the country of the inheritance of Israel: for they have committed lewdness and folly in Israel.
- New International Version (NIV)I took my concubine, cut her into pieces and sent one piece to each region of Israel’s inheritance, because they committed this lewd and outrageous act in Israel.
- English Standard Version (ESV)So I took hold of my concubine and cut her in pieces and sent her throughout all the country of the inheritance of Israel, for they have committed abomination and outrage in Israel.
- New King James Version (NKJV)So I took hold of my concubine, cut her in pieces, and sent her throughout all the territory of the inheritance of Israel, because they committed lewdness and outrage in Israel.
Context of Judges 20:6
4The Levite, the husband of the murdered woman, spoke up, “I and my concubine stopped in Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin to spend the night. 5The leaders of Gibeah attacked me and at night surrounded the house where I was staying. They wanted to kill me; instead they abused my concubine so badly that she died. I grabbed hold of my concubine and carved her up and sent the pieces throughout the territory occupied by Israel, because they committed such an unthinkable atrocity in Israel. 7All you Israelites, make a decision here!” 8All Israel rose up in unison and said, “Not one of us will go home! Not one of us will return to his house!
Read all of Judges 20Judges 20:6 word by word
וָֽאֹחֵ֤ז בְּפִֽילַגְשִׁי֙ וָֽאֲנַתְּחֶ֔הָ וָֽאֲשַׁלְּחֶ֔הָ בְּכָל־שְׂדֵ֖ה נַחֲלַ֣ת יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל כִּ֥י עָשׂ֛וּ זִמָּ֥ה וּנְבָלָ֖ה בְּיִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And I tookאָחַז'âchaz · to graspH270
- my concubineפִּלֶ֫גֶשׁpîylegesh pilegesh · concubineH6370
- and cut her in piecesנָתַחnâthach · to cutH5408
- and sentשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: departH7971
- her throughout all the countryשָׂדֶהώâdeh ώâday · land: countryH7704
- of the inheritanceנַחֲלָהnachălâh · inheritanceH5159
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- for they have committedעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
- lewdnessזִמָּהzimmâh zammâh · wickednessH2154
- and follyנְבָלָהnebâlâh · follyH5039
Cross-references for Judges 20:6
- Judges 19:29When he got home, he took a knife, grabbed his concubine, and carved her up into twelve pieces. Then he sent the pieces throughout Israel.
- Judges 20:10We will take ten of every group of a hundred men from all the tribes of Israel (and a hundred of every group of a thousand, and a thousand of every group of ten thousand) to get supplies for the army. When they arrive in Gibeah of Benjamin they will punish them for the atrocity which they committed in Israel.”
- Judges 19:23The man who owned the house went outside and said to them, “No, my brothers! Don’t do this wicked thing! After all, this man is a guest in my house. Don’t do such a disgraceful thing!
- Genesis 34:7Now Jacob’s sons had come in from the field when they heard the news. They were offended and very angry because Shechem had disgraced Israel by sexually assaulting Jacob’s daughter, a crime that should not be committed.
- Joshua 7:15The one caught with the riches must be burned up along with all who belong to him, because he violated the Lord’s covenant and did such a disgraceful thing in Israel.’”
- 2 Samuel 13:12But she said to him, “No, my brother! Don’t humiliate me! This just isn’t done in Israel! Don’t do this foolish thing!
Commentaries on Judges 20:6
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-48These 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. 4-74-7. the Levite, the husband of the woman that was slain, answered and said--The injured husband gave a brief and unvarnished recital of the tragic outrage, from which it appears that force was used, which he could not resist. His testimony was doubtless corroborated by those of his servant and the old Ephraimite. There was no need of strong or highly colored description to work upon the feelings of the audience. The facts spoke for themselves and…Read the comment
In the dictionaries
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
New English Translation — © 1996-2016 Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C.
Commentaries