Judges 6:2

Judges 6:2 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel: and because of the Midianites the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and caves, and strong holds.
• New International Version (NIV)Because the power of Midian was so oppressive, the Israelites prepared shelters for themselves in mountain clefts, caves and strongholds.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And the hand of Midian overpowered Israel, and because of Midian the people of Israel made for themselves the dens that are in the mountains and the caves and the strongholds.
• New King James Version (NKJV)and the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. Because of the Midianites, the children of Israel made for themselves the dens, the caves, and the strongholds which are in the mountains.

Context of Judges 6:2

1The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight, so the Lord turned them over to Midian for seven years. The Midianites overwhelmed Israel. Because of Midian the Israelites made shelters for themselves in the hills, as well as caves and strongholds. 3Whenever the Israelites planted their crops, the Midianites, Amalekites, and the people from the east would attack them. 4They invaded the land and devoured its crops all the way to Gaza. They left nothing for the Israelites to eat, and they took away the sheep, oxen, and donkeys.

Judges 6:2 word by word

וַתָּ֥עָז יַד־מִדְיָ֖ן עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל מִפְּנֵ֨י מִדְיָ֜ן עָשֽׂוּ לָהֶ֣ם׀ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל אֶת־הַמִּנְהָרוֹת֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר בֶּֽהָרִ֔ים וְאֶת־הַמְּעָר֖וֹת וְאֶת־הַמְּצָדֽוֹת׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the handיָדyâd · hand: powerH3027
• of Midianמִדְיָןmidyân · MidianH4080
• prevailedעָזַז‛âzaz · be strongH5810
• against Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• becauseפָּנֶהpânîym · face: becauseH6440
• the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
• madeעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to makeH6213
• them the densמִנְהָרָהminhârâh · caveH4492
• in the mountainsהַרhar · mountain: mountH2022
• and cavesמְעָרָהme‛ârâh · caveH4631
• and strong holdsמְצָדmetsad metsâd metsâdâh · strongholdH4679

Cross-references for Judges 6:2

• Leviticus 16:17Nobody is to be in the Meeting Tent when he enters to make atonement in the holy place until he goes out, and he has made atonement on his behalf, on behalf of his household, and on behalf of the whole assembly of Israel.
• Deuteronomy 28:47“Because you have not served the Lord your God joyfully and wholeheartedly with the abundance of everything you have,
• 1 Samuel 13:6The men of Israel realized they had a problem because their army was hard pressed. So the army hid in caves, thickets, cliffs, strongholds, and cisterns.
• 1 Samuel 14:11When they made themselves known to the Philistine garrison, the Philistines said, “Look! The Hebrews are coming out of the holes in which they hid themselves.”
• Hebrews 11:38(the world was not worthy of them); they wandered in deserts and mountains and caves and openings in the earth.
• Revelation 6:15Then the kings of the earth, the very important people, the generals, the rich, the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains.

Commentaries on Judges 6:2

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2Made them the dens which are in the mountains - Nothing can give a more distressing description of the state of the Israelites than what is here related. They durst not reside in the plain country, but were obliged to betake themselves to dens and caves of the mountains, and live like wild beasts, and were hunted like them by their adversaries.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2The word rendered “dens” is only found in this passage. It is best explained of ravines hollowed out by torrents, which the Israelites made into hiding-places.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-6After forty years of peace, religious blending caused political instability, and roaming nomads forced the Israelites to live as fugitives. The Midianites, once thought to be purely nomadic and based in northwest Arabia, are now known to have built cities and, for a time, controlled much of the Arabian Peninsula and southern Transjordan (the area east of the Jordan). They are joined by the Amalekites (who were earlier part of a Moabite coalition; see…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. made ... dens ... in the mountains and caves--not, of course, excavating them, for they were already, but making them fit for habitation.Read the comment

Topics related to Judges 6:2

• Cave
• Dens
• Fort

In the dictionaries

• Israel
• Midian
• Midian; Midianites
• Israel, Israelites
• Jacob, Israel
• Midian, Midianite
• Children of Israel
• Cave
• Den
• Gideon

Commentaries on Judges 6

• 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