New International Version
Judges 12:4
4Jephthah then called together the men of Gilead and fought against Ephraim. The Gileadites struck them down because the Ephraimites had said, “You Gileadites are renegades from Ephraim and Manasseh.”
Judges 12:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim: and the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because they said, Ye Gileadites are fugitives of Ephraim among the Ephraimites, and among the Manassites.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Then Jephthah gathered all the men of Gilead and fought with Ephraim. And the men of Gilead struck Ephraim, because they said, "You are fugitives of Ephraim, you Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim and Manasseh."
- New King James Version (NKJV)Now Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead and fought against Ephraim. And the men of Gilead defeated Ephraim, because they said, “You Gileadites are fugitives of Ephraim among the Ephraimites and among the Manassites.”
- New Living Translation (NLT)The people of Ephraim responded, “You men of Gilead are nothing more than fugitives from Ephraim and Manasseh.” So Jephthah gathered all the men of Gilead and attacked the men of Ephraim and defeated them.
Context of Judges 12:4
2Jephthah answered, “I and my people were engaged in a great struggle with the Ammonites, and although I called, you didn’t save me out of their hands. 3When I saw that you wouldn’t help, I took my life in my hands and crossed over to fight the Ammonites, and the Lord gave me the victory over them. Now why have you come up today to fight me?” Jephthah then called together the men of Gilead and fought against Ephraim. The Gileadites struck them down because the Ephraimites had said, “You Gileadites are renegades from Ephraim and Manasseh.” 5The Gileadites captured the fords of the Jordan leading to Ephraim, and whenever a survivor of Ephraim said, “Let me cross over,” the men of Gilead asked him, “Are you an Ephraimite?” If he replied, “No,” 6they said, “All right, say ‘Shibboleth.’ ” If he said, “Sibboleth,” because he could not pronounce the word correctly, they seized him and killed him at the fords of the Jordan. Forty-two thousand Ephraimites were killed at that time.
Read all of Judges 12Judges 12:4 word by word
וַיִּקְבֹּ֤ץ יִפְתָּח֙ אֶת־כָּל־אַנְשֵׁ֣י גִלְעָ֔ד וַיִּלָּ֖חֶם אֶת־אֶפְרָ֑יִם וַיַּכּוּ֩ אַנְשֵׁ֨י גִלְעָ֜ד אֶת־אֶפְרַ֗יִם כִּ֤י אָמְרוּ֙ פְּלִיטֵ֤י אֶפְרַ֙יִם֙ אַתֶּ֔ם גִּלְעָ֕ד בְּת֥וֹךְ אֶפְרַ֖יִם בְּת֥וֹךְ מְנַשֶּֽׁה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Then Jephthahיִפְתָּחyiphtâch · JephthahH3316
- gathered togetherקָבַץqâbats · to gatherH6908
- all the menאֱנוֹשׁ'ĕnôsh · humanH582
- of Gileadגִּלְעָדgil‛âd · GileadH1568
- and foughtלָחַםlâcham · to fightH3898
- with Ephraimאֶפְרַ֫יִם'ephrayim · EphraimH669
- smoteנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
- because they saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- fugitivesפָּלִיטpâlîyţ pâlêyţ pâlêţ · survivorH6412
- amongתָּ֫וֶךְtâvek · midstH8432
- the Manassitesמְנַשֶּׁהmenashsheh · ManassehH4519
Cross-references for Judges 12:4
- Judges 11:10The elders of Gilead replied, “The Lord is our witness; we will certainly do as you say.”
- Numbers 32:39The descendants of Makir son of Manasseh went to Gilead, captured it and drove out the Amorites who were there.
- Deuteronomy 3:12Of the land that we took over at that time, I gave the Reubenites and the Gadites the territory north of Aroer by the Arnon Gorge, including half the hill country of Gilead, together with its towns.
- 1 Samuel 25:10Nabal answered David’s servants, “Who is this David? Who is this son of Jesse? Many servants are breaking away from their masters these days.
- Nehemiah 4:4Hear us, our God, for we are despised. Turn their insults back on their own heads. Give them over as plunder in a land of captivity.
- Psalms 78:9The men of Ephraim, though armed with bows, turned back on the day of battle;
- Proverbs 12:13Evildoers are trapped by their sinful talk, and so the innocent escape trouble.
- Proverbs 15:1A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
Commentaries on Judges 12:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4And fought with Ephraim - Some commentators suppose that there were two battles in which the Ephraimites were defeated: the first mentioned in the above clause; and the second occasioned by the taunting language mentioned in the conclusion of the verse, Ye Gileadites are fugitives of Ephraim. Where the point of this reproach lies, or what is the reason of it, cannot be easily ascertained.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Because they said - This passage is extremely obscure. Render: - “The men of Gilead smote Ephraim, for they (the Gileadites) said, Ye are. the fugitives of Ephraim. (Gilead lies between Ephraim and Manasseh; and Gilead took the fords of Jordan before Ephraim, and it came to pass, when the fugitives of Ephraim said Let me pass over, and the Gileadites asked him, art thou an Ephraimite, and he answered No, Then (the Gileadites) said to him say Shibboleth…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4The reason the people of Ephraim taunted the men of Gilead is unclear. They might have resented or looked down on the Israelites living east of the Jordan River.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 4-154-6. the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because they said, Ye Gileadites are fugitives of Ephraim--The remonstrances of Jephthah, though reasonable and temperate, were not only ineffectual, but followed by insulting sneers that the Gileadites were reckoned both by the western Manassites and Ephraimites as outcasts--the scum and refuse of their common stock. This was addressed to a peculiarly sensitive people. A feud immediately ensued. The Gileadites…Read the comment
Topics related to Judges 12:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Judges 12
- 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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