New International Version
Judges 17:6
6In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.
Judges 17:6 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
- English Standard Version (ESV)In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
- New King James Version (NKJV)In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
- New Living Translation (NLT)In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.
Context of Judges 17:6
4So after he returned the silver to his mother, she took two hundred shekels of silver and gave them to a silversmith, who used them to make the idol. And it was put in Micah’s house. 5Now this man Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and some household gods and installed one of his sons as his priest. In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit. 7A young Levite from Bethlehem in Judah, who had been living within the clan of Judah, 8left that town in search of some other place to stay. On his way he came to Micah’s house in the hill country of Ephraim.
Read all of Judges 17Judges 17:6 word by word
בַּיָּמִ֣ים הָהֵ֔ם אֵ֥ין מֶ֖לֶךְ בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל אִ֛ישׁ הַיָּשָׁ֥ר בְּעֵינָ֖יו יַעֲשֶֽׂה׃ פRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Judges 17:6
- Judges 18:1In those days Israel had no king. And in those days the tribe of the Danites was seeking a place of their own where they might settle, because they had not yet come into an inheritance among the tribes of Israel.
- Judges 19:1In those days Israel had no king. Now a Levite who lived in a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim took a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah.
- Judges 21:3“Lord, God of Israel,” they cried, “why has this happened to Israel? Why should one tribe be missing from Israel today?”
- Genesis 36:31These were the kings who reigned in Edom before any Israelite king reigned:
- Deuteronomy 33:5He was king over Jeshurun when the leaders of the people assembled, along with the tribes of Israel.
- Deuteronomy 12:8You are not to do as we do here today, everyone doing as they see fit,
- Psalms 12:4those who say, “By our tongues we will prevail; our own lips will defend us—who is lord over us?”
- Proverbs 12:15The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice.
- Proverbs 14:12There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.
- Proverbs 16:2All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord.
- Ecclesiastes 11:9You who are young, be happy while you are young, and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth. Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see, but know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.
- Jeremiah 44:16“We will not listen to the message you have spoken to us in the name of the Lord!
Commentaries on Judges 17:6
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 6There was no king in Israel - The word מלך melech, which generally means king, is sometimes taken for a supreme governor, judge, magistrate, or ruler of any kind; (see Genesis 36:31, and Deuteronomy 33:5;); and it is likely it should be so understood here. Every man did that which was right in his own eyes - He was his own governor, and what he did he said was right; and, by his cunning and strength, defended his conduct. When a man's own will, passions…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 6In those days - This phrase, indicating distinctly that the writer lived after the establishment of the kingly government in Israel, is unique to the author of these last five chapters.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-13These 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. 66. every man did that which was right in his own eyes--From want of a settled government, there was no one to call him to account. No punishment followed any crime.Read the comment
Topics related to Judges 17:6
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Judges 17
- 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
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