Judges 8:23

Judges 8:23 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And Gideon said unto them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you: the Lord shall rule over you.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Gideon said to them, "I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you; the Lord will rule over you."
• New King James Version (NKJV)But Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, nor shall my son rule over you; the Lord shall rule over you.”
• New Living Translation (NLT)But Gideon replied, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son. The Lord will rule over you!

Context of Judges 8:23

21Zebah and Zalmunna said, “Come, do it yourself. ‘As is the man, so is his strength.’ ” So Gideon stepped forward and killed them, and took the ornaments off their camels’ necks. 22The Israelites said to Gideon, “Rule over us—you, your son and your grandson—because you have saved us from the hand of Midian.” But Gideon told them, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The Lord will rule over you.” 24And he said, “I do have one request, that each of you give me an earring from your share of the plunder.” (It was the custom of the Ishmaelites to wear gold earrings.) 25They answered, “We’ll be glad to give them.” So they spread out a garment, and each of them threw a ring from his plunder onto it.

Judges 8:23 word by word

וַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֲלֵהֶם֙ גִּדְע֔וֹן לֹֽא־אֶמְשֹׁ֤ל אֲנִי֙ בָּכֶ֔ם וְלֹֽא־יִמְשֹׁ֥ל בְּנִ֖י בָּכֶ֑ם יְהוָ֖ה יִמְשֹׁ֥ל בָּכֶֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And Gideonגִּדְעוֹןgid‛ôn · GideonH1439
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• unto them, I will not ruleמָשַׁלmâshal · to ruleH4910
• over you, neither shall my sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
• over you: the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068

Cross-references for Judges 8:23

• Judges 2:18Whenever the Lord raised up a judge for them, he was with the judge and saved them out of the hands of their enemies as long as the judge lived; for the Lord relented because of their groaning under those who oppressed and afflicted them.
• Judges 10:18The leaders of the people of Gilead said to each other, “Whoever will take the lead in attacking the Ammonites will be head over all who live in Gilead.”
• Judges 11:9Jephthah answered, “Suppose you take me back to fight the Ammonites and the Lord gives them to me—will I really be your head?”
• Luke 22:24A dispute also arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest.
• 2 Corinthians 1:24Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you for your joy, because it is by faith you stand firm.
• 1 Peter 5:3not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.
• 1 Samuel 8:6But when they said, “Give us a king to lead us,” this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the Lord.
• 1 Samuel 10:19But you have now rejected your God, who saves you out of all your disasters and calamities. And you have said, ‘No, appoint a king over us.’ So now present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes and clans.”
• 1 Samuel 12:12“But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, ‘No, we want a king to rule over us’—even though the Lord your God was your king.
• Isaiah 33:22For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; it is he who will save us.
• Isaiah 63:19We are yours from of old; but you have not ruled over them, they have not been called by your name.

Commentaries on Judges 8:23

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 23The Lord shall rule over you - Few with such power at their command would have acted as Gideon. His speech calls them back to their first principles, and should have excited in them both shame and contrition. How different is this speech from that of Oliver Cromwell when the commons offered him the crown of England!Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 22-28Verses 22-28 Gideon refused the government the people offered him. No good man can be pleased with any honour done to himself, which belongs only to God. Gideon thought to keep up the remembrance of this victory by an ephod, made of the choicest of the spoils. But probably this ephod had, as usual, a teraphim annexed to it, and Gideon intended this for an oracle to be consulted. Many are led into false ways by one false step of a good man. It became a…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-32Gideon's time as a judge ends the first era of judges.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22-2322-23. the men of Israel said unto Gideon, Rule thou over us ... Gideon said unto them, the Lord shall rule over you--Their unbounded admiration and gratitude prompted them, in the enthusiasm of the moment, to raise their deliverer to a throne, and to establish a royal dynasty in his house. But Gideon knew too well, and revered too piously the principles of the theocracy, to entertain the proposal for a moment. Personal and family ambition was cheerfully…Read the comment

Topics related to Judges 8:23

• Gideon
• Israel
• Theocracy
• Unselfishness

In the dictionaries

• Gideon
• Request
• Resemble
• Zebah
• Abdon (1)
• Government
• Israel, History of
• Judges, Book of
• Judges, Period of
• Theocracy

Commentaries on Judges 8

• 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