Judges 21:16
“Then the elders of the congregation said, How shall we do for wives for them that remain, seeing the women are destroyed out of Benjamin?”
Judges 21:16 in 7 translations
- KJVKing James Version
- Then the elders of the congregation said, How shall we do for wives for them that remain, seeing the women are destroyed out of Benjamin?
- DRADouay–Rheims
- And the ancients said: What shall we do with the rest, that have not received wives? for all the women in Benjamin are dead.
- ASVAmerican Standard Version
- Then the elders of the congregation said, How shall we do for wives for them that remain, seeing the women are destroyed out of Benjamin?
- DARBYDarby
- Then the elders of the congregation said, |What shall we do for wives for those who are left, since the women are destroyed out of Benjamin?|
- WEBThe World English Bible
- Then the elders of the congregation said, How shall we provide wives for those who remain, since the women are destroyed out of Benjamin?
- YLTYoung's Literal Translation
- And the elders of the company say, 'What do we do to the remnant for wives ; for the women have been destroyed out of Benjamin?'
- BPVBiblePics Version
- Then the elders of the congregation said, "What shall we do for wives for those who remain, since the women of Benjamin have been destroyed?"
Context: Judges 21
14And Benjamin came again at that time; and they gave them wives which they had saved alive of the women of Jabeshgilead: and yet so they sufficed them not.
15And the people repented them for Benjamin, because that the LORD had made a breach in the tribes of Israel.
16Then the elders of the congregation said, How shall we do for wives for them that remain, seeing the women are destroyed out of Benjamin?
17And they said, There must be an inheritance for them that be escaped of Benjamin, that a tribe be not destroyed out of Israel.
18Howbeit we may not give them wives of our daughters: for the children of Israel have sworn, saying, Cursed be he that giveth a wife to Benjamin.
About Judges 21: Capture of Wives for the Benjamites
The Israelites regret their actions and work to repopulate the tribe of Benjamin by allowing the remaining Benjaminite men to take wives from a group of women who had gathered at Shiloh.
Commentary
Judges 21 is the final chapter of the book of Judges, and it serves as a fitting conclusion to the tumultuous period of Israelite history that it describes. The chapter begins with the Israelites gathering together in Mizpah to make a solemn vow to God that they will not allow any of their daughters to marry outside of their tribe. This vow is a sign of the Israelites’ commitment to their faith and to their tribal identity, and it serves as a reminder of the importance of maintaining the purity of the Israelite people.