Bible Strands
Judges 20:42
So they fled before the men of Israel toward the wilderness, but the battle overtook them, and the men coming out of the cities struck them down there.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The men of Benjamin flee from the advancing men of Israel during the final phase of their civil war. They attempt to escape into the wilderness while Israel pursues them.
The words — וַ/יִּפְנ֞וּ (va/i.yif.Nu) translates as "and they turned" or fled, while וְ/הַ/מִּלְחָמָ֖ה (ve./ha./mil.cha.Mah) means "and the battle." These terms mark the shift from Benjamin's retreat to Israel's pursuit.
The thread — The motif of flight toward the wilderness appears in Joshua 8:15 and Joshua 8:24, where tactical retreats and wilderness pursuits frame Israel's conquest. Lamentations 1:3 later echoes the theme of displaced people finding no refuge.
Why it lands — The text records the collapse of Benjamin's flight and the completion of Israel's pursuit without moral commentary. It demands recognition that strategic retreat fails when the opposing force maintains pressure.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Therefore they turned their backs before the men of Israel unto the way of the wilderness; but the battle overtook them; and them which came out of the cities they destroyed in the midst of them.
Cross-references
- Joshua 8:24 When Israel had finished killing all the men of Ai who had pursued them into the field and wilderness, and when every last one of them had fallen by the sword, all the Israelites returned to Ai and put it to the sword as well.
- Joshua 8:15 Joshua and all Israel let themselves be beaten back before them, and they fled toward the wilderness.
- Lamentations 1:3 Judah has gone into exile under affliction and harsh slavery; she dwells among the nations but finds no place to rest. All her pursuers have overtaken her in the midst of her distress.
- Hosea 9:9 They have deeply corrupted themselves as in the days of Gibeah; He will remember their guilt; He will punish their sins.
- Hosea 10:9 Since the days of Gibeah you have sinned, O Israel, and there you have remained. Did not the battle in Gibeah overtake the sons of iniquity?