Bible Strands
Judges 21:1
Now the men of Israel had sworn an oath at Mizpah, saying, “Not one of us will give his daughter in marriage to a Benjamite.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator reports that the men of Israel, gathered at Mizpah, enacted a binding oath concerning the tribe of Benjamin. This declaration occurs immediately after the civil war and directly precedes the people's lament at Bethel.
The words — The Hebrew term נִשְׁבַּ֥ע (nishba') denotes the formal act of swearing an oath, while לֹא־אִ֣ישׁ מִמֶּ֔/נּוּ (lo'-ish mi-me/nu) literally translates to "not a man from us," establishing an absolute restriction. These terms frame the Israelites' self-imposed legal boundary.
The thread — This vow echoes the unified mobilization at Judges 20:1 and the collective pledge at Judges 20:8, while paralleling later binding oaths like the conspiracy in Acts 23:12. The narrative pattern shows Israel repeatedly resorting to sworn oaths to enforce communal boundaries.
Why it lands — The text records a self-enforced prohibition that blocks a necessary social remedy, forcing readers to confront the consequences of rigid commitments made without divine guidance. It demands recognition that human oaths can create insoluble dilemmas when they override practical mercy.
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The Hebrew words
King James Version
Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpeh, saying, There shall not any of us give his daughter unto Benjamin to wife.
Cross-references
- Judges 20:1 Then all the Israelites from Dan to Beersheba and from the land of Gilead came out, and the congregation assembled as one man before the LORD at Mizpah.
- Acts 23:12 When daylight came, the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul.
- Judges 20:8 Then all the people stood as one man and said, “Not one of us will return to his tent or to his house.
- Judges 21:18 But we cannot give them our daughters as wives.” For the Israelites had sworn, “Cursed is he who gives a wife to a Benjamite.”
- Ecclesiastes 5:2 Do not be quick to speak, and do not be hasty in your heart to utter a word before God. For God is in heaven and you are on earth. So let your words be few.
- Mark 6:23 And he swore to her, “Whatever you ask of me, I will give you, up to half my kingdom!”
- Deuteronomy 7:2 and when the LORD your God has delivered them over to you to defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. Make no treaty with them and show them no mercy.
- Judges 11:30 Jephthah made this vow to the LORD: “If indeed You will deliver the Ammonites into my hand,
- Judges 20:10 We will take ten men out of every hundred from all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred out of every thousand, and a thousand out of every ten thousand, to supply provisions for the army when they go to Gibeah in Benjamin to punish them for the atrocity they have committed in Israel.”
- Judges 21:5 The Israelites asked, “Who among all the tribes of Israel did not come to the assembly before the LORD?” For they had taken a solemn oath that anyone who failed to come up before the LORD at Mizpah would surely be put to death.