Bible Strands
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.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The Israelite assembly speaks to itself while debating how to preserve the tribe of Benjamin after the civil war. They address the immediate problem of providing wives for the surviving men while confronting a prior collective oath.
The words — The text employs לֹא (lo'), meaning not, and נִשְׁבְּעוּ (nish.be.'U), meaning they had sworn, to state the assembly’s declared inability. These terms anchor the verse in the literal record of a binding oath that now blocks their intended action.
The thread — This restriction directly references the oath the men of Israel swore at Mizpah in Judges 21:1. The conflict between keeping a sworn word and preserving a tribe also surfaces in Judges 11:35.
Why it lands — The verse forces a reader to confront how collective vows can create legal and moral dead ends. It demands attention to the tension between strict adherence to sworn boundaries and the practical necessity of tribal survival.
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
Howbeit 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.
Cross-references
- 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.”
- Judges 11:35 As soon as Jephthah saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “No! Not my daughter! You have brought me to my knees! You have brought great misery upon me, for I have given my word to the LORD and cannot take it back.”