Bible Strands

Judges 3:29

At that time they struck down about ten thousand Moabites, all robust and valiant men. Not one of them escaped.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — Ehud directs Israelite forces to pursue the retreating Moabites immediately after securing the Jordan River fords. The strike occurs at the moment the Moabite army is trapped and unable to cross back into their territory.

The words — וַ/יַּכּ֨וּ (va/i.ya.Ku) translates literally as "and they struck down," denoting a decisive, completed military action. מוֹאָ֜ב (mo.'Av) identifies the specific target nation, grounding the violence in a concrete geopolitical conflict rather than abstract warfare.

The thread — The narrative thread runs through Judges 3:28–30, where securing the fords enables the slaughter, and Judges 3:30 records the immediate result of Moab's subjugation and Israel's subsequent eight decades of peace.

Why it lands — The text records a precise military outcome without moral commentary, forcing the reader to confront the historical reality of ancient Near Eastern conquest. It demands recognition that the narrative tracks political survival and territorial control before any theological application is drawn.

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

וַיַּכּ֨וּva/i.ya.Kuand/ they struck downאֶת־'et-<obj.>מוֹאָ֜בmo.'AvMoabבָּעֵ֣תba./'Etat the/ timeהַהִ֗יאha./Hi'<the>/ thatכַּעֲשֶׂ֤רֶתka./'a.Se.retabout/ tenאֲלָפִים֙'a.la.Fimthousand<s>אִ֔ישׁ'Ishmanכָּל־kol-everyשָׁמֵ֖ןsha.Menstout [person]וְכָל־ve./kholand/ everyאִ֣ישׁ'ishman ofחָ֑יִלCha.yilstrengthוְלֹ֥אve./Lo'and/ notנִמְלַ֖טnim.Lathe escapedאִֽישׁ׃'Ishanyone

King James Version

And they slew of Moab at that time about ten thousand men, all lusty, and all men of valour; and there escaped not a man.

Cross-references