Judges 5:9

5:8 They chose new gods; then was war in the gates: was there a shield or spear seen among forty thousand in Israel?

My heart is toward the governors of Israel, that offered themselves willingly among the people. Bless ye the LORD.

KJV

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My heart is toward the governors of Israel, who offered themselves willingly among the people. Bless Yahweh!

My heart is toward the governors of Israel, that offered themselves willingly among the people. Bless ye the Lord.

My heart is toward the governors of Israel, that offered themselves willingly among the people. Bless you the LORD.

5:10 Speak, ye that ride on white asses, ye that sit in judgment, and walk by the way. Speak: or, Meditate

What does Judges 5:9 mean?

Judges 5:9 is a verse in the book of Judges, in the Old Testament. In the original Hebrew, key words include לֵב (lêb), חָקַק (châqaq), יִשְׂרָאֵל (Yisrâʼêl). It connects to 3 cross-referenced passages elsewhere in Scripture.

Hebrew interlinear

heartלֵבlêb/labe/H3820the heart; also used (figuratively) very widely for the feelings, the will and even the intellect; likewise for the centre of anything

toward

the

governorsחָקַקchâqaq/khaw-kak'/H2710properly, to hack, i.e. engrave (Judges 5:14, to be a scribe simply); by implication, to enact (laws being cut in stone or metal tablets in primitive times) or (gen.) prescribe

Israel,יִשְׂרָאֵלYisrâʼêl/yis-raw-ale'/H3478Jisrael, a symbolical name of Jacob; also (typically) of his posterity

that

offered

themselves

willinglyנָדַבnâdab/naw-dab'/H5068to impel; hence, to volunteer (as a soldier), to present spontaneously

among

the

people.עַםʻam/am/H5971a people (as a congregated unit); specifically, a tribe (as those of Israel); hence (collectively) troops or attendants; figuratively, a flock

Blessבָרַךְbârak/baw-rak'/H1288to kneel; by implication to bless God (as an act of adoration), and (vice-versa) man (as a benefit); also (by euphemism) to curse (God or the king, as treason)

the

LORD.יְהֹוָהYᵉhôvâh/yeh-ho-vaw'/H3068Jehovah, Jewish national name of God

Commentary on Judges 5:9

HENRY_FULL · Judges 5:9

" In this and the following chapter we have two farewell sermons, which Joshua preached to the people of Israel a little before his death. Had he designed to gratify the curiosity of succeeding ages, he would rather have recorded the method of Israel's settlement in their new conquests, their husbandry, manufacturers, trade, customs, courts of justice, and the constitutions of their infant commonwealth, which one would wish to be informed of; but that which he intended in the registers of this book was to entail on posterity a sense of religion and their duty to God; and therefore, overlooking these things which are the usual subjects of a common history, he here transmits to his reader the methods he took to persuade Israel to be faithful to their covenant with their God, which might have a good influence on the generations to come who should read those reasonings, as we may hope they had on that generation which then heard them. In this chapter we have, I. A convention of the states called ( ver. 1, 2 ), probably to consult about the common concerns of their land, and to set in order that which, after some years' trial, being left to their prudence, was found wanting. II. Joshua's speech to them as the opening, or perhaps at the concluding, of the sessions, to hear which was the principal design of their coming together. In it, 1. Joshua reminds them of what God had done for them ( ver. 3, 4 , 9 , 14 ), and what he was ready to do yet further, ver. 5 , 10 . 2. He exhorts them carefully and resolutely to persevere in their duty to God, ver. 6 , 8 , 11 . III. He cautions them against all familiarity with their idolatrous neighbours, ver. 7 . IV. He gives them fair warning of the fatal consequences of it, if they should revolt from God and turn to idols, ver. 12, 13 , 15 , 16 . In all this he showed himself zealous for his God, and jealous over Israel with a godly jealousy. Joshua

Cross-references

Related passages from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.

Deuteronomy 31:28

Gather unto me all the elders of your tribes, and your officers, that I may speak these words in their ears, and call heaven and earth to record against them.

1 Chronicles 28:1

And David assembled all the princes of Israel, the princes of the tribes, and the captains of the companies that ministered to the king by course, and the captains over the thousands, and captains over the hundreds, and the stewards over all the substance and possession of the king, and of his sons, with the officers, and with the mighty men, and with all the valiant men, unto Jerusalem. possession: or, cattle and of: or, and his sons officers: or, eunuchs

Acts 20:17

And from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church.

Verses like this

Other verses that share key original-language words with Judges 5:9.

Exodus 25:2

Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering. bring me: Heb. take for me offering: or, heave offering

Genesis 17:16

And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her. she: Heb. she shall become nations

Genesis 27:29

Let people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother's sons bow down to thee: cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee.

Genesis 49:10

The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.

Genesis 49:16

Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel.

Genesis 6:5

And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. every: or, the whole imagination: the Hebrew word signifieth not only the imagination, but also the purposes and desires continually: Heb. every day

Genesis 6:6

And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.

Genesis 8:21

And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done. a sweet: Heb. a savour of rest or, satisfaction for the imagination: or, through the imagination

Frequently asked questions

What does Judges 5:9 say?

Judges 5:9 (King James Version) reads: "My heart is toward the governors of Israel, that offered themselves willingly among the people. Bless ye the LORD."

Is Judges 5:9 in the Old or New Testament?

Judges 5:9 is in the Old Testament of the Bible, in the book of Judges.

Reflect

As you read Judges 5:9, what is one truth here you can carry into today?

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