Judges 17:7
in Judges 17And there was a young Levite from Bethlehem in Judah who had been residing within the clan of Judah.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And there was a young man out of Beth-lehem-judah, of the family of Judah, who was a Levite; and he sojourned there.
KJV
And there was a young man out of Beth–lehem–judah of the family of Judah, who was a Levite, and he sojourned there.
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This verse in Judges 17
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
The Hebrew words for “he sojourned there” are, שׁם גר gêr shām, which words are used Jdg 18:30 in the genealogy of this young Levite, whose name was “Jonathan, the son of Gershom” (גרשׁם gêreshôm). Hence, some read here, “the son of Gershom.”
This site's exposition
there was a young Levite from Bethlehem in Judah
on Judges 17:7-9
Levites held no tribal land, and Deuteronomy 18:6-8 let any Levite come to the place God chose and eat equal portions there. This one leaves Bethlehem “to settle where he could find a place” instead. Judges 18:30 names him Jonathan son of Gershom, where the King James reads son of Manasseh and the Hebrew carries a raised letter, so readers differ over whether the name is Manasseh or Moses.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Bethlehem-judah - So called here, as Matt. ii, 1, 5, to difference it from Bethlehem in Zebulun. There he was born and bred. Of Judah - That is, of or belonging to the tribe of Judah; not by birth, for he was a Levite; but by his habitation and ministration.
1 And there was a man of mount Ephraim, whose name was Micah. 2 And he said unto his mother, The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from thee, about which thou cursedst, and spakest of also in mine ears, behold, the silver is with me;
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
And there was a young man out of Bethlehemjudah,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Of the family of Judah - The word family may be taken here for tribe; or the young man might have been of the tribe of Judah by his mother, and of the tribe of Levi by his father, for he is called here a Levite; and it is probable that he might have officiated at Shiloh, in the Levitical office. A Levite might marry into any other tribe, providing the woman was not an heiress.
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיְהִי־ | vayhi- | and he was | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| נַ֗עַר | naar | a young man | H5288 → | 239 times |
| מִבֵּ֥ית | mibeit | from Beth- | H1035 → | 82 times |
| לֶ֙חֶם֙ | lechem | -lehem | H1035 → | 82 times |
| יְהוּדָ֔ה | yehudah | Judah | H3063 → | 819 times |
| מִמִּשְׁפַּ֖חַת | mimishpachat | from [the] tribe of | H4940 → | 303 times |
| יְהוּדָ֑ה | yehudah | Judah | H3063 → | 819 times |
| וְה֥וּא | vehu' | and he | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| לֵוִ֖י | levi | [was] a Levite | H3881 → | 291 times |
| וְה֥וּא | vehu' | and he | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| גָֽר־ | gar- | [was] sojourning | H1481 → | 97 times |
| שָֽׁם׃ | sham | there | H8033 → | 834 times |
וַיְהִי־and he was
vayhi-H1961 →3559 times
נַ֗עַרa young man
naarH5288 →239 times
מִבֵּ֥יתfrom Beth-
mibeitH1035 →82 times
לֶ֙חֶם֙-lehem
lechemH1035 →82 times
יְהוּדָ֔הJudah
yehudahH3063 →819 times
מִמִּשְׁפַּ֖חַתfrom [the] tribe of
mimishpachatH4940 →303 times
יְהוּדָ֑הJudah
yehudahH3063 →819 times
וְה֥וּאand he
vehu'H1931 →1879 times
לֵוִ֖י[was] a Levite
leviH3881 →291 times
וְה֥וּאand he
vehu'H1931 →1879 times
גָֽר־[was] sojourning
gar-H1481 →97 times
שָֽׁם׃there
shamH8033 →834 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Micah 5:2But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come forth for Me One to be ruler over Israel—One whose origins are of old, from the days…
it leads to
- John 7:42
Doesn’t the Scripture say that the Christ will come from the line of David and from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?”
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Matthew 2:6
‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah, for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of My people…
- Luke 1:31–33
Behold, you will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus.
- Isaiah 9:6–7
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of…
- John 7:42
Through
Matthew 2:1After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem,
it leads to
- Micah 5:2
But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come forth for Me One to be ruler over Israel—One whose origins are of old, from the days…
- Luke 2:4–7
So Joseph also went up from Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, since he was from the house and line of David.
- Luke 2:11
Today in the city of David a Savior has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord!
- Psalms 72:9–12
May the nomads bow before him, and his enemies lick the dust.
- Micah 5:2
About Judges
Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PersonPatriarchsJudahJacob's fourth son who pledges himself for Benjamin; the tribe that carries the scepter to Shiloh (49:10) and the line to Christ (…
- PlaceBethlehemBethlehemDavid’s town, six miles south of Jerusalem, where Ruth gleaned, where Samuel anointed a shepherd boy, and where Jesus was born as…
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.