Judges 8:18
in Judges 8Next, Gideon asked Zebah and Zalmunna, “What kind of men did you kill at Tabor?” “Men like you,” they answered, “each one resembling the son of a king.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Then said he unto Zebah and Zalmunna, What manner of men were they whom ye slew at Tabor? And they answered, As thou art, so were they; each one resembled the children of a king.
KJV
Then said he unto Zebah and Zalmunna, What manner of men were they whom ye slew at Tabor? And they answered, As thou art, so were they; each one resembled the children of a king.
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This verse in Judges 8
Commentary
6 notes on this verseWhat manner of men were they whom ye slew at Tabor? - We have no antecedent to this question; and are obliged to conjecture one: it seems as if Zebah and Zalmunna had massacred the family of Gideon, while he was absent on this expedition. Gideon had heard some confused account of it, and now questions them concerning the fact. They boldly acknowledge it, and describe the persons whom they slew, by which he found they were his own brethren. This determines him to avenge their death by slaying the Midianitish kings, whom he otherwise was inclined to save.
This site's exposition
What manner of men were they whom ye slew at Tabor
on Judges 8:18-19
The pursuit is now shown to have had a cause the narrative held back for eighteen verses: these kings had killed Gideon's brothers at Tabor. Their answer, each one resembled the children of a king, describes the family Gideon comes from and sits oddly beside 6:15, where he called his family poor in Manasseh and himself the least in his father's house. Verse 19 says he would have spared them had they spared his brothers, which puts the killing under the office of the avenger of blood in Numbers 35:19 and Deuteronomy 19:12, executed here by a judge on foreign kings.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
), it is not because he was uncertain of the thing, or wanted proof of it; he was not so little concerned for his brethren's blood as not to enquire it out before now, nor were these proud tyrants solicitous to conceal it.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
Then said he unto Zebah and Zalmunna,.... Not at Penuel or Succoth, but when he had brought them into the land of Canaan, and perhaps to his own city Ophrah: what manner of men were they whom ye slew at Tabor?
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
It is noticed now for the first time when their fate was about to be determined. each one resembled the children of a king--An Orientalism for great beauty, majesty of appearance, uncommon strength, and grandeur of form.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
What manner of men - literally, “Where are the men?” The sense, “what manner of men”, is merely gathered from the tenor of the answer. Gideon doubtless knew that his brethren had been killed by Zebah and Zalmunna, and the desire of avenging their death was one motive for his impetuous pursuit and attack. His question was rather a taunt, a bitter reproach to his captives, preparing them for their fate. Zebah and Zalmunna, in their answer, did not give evidence against themselves. Their hope was by a flattering answer to soothe Gideon’s wrath.
The words behind it
17 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֗אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| זֶ֙בַח֙ | zevach | Zebah | H2078 → | 12 times |
| וְאֶל־ | veel- | and to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| צַלְמֻנָּ֔ע | tzalmuna' | Zalmunna | H6759 → | 12 times |
| אֵיפֹה֙ | ʾeifoh | where? | H375 → | |
| הָאֲנָשִׁ֔ים | haanashim | [are] the men | H582 → | 566 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֥ר | ʾasher | whom | H834 → | 5497 times |
| הֲרַגְתֶּ֖ם | haragtem | you killed | H2026 → | 167 times |
| בְּתָב֑וֹר | betavor | at Tabor | H8396 → | 10 times |
| וַֽיֹּאמרוּ֙ | vaiyomeru | and they said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| כָּמ֣וֹךָ | kamokha | like you | H3644 → | 143 times |
| כְמוֹהֶ֔ם | khemohem | like them | H3644 → | 143 times |
| אֶחָ֕ד | ʾechad | one | H259 → | 971 times |
| כְּתֹ֖אַר | ketoar | [was] like [the] appearance of | H8389 → | |
| בְּנֵ֥י | benei | [the] sons of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| הַמֶּֽלֶךְ׃ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
וַיֹּ֗אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
זֶ֙בַח֙Zebah
zevachH2078 →12 times
וְאֶל־and to
veel-H413 →5510 times
צַלְמֻנָּ֔עZalmunna
tzalmuna'H6759 →12 times
אֵיפֹה֙where?
ʾeifohH375 →
הָאֲנָשִׁ֔ים[are] the men
haanashimH582 →566 times
אֲשֶׁ֥רwhom
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
הֲרַגְתֶּ֖םyou killed
haragtemH2026 →167 times
בְּתָב֑וֹרat Tabor
betavorH8396 →10 times
וַֽיֹּאמרוּ֙and they said
vaiyomeruH559 →5305 times
כָּמ֣וֹךָlike you
kamokhaH3644 →143 times
כְמוֹהֶ֔םlike them
khemohemH3644 →143 times
אֶחָ֕דone
ʾechadH259 →971 times
כְּתֹ֖אַר[was] like [the] appearance of
ketoarH8389 →
בְּנֵ֥י[the] sons of
beneiH1121 →4930 times
הַמֶּֽלֶךְ׃the king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 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
Jude 1:16These men are discontented grumblers, following after their own lusts; their mouths spew arrogance; they flatter others for their own advantage.
it leads to
- 2 Peter 2:18
With lofty but empty words, they appeal to the sensual passions of the flesh and entice those who are just escaping from others who live in error.
- Philippians 2:14
Do everything without complaining or arguing,
- 2 Peter 2:10
Such punishment is specially reserved for those who indulge the corrupt desires of the flesh and despise authority. Bold and self-willed, they are unafraid to slander glorious beings.
- 1 Timothy 6:5
and constant friction between men of depraved mind who are devoid of the truth. These men regard godliness as a means of gain.
- 1 Peter 4:2
Consequently, he does not live out his remaining time on earth for human passions, but for the will of God.
- 2 Peter 2:18
Through
Psalms 12:2They lie to one another; they speak with flattering lips and a double heart.
it leads to
- Romans 16:18
For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.
- Jeremiah 9:8
Their tongues are deadly arrows; they speak deception. With his mouth a man speaks peace to his neighbor, but in his heart he sets a trap for him.
- Psalms 41:6
My visitor speaks falsehood; he gathers slander in his heart; he goes out and spreads it abroad.
- Romans 16:18
About Judges
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.