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Leviticus 26:8

in Leviticus 26

Five of you will pursue a hundred, and a hundred of you will pursue ten thousand, and your enemies will fall by the sword before you.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

And five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall chase ten thousand; and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.

KJV

And five of you shall chase an hundred, and an hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.

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This verse in Leviticus 26

Commentary

5 notes on this verse

This site's exposition

And I will give peace in the land

on Leviticus 26:6-8

Peace here is measured by sleep. A man lies down and nobody makes him afraid, the wild beasts are cleared out, and no army crosses the ground. The arithmetic of verse 8 then breaks on purpose, five chasing a hundred and a hundred chasing ten thousand, so the larger company fights at five times the rate of the smaller one.

The record, by era

The Church Fathers2 voices

A commentator

Caesarius of Arles

SERMON 105.11 · Written before 542.

proposed

"Your foes will be cut down by your sword." Who they are we mentioned above, but let us find out by what sword they are said to fall. The apostle Paul teaches us what this sword is when he says, "For the Word of God …

A commentator

Caesarius of Arles

SERMON 105.10 · Written before 542.

proposed

"Five of you will put a hundred to flight." Who are those five who can pursue a hundred? The number five is applied to both the praiseworthy and the culpable, for there were five wise virgins and five foolish; so also the number one hundred …

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

They are assured that the hand of God should so signally appear with them in their conquests that no disproportion of numbers should make against them: Five of you shall have courage to attack, and strength to chase and defeat, a hundred, as Jonathan did ( 1 Sam. xiv.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens

And five of you shall chase an hundred,....

The words behind it

12 Hebrew words

Every 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.

  • וְרָדְפ֨וּand they will pursue

    veradfuH7291 →143 times

  • מִכֶּ֤םof <the> you

    mikem

  • חֲמִשָּׁה֙five

    chamishahH2568 →343 times

  • מֵאָ֔הone hundred

    meahH3967 →

  • וּמֵאָ֥הand one hundred

    umeahH3967 →

  • מִכֶּ֖םof <the> you

    mikem

  • רְבָבָ֣הten thousand

    revavahH7233 →

  • יִרְדֹּ֑פוּthey will pursue

    yirdofuH7291 →143 times

  • וְנָפְל֧וּand they will fall

    venafluH5307 →435 times

  • אֹיְבֵיכֶ֛םenemies your

    ʾoyeveikhemH341 →282 times

  • לִפְנֵיכֶ֖ם<to> before you

    lifneikhemH6440 →2123 times

  • לֶחָֽרֶב׃to the sword

    lecharevH2719 →413 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

18 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

Joshua 23:10One of you can put a thousand to flight, because the LORD your God fights for you, just as He promised.604 worksDeuteronomy 32:30How could one man pursue a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the LORD had given them up?36 worksDeuteronomy 28:7The LORD will cause the enemies who rise up against you to be defeated before you. They will march out against you in one direction but flee from you in seven.21 works1 Chronicles 11:20Now Abishai, the brother of Joab, was chief of the Three, and he lifted his spear against three hundred men, killed them, and won a name along with the Three.9 worksJudges 7:19–21Gideon and the hundred men with him reached the outskirts of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just after the changing of the guard. They blew their horns and broke the jars that were in their hands.9 worksNumbers 14:9Only do not rebel against the LORD, and do not be afraid of the people of the land, for they will be like bread for us. Their protection has been removed, and the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them!”9 works
The other 12 cross-references, with their words ▾
Judges 15:15He found the fresh jawbone of a donkey, reached out his hand and took it, and struck down a thousand men.9 works1 Samuel 14:6–16Jonathan said to the young man bearing his armor, “Come, let us cross over to the outpost of these uncircumcised men. Perhaps the LORD will work on our behalf. Nothing can hinder the LORD from saving, whether by many or by few.”8 works2 Chronicles 14:11Then Asa cried out to the LORD his God: “O LORD, there is no one besides You to help the powerless against the mighty. Help us, O LORD our God, for we rely on You, and in Your name we have come against this multitude. O LORD, You are our God. Do not let a mere mortal prevail against You.”8 works1 Chronicles 11:11This is the list of David’s mighty men: Jashobeam son of Hachmoni was chief of the officers; he wielded his spear against three hundred men, whom he killed at one time.7 works1 Chronicles 12:14These Gadites were army commanders, the least of whom was a match for a hundred, and the greatest for a thousand.5 worksPsalms 81:14–15how soon I would subdue their enemies and turn My hand against their foes!4 worksIsaiah 30:17A thousand will flee at the threat of one; at the threat of five you will all flee, until you are left alone like a pole on a mountaintop, like a banner on a hill.4 works1 Samuel 17:45–52But David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.3 works2 Kings 19:6who replied, “Tell your master that this is what the LORD says: ‘Do not be afraid of the words you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me.3 works2 Chronicles 24:24Although the Aramean army had come with only a few men, the LORD delivered into their hand a very great army. Because Judah had forsaken the LORD, the God of their fathers, judgment was executed on Joash.3 worksIsaiah 37:6who replied, “Tell your master that this is what the LORD says: ‘Do not be afraid of the words you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me.2 works1 Kings 20:20and each one struck down his opponent. So the Arameans fled, with the Israelites in pursuit. But Ben-hadad king of Aram escaped on horseback with the cavalry.2 works

The walk

8 stops

Each 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

    Joshua 23:10

    One of you can put a thousand to flight, because the LORD your God fights for you, just as He promised.

    it leads to

    • Deuteronomy 32:30

      How could one man pursue a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the LORD had given them up?

    • Deuteronomy 3:22

      Do not be afraid of them, for the LORD your God Himself will fight for you.”

    • Exodus 14:14

      The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

    • Psalms 35:1

      Contend with my opponents, O LORD; fight against those who fight against me.

    • Deuteronomy 20:4

      For the LORD your God goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory.”

  • Through

    Deuteronomy 28:7

    The LORD will cause the enemies who rise up against you to be defeated before you. They will march out against you in one direction but flee from you in seven.

    it leads to

    • 2 Samuel 22:38–41

      I pursued my enemies and destroyed them; I did not turn back until they were consumed.

    • Leviticus 26:7–8

      You will pursue your enemies, and they will fall by the sword before you.

    • Psalms 89:23

      I will crush his foes before him and strike down those who hate him.

Where this verse is studied

About Leviticus

Moses and Aaron Appear before Pharaoh, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Moses and Aaron Appear before Pharaoh, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Leviticus: the study guide →Read Leviticus 26 →

This page draws on Caesarius of Arles, SERMON 105.11; Caesarius of Arles, SERMON 105.10; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.

Read on in Leviticus 26 →