What Does Judges 20:24 Mean?
And the children of Israel drew near against the children of Benjamin on the second day.
Key words are shown with the Hebrew or Greek and what each word meant.
Selah Decoded Version The Selah Decoded Version renders what the Hebrew and Greek words meant to the people who first heard them.
King James wording
King James Version
And the children of Israel came near against the children of Benjamin the second day.THE KEY
The root for coming near also forms the word for an offering brought near, yet here, nearness is armed.
THE MEANING
You see a second-day approach that carries conflict rather than reconciliation. The parties close distance again, and the text leaves the violence visible: proximity can be the next step in a clash.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It undoes the assumption that people who draw near are moving toward peace; here, they close distance to continue a battle.
THE ROOT
וַיִּקְרְבוּ
wayyiqrevû
GROWS FROM
קרב
q-r-b
To approach, come near, or draw close.
“drew near” in this verse is wayyiqrevû. The same root forms qorban, an offering brought near, and qerev, the inner part or midst. The word family links approach with what is brought into an encounter; here that encounter is armed, with no promise of peace.
ALSO GROWS
qorban: Offering; something brought near
קָרְבָּן
The shared root ties coming near to bringing something into an encounter, while this verse shows that approach can also lead into conflict.
qerev: Inner part, midst
קֶרֶב
This branch carries the root’s range from nearness toward what is within or in the midst; the verse’s approach brings the parties into direct encounter.
THE PATTERN
Coming near is movement into encounter; the one approached gives that nearness its character.
And he spoke to Korah and to all his company, saying, In the morning the LORD will know who is his, and who is set apart, and will bring him near. The one he chooses, he will bring near to himself.And Moses said to Aaron, Draw near to the altar, and make your offering for falling short and your rising offering, and make a covering for yourself and for the people; and make the offering of the people, and make a covering for them, as the LORD commanded.THE THREAD
And Moses said to Aaron, Draw near to the altar, and make your offering for falling short and your rising offering, and make a covering for yourself and for the people; and make the offering of the people, and make a covering for them, as the LORD commanded.In Judges, the root q-r-b carries Israel toward Benjamin; here, the same root tells Aaron to approach the altar and bring an offering near. The seed-word can open into either confrontation or offering, the approach itself does not decide which.
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