Judges 20:29
New International Version
Then Israel set an ambush around Gibeah.

New Living Translation
So the Israelites set an ambush all around Gibeah.

English Standard Version
So Israel set men in ambush around Gibeah.

Berean Standard Bible
So Israel set up an ambush around Gibeah.

King James Bible
And Israel set liers in wait round about Gibeah.

New King James Version
Then Israel set men in ambush all around Gibeah.

New American Standard Bible
So Israel set men in ambush around Gibeah.

NASB 1995
So Israel set men in ambush around Gibeah.

NASB 1977
So Israel set men in ambush around Gibeah.

Legacy Standard Bible
So Israel set men in ambush around Gibeah.

Amplified Bible
So Israel set men in ambush around Gibeah.

Christian Standard Bible
So Israel set up an ambush around Gibeah.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
So Israel set up an ambush around Gibeah.

American Standard Version
And Israel set liers-in-wait against Gibeah round about.

Contemporary English Version
The Israelites surrounded Gibeah, but stayed where they could not be seen.

English Revised Version
And Israel set liers in wait against Gibeah round about.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Then Israel placed troops in ambush around Gibeah.

Good News Translation
So the Israelites put some soldiers in hiding around Gibeah.

International Standard Version
So Israel set soldiers in ambush around Gibeah.

Majority Standard Bible
So Israel set up an ambush around Gibeah.

NET Bible
So Israel hid men in ambush outside Gibeah.

New Heart English Bible
Israel set ambushes all around Gibeah.

Webster's Bible Translation
And Israel set liers in wait around Gibeah.

World English Bible
Israel set ambushes all around Gibeah.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
And Israel sets ones lying in wait against Gibeah, all around,

Young's Literal Translation
And Israel setteth liers in wait against Gibeah, round about,

Smith's Literal Translation
And Israel will put liers-in-wait against Gibeah round about.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
And the children of Israel set ambushes round about the city of Gabaa:

Catholic Public Domain Version
And the sons of Israel stationed ambushes around the city of Gibeah.

New American Bible
So Israel set men in ambush around Gibeah.

New Revised Standard Version
So Israel stationed men in ambush around Gibeah.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
So Israel set ambushes round about Gibeah.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And the sons of Israel set an ambush against Gebah and they surrounded it
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
And Israel set liers-in-wait against Gibeah round about.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And the children of Israel set an ambush against Gabaa round about it.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Civil War Against Benjamin
28and Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, served before it.) The Israelites asked, “Should we again go out to battle against our brothers the Benjamites, or should we stop?” The LORD answered, “Fight, for tomorrow I will deliver them into your hand.” 29So Israel set up an ambush around Gibeah. 30On the third day the Israelites went up against the Benjamites and arrayed themselves against Gibeah as they had done before.…

Cross References
Joshua 8:4-7
with these orders: “Pay attention. You are to lie in ambush behind the city, not too far from it. All of you must be ready. / Then I and all the troops with me will advance on the city. When they come out against us as they did the first time, we will flee from them. / They will pursue us until we have drawn them away from the city, for they will say, ‘The Israelites are running away from us as they did before.’ So as we flee from them, ...

2 Samuel 5:23-25
So David inquired of the LORD, who answered, “Do not march straight up, but circle around behind them and attack them in front of the balsam trees. / As soon as you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, move quickly, because this will mean that the LORD has gone out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines.” / So David did as the LORD had commanded him, and he struck down the Philistines all the way from Gibeon to Gezer.

2 Chronicles 13:13
Now Jeroboam had sent troops around to ambush from the rear, so that while he was in front of Judah, the ambush was behind them.

Joshua 8:12
Now Joshua had taken about five thousand men and set up an ambush between Bethel and Ai, to the west of the city.

1 Samuel 15:5
Saul came to the city of Amalek and lay in wait in the valley.

2 Kings 7:12
So the king got up in the night and said to his servants, “Let me tell you what the Arameans have done to us. They know we are starving, so they have left the camp to hide in the field, thinking, ‘When they come out of the city, we will take them alive and enter the city.’”

1 Samuel 23:23
Observe and find out all the places where he hides. Then come back to me with certainty, and I will go with you. If he is in the land, I will search him out among all the clans of Judah.”

2 Samuel 2:25
The Benjamites rallied to Abner, formed a single unit, and took their stand atop a hill.

1 Samuel 22:6
Soon Saul learned that David and his men had been discovered. At that time Saul was sitting under the tamarisk tree on the hill at Gibeah, with his spear in hand and all his servants standing around him.

1 Samuel 26:4
David sent out spies to verify that Saul had arrived.

2 Samuel 5:22
Once again the Philistines came up and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim.

1 Samuel 30:27-31
He sent gifts to those in Bethel, Ramoth Negev, and Jattir; / to those in Aroer, Siphmoth, and Eshtemoa; / to those in Racal and in the cities of the Jerahmeelites and Kenites; ...

2 Kings 19:9
Now Sennacherib had been warned about Tirhakah king of Cush: “Look, he has set out to fight against you.” So Sennacherib again sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying,

Matthew 26:4
and they conspired to arrest Jesus covertly and kill Him.

Mark 14:1
Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were two days away, and the chief priests and scribes were looking for a covert way to arrest Jesus and kill Him.


Treasury of Scripture

And Israel set liers in wait round about Gibeah.

liers

Judges 20:34
And there came against Gibeah ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and the battle was sore: but they knew not that evil was near them.

Joshua 8:4
And he commanded them, saying, Behold, ye shall lie in wait against the city, even behind the city: go not very far from the city, but be ye all ready:

2 Samuel 5:23
And when David inquired of the LORD, he said, Thou shalt not go up; but fetch a compass behind them, and come upon them over against the mulberry trees.

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Judges 20
1. The Levite in a general assembly declared his wrong
8. The decree of the assembly
12. The Benjamites, being cited, make head against the Israelites
18. The Israelites in two battles lose forty thousand
26. They destroy by a plan all the Benjamites, except six hundred.














So Israel
The phrase "So Israel" refers to the collective tribes of Israel, who have united for a common cause. In the Hebrew text, "Israel" is "יִשְׂרָאֵל" (Yisra'el), which means "God prevails" or "He who struggles with God." This name is significant as it reflects the identity and destiny of the people chosen by God. Historically, the tribes of Israel were often fragmented, but here they are united, demonstrating a rare moment of national solidarity. This unity is crucial in the narrative, as it underscores the seriousness of the situation and the collective moral outrage against the atrocity committed in Gibeah.

set up an ambush
The strategy of setting up an ambush indicates a tactical approach to warfare, suggesting that the Israelites were not only relying on brute force but also on strategic planning. The Hebrew word for "ambush" is "אָרַב" (arav), which implies lying in wait or setting a trap. This tactic is reminiscent of earlier biblical battles, such as the conquest of Ai in Joshua 8, where God instructed Joshua to use an ambush. The use of an ambush here may suggest divine guidance or approval, as it aligns with previous successful military strategies sanctioned by God.

around Gibeah
Gibeah, identified as "גִּבְעָה" (Giv'ah) in Hebrew, means "hill" and was a city in the territory of Benjamin. It is historically significant as the site of a grievous sin that led to civil war within Israel. Archaeological evidence suggests that Gibeah was a fortified city, which would have made a direct assault challenging. The decision to set an ambush around Gibeah indicates a strategic encirclement, aiming to cut off escape routes and ensure a decisive victory. This setting highlights the gravity of the conflict, as Gibeah was not just any city but a symbol of the moral and spiritual decay that had infiltrated the nation. The ambush around Gibeah serves as a physical manifestation of the Israelites' desire to root out sin and restore righteousness within their community.

(29) Set liers in wait.--This exceedingly simple and primitive stratagem had also been successful against Ai (Joshua 8:4) and against Shechem (Judges 9:43). Here, as in Judges 20:22-23, the narrative follows a loose-order, the general fact being sometimes stated by anticipation, and the details subsequently filled in.

Verse 29. - Set liers in wait. Made wiser by misfortune, they now act cautiously.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
So Israel
יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ (yiś·rā·’êl)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3478: Israel -- 'God strives', another name of Jacob and his desc

set up
וַיָּ֤שֶׂם (way·yā·śem)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 7760: Put -- to put, place, set

an ambush
אֹֽרְבִ֔ים (’ō·rə·ḇîm)
Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine plural
Strong's 693: To lie in wait

around
סָבִֽיב׃ (sā·ḇîḇ)
Adverb
Strong's 5439: A circle, neighbour, environs, around

Gibeah.
הַגִּבְעָ֖ה (hag·giḇ·‘āh)
Article | Noun - proper - feminine singular
Strong's 1390: Gibeah -- 'hill', three cities in Palestine


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OT History: Judges 20:29 Israel set ambushes all around Gibeah (Jd Judg. Jdg)
Judges 20:28
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