Judges 21:3

3 and said, Wherefore, O Lord God of Israel, has this come to pass, that to-day one tribe should be counted from Israel?

Judges 21:3 Meaning and Commentary

Judges 21:3

And said, O Lord God of Israel
Jehovah, the only living and true God, the Being of beings, eternal, immutable, omnipotent and omnipresent, the God of all Israel, of the twelve tribes of Israel, their covenant God and Father; who had shown favour to them in such a peculiar and gracious manner, as he had not to other nations, and therefore hoped he would still have a kind regard unto them, and suffer them to expostulate with him in the following manner:

why is this come to pass in Israel;
expressing, as Abarbinel thinks, a concern for the 40,000 men of Israel which fell in the two first battles; but it manifestly refers to the case in the next words:

that there should be today one tribe lacking in Israel;
meaning the tribe of Benjamin, which was all destroyed, excepting six hundred men, and these had no wives to propagate the tribe; and therefore, unless some provision could be made for that, it must in a short time be totally extinct; for which they express great concern, it not being their intention when they made the above oath to extirpate them; but such were now the circumstances of things in Providence, that it must perish unless some way could be found to relieve it, and which their oath seemed to preclude; and this threw them into great perplexity.

Judges 21:3 In-Context

1 Now the children of Israel swore in Massephath, saying, No man of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin for a wife.

2 And the people came to Baethel, and sat there until evening before God: and they lifted up their voice and wept with a great weeping;

3 and said, Wherefore, O Lord God of Israel, has this come to pass, that to-day one tribe should be counted from Israel?

4 And it came to pass on the morrow that the people rose up early, and built there an altar, and offered up whole-burnt-offerings and peace offerings.

5 And the children of Israel said, Who of all the tribes of Israel, went not up in the congregation to the Lord? for there was a great oath concerning those who went not up to the Lord to Massephath, saying, He shall surely be put to death.