Judges 10:4

4 He had thirty sons, who rode thirty donkeys. They controlled thirty towns in Gilead, which to this day are called Havvoth Jair.[a]

Judges 10:4 in Other Translations

KJV
4 And he had thirty sons that rode on thirty ass colts, and they had thirty cities, which are called Havothjair unto this day, which are in the land of Gilead.
ESV
4 And he had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys, and they had thirty cities, called Havvoth-jair to this day, which are in the land of Gilead.
NLT
4 His thirty sons rode around on thirty donkeys, and they owned thirty towns in the land of Gilead, which are still called the Towns of Jair.
MSG
4 He had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys and had thirty towns in Gilead. The towns are still called Jair's Villages.
CSB
4 He had 30 sons who rode on 30 young donkeys. They had 30 towns in Gilead, which are called Jair's Villages to this day.

Judges 10:4 Meaning and Commentary

Judges 10:4

And he had thirty sons that rode upon thirty ass colts
Which to ride on in those times was reckoned honourable, and on which judges rode in their circuit, ( Judges 5:10 ) and such might be these sons of Jair, who were appointed under him to ride about, and do justice in the several parts of the country, as Samuel's sons were judges under him, ( 1 Samuel 8:1 ) ,

and they had thirty cities, which are called Havothjair unto this day,
which are in the land of Gilead;
or the villages of Jair. There were some of this name that belonged to Jair, a son of Manasseh, in the times of Moses, ( Numbers 32:41 ) and these may be the same, at least some of them; for they were but twenty three he had, whereas these were thirty, ( 1 Chronicles 2:22 ) and these coming by inheritance to this Jair, a descendant of the former, and he being of the same name, and these cities perhaps repaired and enlarged by him, the name of them was continued and established, for it is not reasonable to suppose, as some have done, that this is the same Jair that lived in the times of Moses, who, if so, must have lived more than three hundred years, an age men did not live to in those times.

Judges 10:4 In-Context

2 He led Israel twenty-three years; then he died, and was buried in Shamir.
3 He was followed by Jair of Gilead, who led Israel twenty-two years.
4 He had thirty sons, who rode thirty donkeys. They controlled thirty towns in Gilead, which to this day are called Havvoth Jair.
5 When Jair died, he was buried in Kamon.
6 Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD. They served the Baals and the Ashtoreths, and the gods of Aram, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites and the gods of the Philistines. And because the Israelites forsook the LORD and no longer served him,

Cross References 2

  • 1. S Genesis 49:11; S 1 Kings 1:33
  • 2. S Numbers 32:41

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. Or "called the settlements of Jair"
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