Judges 1:17

17 And Judas went with Symeon his brother, and smote the Chananite that inhabited Sepheth, and they utterly destroyed them; and they called the name of the city Anathema.

Judges 1:17 Meaning and Commentary

Judges 1:17

And Judah went with Simeon his brother
Having subtitled his Canaanites which were in his own lot, according to his promise, he went with his brother Simeon, or the tribe of Simeon, into their lot to reduce those that were in that:

and they slew the Canaanites that inhabited Zephath, and utterly
destroyed it:
where and what this city was is not certain; there was a place of this name in upper Galilee, mentioned in Jewish writings ^F16, which cannot be meant here; and we read of the valley of Zephathah, ( 2 Chronicles 14:10 ) ; which might have its name from hence, and if so it was near Mareshah:

and the name of the city was called Hormah;
from the destruction made of it, and of the country about it; for now what had been vowed by Israel in the wilderness, when near Arad, was fulfilled, ( Numbers 21:1-3 ) .

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FOOTNOTES:

F16 Juchasin, fol. 68. 1.

Judges 1:17 In-Context

15 And Ascha said to him, Give me, I pray thee, a blessing, for thou hast sent me forth into a south land, and thou shalt give me the ransom of water: and Chaleb gave her according to her heart the ransom of the upper and the ransom of the low .

16 And the children of Jothor the Kenite the father-in-law of Moses went up from the city of palm-trees with the children of Judas, to the wilderness that is in the south of Juda, which is at the descent of Arad, and they dwelt with the people.

17 And Judas went with Symeon his brother, and smote the Chananite that inhabited Sepheth, and they utterly destroyed them; and they called the name of the city Anathema.

18 But Judas did not inherit Gaza nor her coasts, nor Ascalon nor her coasts, nor Accaron nor her coasts, Azotus nor the lands around it.

19 And the Lord was with Judas, and he inherited the mountain; for they were not able to destroy the inhabitants of the valley, for Rechab prevented them.