Judges 1:17

17 Judah went with his brother Simeon, and they defeated the Canaanites who inhabited Zephath, and devoted it to destruction. So the city was called Hormah.

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 She said to him, "Give me a present; since you have set me in the land of the Negeb, give me also Gulloth-mayim." So Caleb gave her Upper Gulloth and Lower Gulloth.

16 The descendants of Hobab the Kenite, Moses' father-in-law, went up with the people of Judah from the city of palms into the wilderness of Judah, which lies in the Negeb near Arad. Then they went and settled with the Amalekites.

17 Judah went with his brother Simeon, and they defeated the Canaanites who inhabited Zephath, and devoted it to destruction. So the city was called Hormah.

18 Judah took Gaza with its territory, Ashkelon with its territory, and Ekron with its territory.

19 The Lord was with Judah, and he took possession of the hill country, but could not drive out the inhabitants of the plain, because they had chariots of iron.