The Meaning of Judges 12:4 Explained

Judges 12:4

KJV: Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim: and the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because they said, Ye Gileadites are fugitives of Ephraim among the Ephraimites, and among the Manassites.

YLT: And Jephthah gathered all the men of Gilead, and fighteth with Ephraim, and the men of Gilead smite Ephraim, because they said, 'Fugitives of Ephraim are ye Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim -- in the midst of Manasseh.'

Darby: Then Jephthah gathered all the men of Gilead and fought with E'phraim; and the men of Gilead smote E'phraim, because they said, "You are fugitives of E'phraim, you Gileadites, in the midst of E'phraim and Manas'seh."

ASV: Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim; and the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because they said, Ye are fugitives of Ephraim, ye Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim, and in the midst of Manasseh.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Then Jephthah  gathered together  all the men  of Gilead,  and fought  with Ephraim:  and the men  of Gilead  smote  Ephraim,  because they said,  Ye Gileadites  [are] fugitives  of Ephraim  among  the Ephraimites,  [and] among  the Manassites. 

What does Judges 12:4 Mean?

Context Summary

Judges 12:1-15 - At The Fords Of Ephraim
In this second war, Jephthah showed the same conciliatory spirit as he had showed to Ammon. He parleyed sensibly and courteously before he went into the conflict. A great many Christians are less Christian than this. They ignore Christ's strict injunction, Matthew 18:15. Ephraim had acted in the same manner to Gideon, Judges 8:1. In each case that tribe wanted to retain its primacy without the sacrifice which leadership involves; and it was angry when deliverance had arisen from another source. Leadership must be won, not inherited. Ephraim, therefore, was clearly in the wrong; and when her troops, which had crossed the Jordan into Gilead, were hurled back, the slaughter at the ford fell as a national judgment. The omission of a letter in their speech betrayed them. Alas, that Christians have martyred their fellows for even less!
Jephthah died soon after. Probably he died, not of age nor the brunt of war, but of a broken heart. The sweet voice of his child was always calling him. But the Spirit of God wrote on his memorial tablet-"By faith Jephthah." [source]

Chapter Summary: Judges 12

1  The Ephraimites, quarrelling with Jephthah, are slain by the Gileadites
7  Jephthah dies
8  Ibzan, who had thirty sons, and thirty daughters
11  and Elon
13  and Abdon, who had forty sons, and thirty nephews, judge Israel

What do the individual words in Judges 12:4 mean?

And gathered together Jephthah - all the men of Gilead and fought against Ephraim and defeated of Gilead Ephraim because they said fugitives of Ephraim You Gilead [are] among Ephraim [and] among the Manassites
וַיִּקְבֹּ֤ץ יִפְתָּח֙ אֶת־ כָּל־ אַנְשֵׁ֣י גִלְעָ֔ד וַיִּלָּ֖חֶם אֶת־ אֶפְרָ֑יִם וַיַּכּוּ֩ גִלְעָ֜ד אֶפְרַ֗יִם כִּ֤י אָמְרוּ֙ פְּלִיטֵ֤י אֶפְרַ֙יִם֙ אַתֶּ֔ם גִּלְעָ֕ד בְּת֥וֹךְ אֶפְרַ֖יִם בְּת֥וֹךְ מְנַשֶּֽׁה

וַיִּקְבֹּ֤ץ  And  gathered  together 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: קָבַץ  
Sense: to gather, assemble.
יִפְתָּח֙  Jephthah 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יִפְתָּח 
Sense: a son of Gilead and a concubine and the judge who defeated the Ammonites; after the victory because of a vow taken before the battle he sacrificed his daughter as a burnt offering.
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
אַנְשֵׁ֣י  the  men 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
גִלְעָ֔ד  of  Gilead 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: גִּלְעָד  
Sense: a mountainous region bounded on the west by the Jordan, on the north by Bashan, on the east by the Arabian plateau, and on the south by Moab and Ammon; sometimes called ‘Mount Gilead’ or the ‘land of Gilead’ or just ‘Gilead’.
וַיִּלָּ֖חֶם  and  fought 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Nifal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: לָחַם 
Sense: to fight, do battle, make war.
אֶת־  against 
Parse: Preposition
Root: אֵת 
Sense: with, near, together with.
אֶפְרָ֑יִם  Ephraim 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: אֶפְרַיִם  
Sense: second son of Joseph, blessed by him and given preference over first son, Manasseh.
וַיַּכּוּ֩  and  defeated 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: נָכָה  
Sense: to strike, smite, hit, beat, slay, kill.
גִלְעָ֜ד  of  Gilead 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: גִּלְעָד  
Sense: a mountainous region bounded on the west by the Jordan, on the north by Bashan, on the east by the Arabian plateau, and on the south by Moab and Ammon; sometimes called ‘Mount Gilead’ or the ‘land of Gilead’ or just ‘Gilead’.
אֶפְרַ֗יִם  Ephraim 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: אֶפְרַיִם  
Sense: second son of Joseph, blessed by him and given preference over first son, Manasseh.
כִּ֤י  because 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: כִּי 
Sense: that, for, because, when, as though, as, because that, but, then, certainly, except, surely, since.
אָמְרוּ֙  they  said 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person common plural
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
פְּלִיטֵ֤י  fugitives 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: פָּלִיט 
Sense: refugee, fugitive, escaped one.
אֶפְרַ֙יִם֙  of  Ephraim 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: אֶפְרַיִם  
Sense: second son of Joseph, blessed by him and given preference over first son, Manasseh.
גִּלְעָ֕ד  Gilead  [are] 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: גִּלְעָד  
Sense: a mountainous region bounded on the west by the Jordan, on the north by Bashan, on the east by the Arabian plateau, and on the south by Moab and Ammon; sometimes called ‘Mount Gilead’ or the ‘land of Gilead’ or just ‘Gilead’.
אֶפְרַ֖יִם  Ephraim 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: אֶפְרַיִם  
Sense: second son of Joseph, blessed by him and given preference over first son, Manasseh.
בְּת֥וֹךְ  [and]  among 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: תָּוֶךְ  
Sense: midst, middle.
מְנַשֶּֽׁה  the  Manassites 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: מְנַשֶּׁה  
Sense: the eldest son of Joseph and progenitor of the tribe of Manasseh.