The Meaning of Judges 20:27 Explained

Judges 20:27

KJV: And the children of Israel inquired of the LORD, (for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days,

YLT: And the sons of Israel ask of Jehovah, -- and there is the ark of the covenant of God in those days,

Darby: And the people of Israel inquired of the LORD (for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days,

ASV: And the children of Israel asked of Jehovah (for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days,

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And the children  of Israel  enquired  of the LORD,  (for the ark  of the covenant  of God  [was] there in those days, 

What does Judges 20:27 Mean?

Chapter Summary: Judges 20

1  The Levite in a general assembly declared his wrong
8  The decree of the assembly
12  The Benjamites, being cited, make head against the Israelites
18  The Israelites in two battles lose forty thousand
26  They destroy by a plan all the Benjamites, except six hundred

What do the individual words in Judges 20:27 mean?

So inquired the sons of Israel of Yahweh and [was] there the ark of the covenant of God in days those
וַיִּשְׁאֲל֥וּ בְנֵֽי־ יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל בַּֽיהוָ֑ה וְשָׁ֗ם אֲרוֹן֙ בְּרִ֣ית הָאֱלֹהִ֔ים בַּיָּמִ֖ים הָהֵֽם

וַיִּשְׁאֲל֥וּ  So  inquired 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: שָׁאַל 
Sense: to ask, enquire, borrow, beg.
בְנֵֽי־  the  sons 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל  of  Israel 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יִשְׂרָאֵל  
Sense: the second name for Jacob given to him by God after his wrestling with the angel at Peniel.
בַּֽיהוָ֑ה  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Preposition-b, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
וְשָׁ֗ם  and  [was]  there 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb
Root: שָׁם  
Sense: there, thither.
אֲרוֹן֙  the  ark 
Parse: Noun, common singular construct
Root: אֲרֹון  
Sense: chest, ark.
בְּרִ֣ית  of  the  covenant 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: בְּרִית  
Sense: covenant, alliance, pledge.
הָאֱלֹהִ֔ים  of  God 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
בַּיָּמִ֖ים  in  days 
Parse: Preposition-b, Article, Noun, masculine plural
Root: יׄום 
Sense: day, time, year.
הָהֵֽם  those 
Parse: Article, Pronoun, third person masculine plural
Root: הֵם 
Sense: they, these, the same, who.