The Meaning of Judges 4:11 Explained

Judges 4:11

KJV: Now Heber the Kenite, which was of the children of Hobab the father in law of Moses, had severed himself from the Kenites, and pitched his tent unto the plain of Zaanaim, which is by Kedesh.

YLT: And Heber the Kenite hath been separated from the Kenite, from the sons of Hobab father-in-law of Moses, and he stretcheth out his tent unto the oak in Zaanaim, which is by Kedesh.

Darby: Now Heber the Ken'ite had separated from the Ken'ites, the descendants of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, and had pitched his tent as far away as the oak in Za-anan'nim, which is near Kedesh.

ASV: Now Heber the Kenite had separated himself from the Kenites, even from the children of Hobab the brother-in-law of Moses, and had pitched his tent as far as the oak in Zaanannim, which is by Kedesh.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Now Heber  the Kenite,  [which was] of the children  of Hobab  the father in law  of Moses,  had severed  himself from the Kenites,  and pitched  his tent  unto the plain  of Zaanaim,  which [is] by Kedesh. 

What does Judges 4:11 Mean?

Context Summary

Judges 4:1-11 - A Woman's Deliverance
The scene changes to the northern part of Canaan. Deborah probably belonged to Issachar, Judges 5:15; but her seat of government was removed to the hill country of Ephraim, probably for greater security. Her spirit was susceptible to God, and she recognized that the hour for the emancipation of her suffering country was at hand. Indeed, the command had gone forth, Judges 4:6. But the divine method is ever to link command and promise, as we discover in Judges 4:7. Barak had true faith, Hebrews 11:32; but it needed inspiration and stimulus, as a dying fire calls for the bellows.
Kedesh, the gathering-place, was not far from the shores of the Lake of Galilee. From the table-land on the top of Tabor, these two heroic souls watched the gathering of Sisera's vast host, far away to the slopes of Carmel and the banks of Kishon, soon to be encrimsoned with blood. What a moment that was when Deborah summoned Barak to arise, because the Lord had already gone forth! Who of us need fear and who need hesitate in the face of difficulty, if we are simply called upon to go in the wake of our Lord? [source]

Chapter Summary: Judges 4

1  Deborah and Barak deliver them from Jabin and Sisera
17  Jael kills Sisera

What do the individual words in Judges 4:11 mean?

Now Heber the Kenite had separated himself from the Kenites of the sons of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses and pitched his tent near the terebinth tree Zaanannim at Zaanannim which [is] beside Kedesh
וְחֶ֤בֶר הַקֵּינִי֙ נִפְרָ֣ד מִקַּ֔יִן מִבְּנֵ֥י חֹבָ֖ב חֹתֵ֣ן מֹשֶׁ֑ה וַיֵּ֣ט אָהֳל֔וֹ עַד־ אֵל֥וֹן [בצענים] (בְּצַעֲנַנִּ֖ים) אֲשֶׁ֥ר אֶת־ קֶֽדֶשׁ

וְחֶ֤בֶר  Now  Heber 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: חֶבֶר  
Sense: the Kenite, husband of Jael, who slew Sisera by driving a nail into his temple.
הַקֵּינִי֙  the  Kenite 
Parse: Article, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: קֵינִי  
Sense: the tribe from which the father-in-law of Moses was a member and which lived in the area between southern Palestine and the mountains of Sinai.
נִפְרָ֣ד  had  separated  himself 
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: פָּרַד  
Sense: to separate, divide.
מִקַּ֔יִן  from  the  Kenites 
Parse: Preposition-m, Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: קֵינִי  
Sense: the tribe from which the father-in-law of Moses was a member and which lived in the area between southern Palestine and the mountains of Sinai.
מִבְּנֵ֥י  of  the  sons 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
חֹבָ֖ב  of  Hobab 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: חֹבָב  
Sense: the son of Reuel, the Midianite father-in-law of Moses, also known as Jethro, and brother-in-law of Moses.
חֹתֵ֣ן  the  father-in-law 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: חָתַן 
Sense: to become a son-in-law, make oneself a daughter’s husband.
מֹשֶׁ֑ה  of  Moses 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: מֹשֶׁה  
Sense: the prophet and lawgiver, leader of the exodus.
וַיֵּ֣ט  and  pitched 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: נָטָה 
Sense: to stretch out, extend, spread out, pitch, turn, pervert, incline, bend, bow.
אָהֳל֔וֹ  his  tent 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: אֹהֶל  
Sense: tent.
עַד־  near 
Parse: Preposition
Root: עַד  
Sense: as far as, even to, until, up to, while, as far as.
אֵל֥וֹן  the  terebinth  tree 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: אֵלֹון  
Sense: tree, great tree, terebinth.
[בצענים]  Zaanannim 
Parse: Preposition-b, Proper Noun, feminine singular
(בְּצַעֲנַנִּ֖ים)  at  Zaanannim 
Parse: Preposition-b, Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: בְּצַעֲנַנִּים 
Sense: a place in Naphtali near Kedesh.
אֲשֶׁ֥ר  which  [is] 
Parse: Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
אֶת־  beside 
Parse: Preposition
Root: אֵת 
Sense: with, near, together with.
קֶֽדֶשׁ  Kedesh 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: קֶדֶשׁ  
Sense: a city in the extreme south of Judah.