Judges 21:3 (LSB)

Passage

And they said, “Why, O Yahweh, God of Israel, has this come about in Israel, so that one tribe should be missing today from Israel?”

Nearby Context

Judges 21:1 Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpah, saying, “None of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin as a wife.”

Judges 21:2 So the people came to Bethel and sat there before God until evening and lifted up their voices and wept bitterly.

Judges 21:3 And they said, “Why, O Yahweh, God of Israel, has this come about in Israel, so that one tribe should be missing today from Israel?”

Judges 21:4 Now it happened the next day that the people arose early and built an altar there and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings.

Judges 21:5 Then the sons of Israel said, “Who is there among all the tribes of Israel who did not come up in the assembly to Yahweh?” For they had taken a great oath concerning him who did not come up to Yahweh at Mizpah, saying, “He shall surely be put to death.”

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "said", "yahweh", "israel", "come", "tribe", "should", and "missing". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "said" and "yahweh", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "So the people came to Bethel and..." into verse 4's "Now it happened the next day that...", so "said" and "yahweh" belong inside that flow. In Judges context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "said" and "yahweh" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.