What is the meaning of Judges 21:22? When their fathers or brothers come to us to complain • The elders anticipate the natural outrage of the families whose daughters are about to be taken from the festival at Shiloh (Judges 21:19-21). • Family heads in Israel carried legal and moral responsibility for their women (Deuteronomy 22:16-17; Numbers 30:3-5). • The very need to “complain” exposes the social chaos that follows when “everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6; 21:25). We will tell them • The leaders plan a united front, showing they are willing to justify an irregular solution rather than confess national sin (Judges 21:5, 16). • Their pre-rehearsed response highlights how human schemes can replace humble dependence on the LORD (Proverbs 3:5-6; Isaiah 30:1). Do us a favor by helping them • The plea appeals to tribal solidarity: Benjamin must not disappear (Judges 21:17). • It reframes the abduction as an act of kindness—calling families to “help” their brothers—yet overlooks the injustice being done to their own daughters (Micah 6:8; Romans 12:10). Since we did not get wives for each of them in the war • No wives remained because of the self-inflicted vow that none would give daughters to Benjamin (Judges 21:1). • The elders admit their failure to plan righteously after the war, choosing expediency over repentance (Numbers 30:2; Deuteronomy 23:21; James 1:14-15). Since you did not actually give them your daughters, you have no guilt • By permitting seizure rather than formal marriage contracts, the elders craft a loophole to keep their oath intact while still supplying wives. • Legalistic hair-splitting masks moral compromise (Matthew 23:24; 1 Samuel 15:22-23). • The statement presumes innocence before God, yet true guilt lies in the heart attitude that devised the scheme (Psalm 51:6; Hebrews 4:13). summary Judges 21:22 captures Israel’s leaders devising a plan to pacify offended families while preserving the tribe of Benjamin. They anticipate complaints, rehearse a justification, appeal to national unity, acknowledge their earlier failure, and declare the families guiltless through a technicality. The verse exposes how easily vows, family authority, and communal concern can be twisted when a nation drifts from wholehearted obedience to God. Even so, the LORD’s overarching purpose—to preserve His covenant people—stands firm, reminding us that His faithfulness remains despite human folly. |
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