Judges 21:6

Jdg 21:6 And the children of Israel repented them for Benjamin their brother, and said, There is one tribe cut off from Israel this day.

Ver. 6. And the children of Israel repented them for Benjamin.] But why did they not repent of their unlawful oath, which now they might as lawfully have broken? Howsoever, it was well done of them to put off their arms and their anger against Benjamin together. Claudian saith in commendation of Theodosius,

“ Post acies odiis idem qui terminus armis. ”

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Or, repented that they had destroyed their brethren, as appeareth verse 15.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

There is one tribe cut off from Israel this day--that is, in danger of becoming extinct; for, as it appears from Jdg 21:7, they had massacred all the women and children of Benjamin, and six hundred men alone survived of the whole tribe. The prospect of such a blank in the catalogue of the twelve tribes, such a gap in the national arrangements, was too painful to contemplate, and immediate measures must be taken to prevent this great catastrophe.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

6. cut off] cut down; the figure is that of hewing down trees, cf. Isa_10:33; Isa_14:12.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And the children of Israel repented them for Benjamin their brother,.... Not that they went to war with them, as if their cause was not good; but for the severity they had exercised towards them, especially in destroying their women and children, and for the fatal consequences like to follow here after, particularly the dissolution of the whole tribe:

and said, there is one tribe cut off from Israel this day; that is, there is a likelihood or great danger of it.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Say. Governors should use great discretion, and correct with justice and mercy. (St. Gregory 1. ep. 24.) (Worthington)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Children of Israel repented them; not for the war, which was just, and necessary, and good; but for their immoderate severity in the execution of it, and for thee dreadful consequences of it.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Vers. 6-9. And the children of Israel, etc. This verse goes back a little to explain why the children of Israel asked the question, viz., because they repented them for Benjamin, and wished to repair the mischief resulting from their rash oath not to give their daughters to a Benjamite; therefore they said (repeating ver. 5), What one is there that came not up to Mizpeh? (ver. 8) and on numbering the people it was found that no one had come up from Jabesh-gilead. This is the first time that Jabesh-gilead is mentioned in Scripture. It comes up twice afterwards. First in 1Sa 11, on occasion of its being besieged by the Ammonites and rescued by Saul; and secondly in 1Sa_31:11-13, when the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead took down the bodies of Saul and his sons from the wall of Beth-shah, and buried them at Jabesh, for which brave and pious act David thanked them. (2Sa_2:5) The name of Jabesh is only preserved in the Wady Yabis, which debouches on the eastern bank of the Jordan about lat. 32"24. Robinson thinks the ruins called ed Deir in this valley are the remains of Jabesh, which agrees exactly with the situation assigned to it by Eusebius in the, Onomasticon."

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Repented - Not for the war, which was just and necessary, but for their immoderate severity in the execution of it. That is no good divinity which swallows up humanity. Even necessary justice is to be done with compassion.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

repented

(See Scofield "Zec 8:14") .

The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

their brother Benjamin

This speaks of the tribe of Benjamin as if it were Israel's brother to show their closeness to the tribe. AT: "the surviving Benjamites" (See: Metaphor)

one tribe has been cut off from Israel

The destruction of the tribe of Benjamin is spoken of as if it had been cut off from Israel by a knife. This was an exaggeration because 600 men were still left. However, the women of Benjamin had been killed, so the future of the tribe was in question. AT: "one tribe has been removed" (See: Metaphor and Hyperbole and Generalization)

Who will provide wives for those who are left, since we have made a promise to Yahweh that we will not let any of them marry our daughters?

The Israelites wanted to provide wives for the few surviving Benjamites, but their promise at Mizpah prevented them from doing that.

translationWords

Israel

compassion

brother

Benjamin

tribe

cut off

promise

Yahweh

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

Were regretful They reversed themselves, and contemplated escape for them.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.