Judges 15:20 — Word Study
WLCוַיִּשְׁפֹּ֧ט אֶת־ יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל בִּימֵ֥י פְלִשְׁתִּ֖ים עֶשְׂרִ֥ים שָׁנָֽה׃ פ
BSAAnd [Samson] judgedshâphaṭ▸ [led, governed, to vindicate, govern] IsraelYisrâʼêl [the descendants of Jacob] for twentyʻesrîym [a period of two decades] yearsshâneh in the daysyôwm [a literal 24-hour period or a figurative space of time] of the PhilistinesPᵉlishtîy [inhabitants of Philistia, a neighboring region]
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| וַיִּשְׁפֹּ֧ט | and he judged | Verb, Qal, sequential imperfect third person masculine singular |
| אֶת־ | the object marker | Particle |
| יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל | Israel | Noun proper |
| בִּימֵ֥י | in [the] days of | Preposition, noun common masculine plural construct |
| פְלִשְׁתִּ֖ים | [the] Philistines | Noun gentilic, masculine plural absolute |
| עֶשְׂרִ֥ים | twenty | Noun common, masculine plural absolute |
| שָׁנָֽה׃ פ | year[s] | Noun common, feminine singular absolute |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | And Samson judged Israel for twenty years in the days of the Philistines. |
| KJV | And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years. |
| ASV | And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years. |
| YLT | And he judgeth Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years. |
| WEB | He judged Israel twenty years in the days of the Philistines. |
| BBE | And he was judge of Israel in the days of the Philistines for twenty years. |
Where they part company is over the translation of עֶשְׂרִים — see How Translations Differ.
The sentence has one main clause with additional phrases providing context and detail about the time and the action.
7 commentators on this verse
Gill, Poole, Trapp, Ellicott & more — read them ›
clause
verbשָׁפַט
The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
Every word here is used elsewhere in the Old Testament.
Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.
Deep Study — Judges 15:20
Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.
Context — The Period of the Judgesgenerated
Judges 15:20 describes the time when Samson judged Israel, a role that involved leadership and governance during a tumultuous period characterized by the oppression of the Philistines. This verse highlights Samson's significant contribution to Israel's history, as he led the people for two decades, navigating the challenges posed by their enemies.
Cross References
| Reference | Text (BSB) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Judges 13:1–5 | Again the Israelites did evil in the sight of the LORD, so He delivered them into the hand of the Philistines for forty years. |
| 2 | Judges 16:31 | Then Samson’s brothers and his father’s family came down, carried him back, and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of his father Manoah. And he had judged Israel twenty years. |
The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — 2 references, hung on the phrase they belong to
The Key Word — שָׁפַט, vai.yish.Potgenerated
The verb שָׁפַט (shaphat) means to judge or govern. It encompasses actions such as pronouncing sentences, executing judgments, and resolving disputes. In this context, it indicates Samson's role as a leader who not only judged but also governed the people of Israel during a critical time.
The parsing shows that it is a sequential imperfect verb, indicating an ongoing action in the past. This suggests that Samson's leadership was active and continuous over the twenty years mentioned.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
This study reads the verse in the Berean Standard Bible, so the BSB is the wording every comparison below is made against.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The finite verb וַיִּשְׁפֹּ֧ט (and he judged) governs the entire clause, with a noun phrase for the object אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵל (Israel) and a prepositional phrase indicating the time frame בִּימֵ֥י פְלִשְׁתִּ֖ים (in the days of the Philistines).
The structure emphasizes the action of judging, with the object and temporal context clearly defined, showcasing the role of Samson as a leader in Israel during a significant historical period.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
The Septuagint translates שָׁפַט as ἔκρινεν (he judged), which maintains the meaning of governance and judgment. This choice reflects the continuity of Samson's role as a leader in both the Hebrew and Greek texts.
The use of ἔκρινεν emphasizes the authoritative aspect of Samson's leadership, consistent with the Hebrew understanding of judgment.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
Judges 15:20 tells us that Samson judged Israel for twenty years during the time of the Philistines. This means he led and governed the people, facing the challenges posed by their enemies.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
It means that Samson served as a leader and governor, making decisions and guiding the people during a difficult time.
Samson led Israel for twenty years, a significant period in the history of the nation.
The Philistines were a neighboring group that often conflicted with the Israelites, as recorded throughout the Bible.
Judges were leaders who governed the people, often stepping in during times of crisis to deliver them from oppression.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- What qualities do you think made Samson a good leader during his time?
- How can we learn from Samson's leadership in our own lives?
- In what ways do you see leadership being challenged in today's world?
- What can we do to support leaders in our communities?
Commentators on this verse — 7 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on Judges 15:20 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
John Gill1697–1771Gill's Exposition of the Entire BibleAnd he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.
Read John Gill on Judges 15 →Matthew Poole1624–1679Matthew Poole's Commentary on the Holy Biblei.e. He pleaded their cause, and avenged them against the Philistines. In the days of the Philistines, i.e. whilst the Philistines had the power and dominion, from which he was not fully to deliver, but only to begin to deliver them, as it was foretold, . From this place it is manifest, that in the computation of the times of the judges, the years of servitude or oppression are not to be separated from the years of the judges, and added to them, but are comprehended within them; which proposition is of great importance for clearing this difficult part of Scripture chronology, and for justifying that account of times given .
Read Matthew Poole on Judges 15 →John Trapp1601–1669Trapp's Complete Commentary on the Old and New TestamentsJudges 15:20 And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.Ver. 20. And he judged Israel.] Haply after this victory he was publicly accepted and acknowledged as judge of Israel by this people, who before had dealt so unworthily with him: “ Sic cum fortuna statque caditque fides. ”
Read John Trapp on Judges 15 →Charles John Ellicott1819–1905Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(20) And he judged Israel.—Probably, as Jephthah had done, with the sort of vague prerogatives of a military hero. Why the verse is found here, as though to close the narrative (comp. Judges 12:7, &c.), and is again repeated in Judges 16:31, we cannot say. The next chapter belongs mainly to Samson’s fall and humiliation. These twenty years probably fell within the contemporary judgeship of Eli.
Read Charles John Ellicott on Judges 15 →AdamClarkeAdam Clarke's Commentary on the BibleVerse 20. He judged Israel-twenty years.] In the margin it is said, He seems to have judged southwest Israel during twenty years of their servitude of the Philistines, Judges 13:1. Instead of עשרים שנה esrim shanah, twenty years, the Jerusalem Talmud has ארבעים שנה arbaim shanah, forty years; but this reading is not acknowledged by any MS. or version. According to Calmet, the twenty years of the judicature of Samson began the eighteenth year of the subjection of Israel to the Philistines; and these twenty years are included in the judicature of the high priest Eli. THE burning of the Philistines' corn by the means of foxes and firebrands is a very remarkable circumstance; and there is a…
Read AdamClarke on Judges 15 →CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges20. The Dtc. editor’s formula, usually at the close of a judge’s history, comes curiously here before the end; perhaps because the editor felt that the end was not a suitable place for a statement of this kind. The words now standing in Judges 16:31 b are merely a briefer repetition of the present verse, and may have been added by some later hand. The alternative is to suppose that the Dtc. editor closed the story of Samson here, and left out ch. 16 as contributing nothing to his purpose; ch. 16 was afterwards restored to its place, with the concluding formula (so Budde, Moore, Nowack). See Introduction § 2 C. twenty years] out of the forty, Judges 13:1. In the Rabbinic schools it was…
Read Cambridge on Judges 15 →Daniel Denison Whedon1808–1885Whedon's Commentary on the Bible20. Judged Israel… twenty years — The same statement is repeated at the close of Samson’s history, (Judges 16:31,) but seems to have been introduced here to indicate the time when he first became
Read Daniel Denison Whedon on Judges 15 →The verse in English, compared — 17 translations, and where they part company
Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.
Modern formal
And Samson judged Israel for twenty years in the days of the Philistines.
He judged Israel twenty years in the days of the Philistines.
And Samson judged Israel for twenty years in the days of the Philistines.
Samson led Israel for twenty years during the days of Philistine prominence.
Tyndale line
And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.
And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.
And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.
And he judged Israel, in the days of the Philistines, twenty years.
And hee iudged Israel in the dayes of the Philistims twentie yeeres.
Strictly literal
And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.
And he judgeth Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.
And he judges Israel in the days of the Philistines [for] twenty years.
And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.
Samson judged Israel in the days of the Philistines for twenty years.
From the Latin
And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.
Simplified
Samson led Israel as judge for twenty years during the time of the Philistines.
And he was judge of Israel in the days of the Philistines for twenty years.
Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.
The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank
This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.
Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.
The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran
The Masoretic Text and the Septuagint largely agree in their rendering of this verse, with six out of seven words matching between the two. The Septuagint's word order differs, but it confirms the essential elements of Samson's judgment over Israel.
וַיִּשְׁפֹּ֧ט אֶת־ יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל בִּימֵ֥י פְלִשְׁתִּ֖ים עֶשְׂרִ֥ים שָׁנָֽה׃ פ
6 of the 7 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.
Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.
The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with
This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.
Lexicons — every word in Judges 15:20
One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.
Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.
שָׁפַט (shaphat) is a Hebrew verb meaning to judge or govern. It encompasses a range of actions including pronouncing sentences, executing judgments, and deciding controversies in various contexts such as civil and religious matters. The word can also imply being judged or entering into legal disputes. There is a specific mention of its use in the context of final judgment.
שָׁפַט 185 vb. judge, govern
Qal
act as law-giver, judge, governor
specif. decide controversy, discriminate betw. persons, in civil, political, domestic and religious questions
execute judgment
Niph.
recipr., enter into controversy, plead
pass. be judged
Pô‛el = my opponent-at-law
base
H8199 שָׁפַט judge, govern .. act as law-giver, judge, governor
. specif. decide controversy, discriminate betw. persons, in civil, political, domestic and religious questions
. execute judgment
. . recipr., enter into controversy, plead
. pass. be judged
.= my opponent-at-law
8199 shaphat shaw-fat'
a primitive root; to judge, i.e. pronounce sentence (for or
against); by implication, to vindicate or punish; by
extenssion, to govern; passively, to litigate (literally or
figuratively):--+ avenge, X that condemn, contend, defend,
execute (judgment), (be a) judge(-ment), X needs, plead,
reason, rule.
שָׁפַט (sha.phat) — to judge.
1) to judge, govern, vindicate, punish
1a) (Qal)
1a1) to act as law-giver or judge or governor (of God, man)
1a1a) to rule, govern, judge
1a2) to decide controversy (of God, man)
1a3) to execute judgment
1a3a) discriminating (of man)
1a3b) vindicating
1a3c) condemning and punishing
1a3d) at theophanic advent for final judgment
1b) (Niphal)
1b1) to enter into controversy, plead, have controversy together
1b2) to be judged
1c) (Poel) judge, opponent-at-law (participle)
Conj | V-Qal-ConsecImperf-3ms — Verb · Qal · sequential imperfect third person masculine singularHc/Vqw3ms
אֵת (eth) is primarily a grammatical marker in Hebrew, indicating the definite direct object of a verb. It is not translated into English and typically precedes nouns that are definite. The word is derived from a demonstrative sense of entity, related to the Hebrew word for 'self.' Its Aramaic equivalent is יָת (yat).
אֵת the mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite
base
H853 אֵת the mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite
853 'eth ayth
apparent contracted from 226 in the demonstrative sense of
entity; properly, self (but generally used to point out more
definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or
namely):--(as such unrepresented in English).
see HEBREW for 0226
אֵת (et) — [Obj.].
sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative
Aramaic equivalent: yat (יָת "whom" H3487)
HTo — ParticleHTo
יִשְׂרָאֵל (Yisra'el) refers to both the second name of Jacob, meaning 'God prevails,' and the name of the Hebrew nation descended from him. It is derived from roots meaning 'to rule' and 'God.' The term encompasses Jacob's descendants and is used historically for the northern kingdom of Israel and the nation as a whole after the Babylonian exile.
יִשְׂרָאֵל 2507 n.pr.m. et gent. Israel (Ēl persisteth, persevereth)
n.pr.m. second name of Jacob
n.pr.gent. name of Hebrew nation
base
H3478 יִשְׂרָאֵל Israel (Ēl persisteth, persevereth) . n. pr. m. second name of Jacob
. n. pr. gent. name of Hebrew nation
3478 Yisra'el yis-raw-ale'
from 8280 and 410; he will rule as God; Jisrael, a symbolical
name of Jacob; also (typically) of his posterity:
--Israel.
see HEBREW for 08280
see HEBREW for 0410
יִשְׂרָאֵל (yis.ra.el) — Israel.
A man living at the time of the Patriarchs, first mentioned at Gen.25.26;
son of: Isaac (H3327) and Rebekah (H7259);
brother of: Esau (H6215); married to Rachel (H7354), Leah (H3812), Zilpah (H2153) and Bilhah (H1090A);
father of: Reuben (H7205), Simeon (H8095), Levi (H3878), Judah (H3063), Dan (H1835H), Naphtali (H5321), Gad (H1410), Asher (H0836), Issachar (H3485), Zebulun (H2074), Dinah (H1783), Joseph (H3130) and Benjamin (H1144); also called Jacob frequently
§ Israel = "God prevails"
1) the second name for Jacob given to him by God after his wrestling with the angel at Peniel
2) the name of the descendants and the nation of the descendants of Jacob
2a) the name of the nation until the death of Solomon and the split
N-proper — Noun properHNpl
iz'-ra-el.
See JACOB.
Israel
The name conferred on Jacob after the great prayer-struggle at Peniel (Gen. 32:28), because “as a prince he had power with God and prevailed.” (See JACOB.) This is the common name given to Jacob’s descendants. The whole people of the twelve tribes are called “Israelites,” the “children of Israel” (Josh. 3:17; 7:25; Judg. 8:27; Jer. 3:21), and the “house of Israel” (Ex. 16:31; 40:38).
This name Israel is sometimes used emphatically for the true Israel (Ps. 73:1: Isa. 45:17; 49:3;
(the prince that prevails with God). The name given, (Genesis 32:28) to Jacob after his wrestling with the angel, (Hosea 12:4) at Peniel. Gesenius interprets Israel "soldier of God." It became the national name of the twelve tribes collectively. They are so called in (Exodus 3:16) and afterward. It is used in a narrower sense, excluding Judah, in (1 Samuel 11:8; 2 Samuel 20:1; 1 Kings 12:16) Thenceforth it was assumed and accepted as the name of the northern kingdom. After the Babylonian captivity, the returned exiles resumed the name Israel as the designation of…
Who prevails with God, a name given to Jacob, after having wrestled with the Angel-Jehovah at Penuel. Ge 32:1,2,28,30 Ho 12:3. See JACOB. By the name Israel is sometimes understood all the posterity of Israel, the seed of Jacob, 1Co 10:18; sometimes all true believers, his spiritual seed, Ro 9:6; and sometimes the kingdom of Israel, or the ten tribes, as distinct from the kingdom of Judah.
יוֹם (yowm) means 'day' and refers to a division of time, contrasting with night. It can denote a literal 24-hour period, a general time span, or even a year. The term is used in various contexts, including the 'day of Yahweh,' which signifies a time of divine judgment. It also appears in phrases indicating temporal references like today, yesterday, and tomorrow.
יוֹם 2285 n.m. day
day, opp. night
Day as division of time
יוֹם י׳ day of Yahweh, chiefly as time of his coming in judgment, involving often blessedness for righteous
Pl. days of anyone
Days
יוֹם = time
Phrases
base
H3117 יוֹם day . day, opp. night
. Day as division of time
. יוֹם י׳ day of Yahweh, chiefly as time of his coming in judgment, involving often blessedness for righteous
. Pl. days of anyone
. Days
. יוֹם = time
. Phrases
3117 yowm yome
from an unused root meaning to be hot; a day (as the warm
hours), whether literal (from sunrise to sunset, or from one
sunset to the next), or figurative (a space of time defined by
an associated term), (often used adverb):--age, + always, +
chronicals, continually(-ance), daily, ((birth-), each, to)
day, (now a, two) days (agone), + elder, X end, + evening, +
(for) ever(-lasting, -more), X full, life, as (so) long as
(... live), (even) now, + old, + outlived, + perpetually,
presently, + remaineth, X required, season, X since, space,
then, (process of) time, + as at other times, + in trouble,
weather, (as) when, (a, the, within a) while (that), X whole
(+ age), (full) year(-ly), + younger.
יוֹם (yom) — day.
: day/when/time/period
1) day, time, year
1a) day (as opposed to night)
1b) day (24 hour period)
1b1) as defined by evening and morning in Genesis 1
1b2) as a division of time
1b2a) a working day, a day's journey
1c) days, lifetime (pl.)
1d) time, period (general)
1e) year
1f) temporal references
1f1) today
1f2) yesterday
1f3) tomorrow
יוֹם (yom) — day: old.
: old/(full/many)[days]
1) day, time, year
1a) day (as opposed to night)
1b) day (24 hour period)
1b1) as defined by evening and morning in Genesis 1
1b2) as a division of time
1b2a) a working day, a day's journey
1c) days, lifetime (pl.)
1d) time, period (general)
1e) year
1f) temporal references
1f1) today
1f2) yesterday
1f3) tomorrow
יוֹם (yom) — day: year.
: year[of_days]
1) day, time, year
1a) day (as opposed to night)
1b) day (24 hour period)
1b1) as defined by evening and morning in Genesis 1
1b2) as a division of time
Prep | N-mp — Preposition · noun common masculine plural constructHR/Ncmpc
ov:
(1) In Anglo-Saxon, had the meaning "from," "away from" (as the strengthened form "off" has still), and was not used for genitive or possessive relations, these being expressed by special case-forms. In the Norman period, however, "of" was taken to represent the French de (a use well developed by the time of Chaucer), and in the Elizabethan period both senses of "of" were in common use. But after about 1600 the later force of the word became predominant, and in the earlier sense (which is now practically obsolete) it was replaced by other prepositions. In consequence the King James Version (and in some cases the Revised Version (British and American)) contains many uses of "of" that are no longer familiar--most of them, to be sure, causing no difficulty, but there still being a few responsible for real obscurities.
OF, preposition ov. [Gr.]
1. From or out of; proceeding from, as the cause, source, means, author or agent bestowing.
I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered to you. 1 Corinthians 11:1.
For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts. Joshua 11:1.
It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed.
Lamentations 3:1.
The whole disposing thereof is of the Lord. Proverbs 16:1.
Go, inquire of the Lord for me. 2 Chronicles 34:2.
That holy thing that shall be born of thee. Luke 1:1.
Hence of is the sign of the genitive case, the case that denotes production; as the son of man, the son proceeding from man, produced from man. This is the primary sense, although we now say, produced by man. 'Part of these were slain; ' that is, a number separate, for part denotes a division; the sense then is, a number from or out of the whole were slain. So also, 'some of these were slain; ' that is…
The Hebrew word פְּלִשְׁתִּי (*pelishtiy*) means 'Philistine' and refers to an inhabitant of Philistia, with roots indicating they are descendants of Mizraim who immigrated from Caphtor. It is derived from the lemma for Philistia, פְּלֶ֫שֶׁת (*peleshet*), and is first mentioned in Genesis 10:14.
פְּלִשְׁתִּי 288 adj.gent. Philistine
base
H6430 פְּלִשְׁתִּי Philistine
6430 Plishtiy pel-ish-tee'
patrial from 6429; a Pelishtite or inhabitant of
Pelesheth:--Philistine.
see HEBREW for 06429
פְּלִשְׁתִּי (pe.lish.ti) — Philistine.
Philistine = "immigrants"
an inhabitant of Philistia; descendants of Mizraim who immigrated from Caphtor (Crete?) to the western seacoast of Canaan
Another spelling of pe.le.shet (פְּלֶ֫שֶׁת "Philistia" H6429)
פְּלִשְׁתִּי (pe.lish.ti) — Philistine.
A Philistine living at the time of the Patriarchs, first mentioned at Gen.10.14;
son of: Casluhim (H3695)
§ Philistine = "immigrants"
an inhabitant of Philistia; descendants of Mizraim who immigrated from Caphtor (Crete?) to the western seacoast of Canaan
פְּלִשְׁתִּי (pe.lish.ti) — (Sea of the) Philistines.
Philistine = "immigrants"
an inhabitant of Philistia; descendants of Mizraim who immigrated from Caphtor (Crete?) to the western seacoast of Canaan
Another name of ga.dol (גָּדוֹל "Great( Sea)" H1419J)
Ngmpa — Noun gentilic · masculine plural absoluteHNgmpa
fi-lis'-tinz, fil'-is-tinz, fil'-is-tinz (pelishtim; Phulistieim, allophuloi):
I. OLD TESTAMENT NOTICES
1. Race and Origin
2. Religion
3. Individual Philistines Mentioned
4. Title of Ruler and Circumcision
5. History in the Old Testament to Death of Saul
6. History Continued to Time of Ahaz
7. Later Notices
II. MONUMENTAL NOTICES
1. Palestinian Excavations
2. Egyptian Monuments
3. Assyrian Texts
III. THE CRETAN THEORY
1. Cherethim and Kretes
2. Caphtor and Keft
IV. DAVID'S GUARDS
1. The "Cherethi" and the "Pelethi" Not Mercenaries
2. Meaning of These Terms
3. Native Hebrews
4. Review
LITERATURE
I. Old Testament Notices.
1. Race and Origin:
The Philistines were an uncircumcised people inhabiting the shore plain between Gezer and Gaza in Southwestern Palestine (see PHILISTIA). The name Palestine itself (Hebrew pelesheth) refers to their country. The word means "migrants," and they came from another country. They…
Philistines
(Gen. 10:14, R.V.; but in A.V., “Philistim”), a tribe allied to the Phoenicians. They were a branch of the primitive race which spread over the whole district of the Lebanon and the valley of the Jordan, and Crete and other Mediterranean islands. Some suppose them to have been a branch of the Rephaim (2 Sam. 21:16-22). In the time of Abraham they inhabited the south-west of Judea, Abimelech of Gerar being their king (Gen. 21:32, 34; 26:1). They are, however, not noticed among the Canaanitish tribes mentioned in the Pentateuch. They are spoken of by Amos (9:7) and Jeremiah (47:4) as from Caphtor, i.e., probably Crete, or, as some think, the Delta of Egypt. In the whole record from Exodus to Samuel they are…
(immigrants), The origin of the Philistines is nowhere expressly stated in the Bible; but as the prophets describe them as "the Philistines-from Caphtor," (Amos 9:7) and "the remnant of the maritime district of Caphtor" (Jeremiah 47:4) it is prima facie probable that they were the Caphtorim which came out of Caphtor" who expelled the Avim from their territory and occupied it; in their place, (2:23) and that these again were the Caphtorim mentioned in the Mosaic genealogical table among the descendants of Mizraim. (Genesis 10:14) It has been generally assumed that Caphtor represents Crete, and that the Philistines migrated from that island, either directly or through Egypt, into Palestine. But the name Caphtor is more probably…
A celebrated people, who inhabited the southern seacoast of Canaan, which from them took the name of Philistia, Ps 60:8 108:9, or Palestine. They seem originally to have migrated form Egypt to Caphtor, by which some understand Crete, and others with the ancients Cappadocia, Ge 10:14, and thence to have passed over to Palestine under the name of Caphtorim, where they drove out the Avim, who dwelt from Hazerim to Azzah, that is, Gaza, and swelt in their stead, De 2:23. The country they inhabited lay between the higher land of Judea and the Mediterranean, and was in the main a level and fertile territory. It resembles our own western prairies; and bears splendid crops year after year, though miserably cultivated and never manured.
עֶשְׂרִים (esriym) means 'twenty' and can also refer to the ordinal 'twentieth.' It is derived from the root word for 'ten' and has an Aramaic equivalent, עֶשְׂרִין (es.rin). The entries consistently define the term without significant disagreement.
עֶשְׂרִים (a) twenty
base
H6242 עֶשְׂרִים (a) twenty
6242 `esriym es-reem'
from 6235; twenty; also (ordinal) twentieth:--(six-)score,
twenty(-ieth).
see HEBREW for 06235
עֶשְׂרִים (es.rim) — twenty.
twenty, twentieth
Aramaic equivalent: es.rin (עֶשְׂרִין "twenty" H6243)
Adj — Noun common · masculine plural absoluteHNcmpa
twen'-ti.
See NUMBER.
שָׁנָה (shaneh) means 'year' and is derived from the root meaning to change or revolve. It encompasses various aspects of time, including divisions of time, measures of age, and even a lifetime. The Aramaic equivalent is שְׁנָה (she.nah), also meaning 'year'.
שָׁנָה 877 n.f. year (etym. v. √[v.ek.aa])
base
H8141 שָׁנָה year (etym. v. √[8138a])
8141 shaneh shaw-neh'
(in plura or (feminine) shanah {shaw-naw'}; from 8138; a year
(as a revolution of time):--+ whole age, X long, + old,
year(X -ly).
see HEBREW for 08138
שָׁנָה (sha.neh) — year.
1) year
1a) as division of time
1b) as measure of time
1c) as indication of age
1d) a lifetime (of years of life)
Aramaic equivalent: she.nah (שְׁנָה "year" H8140)
N-fs — Noun common · feminine singular absoluteHNcfsa