Now the children of Judah had fought against Jerusalem, and had taken it, and smitten it with the edge of the sword, and set the city on fire.

JUDGES 1:8KJV
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Judges 1:8 (KJV)

What does Judges 1:8 mean?

Judges 1:8 describes how the tribe of Judah attacked Jerusalem, captured it, killed its inhabitants with the sword, and then set the city on fire. This verse records a military victory by Judah over Jerusalem early in Israel’s history in the land of Canaan.

The book of Judges is recounting the period after Joshua’s death, when the Israelite tribes were conquering and settling the land. Here, the focus is on the tribe of Judah, who fought against the city of Jerusalem. The verse highlights the violence of the conquest, noting both the defeat of the city’s people and the destruction of the city itself by fire.

The Hebrew behind Judges 1:8

  • "children" (בְּנֵי, b’nei): This word refers to the descendants or people of Judah, emphasizing that it was the tribe as a whole, not just a few individuals, involved in the action.
  • "smitten" (נָכָה, nakah): This word means to strike or kill, and in this context, it underscores the completeness of the military defeat—those in Jerusalem were not just driven out but killed.
  • "edge" (פֶּה, peh): Literally meaning "mouth," this word is used in the phrase "edge of the sword" to picture the sword as if it has a mouth that devours, a vivid image for the violence of battle.
  • "set" (שָׁלַח, shalach): This verb means "to send" or "to let loose," and here it is used for setting the city on fire, suggesting a deliberate and thorough act of destruction.

Why Judges 1:8 matters

  • This verse clarifies that Jerusalem was initially conquered by Judah, even though later passages show it coming under Jebusite control again until David’s time; this helps explain the complex history of Jerusalem’s occupation.
  • The detail about burning the city shows the severity of the conquest and the totality of the defeat, not just a change of rulers but a destruction of the city’s existing order.
  • This verse connects to the larger theme in Judges of incomplete conquest, as later verses reveal that full control over Jerusalem was not maintained by Israel at this time.