The Meaning of Judges 1:7 Explained

Judges 1:7

KJV: And Adonibezek said, Threescore and ten kings, having their thumbs and their great toes cut off, gathered their meat under my table: as I have done, so God hath requited me. And they brought him to Jerusalem, and there he died.

YLT: and Adoni-Bezek saith, 'Seventy kings -- their thumbs and their great toes cut off -- have been gathering under my table; as I have done so hath God repaid to me;' and they bring him in to Jerusalem, and he dieth there.

Darby: And Ado'ni-be'zek said, "Seventy kings with their thumbs and their great toes cut off used to pick up scraps under my table; as I have done, so God has requited me." And they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.

ASV: And Adoni-bezek said, Threescore and ten kings, having their thumbs and their great toes cut off, gathered their food under my table: as I have done, so God hath requited me. And they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And Adonibezek  said,  Threescore and ten  kings,  having their thumbs  and their great toes  cut off,  gathered  [their meat] under my table:  as I have done,  so God  hath requited  me. And they brought  him to Jerusalem,  and there he died. 

What does Judges 1:7 Mean?

Context Summary

Judges 1:1-15 - Renewing The Conquest
The land had been given. There could be no doubt about that. In the ancient covenant which Jehovah had made with Abram, He said: "Unto thy seed have I given this land." See Genesis 15:18. It had also been conquered and divided by lot, as we learn in Joshua 14:1-5. The portion of Judah is specified in Joshua 15:1-63. But notwithstanding all, each tribe had to possess its own, first by the sword, and ultimately by the plow and the spade.
It is not enough to be assured that "we are blessed with all spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus." We must possess our possessions. By faith, and patience, and daily use, we must appropriate the resources which are stored up in Christ Jesus. See Obadiah 1:17; Ephesians 1:3. Let us not be content with the nether springs of ordinary experience, but let us seek the upper springs that arise hard by the throne of God!
"Build thee more stately mansions, O my soul,
As the swift seasons roll!"¦
Till thou at length art free,
Leaving thine outgrown shell by life's unresting sea!" [source]

Chapter Summary: Judges 1

1  The acts of Judah and Simeon
4  Adonibezek justly requited
8  Jerusalem taken
10  Hebron taken
11  Othniel has Achsah to wife for taking of Debir
16  The Kenites dwell in Judah
17  Hormah, Gaza, Askelon, and Ekron taken
21  The acts of Benjamin
22  Of the house of Joseph, who take Bethel
30  Of Zebulun
31  Of Asher
33  Of Naphtali
34  Of Dan

What do the individual words in Judges 1:7 mean?

And said - Adoni-bezek Seventy kings with their thumbs with their thumbs and big toes cut off become used to gather [scraps] under my table as I have done so has repaid me God and they brought him to Jerusalem and he died there -
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֲדֹֽנִי־ בֶ֗זֶק שִׁבְעִ֣ים ׀ מְלָכִ֡ים בְּֽהֹנוֹת֩ יְדֵיהֶ֨ם וְרַגְלֵיהֶ֜ם מְקֻצָּצִ֗ים הָי֤וּ מְלַקְּטִים֙ תַּ֣חַת שֻׁלְחָנִ֔י כַּאֲשֶׁ֣ר עָשִׂ֔יתִי כֵּ֥ן שִׁלַּם־ לִ֖י אֱלֹהִ֑ים וַיְבִיאֻ֥הוּ יְרוּשָׁלִַ֖ם וַיָּ֥מָת שָֽׁם פ

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר  And  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
אֲדֹֽנִי־  - 
Parse:
בֶ֗זֶק  Adoni-bezek 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: אֲדֹנִי בֶזֶק  
Sense: king of the Canaanite city of Bezek, killed by Israelites.
שִׁבְעִ֣ים ׀  Seventy 
Parse: Number, common plural
Root: שִׁבְעִים  
Sense: seventy.
מְלָכִ֡ים  kings 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: מֶלֶךְ 
Sense: king.
בְּֽהֹנוֹת֩  with  their  thumbs 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: בְּהֹון 
Sense: thumb, great (big) toe (always used of both together).
יְדֵיהֶ֨ם  with  their  thumbs 
Parse: Noun, fdc, third person masculine plural
Root: יָד  
Sense: hand.
וְרַגְלֵיהֶ֜ם  and  big  toes 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, fdc, third person masculine plural
Root: רֶגֶל  
Sense: foot.
מְקֻצָּצִ֗ים  cut  off 
Parse: Verb, Pual, Participle, masculine plural
Root: קָצוּץ 
Sense: to cut off.
הָי֤וּ  become 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person common plural
Root: אֶהְיֶה 
Sense: to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out.
מְלַקְּטִים֙  used  to  gather  [scraps] 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Participle, masculine plural
Root: לָקַט  
Sense: to pick up, gather, glean, gather up.
תַּ֣חַת  under 
Parse: Preposition
Root: מִתְחָה 
Sense: the under part, beneath, instead of, as, for, for the sake of, flat, unto, where, whereas.
שֻׁלְחָנִ֔י  my  table 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: שֻׁלְחָן  
Sense: table.
עָשִׂ֔יתִי  I  have  done 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, first person common singular
Root: עָשָׂה 
Sense: to do, fashion, accomplish, make.
כֵּ֥ן  so 
Parse: Adverb
Root: כֵּן 
Sense: so, therefore, thus.
שִׁלַּם־  has  repaid 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: שָׁלֵם  
Sense: .
לִ֖י  me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
אֱלֹהִ֑ים  God 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
וַיְבִיאֻ֥הוּ  and  they  brought  him 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural, third person masculine singular
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
יְרוּשָׁלִַ֖ם  to  Jerusalem 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: יְרוּשָׁלַםִ  
Sense: the chief city of Palestine and capital of the united kingdom and the nation of Judah after the split.
וַיָּ֥מָת  and  he  died 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: מוּת  
Sense: to die, kill, have one executed.
פ  - 
Parse: Punctuation