The Meaning of Judges 20:17 Explained

Judges 20:17

KJV: And the men of Israel, beside Benjamin, were numbered four hundred thousand men that drew sword: all these were men of war.

YLT: And the men of Israel numbered themselves, apart from Benjamin, four hundred thousand men, drawing sword, each of these a man of war.

Darby: And the men of Israel, apart from Benjamin, mustered four hundred thousand men that drew sword; all these were men of war.

ASV: And the men of Israel, besides Benjamin, were numbered four hundred thousand men that drew sword: all these were men of war.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And the men  of Israel,  beside Benjamin,  were numbered  four  hundred  thousand  men  that drew  sword:  all these [were] men  of war. 

What does Judges 20:17 Mean?

Chapter Summary: Judges 20

1  The Levite in a general assembly declared his wrong
8  The decree of the assembly
12  The Benjamites, being cited, make head against the Israelites
18  The Israelites in two battles lose forty thousand
26  They destroy by a plan all the Benjamites, except six hundred

What do the individual words in Judges 20:17 mean?

And the men of Israel numbered besides Benjamin four hundred thousand men who drew the sword all of this [army were] men of war
וְאִ֨ישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵ֜ל הִתְפָּֽקְד֗וּ לְבַד֙ מִבִּנְיָמִ֔ן אַרְבַּ֨ע מֵא֥וֹת אֶ֛לֶף אִ֖ישׁ שֹׁ֣לֵֽף חָ֑רֶב כָּל־ זֶ֖ה אִ֥ישׁ מִלְחָמָֽה

וְאִ֨ישׁ  And  the  men 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
יִשְׂרָאֵ֜ל  of  Israel 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יִשְׂרָאֵל  
Sense: the second name for Jacob given to him by God after his wrestling with the angel at Peniel.
הִתְפָּֽקְד֗וּ  numbered 
Parse: Verb, Hitpael, Perfect, third person common plural
Root: פָּקַד 
Sense: to attend to, muster, number, reckon, visit, punish, appoint, look after, care for.
לְבַד֙  besides 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: בַּד 
Sense: alone, by itself, besides, a part, separation, being alone.
מִבִּנְיָמִ֔ן  Benjamin 
Parse: Preposition-m, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: בִּנְיָמִין 
Sense: Jacob’s and Rachel’s youngest son, Joseph’s full brother.
אַרְבַּ֨ע  four 
Parse: Number, feminine singular construct
Root: אַרְבַּע  
Sense: four.
מֵא֥וֹת  hundred 
Parse: Number, feminine plural
Root: מֵאָה 
Sense: hundred.
אֶ֛לֶף  thousand 
Parse: Number, masculine singular construct
Root: אֶלֶף 
Sense: a thousand.
אִ֖ישׁ  men 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
שֹׁ֣לֵֽף  who  drew 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: שָׁלַף  
Sense: to draw out or off, take off.
חָ֑רֶב  the  sword 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: חֶרֶב  
Sense: sword, knife.
זֶ֖ה  of  this  [army  were] 
Parse: Pronoun, masculine singular
Root: זֶה  
Sense: this, this one, here, which, this … that, the one … the other, another, such.
אִ֥ישׁ  men 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
מִלְחָמָֽה  of  war 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: מִלְחָמָה  
Sense: battle, war.