⚔️WEB · Judges 8:16
What does Judges 8:16 mean?
"He took the elders of the city, and thorns of the wilderness and briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth."
— Judges 8:16 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
Gideon the son of Joash returned from the battle from the ascent of Heres.
He caught a young man of the men of Succoth, and inquired of him: and he described for him the princes of Succoth, and its elders, seventy-seven men.
He came to the men of Succoth, and said, “See Zebah and Zalmunna, concerning whom you taunted me, saying, ‘Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in your hand, that we should give bread to your men who are weary?’”
He took the elders of the city, and thorns of the wilderness and briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth.
He broke down the tower of Penuel, and killed the men of the city.
Then he said to Zebah and Zalmunna, “What kind of men were they whom you killed at Tabor?” They answered, “They were like you. Each one resembled the children of a king.”
He said, “They were my brothers, the sons of my mother. As Yahweh lives, if you had saved them alive, I would not kill you.”
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