This is what you shall do: every male and every woman that has lain with a male you shall devote to destruction.”
English Standard Version (ESV)
The text distinguishes between "every male" and "every woman that has lain with a man," deliberately excluding virgins from this sentence of death. This exclusion, though not explicitly stated here, mirrors similar commands where the spoils of war were handled differently, suggesting a specific, albeit harsh, legal framework guiding this action.
This is what you shall do: every male and every woman that has lain with a male you shall devote to destruction.”
English Standard Version (ESV)
Following a devastating civil war against the tribe of Benjamin, the other tribes have taken a rash oath not to give their daughters to any Benjamite for a wife. To rectify the near-extermination of Benjamin and uphold their oath, they decide to attack the town of Jabesh-Gilead, whose inhabitants did not join the war effort, and kill all the men and married women, taking the young virgins as wives. This verse describes the brutal command to carry out the destruction of Jabesh-Gilead's population.
This verse commands a brutal act: utter destruction. But what does 'devoted to destruction' actually mean, and why is it so severe?
The command here is to put the town of Jabesh-Gilead under the 'ban,' known in the original language as cherem. This wasn't just a battle to defeat an enemy; it was a complete annihilation. Everything and everyone associated with a cherem was utterly destroyed and given over to God, with nothing to be kept for oneself.
Ask a follow-up
The Israelites made a rash oath. How did this vow lead them to a decision that horrified even themselves and necessitated further violence?
The events leading up to this verse are steeped in the consequences of a poorly considered oath. The men of Israel, in their fury after the crime at Gibeah, swore a vow: 'None of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin as a wife' (Judges 21:1).
In times of extreme violence and moral confusion, how did the Israelites justify these actions as aligning with God's will?
This passage wrestles with the terrifying intersection of human violence and perceived divine command. The Israelites, in their 'gross spiritual darkness,' consulted God through the oracle (likely the Urim and Thummim) before carrying out their brutal plan against Jabesh-Gilead.
Understand the original words
charam · Hebrew Verb
The act of total consecration of something to God, usually involving its complete annihilation, so that it may not be used for common or idolatrous purposes. It signifies the removal of evil from Israel.
This directive to destroy every male and every woman who had lain with a man reflects the extreme measures taken to uphold an oath made in a time of national crisis and moral outrage, even when those measures involved severe, indiscriminate violence against a community that failed to join a collective vow.
c. 11th-10th century BC
The Crime at Gibeah
A concubine of a Levite is brutally assaulted and killed by men from Gibeah, a city in the tribe of Benjamin. This act sparks outrage across Israel.
c. 11th-10th century BC
Vow Against Benjamin
The tribes of Israel swear an oath in Mizpah not to give their daughters to the tribe of Benjamin as wives, seeking to punish them for the crime at Gibeah.
c. 11th-10th century BC
Civil War Erupts
A brutal civil war breaks out between the other tribes of Israel and the tribe of Benjamin, resulting in near extermination of Benjamin.
c. 11th-10th century BC
Lamenting Benjamin's Loss
The other tribes realize the severity of their actions and lament the near destruction of the tribe of Benjamin, leaving them with a shortage of wives.
c. 11th-10th century BC— this verse
The Attack on Jabesh-Gilead
The Israelites discover that the town of Jabesh-Gilead did not participate in the oath to fight Benjamin. They attack and kill all the men and women who had relations with men, but spare virgins for the remaining Benjamites.
c. 11th-10th century BC
Abduction at Shiloh
To provide wives for the surviving Benjamites, the men of Israel organize the abduction of young women from the festival at Shiloh.
This verse speaks of things devoted to destruction, or 'cherem,' which is the same concept used in Judges 21:11 to describe the total annihilation of the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead.
Numbers 31:17This passage commands the destruction of all male children and all women who have known a man intimately in the aftermath of the battle with the Midianites, mirroring the severity of the command in Judges 21:11.
Deuteronomy 7:2God instructs Israel to show no pity and to utterly destroy the nations in the Promised Land, establishing a precedent for the concept of total destruction in certain contexts.
Joshua 6:17During the destruction of Jericho, everything was devoted to destruction, including men, women, children, and animals, illustrating the principle of 'cherem' applied to an entire city.
Judges 20:48In the preceding chapter, the Israelites applied the same decree of total destruction to the city of Gibeah and its inhabitants for their wicked actions, showing this was a consistent, albeit harsh, response to extreme sin.
pooleJudges 21:11: "And this is the thing that ye shall do, Ye shall utterly destroy every male, and every woman that hath lain by man."
But not the virgins, as appears from the next verses. It is questionable whether they were not obliged to destroy these also by virtue of their oath, and of God’s express command concerning devoted persons, such as these certainly were, that they should surely be put to death . Leviticus 27:29 , which was also particularly enjoined and practised in such cases, as D…
ellicottJudges 21:11: "And this is the thing that ye shall do, Ye shall utterly destroy every male, and every woman that hath lain by man."
(11) Ye shall utterly destroy. —The verb is tacharîmû —i.e., Ye shall place under the ban ( cherem ) , ye shall devote to destruction. The words of the cherem are almost identical with those of the indignant command of Moses after the war with Midian alluded to in the last verse ( Numbers 31:17-18 ), and there the same exception is made. (Comp. Leviticus 27:21-28 ;…
The text distinguishes between "every male" and "every woman that has lain with a man," deliberately excluding virgins from this sentence of death. This exclusion, though not explicitly stated here, mirrors similar commands where the spoils of war were handled differently, suggesting a specific, albeit harsh, legal framework guiding this action.
Following a devastating civil war against the tribe of Benjamin, the other tribes have taken a rash oath not to give their daughters to any Benjamite for a wife. To rectify the near-extermination of Benjamin and uphold their oath, they decide to attack the town of Jabesh-Gilead, whose inhabitants did not join the war effort, and kill all the men and married women, taking the young virgins as wives. This verse describes the brutal command to carry out the destruction of Jabesh-Gilead's population.
Following a devastating civil war against the tribe of Benjamin, the other tribes have taken a rash oath not to give their daughters to any Benjamite for a wife. To rectify the near-extermination of Benjamin and uphold their oath, they decide to attack the town of Jabesh-Gilead, whose inhabitants did not join the war effort, and kill all the men and married women, taking the young virgins as wives. This verse describes the brutal command to carry out the destruction of Jabesh-Gilead's population.
"This is what you shall do: every male and every woman that has lain with a male you shall devote to destruction.”" — The text distinguishes between "every male" and "every woman that has lain with a man," deliberately excluding virgins from this sentence of death. This exclusion, though not explicitly stated here,…
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Last reviewed October 2026