Judges 9 · Verse 54

Judges 9:54

Then he called hastily unto the young man his armourbearer, and said unto him, Draw thy sword, and slay me, that men say not of me, A woman slew him. And his young man thrust him through, and he died.
Judges 9:54, King James Version

Judges 9:54 in other translations

BSBHe quickly called his armor-bearer, saying, “Draw your sword and kill me, lest they say of me, ‘A woman killed him.’” So Abimelech’s armor-bearer ran his sword through him, and he died.
WEBThen he called hastily to the young man, his armor bearer, and said to him, “Draw your sword and kill me, that men not say of me, ‘A woman killed him.’ His young man thrust him through, and he died.”
ASVThen he called hastily unto the young man his armorbearer, and said unto him, Draw thy sword, and kill me, that men say not of me, A woman slew him. And his young man thrust him through, and he died.
YLTand he calleth hastily unto the young man bearing his weapons, and saith to him, ‘Draw thy sword, and thou hast put me to death, lest they say of me--A woman slew him;' and his young man pierced him through, and he dieth.
DARBYThen he called hastily to the young man that carried his armour, and said to him, Draw thy sword, and slay me, that they say not of me, A woman killed him. And his young man thrust him through, and he died.
BBEThen quickly crying out to his body-servant, he said to him, Take out your sword and put an end to me straight away, so that men may not say of me, His death was the work of a woman. So the young man put his sword through him, causing his death.
WebsterThen he called hastily to the young man his armor-bearer, and said to him, Draw thy sword, and slay me, that men say not of me, A woman slew him. And his young man thrust him through, and he died.

What does Judges 9:54 mean?

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 54 Draw thy sword, and slay me - It was a disgrace to be killed by a woman; on this account, Seneca the tragedian deplores the death of Hercules: - O turpe fatum! femina Herculeae necis Autor feritur. Herc. Oetaeus, ver. 1177. "O dishonorable fate! a woman is reported to have been author of the death of Hercules." Abimelech was also afraid that if he fell thus mortally wounded into the hands of his enemies they might treat him with cruelty and insult.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Judges 9:50-57

The Shechemites were ruined by Abimelech; now he is reckoned with, who was their leader in villany. Evil pursues sinners, and sometimes overtakes them, when not only at ease, but triumphant. Though wickedness may prosper a while, it will not prosper always. The history of mankind, if truly told, would greatly resemble that of this chapter. The records of what are called splendid events present to us such contests…

Read the full comment on Judges 9:50-57 →

Judges 9:54 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיִּקְרָ֨אvai.yik.Ra'and he calledH7121
מְהֵרָ֜הme.he.RahquicklyH4120
אֶל\־'el-toH413
הַנַּ֣עַר\׀ha.Na.'arthe young manH5288
נֹשֵׂ֣אno.Se'[who] carriedH5375
כֵלָ֗יוkhe.Lav<of> armor<s> hisH3627
וַיֹּ֤אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559
לוֹ֙loto <the> him
שְׁלֹ֤ףshe.LofdrawH8025
חַרְבְּךָ֙char.be.Khasword yourH2719
וּמ֣וֹתְתֵ֔נִיu.Mo.Te.niand kill meH4191
פֶּן\־pen-lestH6435
יֹ֥אמְרוּYo.me.rupeople should sayH559
לִ֖יliof <the> me
אִשָּׁ֣ה'i.Shaha womanH802
הֲרָגָ֑תְהוּha.ra.Ga.te.hushe killed himH2026
וַיִּדְקְרֵ֥הוּvai.yid.ke.Re.huand he pierced through himH1856
נַעֲר֖וֹna.'a.Royoung man hisH5288
וַיָּמֹֽת\׃vai.ya.Motand he diedH4191

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Judges 9:54

  • 1 Samuel 31:4-5

    Then said Saul unto his armourbearer, Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith; lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through, and abuse me. But his armourbearer would not; for he was sore afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword, and fell upon it. And when his armourbearer saw that Saul was dead, he fell likewise upon his sword, and died with him.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Draw thy.
1Sa 31:4,5
And his young man.It was a disgrace to be killed by a woman.

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Judges 9:53

    And a certain woman cast a piece of a millstone upon Abimelech’s head, and all to brake his skull.

  • Judges 9:54

    Then he called hastily unto the young man his armourbearer, and said unto him, Draw thy sword, and slay me, that men say not of me, A woman slew him. And his young man thrust him through, and he died.

  • Judges 9:55

    And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they departed every man unto his place.

Read all of Judges 9

Judges 9:54 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Y luego llamó él á su escudero, y díjole: Saca tu espada y mátame, porque no se diga de mí: Una mujer lo mató. Y su escudero le atravesó, y murió.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Et il appela en hâte le jeune homme qui portait ses armes, et lui dit: Tire ton épée et tue-moi, de peur qu’on ne dise de moi: Une femme l’a tué. Et son jeune homme le transperça, et il mourut.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Und er rief eilends den Knaben, der seine Waffen trug, und sprach zu ihm: Ziehe dein Schwert und töte mich, daß man nicht von mir sage: Ein Weib hat ihn umgebracht! Und sein Knabe durchstach ihn, und er starb.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Qui vocavit cito armigerum suum, et ait ad eum: Evagina gladium tuum, et percute me, ne forte dicatur quod a femina interfectus sim. Qui jussa perficiens, interfecit eum.