How could one chase a thousand, And two put ten thousand to flight, Unless their Rock had sold them, And the Lord had surrendered them?
Parallel translations
- WEB How could one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, and Yahweh had delivered them up?
- KJV How should one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, except their Rock had sold them, and the LORD had shut them up?
- BSB How could one man pursue a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the LORD had given them up?
- NASB “How could one chase a thousand, And two put ten thousand to flight, Unless their Rock had sold them, And the Lord had given them up?
- NLT How could one person chase a thousand of them, and two people put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the Lord had given them up?
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Their defeats prove that their Rock had sold them and the LORD had handed them over. It matters because it shows that Israel's losses come from God's withdrawal, not the enemy's strength.
Overview
The rhetorical question about one routing a thousand reveals that supernatural defeat must have a divine cause. Only God's giving them up could explain such reversals. This underscores that Israel's true security was always in God, not in numbers, pointing to the One who alone is the Rock of His people's salvation.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Lev 26:8Five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall chase ten thousand; and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.
- Josh 23:10One man of you shall chase a thousand; for it is Yahweh your God who fights for you, as he spoke to you.
- Isa 30:17One thousand will flee at the threat of one. At the threat of five, you will flee until you are left like a beacon on the top of a mountain, and like a banner on a hill.
- Ps 31:8You have not shut me up into the hand of the enemy. You have set my feet in a large place.
- Judg 7:22–23They blew the three hundred trumpets, and Yahweh set every man’s sword against his fellow, and against all the army; and the army fled as far as Beth Shittah toward Zererah, as far as the border of Abel Meholah, by Tabbath.
- Ps 44:12You sell your people for nothing, and have gained nothing from their sale.
- 1 Sam 14:15–17There was a trembling in the camp, in the field, and among all the people; the garrison, and the raiders, also trembled; and the earth quaked, so there was an exceedingly great trembling.
- Isa 52:3For Yahweh says, “You were sold for nothing; and you will be redeemed without money.”
- 2 Chr 24:24For the army of the Syrians came with a small company of men; and Yahweh delivered a very great army into their hand, because they had forsaken Yahweh, the God of their fathers. So they executed judgment on Joash.
- Judg 3:8Therefore Yahweh’s anger burned against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of Cushan Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia; and the children of Israel served Cushan Rishathaim eight years.
- Judg 2:14Yahweh’s anger burned against Israel, and he delivered them into the hands of raiders who plundered them. He sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, so that they could no longer stand before their enemies.
- Job 11:10If he passes by, or confines, or convenes a court, then who can oppose him?
- Isa 50:1Yahweh says, “Where is the bill of your mother’s divorce, with which I have put her away? or to which of my creditors have I sold you? Behold, you were sold for your iniquities, and your mother was put away for your transgressions.
- Job 16:11God delivers me to the ungodly, and casts me into the hands of the wicked.
- Matt 18:25But because he couldn’t pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, with his wife, his children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Moses promised a Prophet like himself to whom Israel must listen (18:15); Jesus is that Prophet, the one who keeps the covenant we broke and becomes the curse for us by hanging on a tree (Gal 3:13).
How Deuteronomy 32:30 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.