eighty men who had shaved off their beards, torn their garments, and cut themselves came from Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria, carrying grain offerings and frankincense for the house of the LORD.
Parallel translations
- WEB men came from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria, even eighty men, having their beards shaved and their clothes torn, and having cut themselves, with meal offerings and frankincense in their hand, to bring them to Yahweh’s house.
- KJV That there came certain from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria, even fourscore men, having their beards shaven, and their clothes rent, and having cut themselves, with offerings and incense in their hand, to bring them to the house of the LORD.
- NKJV that certain men came from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria, eighty men with their beards shaved and their clothes torn, having cut themselves, with offerings and incense in their hand, to bring them to the house of the Lord.
- NASB that eighty men came from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria with their beards shaved off, their clothes torn, and their bodies gashed, having grain offerings and incense in their hands to bring to the house of the Lord.
- NLT eighty men arrived from Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria to worship at the Temple of the Lord. They had shaved off their beards, torn their clothes, and cut themselves, and had brought along grain offerings and frankincense.
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
Eighty mourning pilgrims arrive with offerings, intending to worship at the temple. Devout men come seeking God amid the nation's ruin.
Overview
These men from Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria, marked by signs of grief, journey toward Jerusalem with offerings even though the temple lay in ruins, showing enduring devotion among the northern survivors. Their self-mutilation reflects pagan-influenced mourning customs the law forbade (Deut 14:1), yet their desire to worship is sincere. Their innocent piety makes the slaughter that follows especially horrifying.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 19
- 1 Kgs 16:24He bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver and built a city there, calling it Samaria after the name of Shemer, who had owned the hill.
- Josh 18:1Then the whole congregation of Israel assembled at Shiloh and set up the Tent of Meeting there. And though the land was subdued before them,
- 2 Kgs 25:9He burned down the house of the LORD, the royal palace, and all the houses of Jerusalem—every significant building.
- Deut 14:1You are sons of the LORD your God; do not cut yourselves or shave your foreheads on behalf of the dead,
- 1 Kgs 12:1Then Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him king.
- Judg 9:1Now Abimelech son of Jerubbaal went to his mother’s brothers at Shechem and said to them and to all the clan of his mother,
- Gen 33:18After Jacob had come from Paddan-aram, he arrived safely at the city of Shechem in the land of Canaan, and he camped just outside the city.
- 1 Kgs 12:25Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. And from there he went out and built Penuel.
- Isa 15:2Dibon goes up to its temple to weep at its high places. Moab wails over Nebo, as well as over Medeba. Every head is shaved, every beard is cut off.
- 2 Kgs 10:13–14Jehu met some relatives of Ahaziah king of Judah and asked, “Who are you?” “We are relatives of Ahaziah,” they answered, “and we have come down to greet the sons of the king and of the queen mother.”
- 1 Kgs 16:29In the thirty-eighth year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Ahab son of Omri became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria twenty-two years.
- 1 Sam 1:7And this went on year after year. Whenever Hannah went up to the house of the LORD, her rival taunted her until she wept and would not eat.
- Jer 7:12But go now to the place in Shiloh where I first made a dwelling for My Name, and see what I did to it because of the wickedness of My people Israel.
- Josh 24:32And the bones of Joseph, which the Israelites had brought up out of Egypt, were buried at Shechem in the plot of land that Jacob had purchased from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for a hundred pieces of silver. So it became an inheritance for Joseph’s descendants.
- Lev 19:27–28You must not cut off the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard.
- 2 Sam 10:4So Hanun took David’s servants, shaved off half of each man’s beard, cut off their garments at the hips, and sent them away.
- Ps 102:14For Your servants delight in her stones and take pity on her dust.
- Jer 7:14therefore what I did to Shiloh I will now do to the house that bears My Name, the house in which you trust, the place that I gave to you and your fathers.
- Gen 34:2When Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the region, saw her, he took her and lay with her by force.
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Christ at the center
Against the failure of false shepherds Jeremiah promises the Righteous Branch, 'The LORD our righteousness,' and the new covenant written on the heart and sealed in the blood of Christ.
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