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And they found Adonibezek in Bezek: and they fought against him, and they slew the Canaanites and the Perizzites.
Judges 1:5 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB They found Adoni-Bezek in Bezek, and they fought against him. They struck the Canaanites and the Perizzites.
  • BSB And there they found Adoni-bezek and fought against him, striking down the Canaanites and Perizzites.
  • NKJV And they found Adoni-Bezek in Bezek, and fought against him; and they defeated the Canaanites and the Perizzites.
  • NASB They found Adoni-bezek in Bezek and fought against him, and they defeated the Canaanites and the Perizzites.
  • NLT While at Bezek they encountered King Adoni-bezek and fought against him, and the Canaanites and Perizzites were defeated.

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

They find and defeat the Canaanite king Adoni-Bezek along with his forces. It matters as the LORD's judgment falls on a specific oppressor.

Overview

Adoni-Bezek, whose name means 'lord of Bezek,' is confronted and routed. His defeat is part of God's broader judgment on Canaanite wickedness, which had reached its full measure (Genesis 15:16). The episode shows that no earthly ruler can stand when God acts in justice.

Cross-references & the web

No cross-references recorded for this verse.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (6)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Judges videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Judges 1:5YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on JudgesMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Israel's cycle of sin and rescue through flawed deliverers cries out for a Savior who never fails — the true and final Judge and Deliverer who saves his people not for a season but forever.

How Judges 1:5 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.