In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
Parallel translations
- WEB In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did that which was right in his own eyes.
- BSB In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
- NKJV In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
- NASB In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
- NLT In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.
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
The book closes by noting there was no king in Israel, so everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
Overview
This refrain (cf. 17:6) is the theological summary of Judges: without godly leadership and submission to God as King, Israel descended into idolatry, immorality, and civil war. The verse exposes humanity's need for a righteous king and points beyond the failed judges to the coming Davidic monarchy and ultimately to Christ, the true King who alone leads his people in righteousness. It leaves the reader longing for the King who does what is right in God's eyes.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Deut 12:8Ye shall not do after all the things that we do here this day, every man whatsoever is right in his own eyes.
- Prov 3:5Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
- Judg 17:6In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
- Eccl 11:9Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment.
- Prov 14:12There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
- Judg 19:1And it came to pass in those days, when there was no king in Israel, that there was a certain Levite sojourning on the side of mount Ephraim, who took to him a concubine out of Bethlehemjudah.
- Judg 18:1In those days there was no king in Israel: and in those days the tribe of the Danites sought them an inheritance to dwell in; for unto that day all their inheritance had not fallen unto them among the tribes of Israel.
- Mic 2:1–2Woe to them that devise iniquity, and work evil upon their beds! when the morning is light, they practise it, because it is in the power of their hand.
- Ps 12:4Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail; our lips are our own: who is lord over us?
- Judg 18:7Then the five men departed, and came to Laish, and saw the people that were therein, how they dwelt careless, after the manner of the Zidonians, quiet and secure; and there was no magistrate in the land, that might put them to shame in any thing; and they were far from the Zidonians, and had no business with any man.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
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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 21:25 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.