But Gideon replied, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son. The LORD shall rule over you.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you. Yahweh shall rule over you.”
- KJV And Gideon said unto them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you: the LORD shall rule over you.
- NKJV But Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, nor shall my son rule over you; the Lord shall rule over you.”
- NASB But Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, nor shall my son rule over you; the Lord shall rule over you.”
- NLT But Gideon replied, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son. The Lord will rule over you!
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
Gideon refuses to rule, declaring that Yahweh shall rule over Israel.
Overview
Gideon's words rightly affirm God's kingship over his covenant people, a high point of faith. Yet his subsequent actions partly contradict this confession, as he amasses wealth, wives, and an ephod. The verse upholds the theocratic ideal that the Lord, not man, is Israel's true King, pointing ahead to Christ the rightful King.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Isa 33:22For the LORD is our Judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our King. It is He who will save us.
- 1 Sam 12:12But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, ‘No, we must have a king to rule over us’—even though the LORD your God was your king.
- 1 Sam 10:19But today you have rejected your God, who saves you from all your troubles and afflictions, and you have said to Him, ‘No, set a king over us.’ Now therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes and clans.”
- 2 Cor 1:24Not that we lord it over your faith, but we are fellow workers with you for your joy, because it is by faith that you stand firm.
- 1 Pet 5:3not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.
- Judg 10:18And the rulers of Gilead said to one another, “Whoever will launch the attack against the Ammonites will be the head of all who live in Gilead.”
- Judg 11:9–11But Jephthah asked them, “If you take me back to fight the Ammonites and the LORD gives them to me, will I really be your leader?”
- 1 Sam 8:6–7But when they said, “Give us a king to judge us,” their demand was displeasing in the sight of Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD.
- Judg 2:18Whenever the LORD raised up a judge for the Israelites, He was with that judge and saved them from the hands of their enemies while the judge was still alive; for the LORD was moved to pity by their groaning under those who oppressed them and afflicted them.
- Isa 63:19We have become like those You never ruled, like those not called by Your name.
- Luke 22:24–27A dispute also arose among the disciples as to which of them would be considered the greatest.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 8:23 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.