Judges 20:47But six hundred men turned and fled toward the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon, and stayed in the rock of Rimmon four months.
The setting
Central Israel, ~1100 BC. Six hundred Benjamite survivors flee to a limestone cliff fortress called Rimmon, about 3 miles northeast of Bethel. They are the sole survivors of their entire tribe.
The emotion here: recording devastation with heavy heart
The original word
sela (סֶלַע) — rocky cliff or fortress, a place of refuge and hiding
Why it matters
The rock of Rimmon still exists today as a limestone outcropping with caves, providing natural fortress protection
Read with care
What most readers miss in Judges 20:47
These 600 men represented the entire surviving population of Benjamin—every other Benjamite was dead
Common misconceptionPeople see this as cowardice, but these men weren't running from battle—they were the designated survivors preserving their entire tribe from extinction.
The thread continues
Verses that echo Judges 20:47
Bible Genome reading
Judges 20:47 — Bible Genome reading
Emotional genome
Judges 20:47 comes from the book of Judges, written during the judges period. The setting is the battlefield. These words are attributed to Narrator. The dominant emotion in this verse is anxious, with a comfort power of 20% and a tone that is urgent. It belongs to the narrative genre of biblical literature. Key themes include survival, remnant. Notable phrases: six hundred men fled.
Emotionally similar
Verses that meet the same anxious
“And no wonder, for even Satan masquerades as an angel of light.”
— 2 Corinthians 11:14
“Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.”
— 2 Timothy 3:12
“The evil spirit answered, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know, but who are you?"”
— Acts 19:15
“I fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to me, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?'”
— Acts 22:7
“When we had all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is har…”
— Acts 26:14
Your reflection
What does Judges 20:47 mean to you, today?
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