Verse Lens · Concise explanation
Judges 3:8 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 8. 8Therefore the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of Chushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia: and the children of Israel served Chushan-rishathaim eight years.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
This verse reports eight years under Cushan-rishathaim as covenant judgment.
Read It With
- Judges 3:7–11
Read Judges 3:7–11 together. This verse reports eight years under Cushan-rishathaim as covenant judgment. Israel's evil, foreign service, cry, raised deliverer, Spirit-enabled judgment and victory, forty-year rest, and Othniel's death form the compact first deliverer account; verse 12 begins relapse.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Othniel's sparse account establishes the cleanest version of the pattern against which increasingly complicated leaders will be measured. Within that movement, reports eight years under Cushan-rishathaim as covenant judgment.
Read Judges 3:7–11 together
Why these verses belong together: Israel's evil, foreign service, cry, raised deliverer, Spirit-enabled judgment and victory, forty-year rest, and Othniel's death form the compact first deliverer account; verse 12 begins relapse.
Verse 7. 7 And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and forgat the LORD their God, and served Baalim and the groves.
Verse 8. 8 Therefore the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of Chushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia: and the children of Israel served Chushan-rishathaim eight years.
Verse 9. 9 And when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer to the children of Israel, who delivered them, even Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother.
Verse 10. 10 And the Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel, and went out to war: and the LORD delivered Chushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed against Chushan-rishathaim.
Verse 11. 11 And the land had rest forty years. And Othniel the son of Kenaz died.
What Remains True
Reports eight years under Cushan-rishathaim as covenant judgment. Effective rescue depends on God's mercy, while leadership should be evaluated by the actual relief and faithful governance it brings.
How It Can Shape Life
- Because Judges 3:8 reports eight years under Cushan-rishathaim as covenant judgment, credit deliverance without constructing a flawless hero biography from a short success notice.
Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Judges 3:7–11 — Othniel establishes the brief modelSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? strong
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact reader-facing Scripture wording, paragraph markers, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage.
Exact location: Judges 3:7–11, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Judges
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording, morphology, names, clause relationships, repeated terms, wordplays, and translation control.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Judg.xml, 3:7–11
Open source ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible: Judges with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2006
Supports: Verse-level translation, syntax, textual, poetic, geographical, social, and uncertainty notes.
Exact location: NET Bible Judges PDF, printed pp. 455-457, translation and notes on 3:7–11
Open source ↗