Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpeh, saying, There shall not any of us give his daughter unto Benjamin to wife.

Now the children of Israel had also sworn in Maspha, saying: None of us shall give of his daughters to the children of Benjamin to wife.

Now the men of Israel had sworn at Mizpah, |No one of us shall give his daughter in marriage to Benjamin.|

And the men of Israel have sworn in Mizpeh, saying, 'None of us doth give his daughter to Benjamin for a wife.'

Now the men of Israel had taken an oath in Mizpah, saying, Not one of us will give his daughter as a wife to Benjamin.

The sons of Israel had also taken an oath at Mizpah, and they said, "None of us shall give his daughters as a wife to the sons of Benjamin."

Now the men of Israel had sworn - Of this oath we had not heard before; but it appears they had commenced this war with a determination to destroy the Benjamites utterly, and that if any of them escaped the sword no man should be permitted to give him his daughter to wife. By these means the remnant of the tribe must soon have been annihilated.

Now the men of Israel had (a) sworn in Mizpeh, saying, There shall not any of us give his daughter unto Benjamin to wife.
(a) This was a rash oath, and not from judgment: for they later broke it, showing secretly the means to marry certain of their daughters.

Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpeh,.... Where they were there convened, before the war began; after they had heard the account the Levite gave of the affair, which brought them thither; and after they had sent messengers to Benjamin to deliver up the men of Gibeah, that had committed the wickedness; and after they perceived that Benjamin did not hearken to their demand, but prepared to make war with them; then, as they resolved on the destruction of Gibeah, and of all the cities that sent out men against them, even all the inhabitants of them, men, women, and children, entered into an oath, that they would use those men that remained as Heathens, and not intermarry with them, as follows:
saying, there shall not any of us give his daughter unto Benjamin to wife; seeing those that used the wife of the Levite in such a base manner, and those that protected and defended them, deserved to have no wives.

Israel lamented for the Benjamites, and were perplexed by the oath they had taken, not to give their daughters to them in marriage. Men are more zealous to support their own authority than that of God. They would have acted better if they had repented of their rash oaths, brought sin-offerings, and sought forgiveness in the appointed way, rather than attempt to avoid the guilt of perjury by actions quite as wrong. That men can advise others to acts of treachery or violence, out of a sense of duty, forms a strong proof of the blindness of the human mind when left to itself, and of the fatal effects of a conscience under ignorance and error.

The proposal to find wives for the six hundred Benjaminites who remained was exposed to this difficulty, that the congregation had sworn at Mizpeh (as is supplemented in Judges 21:1 to the account in Judges 20:1-9) that no one should give his daughter to a Benjaminite as a wife.

Had sworn - In the beginning of this war, after the whole tribe had espoused the quarrel of the men of Gibeah. Saying - They do not here swear the utter extirpation of the tribe, which fell out beyond their expectation, but only not to give their daughters to those men who should survive; justly esteeming them for their villainy, to be as bad as Heathens, with whom they were forbidden to marry.