And Adonibezek said, Threescore and ten kings, having their thumbs and their great toes cut off, gathered their meat under my table: as I have done, so God hath requited me. And they brought him to Jerusalem, and there he died.
And Adoni-bezek said, 'Seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off used to pick up scraps of food under my table. Now God has paid me back for what I did to them.' They brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.
This verse shows a defeated king recognizing that God gave him the same cruel punishment he had given to others - divine justice in action.
📚 Historical Context
This occurs during Israel's conquest of Canaan after Joshua's death, when the tribes were securing their territories. Adoni-bezek was a Canaanite king who had cruelly mutilated captured rulers by cutting off their thumbs and big toes, making them unable to fight or rule effectively. The Israelites defeated him and gave him the same treatment he had inflicted on others.
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