Meanderer
Supreme Member
Left-Handed Sons of Right-Handers
"Judges 20:16 refers to 700 Benjamites who could use the sling with great accuracy (“Every one could sling a stone at a hair and not miss”; see illustration), and all were left-handed".
"This consistent intersection of left-handedness and the tribe of Benjamin raises a question: Did this one particular tribe produce an unusually high number of left-handers? If so, why? Could it have been because of some genetic or social factor, or perhaps both"?
"Thus, it seems quite possible that the tribe of Benjamin produced more left-handed people than did other Israelite tribes. Perhaps they were genetically inclined to left-handedness, and the tribe may also have encouraged it. The Hebrew term for “left-handed” in Judges 3:15 and 20:16 literally means “restricted (’iṭṭēr) in his right hand.” Did the Benjamites bind the right arms of their sons to their sides to encourage use of the left hand"?
"It’s also possible that the Biblical authors merely noted left-handed Benjamites because of the irony of the handedness in the meaning of their name: Ben-jamin means “son of (my) right hand” in Hebrew, making these lefties “left-handed right-handers.”
"Judges 20:16 refers to 700 Benjamites who could use the sling with great accuracy (“Every one could sling a stone at a hair and not miss”; see illustration), and all were left-handed".
"This consistent intersection of left-handedness and the tribe of Benjamin raises a question: Did this one particular tribe produce an unusually high number of left-handers? If so, why? Could it have been because of some genetic or social factor, or perhaps both"?
"Thus, it seems quite possible that the tribe of Benjamin produced more left-handed people than did other Israelite tribes. Perhaps they were genetically inclined to left-handedness, and the tribe may also have encouraged it. The Hebrew term for “left-handed” in Judges 3:15 and 20:16 literally means “restricted (’iṭṭēr) in his right hand.” Did the Benjamites bind the right arms of their sons to their sides to encourage use of the left hand"?
"It’s also possible that the Biblical authors merely noted left-handed Benjamites because of the irony of the handedness in the meaning of their name: Ben-jamin means “son of (my) right hand” in Hebrew, making these lefties “left-handed right-handers.”
