Hakim-hakim 1:10

1:10 The men of Judah attacked the Canaanites living in Hebron. (Hebron used to be called Kiriath Arba.) They killed Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai.

Hakim-hakim 5:11

5:11 Hear ¹  the sound of those who divide the sheep ²  among the watering places;

there they tell of ³  the Lord’s victorious deeds,

the victorious deeds of his warriors ⁴  in Israel.

Then the Lord’s people went down to the city gates –

Hakim-hakim 5:14

5:14 They came from Ephraim, who uprooted Amalek, ⁵ 

they follow ⁶  after you, Benjamin, with your soldiers.

From Makir leaders came down,

from Zebulun came ⁷  the ones who march carrying ⁸  an officer’s staff.

Hakim-hakim 9:3

9:3 His mother’s relatives ⁹  spoke on his behalf to ¹⁰  all the leaders of Shechem and reported his proposal. ¹¹  The leaders were drawn to Abimelech; ¹²  they said, “He is our close relative.” ¹³ 

Hakim-hakim 9:29

9:29 If only these men ¹⁴  were under my command, ¹⁵  I would get rid of Abimelech!” He challenged Abimelech, ¹⁶  “Muster ¹⁷  your army and come out for battle!” ¹⁸ 

Hakim-hakim 9:31

9:31 He sent messengers to Abimelech, who was in Arumah, ¹⁹  reporting, “Beware! ²⁰  Gaal son of Ebed and his brothers are coming ²¹  to Shechem and inciting the city to rebel against you. ²² 

Hakim-hakim 9:43

9:43 he took his men ²³  and divided them into three units and set an ambush in the field. When he saw the people coming out of the city, ²⁴  he attacked and struck them down. ²⁵ 

Hakim-hakim 10:18

10:18 The leaders ²⁶  of Gilead said to one another, “Who is willing to lead the charge ²⁷  against the Ammonites? He will become the leader of all who live in Gilead!”

Hakim-hakim 11:23

11:23 Since ²⁸  the Lord God of Israel has driven out ²⁹  the Amorites before his people Israel, do you think you can just take it from them? ³⁰ 

Hakim-hakim 12:2

12:2 Jephthah said to them, “My people and I were entangled in controversy with the Ammonites. ³¹  I asked for your help, but you did not deliver me from their power. ³² 

Hakim-hakim 18:10

18:10 When you invade, ³³  you will encounter ³⁴  unsuspecting people. The land is wide! ³⁵  God is handing it over to you – a place that lacks nothing on earth!” ³⁶ 

Hakim-hakim 20:8

20:8 All Israel rose up in unison ³⁷  and said, “Not one of us will go home! ³⁸  Not one of us will return ³⁹  to his house!

Hakim-hakim 20:22

20:22 The Israelite army ⁴⁰  took heart ⁴¹  and once more arranged their battle lines, in the same place where they had taken their positions the day before.

[5:11]  ¹ tn The word “Hear” is supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.

[5:11]  ² tn The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain. Some translate “those who distribute the water” (HALOT 344 s.v. חצץ pi). For other options see B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 246-47.

[5:11]  ³ tn Or perhaps “repeat.”

[5:11]  ⁴ tn See the note on the term “warriors” in v. 7.

[5:14]  ⁵ tn Heb “From Ephraim their root in Amalek” (the words “they came” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons). Because of the difficulty of the MT, many prefer to follow one of the ancient versions or emend the text. For various proposals see B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 252-53. The present translation repoints שָׁרְשָׁם (shorsham, traditionally translated “their root”) as a Piel verb form with enclitic mem (ם). The preposition ב (bet) on עֲמָלֵק (’amaleq) introduces the object (see Job 31:12 for an example of the construction). Ephraim’s territory encompassed the hill country of the Amalekites (Judg 12:15).

[5:14]  ⁶ tn The words “They follow” are supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.

[5:14]  ⁷ tn The word “came” is supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.

[5:14]  ⁸ tn Or possibly “who carry.”

[9:3]  ⁹ tn Heb “brothers.”

[9:3]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “into the ears of.”

[9:3]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and all these words.”

[9:3]  ¹² tn Heb “Their heart was inclined after Abimelech.”

[9:3]  ¹³ tn Heb “our brother.”

[9:29]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “people.”

[9:29]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “in my hand.”

[9:29]  sn If only these men were under my command. One might assume from v. 26b that the men were already at his disposal, but perhaps that was not one of the terms of the agreement. Another possibility is that v. 26 is a general summary statement, with vv. 27-29 then detailing how the alliance with Gaal came about.

[9:29]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “said to Abimelech.” On the other hand, the preposition ל (lamed) prefixed to the proper name may be vocative (see R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 178). If so, one could translate, “He boasted, ‘Abimelech…’”

[9:29]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “Make numerous.”

[9:29]  ¹⁸ tn The words “for battle” are interpretive.

[9:31]  ¹⁹ tn The form בְּתָרְמָה (bÿtarmah) in the Hebrew text, which occurs only here, has traditionally been understood to mean “secretly” or “with deception.” If this is correct, it is derived from II רָמָה (ramah, “to deceive”). Some interpreters object, pointing out that this would imply Zebul was trying to deceive Abimelech, which is clearly not the case in this context. But this objection is unwarranted. If retained, the phrase would refer instead to deceptive measures used by Zebul to avoid the suspicion of Gaal when he dispatched the messengers from Shechem. The present translation assumes an emendation to “in Arumah” (בָּארוּמָה, ba’rumah), a site mentioned in v. 41 as the headquarters of Abimelech. Confusion of alef and tav in archaic Hebrew script, while uncommon, is certainly not unimaginable.

[9:31]  ²⁰ tn Heb “Look!”

[9:31]  ²¹ tn The participle, as used here, suggests Gaal and his brothers are in the process of arriving, but the preceding verses imply they have already settled in. Perhaps Zebul uses understatement to avoid the appearance of negligence on his part. After all, if he made the situation sound too bad, Abimelech, when he was informed, might ask why he had allowed this rebellion to reach such a stage.

[9:31]  ²² tn The words “to rebel” are interpretive. The precise meaning of the Hebrew verb צוּר (tsur) is unclear here. It is best to take it in the sense of “to instigate; to incite; to provoke” (see Deut 2:9, 19 and R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 178).

[9:43]  ²³ tn Heb “his people.”

[9:43]  ²⁴ tn Heb “And he saw and, look, the people were coming out of the city.”

[9:43]  ²⁵ tn Heb “he arose against them and struck them.”

[10:18]  ²⁶ tn Heb “the people, the officers.”

[10:18]  ²⁷ tn Heb “Who is the man who will begin fighting.”

[11:23]  ²⁸ tn Heb “Now.”

[11:23]  ²⁹ tn Or “dispossessed.”

[11:23]  ³⁰ tn Heb “will you dispossess him [i.e., Israel; or possibly “it,” i.e., the territory]?” There is no interrogative marker in the Hebrew text.

[12:2]  ³¹ tn Heb A man of great strife I was and my people and the Ammonites.”

[12:2]  ³² tn Heb “hand.”

[18:10]  ³³ tn Heb “When you enter.”

[18:10]  ³⁴ tn Heb “you will come to.”

[18:10]  ³⁵ tn Heb “broad of hands,” an idiom meaning “wide on both sides.”

[18:10]  ³⁶ tn Heb “a place where there is no lack of anything that is in the earth.”

[20:8]  ³⁷ tn Heb “as one man.”

[20:8]  ³⁸ tn Heb “to his tent.”

[20:8]  ³⁹ tn Or “turn aside.”

[20:22]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “The people, the men of Israel.”

[20:22]  ⁴¹ tn Or “encouraged one another.”