Hakim-hakim 10:6

The Lord’s Patience Runs Short

10:6 The Israelites again did evil in the Lord’s sight. ¹  They worshiped ²  the Baals and the Ashtars, ³  as well as the gods of Syria, Sidon, ⁴  Moab, the Ammonites, and the Philistines. ⁵  They abandoned the Lord and did not worship ⁶  him.

Hakim-hakim 6:10

6:10 I said to you, “I am the Lord your God! Do not worship ⁷  the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are now living!” But you have disobeyed me.’” ⁸ 

Hakim-hakim 11:24

11:24 You have the right to take what Chemosh your god gives you, but we will take the land of all whom the Lord our God has driven out before us. ⁹ 

Hakim-hakim 13:9

13:9 God answered Manoah’s prayer. ¹⁰  God’s angelic messenger visited ¹¹  the woman again while she was sitting in the field. But her husband Manoah was not with her.

Hakim-hakim 16:23

Samson’s Death and Burial

16:23 The rulers of the Philistines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to celebrate. They said, “Our god has handed Samson, our enemy, over to us.”

Hakim-hakim 2:12

2:12 They abandoned the Lord God of their ancestors ¹²  who brought them out of the land of Egypt. They followed other gods – the gods of the nations who lived around them. They worshiped ¹³  them and made the Lord angry.

Hakim-hakim 3:6

3:6 They took the Canaanites’ daughters as wives and gave their daughters to the Canaanites; ¹⁴  they worshiped ¹⁵  their gods as well.

Hakim-hakim 4:23

4:23 That day God humiliated King Jabin of Canaan before the Israelites.

Hakim-hakim 5:3

5:3 Hear, O kings!

Pay attention, O rulers!

I will sing to the Lord! ¹⁶ 

I will sing ¹⁷  to the Lord God of Israel!

Hakim-hakim 5:5

5:5 The mountains trembled ¹⁸  before the Lord, the God of Sinai; ¹⁹ 

before the Lord God of Israel.

Hakim-hakim 6:36

6:36 Gideon said to God, “If you really intend to use me to deliver Israel, ²⁰  as you promised, then give me a sign as proof. ²¹ 

Hakim-hakim 9:56

9:56 God repaid Abimelech for the evil he did to his father by murdering his seventy half-brothers. ²² 

Hakim-hakim 10:13-14

10:13 But since you abandoned me and worshiped ²³  other gods, I will not deliver you again. 10:14 Go and cry for help to the gods you have chosen! Let them deliver you from trouble!” ²⁴ 

Hakim-hakim 10:16

10:16 They threw away the foreign gods they owned ²⁵  and worshiped ²⁶  the Lord. Finally the Lord grew tired of seeing Israel suffer so much. ²⁷ 

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 13:22

13:22 Manoah said to his wife, “We will certainly die, because we have seen a supernatural being!” ³¹ 

Hakim-hakim 18:5

18:5 They said to him, “Seek a divine oracle for us, ³²  so we can know if we will be successful on our mission.” ³³ 

Hakim-hakim 20:27

20:27 The Israelites asked the Lord (for the ark of God’s covenant was there in those days;

Hakim-hakim 13:6

13:6 The woman went and said to her husband, “A man sent from God ³⁴  came to me! He looked like God’s angelic messenger – he was very awesome. ³⁵  I did not ask him where he came from, and he did not tell me his name.

Hakim-hakim 16:24

16:24 When the people saw him, ³⁶  they praised their god, saying, “Our god has handed our enemy over to us, the one who ruined our land and killed so many of us!” ³⁷ 

Hakim-hakim 2:3

2:3 At that time I also warned you, ³⁸  ‘If you disobey, ³⁹  I will not drive out the Canaanites ⁴⁰  before you. They will ensnare you ⁴¹  and their gods will lure you away.’” ⁴² 

Hakim-hakim 2:19

2:19 When a leader died, the next generation ⁴³  would again ⁴⁴  act more wickedly than the previous one. ⁴⁵  They would follow after other gods, worshiping them ⁴⁶  and bowing down to them. They did not give up ⁴⁷  their practices or their stubborn ways.

Hakim-hakim 3:7

Othniel: A Model Leader

3:7 The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight. ⁴⁸  They forgot the Lord their God and worshiped the Baals and the Asherahs. ⁴⁹ 

Hakim-hakim 5:8

5:8 God chose new leaders, ⁵⁰ 

then fighters appeared in the city gates; ⁵¹ 

but, I swear, not a shield or spear could be found, ⁵² 

among forty military units ⁵³  in Israel.

Hakim-hakim 6:20

6:20 God’s messenger said to him, “Put the meat and unleavened bread on this rock, ⁵⁴  and pour out the broth.” Gideon did as instructed. ⁵⁵ 

Hakim-hakim 6:40

6:40 That night God did as he asked. ⁵⁶  Only the fleece was dry and the ground around it was covered with dew.

Hakim-hakim 8:33-34

Israel Returns to Baal-Worship

8:33 After Gideon died, the Israelites again prostituted themselves to the Baals. They made Baal-Berith ⁵⁷  their god. 8:34 The Israelites did not remain true ⁵⁸  to the Lord their God, who had delivered them from all the enemies who lived around them.

Hakim-hakim 9:9

9:9 But the olive tree said to them, ‘I am not going to stop producing my oil, which is used to honor gods and men, just to sway above the other trees!’ ⁵⁹ 

Hakim-hakim 9:13

9:13 But the grapevine said to them, ‘I am not going to stop producing my wine, which makes gods and men so happy, just to sway above the other trees!’ ⁶⁰ 

Hakim-hakim 9:23

9:23 God sent a spirit to stir up hostility ⁶¹  between Abimelech and the leaders of Shechem. He made the leaders of Shechem disloyal ⁶²  to Abimelech.

Hakim-hakim 9:27

9:27 They went out to the field, harvested their grapes, ⁶³  squeezed out the juice, ⁶⁴  and celebrated. They came to the temple ⁶⁵  of their god and ate, drank, and cursed Abimelech.

Hakim-hakim 9:57

9:57 God also repaid the men of Shechem for their evil deeds. The curse spoken by Jotham son of Jerub-Baal fell ⁶⁶  on them.

Hakim-hakim 10:10

10:10 The Israelites cried out for help to the Lord: “We have sinned against you. We abandoned our God and worshiped ⁶⁷  the Baals.”

Hakim-hakim 17:5

17:5 Now this man Micah owned a shrine. ⁶⁸  He made an ephod ⁶⁹  and some personal idols and hired one of his sons to serve as a priest. ⁷⁰ 

Hakim-hakim 18:24

18:24 He said, “You stole my gods that I made, as well as this priest, and then went away. What do I have left? How can you have the audacity to say to me, ‘What do you want?’” ⁷¹ 

Hakim-hakim 18:31

18:31 They worshiped ⁷²  Micah’s carved image ⁷³  the whole time God’s authorized shrine ⁷⁴  was in Shiloh.

Hakim-hakim 20:2

20:2 The leaders ⁷⁵  of all the people from all the tribes of Israel took their places in the assembly of God’s people, which numbered ⁷⁶  four hundred thousand sword-wielding foot soldiers.

Hakim-hakim 21:2-3

21:2 So the people came to Bethel ⁷⁷  and sat there before God until evening, weeping loudly and uncontrollably. ⁷⁸  21:3 They said, “Why, O Lord God of Israel, has this happened in Israel?” An entire ⁷⁹  tribe has disappeared from Israel today!”

Hakim-hakim 1:7

1:7 Adoni-Bezek said, “Seventy kings, with thumbs and big toes cut off, used to lick up ⁸⁰  food scraps ⁸¹  under my table. God has repaid me for what I did to them.” ⁸²  They brought him to Jerusalem, ⁸³  where he died.

Hakim-hakim 2:17

2:17 But they did not obey ⁸⁴  their leaders. Instead they prostituted themselves to other gods and worshiped ⁸⁵  them. They quickly turned aside from the path ⁸⁶  their ancestors ⁸⁷  had walked. Their ancestors had obeyed the Lord’s commands, but they did not. ⁸⁸ 

Hakim-hakim 3:20

3:20 When Ehud approached him, he was sitting in his well-ventilated ⁸⁹  upper room all by himself. Ehud said, “I have a message from God ⁹⁰  for you.” When Eglon rose up from his seat, ⁹¹ 

Hakim-hakim 4:6

4:6 She summoned ⁹²  Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali. She said to him, “Is it not true that the Lord God of Israel is commanding you? Go, march to Mount Tabor! Take with you ten thousand men from Naphtali and Zebulun!

Hakim-hakim 6:8

6:8 he ⁹³  sent a prophet ⁹⁴  to the Israelites. He said to them, “This is what the Lord God of Israel says: ‘I brought you up from Egypt ⁹⁵  and took you out of that place of slavery. ⁹⁶ 

Hakim-hakim 6:26

6:26 Then build an altar for the Lord your God on the top of this stronghold according to the proper pattern. ⁹⁷  Take the second bull and offer it as a burnt sacrifice on the wood from the Asherah pole that you cut down.”

Hakim-hakim 6:31

6:31 But Joash said to all those who confronted him, ⁹⁸  “Must you fight Baal’s battles? ⁹⁹  Must you rescue him? Whoever takes up his cause ¹⁰⁰  will die by morning! ¹⁰¹  If he really is a god, let him fight his own battles! ¹⁰²  After all, it was his altar that was pulled down.” ¹⁰³ 

Hakim-hakim 6:39

6:39 Gideon said to God, “Please do not get angry at me, when I ask for just one more sign. ¹⁰⁴  Please allow me one more test with the fleece. This time make only the fleece dry, while the ground around it is covered with dew.” ¹⁰⁵ 

Hakim-hakim 7:14

7:14 The other man said, ¹⁰⁶  “Without a doubt this symbolizes ¹⁰⁷  the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God is handing Midian and all the army over to him.”

Hakim-hakim 8:3

8:3 It was to you that God handed over the Midianite generals, Oreb and Zeeb! What did I accomplish to rival that?” ¹⁰⁸  When he said this, they calmed down. ¹⁰⁹ 

Hakim-hakim 9:7

Jotham’s Parable

9:7 When Jotham heard the news, ¹¹⁰  he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim. He spoke loudly to the people below, ¹¹¹  “Listen to me, leaders of Shechem, so that God may listen to you!

Hakim-hakim 11:21

11:21 The Lord God of Israel handed Sihon and his whole army over to Israel and they defeated them. Israel took ¹¹²  all the land of the Amorites who lived in that land.

Hakim-hakim 13:5

13:5 Look, you will conceive and have a son. ¹¹³  You must never cut his hair, ¹¹⁴  for the child will be dedicated to God ¹¹⁵  from birth. He will begin to deliver Israel from the power ¹¹⁶  of the Philistines.”

Hakim-hakim 13:7-8

13:7 He said to me, ‘Look, you will conceive and have a son. ¹¹⁷  So now, do not drink wine or beer and do not eat any food that will make you ritually unclean. ¹¹⁸  For the child will be dedicated ¹¹⁹  to God from birth till the day he dies.’”

13:8 Manoah prayed to the Lord, ¹²⁰  “Please, Lord, allow the man sent from God ¹²¹  to visit ¹²²  us again, so he can teach ¹²³  us how we should raise ¹²⁴  the child who will be born.”

Hakim-hakim 15:19

15:19 So God split open the basin ¹²⁵  at Lehi and water flowed out from it. When he took a drink, his strength ¹²⁶  was restored and he revived. For this reason he named the spring ¹²⁷  En Hakkore. ¹²⁸  It remains in Lehi to this very day.

Hakim-hakim 16:17

16:17 Finally he told her his secret. ¹²⁹  He said to her, “My hair has never been cut, ¹³⁰  for I have been dedicated to God ¹³¹  from the time I was conceived. ¹³²  If my head ¹³³  were shaved, my strength would leave me; I would become weak, and be just like all other men.”

Hakim-hakim 16:28

16:28 Samson called to the Lord, “O Master, Lord, ¹³⁴  remember me! Strengthen me just one more time, O God, so I can get swift revenge ¹³⁵  against the Philistines for my two eyes!”

Hakim-hakim 18:10

18:10 When you invade, ¹³⁶  you will encounter ¹³⁷  unsuspecting people. The land is wide! ¹³⁸  God is handing it over to you – a place that lacks nothing on earth!” ¹³⁹ 

Hakim-hakim 20:18

20:18 The Israelites went up to Bethel ¹⁴⁰  and asked God, ¹⁴¹  “Who should lead the charge against the Benjaminites?” ¹⁴²  The Lord said, “Judah should lead.”

[10:6]  ¹ tn Heb “in the eyes of the Lord.”

[10:6]  ² tn Or “served;” or “followed.”

[10:6]  ³ sn The Ashtars were local manifestations of the goddess Ashtar (i.e., Astarte).

[10:6]  ⁴ map For location see Map1 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.

[10:6]  ⁵ tn Heb “the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites, and the gods of the Philistines.”

[10:6]  ⁶ tn Or “serve”; or “follow.”

[6:10]  ⁷ tn Heb “Do not fear.”

[6:10]  ⁸ tn Heb “you have not listened to my voice.”

[11:24]  ⁹ tn Heb “Is it not so that what Chemosh your god causes you to possess, you possess, and all whom the Lord our God dispossesses before us we will possess?” Jephthah speaks of Chemosh as if he is on a par with the Lord God of Israel. This does not necessarily mean that Jephthah is polytheistic or that he recognizes the Lord as only a local deity. He may simply be assuming the Ammonite king’s perspective for the sake of argument. Other texts, as well as the extrabiblical Mesha inscription, associate Chemosh with Moab, while Milcom is identified as the god of the Ammonites. Why then does Jephthah refer to Chemosh as the Ammonite god? Ammon had likely conquered Moab and the Ammonite king probably regarded himself as heir of all territory formerly held by Moab. Originally Moab had owned the disputed territory (cf. Num 21:26-29), meaning that Chemosh was regarded as the god of the region (see R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 203-4). Jephthah argues that Chemosh had long ago relinquished claim to the area (by allowing Sihon to conquer it), while the Lord had long ago established jurisdiction over it (by taking it from Sihon and giving it to Israel). Both sides should abide by the decisions of the gods which had stood firm for three hundred years.

[13:9]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “God listened to the voice of Manoah.”

[13:9]  ¹¹ tn Heb “came to.”

[2:12]  ¹² tn Or “fathers.”

[2:12]  ¹³ tn Or “bowed before” (the same expression occurs in the following verse).

[3:6]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “to their sons.”

[3:6]  ¹⁵ tn Or “served”; or “followed” (this term occurs in the following verse as well).

[5:3]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “I, to the Lord, I, I will sing!” The first singular personal pronoun is used twice, even though a first person finite verbal form is employed.

[5:3]  ¹⁷ tn Or “make music.”

[5:5]  ¹⁸ tn Or “quaked.” The translation assumes the form נָזֹלּוּ (nazollu) from the root זָלַל (zalal, “to quake”; see HALOT 272 s.v. II זלל). The LXX, the Syriac Peshitta, and the Targum also understood the word this way. (See Isa 63:19 and 64:2 for other occurrences of this form.) Some understand here the verb נָזַל (nazul, “to flow [with torrents of rain water]”).

[5:5]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “this one of Sinai.” The phrase is a divine title, perhaps indicating that the Lord rules from Sinai.

[6:36]  ²⁰ tn More literally, “you are about to deliver Israel by my hand.”

[6:36]  ²¹ tn The words “then give me a sign as proof” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[9:56]  ²² tn Heb “seventy brothers.”

[10:13]  ²³ tn Or “served”; or “followed.”

[10:14]  ²⁴ tn Heb “in your time of trouble.”

[10:16]  ²⁵ tn Heb “from their midst.”

[10:16]  ²⁶ tn Or “served”; or “followed.”

[10:16]  ²⁷ tn Heb “And his spirit grew short [i.e., impatient] with the suffering of Israel.” The Hebrew noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) also appears as the subject of the verb קָצַר (qatsar) in Num 21:4 (the Israelites grow impatient wandering in the wilderness), Judg 16:16 (Samson grows impatient with Delilah’s constant nagging), and Zech 11:8 (Zechariah grows impatient with the three negligent “shepherds”).

[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.

[13:22]  ³¹ tn Or “seen God.” Some take the Hebrew term אֱלֹהִים (’elohim) as the divine name (“God”) here, but this seems unlikely since v. 21 informs us that Manoah realized this was the Lord’s messenger, not God himself. Of course, he may be exaggerating for the sake of emphasis. Another option, the one followed in the translation, understands Manoah to be referring to a lesser deity. The term אֱלֹהִים (’elohim) is sometimes used of an individual deity other than the Lord (see BDB 43 s.v. 2.a). One cannot assume that Manoah was a theologically sophisticated monotheist.

[18:5]  ³² tn Heb “Ask God.”

[18:5]  ³³ tn Heb “so we can know if our way on which we are going will be successful.”

[13:6]  ³⁴ tn Heb “The man of God.”

[13:6]  ³⁵ tn Heb “His appearance was like the appearance of the messenger of God, very awesome.”

[16:24]  ³⁶ tn Most interpret this as a reference to Samson, but this seems premature, since v. 25 suggests he was not yet standing before them. Consequently some prefer to see this statement as displaced and move it to v. 25 (see C. F. Burney, Judges, 387). It seems more likely that the pronoun refers to an image of Dagon.

[16:24]  ³⁷ tn Heb “multiplied our dead.”

[2:3]  ³⁸ tn Heb “And I also said.” The use of the perfect tense here suggests that the messenger is recalling an earlier statement (see Josh 23:12-13). However, some translate, “And I also say,” understanding the following words as an announcement of judgment upon those gathered at Bokim.

[2:3]  ³⁹ tn The words “If you disobey” are supplied in the translation for clarity. See Josh 23:12-13.

[2:3]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “them”; the referent (the Canaanites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:3]  ⁴¹ tn The meaning of the Hebrew word צִדִּים (tsiddim) is uncertain in this context. It may be related to an Akkadian cognate meaning “snare.” If so, a more literal translation would be “they will become snares to you.” Normally the term in question means “sides,” but this makes no sense here. On the basis of Num 33:55 some suggest the word for “thorns” has been accidentally omitted. If this word is added, the text would read, “they will become [thorns] in your sides” (cf. NASB, NIV, NLT).

[2:3]  ⁴² tn Heb “their gods will become a snare to you.”

[2:19]  ⁴³ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the next generation) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:19]  ⁴⁴ tn The verb שׁוּב (shuv, “to return; to turn”) is sometimes translated “turn back” here, but it is probably used in an adverbial sense, indicating that the main action (“act wickedly”) is being repeated.

[2:19]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “their fathers.”

[2:19]  sn The statement the next generation would again act more wickedly than the previous one must refer to the successive sinful generations after Joshua, not Joshua’s godly generation (cf. vv. 7, 17).

[2:19]  ⁴⁶ tn Or “serving [them]”; or “following [them].”

[2:19]  ⁴⁷ tn Or “drop.”

[3:7]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “in the eyes of the Lord.”

[3:7]  ⁴⁹ sn The Asherahs were local manifestations of the Canaanite goddess Asherah.

[5:8]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “warriors.” The Hebrew text reads literally, “He chose God/gods new.” Some take “Israel” as the subject of the verb, “gods” as object, and “new” as an adjective modifying “gods.” This yields the translation, “(Israel) chose new gods.” In this case idolatry is the cause of the trouble alluded to in the context. The present translation takes “God” as subject of the verb and “new” as substantival, referring to the new leaders raised up by God (see v. 9a). For a survey of opinions and a defense of the present translation, see B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 239-40.

[5:8]  ⁵¹ tn The translation of this difficult line is speculative because the second word, לָחֶם (lakhem), appears only here. The line in the Hebrew text literally reads, “Then [?] gates.” Interpretations and emendations of the Hebrew text abound (see B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 239-40). The translation assumes a repointing of the form as a Qal participle לֹחֵם (lokhem) from the verbal root לָחַם (lakham, “fight”) and understands a substantival use (“fighter”). “Fighter” is a collective reference to the military leaders or warriors mentioned in the preceding line and in v. 9. (For other occurrences of the Qal of לָחַם, see Pss 35:1; 56:2-3.)

[5:8]  ⁵² tn Heb “A shield, it could not be seen, nor a spear.” The translation assumes that the Hebrew particle אִם (’im) introduces an oath of denial (see GKC 472 §149.e).

[5:8]  ⁵³ tn Traditionally “forty thousand,” but this may be an instance where Hebrew term אֶלֶף (’elef) refers to a military unit. This is the view assumed by the translation (“forty military units”).

[6:20]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “Take the meat…and put [it] on this rock.”

[6:20]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “and he did so.”

[6:40]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “God did so that night.”

[8:33]  ⁵⁷ sn Baal-Berith was a local manifestation of the Canaanite storm god. The name means, ironically, “Baal of the covenant.” Israel’s covenant allegiance had indeed shifted.

[8:34]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “remember.”

[9:9]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “Should I stop my abundance, with which they honor gods and men, and go to sway over the trees?” The negative sentence in the translation reflects the force of the rhetorical question.

[9:13]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “Should I stop my wine, which makes happy gods and men, and go to sway over the trees?” The negative sentence in the translation reflects the force of the rhetorical question.

[9:23]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “an evil spirit.” A nonphysical, spirit being is in view, like the one who volunteered to deceive Ahab (1 Kgs 22:21). The traditional translation, “evil spirit,” implies the being is inherently wicked, perhaps even demonic, but this is not necessarily the case. The Hebrew adjective רָעַה (ra’ah) can have a nonethical sense, “harmful; dangerous; calamitous.” When modifying רוּחַ (ruakh, “spirit”) it may simply indicate that the being in view causes harm to the object of God’s judgment. G. F. Moore (Judges [ICC], 253) here refers to a “mischief-making spirit.”

[9:23]  ⁶² tn Heb “The leaders of Shechem were disloyal.” The words “he made” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[9:27]  ⁶³ tn Heb “vineyards.”

[9:27]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “stomped” or “trampled.” This refers to the way in which the juice was squeezed out in the wine vats by stepping on the grapes with one’s bare feet. For a discussion of grape harvesting in ancient Israel, see O. Borowski, Agriculture in Iron Age Israel, 110-14.

[9:27]  ⁶⁵ tn Heb “house.”

[9:57]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb “came.”

[10:10]  ⁶⁷ tn Or “served”; or “followed.”

[17:5]  ⁶⁸ tn Heb “house of God.”

[17:5]  ⁶⁹ sn Here an ephod probably refers to a priestly garment (cf. Exod 28:4-6).

[17:5]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “and he filled the hand of one of his sons and he became his priest.”

[18:24]  ⁷¹ tn Heb “What is this you say to me, ‘What to you?’”

[18:31]  ⁷² tn Heb “they set up for themselves.”

[18:31]  ⁷³ tn Heb “the carved image that Micah had made.”

[18:31]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “the house of God.”

[20:2]  ⁷⁵ tn Heb “the cornerstones”; or “the supports.” The word is used of leaders in only three other texts – 1 Sam 14:38; Isa 19:13; Zech 10:4.

[20:2]  ⁷⁶ tn The words “which numbered” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[21:2]  ⁷⁷ map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.

[21:2]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “and they lifted up their voice[s] and wept with great weeping.” Both the cognate accusative בְּכִי (bekhi, “weeping”) and the attributive adjective גָדוֹל (gadol, “great”) emphasize their degree of sorrow.

[21:3]  ⁷⁹ tn Heb “one.”

[1:7]  ⁸⁰ tn Elsewhere this verb usually carries the sense of “to gather; to pick up; to glean,” but “lick up” seems best here in light of the peculiar circumstances described by Adoni-Bezek.

[1:7]  ⁸¹ tn The words “food scraps” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied.

[1:7]  ⁸² tn Heb “Just as I did, so God has repaid me.” Note that the phrase “to them” has been supplied in the translation to clarify what is meant.

[1:7]  ⁸³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[2:17]  ⁸⁴ tn Or “did not listen to.”

[2:17]  ⁸⁵ tn Or “bowed before.”

[2:17]  ⁸⁶ tn Or “way [of life].”

[2:17]  ⁸⁷ tn Or “fathers.”

[2:17]  ⁸⁸ tn Heb “…walked, obeying the Lord’s commands. They did not do this.”

[3:20]  ⁸⁹ tn Or “cool.” This probably refers to a room with latticed windows which allowed the breeze to pass through. See B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 144.

[3:20]  ⁹⁰ tn Heb “word of [i.e., from] God.”

[3:20]  ⁹¹ tn Or “throne.”

[4:6]  ⁹² tn Heb “sent and summoned.”

[6:8]  ⁹³ tn Heb “the Lord”; the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[6:8]  ⁹⁴ tn Heb “a man, a prophet.” Hebrew idiom sometimes puts a generic term before a more specific designation.

[6:8]  ⁹⁵ tc Some ancient witnesses read “from the land of Egypt.” מֵאֶרֶץ (me’erets, “from the land [of]”) could have been accidentally omitted by homoioarcton (note the following מִמִּצְרַיִם [mimmitsrayim, “from Egypt”]).

[6:8]  ⁹⁶ tn Heb “of the house of slavery.”

[6:26]  ⁹⁷ tn Possibly “in a row” or “in a layer,” perhaps referring to the arrangement of the stones used in the altar’s construction.

[6:31]  ⁹⁸ tn Heb “to all who stood against him.”

[6:31]  ⁹⁹ tn Heb “Do you fight for Baal?”

[6:31]  ¹⁰⁰ tn Heb “fights for him.”

[6:31]  ¹⁰¹ sn Whoever takes up his cause will die by morning. This may be a warning to the crowd that Joash intends to defend his son and to kill anyone who tries to execute Gideon. Then again, it may be a sarcastic statement about Baal’s apparent inability to defend his own honor. Anyone who takes up Baal’s cause may end up dead, perhaps by the same hand that pulled down the pagan god’s altar.

[6:31]  ¹⁰² tn Heb “fight for himself.”

[6:31]  ¹⁰³ tn Heb “for he pulled down his altar.” The subject of the verb, if not Gideon, is indefinite (in which case a passive translation is permissible).

[6:39]  ¹⁰⁴ tn Heb “Let your anger not rage at me, so that I might speak only this once.”

[6:39]  ¹⁰⁵ tn Heb “let the fleece alone be dry, while dew is on all the ground.”

[7:14]  ¹⁰⁶ tn Heb “answered and said.”

[7:14]  ¹⁰⁷ tn Heb “This can be nothing but.”

[8:3]  ¹⁰⁸ tn Heb “What was I able to do compared to you?”

[8:3]  ¹⁰⁹ tn Heb “Then their spirits relaxed from against him, when he spoke this word.”

[9:7]  ¹¹⁰ tn Heb “And they reported to Jotham.” The subject of the plural verb is indefinite.

[9:7]  ¹¹¹ tn Heb “He lifted his voice and called and said to them.”

[11:21]  ¹¹² tn That is, took as its own possession.

[13:5]  ¹¹³ tn Another option is to translate, “you are already pregnant and will have a son.” The earlier reference to her being infertile (v. 3) suggests that her conception is still future, but it is possible that the earlier statement only reflects her perspective (as far as she is concerned, she is infertile). According to this interpretation, in v. 5 the angel reveals the truth to her – actually she has recently conceived and is now pregnant (see the translation in R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 217). Usage favors this interpretation. The predicate adjective הָרָה (harah, “[be/become] pregnant”) elsewhere has a past (1 Sam 4:19) or present (Gen 16:11; 38:25; 2 Sam 11:5) translation value. (The usage in Isa 7:14 is debated, but a present translation is definitely possible there.) A final, but less likely possibility, is that she miraculously conceived during the angel’s speech, sometime between his statements recorded in vv. 3 and 5.

[13:5]  ¹¹⁴ tn Heb “a razor should not go up on his head.”

[13:5]  ¹¹⁵ tn Or “set apart to God.” Traditionally the Hebrew term נָזִיר (nazir) has been translated “Nazirite.” The word is derived from the verb נָזַר (nazar, “to dedicate; to consecrate; to set apart”).

[13:5]  ¹¹⁶ tn Heb “hand.”

[13:7]  ¹¹⁷ tn See the note on the word “son” in 13:5, where this same statement occurs.

[13:7]  ¹¹⁸ tn Heb “eat anything unclean.” Certain foods were regarded as ritually “unclean” (see Lev 11). Eating such food made one ritually “contaminated.”

[13:7]  ¹¹⁹ tn Traditionally “a Nazirite.”

[13:8]  ¹²⁰ tn The Hebrew text adds “and said.” This has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[13:8]  ¹²¹ tn Heb “the man of God.”

[13:8]  ¹²² tn Heb “come to.”

[13:8]  ¹²³ tc The LXX has “enlighten,” understanding the Hebrew to read וִיאִירֵנוּ (vi’irenu, “to give light”) rather than the reading of the MT, וְיוֹרֵנוּ (vÿyorenu, “to teach”).

[13:8]  ¹²⁴ tn Heb “what we should do for.”

[15:19]  ¹²⁵ tn The word translated “basin” refers to a circular-shaped depression in the land’s surface.

[15:19]  ¹²⁶ tn Heb “spirit.”

[15:19]  ¹²⁷ tn Heb “named it”; the referent (the spring) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[15:19]  ¹²⁸ sn The name En Hakkore means “Spring of the one who cries out.”

[16:17]  ¹²⁹ tn Heb “all his heart.”

[16:17]  ¹³⁰ tn Heb “a razor has not come upon my head.”

[16:17]  ¹³¹ tn Or “set apart to God.” Traditionally the Hebrew term נָזִיר (nazir) has been translated “Nazirite.” The word is derived from the verb נָזַר (nazar, “to dedicate; to consecrate; to set apart”).

[16:17]  ¹³² tn Heb “from the womb of my mother.”

[16:17]  ¹³³ tn Heb “I.” The referent has been made more specific in the translation (“my head”).

[16:28]  ¹³⁴ tn The Hebrew has אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה (’adonay yehovih, “Lord Yahweh”).

[16:28]  ¹³⁵ tn Heb “so I can get revenge with one act of vengeance.”

[18:10]  ¹³⁶ tn Heb “When you enter.”

[18:10]  ¹³⁷ tn Heb “you will come to.”

[18:10]  ¹³⁸ tn Heb “broad of hands,” an idiom meaning “wide on both sides.”

[18:10]  ¹³⁹ tn Heb “a place where there is no lack of anything that is in the earth.”

[20:18]  ¹⁴⁰ map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.

[20:18]  ¹⁴¹ tn Heb “They arose and went up to Bethel and asked God, and the Israelites said.”

[20:18]  ¹⁴² tn Heb “Who should go up for us first for battle against the sons of Benjamin?”