Hakim-hakim 2:22

2:22 Joshua left those nations ¹  to test ²  Israel. I wanted to see ³  whether or not the people ⁴  would carefully walk in the path ⁵  marked out by ⁶  the Lord, as their ancestors ⁷  were careful to do.”

Hakim-hakim 6:18

6:18 Do not leave this place until I come back ⁸  with a gift ⁹  and present it to you.” The Lord said, “I will stay here until you come back.”

Hakim-hakim 11:3

11:3 So Jephthah left ¹⁰  his half-brothers ¹¹  and lived in the land of Tob. Lawless men joined Jephthah’s gang and traveled with him. ¹² 

Hakim-hakim 18:10

18:10 When you invade, ¹³  you will encounter ¹⁴  unsuspecting people. The land is wide! ¹⁵  God is handing it over to you – a place that lacks nothing on earth!” ¹⁶ 

Hakim-hakim 21:7

21:7 How can we find wives for those who are left? ¹⁷  After all, we took an oath in the Lord’s name not to give them our daughters as wives.”

[2:22]  ¹ tn The words “Joshua left those nations” are interpretive. The Hebrew text of v. 22 simply begins with “to test.” Some subordinate this phrase to “I will no longer remove” (v. 21). In this case the Lord announces that he has now decided to leave these nations as a test for Israel. Another possibility is to subordinate “to test” to “He said” (v. 20; see B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 111). In this case the statement recorded in vv. 20b-21 is the test in that it forces Israel to respond either positively (through repentance) or negatively to the Lord’s declaration. A third possibility (the one reflected in the present translation) is to subordinate “to test” to “left unconquered” (v. 21). In this case the Lord recalls that Joshua left these nations as a test. Israel has failed the test (v. 20), so the Lord announces that the punishment threatened earlier (Josh 23:12-13; see also Judg 2:3) will now be implemented. As B. G. Webb (Judges [JSOTSup], 115) observes, “The nations which were originally left as a test are now left as a punishment.” This view best harmonizes v. 23, which explains that the Lord did not give all the nations to Joshua, with v. 22. (For a grammatical parallel, where the infinitive construct of נָסָה [nasah] is subordinated to the perfect of עָזַב [’azav], see 2 Chr 32:31.)

[2:22]  ² tn The Hebrew text includes the phrase “by them,” but this is somewhat redundant in English and has been omitted from the translation for stylistic reasons.

[2:22]  ³ tn The words “I [i.e., the Lord] wanted to see” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[2:22]  ⁴ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:22]  ⁵ tn Or “way [of life].”

[2:22]  ⁶ tn “The words “marked out by” are interpretive.

[2:22]  ⁷ tn Or “fathers.”

[6:18]  ⁸ tn The Hebrew text adds “to you,” but this has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[6:18]  ⁹ tn Heb “and I will bring out my gift.” The precise nuance of the Hebrew word מִנְחָה (minkhah, “gift”) is uncertain in this context. It may refer to a gift offered as a sign of goodwill or submission. In some cases it is used of a gift offered to appease someone whom the offerer has offended. The word can also carry a sacrificial connotation.

[11:3]  ¹⁰ tn Or “fled from.”

[11:3]  ¹¹ tn Heb “brothers.”

[11:3]  ¹² tn Heb “Empty men joined themselves to Jephthah and went out with him.”

[18:10]  ¹³ tn Heb “When you enter.”

[18:10]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “you will come to.”

[18:10]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “broad of hands,” an idiom meaning “wide on both sides.”

[18:10]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “a place where there is no lack of anything that is in the earth.”

[21:7]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “What should we do for them, for the remaining ones, concerning wives?”