Hakim-hakim 3:16

3:16 Ehud made himself a sword – it had two edges and was eighteen inches long. ¹  He strapped it under his coat on his right thigh.

Hakim-hakim 9:46

9:46 When all the leaders of the Tower of Shechem ²  heard the news, they went to the stronghold ³  of the temple of El-Berith. ⁴ 

Hakim-hakim 13:25

13:25 The Lord’s spirit began to control him ⁵  in Mahaneh Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol.

[3:16]  ¹ tn The Hebrew term גֹּמֶד (gomed) denotes a unit of linear measure, perhaps a cubit (the distance between the elbow and the tip of the middle finger – approximately 18 inches [45 cm]). Some suggest it is equivalent to the short cubit (the distance between the elbow and the knuckles of the clenched fist – approximately 13 inches [33 cm]) or to the span (the distance between the end of the thumb and the end of the little finger in a spread hand – approximately 9 inches [23 cm]). See BDB 167 s.v.; HALOT 196 s.v.; B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 142.

[9:46]  ² sn Perhaps the Tower of Shechem was a nearby town, distinct from Shechem proper, or a tower within the city.

[9:46]  ³ tn Apparently this rare word refers here to the most inaccessible area of the temple, perhaps the inner sanctuary or an underground chamber. It appears only here and in 1 Sam 13:6, where it is paired with “cisterns” and refers to subterranean or cave-like hiding places.

[9:46]  ⁴ sn The name El-Berith means “God of the Covenant.” It is probably a reference to the Canaanite high god El.

[13:25]  ⁵ tn Or “move him to action”; or “stir him.”