Hakim-hakim 3:23

3:23 As Ehud went out into the vestibule, ¹  he closed the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them.

Hakim-hakim 4:19

4:19 He said to her, “Give me a little water to drink, because I’m thirsty.” She opened a goatskin container of milk and gave him some milk to drink. Then she covered him up again.

Hakim-hakim 4:18

4:18 Jael came out to welcome Sisera. She said to him, “Stop and rest, ²  my lord. Stop and rest with me. Don’t be afraid.” So Sisera ³  stopped to rest in her tent, and she put a blanket over him.

Hakim-hakim 9:51

9:51 There was a fortified ⁴  tower ⁵  in the center of the city, so all the men and women, as well as the city’s leaders, ran into it and locked the entrance. Then they went up to the roof of the tower.

Hakim-hakim 3:22

3:22 The handle went in after the blade, and the fat closed around the blade, for Ehud ⁶  did not pull the sword out of his belly. ⁷ 

Hakim-hakim 18:25

18:25 The Danites said to him, “Don’t say another word to us, or some very angry men ⁸  will attack you, and you and your family will die.” ⁹ 

Hakim-hakim 18:19

18:19 They said to him, “Shut up! Put your hand over your mouth and come with us! You can be our adviser ¹⁰  and priest. Wouldn’t it be better to be a priest for a whole Israelite tribe than for just one man’s family?” ¹¹ 

[3:23]  ¹ tn Again the precise meaning of the Hebrew word, used only here in the OT, is uncertain. Since it is preceded by the verb “went out” and the next clause refers to Ehud closing doors, the noun is probably an architectural term referring to the room (perhaps a vestibule; see HALOT 604 s.v. מִסְדְּרוֹן) immediately outside the king’s upper chamber. As v. 24 indicates, this vestibule separated the upper room from an outer room where the king's servants were waiting.

[4:18]  ² tn Heb “Turn aside” (also a second time later in this verse).

[4:18]  ³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Sisera) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:51]  ⁴ tn Or “strong.”

[9:51]  ⁵ tn Or “fortress.” The same Hebrew term occurs once more in this verse and twice in v. 52.

[3:22]  ⁶ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Ehud) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[3:22]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew text has “and he went out to the [?].” The meaning of the Hebrew word פַּרְשְׁדֹנָה (parshÿdonah) which occurs only here in the OT, is uncertain. The noun has the article prefixed and directive suffix. The word may be a technical architectural term, indicating the area into which Ehud moved as he left the king and began his escape. In this case Ehud is the subject of the verb “went out.” The present translation omits the clause, understanding it as an ancient variant of the first clause in v. 23. Some take the noun as “back,” understand “sword” (from the preceding clause) as the subject, and translate “the sword came out his [i.e., Eglon’s] back.” But this rendering is unlikely since the Hebrew word for “sword” (חֶרֶב, kherev) is feminine and the verb form translated “came out” (וַיֵּצֵא, vayyetse’) is masculine. (One expects agreement in gender when the subject is supplied from the preceding clause. See Ezek 33:4, 6.) See B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 146-48, for discussion of the options.

[18:25]  ⁸ tn Heb “bitter in spirit.” This phrase is used in 2 Sam 17:8 of David and his warriors, who are compared to a bear robbed of her cubs.

[18:25]  ⁹ tn Heb “and you will gather up your life and the life of your house.”

[18:19]  ¹⁰ tn See the note on the word “adviser” in 17:10.

[18:19]  ¹¹ tn Heb “Is it better for you to be priest for the house of one man or for you to be priest for a tribe, for a clan in Israel?”