1:19 The Lord was with the men of Judah. They conquered 1 the hill country, but they could not 2 conquer the people living in the coastal plain, because they had chariots with iron-rimmed wheels. 3
10:1 After Abimelech’s death, 7 Tola son of Puah, grandson 8 of Dodo, from the tribe of Issachar, 9 rose up to deliver Israel. He lived in Shamir in the Ephraimite hill country.
19:1 In those days Israel had no king. There was a Levite 11 living temporarily in the remote region of the Ephraimite hill country. He acquired a concubine 12 from Bethlehem 13 in Judah.
1 tn Or “seized possession of”; or “occupied.”
2 tc Several textual witnesses support the inclusion of this verb.
3 tn Regarding the translation “chariots with iron-rimmed wheels,” see Y. Yadin, The Art of Warfare in Biblical Lands, 255, and the article by R. Drews, “The ‘Chariots of Iron’ of Joshua and Judges,” JSOT 45 (1989): 15-23.
4 tn That is, “consider legal disputes.”
5 map For location see Map4-G4; Map5-C1; Map6-E3; Map7-D1; Map8-G3.
6 tn Heb “for judgment.”
7 tn The word “death” has been supplied in the translation for clarification.
8 tn Heb “son.”
9 tn Heb “a man of Issachar.”
10 tn Heb “He came to the Ephraimite hill country, to Micah’s house, making his way.”
11 tn Heb “a man, a Levite.”
12 sn See the note on the word “concubine” in 8:31.
13 map For location see Map5-B1; Map7-E2; Map8-E2; Map10-B4.