Judges 1:2

1:2 The Lord said, “The men of Judah should take the lead. 1  Be sure of this! I am handing the land over to them.” 2 

Judges 6:15

6:15 Gideon 3  said to him, “But Lord, 4  how 5  can I deliver Israel? Just look! My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my family.” 6 

Judges 7:17

7:17 He said to them, “Watch me and do as I do. Watch closely! 7  I am going to the edge of the camp. Do as I do!

Judges 9:11

9:11 But the fig tree said to them, ‘I am not going to stop producing my sweet figs, my excellent fruit, just to sway above the other trees!’ 8 

1 tn Heb “Judah should go up.”

2 tn The Hebrew exclamation הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally, “Behold”), translated “Be sure of this,” draws attention to the following statement. The verb form in the following statement (a Hebrew perfect, indicating completed action from the standpoint of the speaker) emphasizes the certainty of the event. Though it had not yet taken place, the Lord speaks of it as a “done deal.”

3 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Gideon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

4 tn Note the switch to אֲדֹנָי (’adonay, “Lord”). Gideon seems aware that he is speaking to someone other than, and superior to, the messenger, whom he addressed as אֲדֹנִי (’adoniy, “my lord”) in v. 13.

5 tn Heb “with what.”

6 tn Heb “in my father’s house.”

7 tn Or “look.”

8 tn Heb “Should I stop my sweetness and my good fruit and go to sway over the trees? The negative sentence in the translation reflects the force of the rhetorical question.