1:14 One time Acsah 5 came and charmed her father 6 so she could ask him for some land. When she got down from her donkey, Caleb said to her, “What would you like?”
3:24 When Ehud had left, Eglon’s 10 servants came and saw the locked doors of the upper room. They said, “He must be relieving himself 11 in the well-ventilated inner room.” 12
7:15 When Gideon heard the report of the dream and its interpretation, he praised God. 39 Then he went back to the Israelite camp and said, “Get up, for the Lord is handing the Midianite army over to you!”
8:1 The Ephraimites said to him, “Why have you done such a thing to us? You did not summon us 40 when you went to fight the Midianites!” They argued vehemently with him.
9:1 Now Abimelech son of Jerub-Baal went to Shechem to see his mother’s relatives. 45 He said to them and to his mother’s entire extended family, 46
12:1 The Ephraimites assembled 78 and crossed over to Zaphon. They said to Jephthah, “Why did you go and fight 79 with the Ammonites without asking 80 us to go with you? We will burn your house down right over you!” 81
12:2 Jephthah said to them, “My people and I were entangled in controversy with the Ammonites. 82 I asked for your help, but you did not deliver me from their power. 83
“Out of the one who eats came something to eat;
out of the strong one came something sweet.”
They could not solve the riddle for three days.
15:18 He was very thirsty, so he cried out to the Lord and said, “You have given your servant 90 this great victory. But now must I die of thirst and fall into hands of the Philistines?” 91
16:15 She said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when you will not share your secret with me? 95 Three times you have deceived me and have not told me what makes you so strong.”
16:23 The rulers of the Philistines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to celebrate. They said, “Our god has handed Samson, our enemy, over to us.”
16:25 When they really started celebrating, 100 they said, “Call for Samson so he can entertain us!” So they summoned Samson from the prison and he entertained them. 101 They made him stand between two pillars.
19:11 When they got near Jebus, it was getting quite late 121 and the servant 122 said to his master, “Come on, let’s stop at 123 this Jebusite city and spend the night in it.”
1 tn Elsewhere this verb usually carries the sense of “to gather; to pick up; to glean,” but “lick up” seems best here in light of the peculiar circumstances described by Adoni-Bezek.
2 tn The words “food scraps” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied.
3 tn Heb “Just as I did, so God has repaid me.” Note that the phrase “to them” has been supplied in the translation to clarify what is meant.
4 map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
5 tn Heb “she”; the referent (Acsah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 tn Heb “him.” The pronoun could refer to Othniel, in which case one would translate, “she incited him [Othniel] to ask her father for a field.” This is problematic, however, for Acsah, not Othniel, makes the request in v. 15. The LXX has “he [Othniel] urged her to ask her father for a field.” This appears to be an attempt to reconcile the apparent inconsistency and probably does not reflect the original text. If Caleb is understood as the referent of the pronoun, the problem disappears. For a fuller discussion of the issue, see P. G. Mosca, “Who Seduced Whom? A Note on Joshua 15:18 // Judges 1:14,” CBQ 46 (1984): 18-22. The translation takes Caleb to be the referent, specified as “her father.”
7 tn Or “cool.” This probably refers to a room with latticed windows which allowed the breeze to pass through. See B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 144.
8 tn Heb “word of [i.e., from] God.”
9 tn Or “throne.”
10 tn Heb “his.”
11 tn Heb “covering his feet” (i.e., with his outer garments while he relieves himself).
12 tn The Hebrew expression translated “well-ventilated inner room” may refer to the upper room itself or to a bathroom attached to or within it.
13 tn Heb “for the Lord has given your enemies, Moab, into your hand.” The verb form (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
14 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for clarity.
15 tn Or “against Moab,” that is, so as to prevent the Moabites from crossing.
16 tn Or “honor.”
17 tn Heb “on [account of (?)] the way which you are walking.” Another option is to translate, “due to the way you are going about this.” In this case direct reference is made to Barak’s hesitancy as the reason for his loss of glory.
18 tn Heb “for into the hands of a woman the
19 tn Heb “Arise!”
20 tn The verb form (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
21 tn Heb “Has the
22 tn Heb “Turn aside” (also a second time later in this verse).
23 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Sisera) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
24 tn Heb “the
25 tn Heb “a man, a prophet.” Hebrew idiom sometimes puts a generic term before a more specific designation.
26 tc Some ancient witnesses read “from the land of Egypt.” מֵאֶרֶץ (me’erets, “from the land [of]”) could have been accidentally omitted by homoioarcton (note the following מִמִּצְרַיִם [mimmitsrayim, “from Egypt”]).
27 tn Heb “of the house of slavery.”
28 tn Heb “Do not fear.”
29 tn Heb “you have not listened to my voice.”
30 tn Heb “and let him die.” The jussive form with vav after the imperative is best translated as a purpose clause.
31 tn Heb “He called him on that day Jerub-Baal.” The name means, at least by popular etymology, “Let Baal fight!”
32 tn Heb “the people.”
33 tn Heb “Everyone who laps with his tongue from the water, as a dog laps, put him by himself, as well as the one who gets down on his knees to drink.”
34 tn Heb “you.” The Hebrew pronoun is masculine plural, probably referring to the entire army.
35 tn The Hebrew pronoun here is singular.
36 tn Heb “All the people should go, each to his place.”
37 tn Heb “answered and said.”
38 tn Heb “This can be nothing but.”
39 tn Heb “he bowed down” or “worshiped.”
40 tn Heb “by not summoning us.”
41 tn Or perhaps, “sell.”
42 tn Heb “people.” The translation uses “men” because these were warriors and in ancient Israelite culture would have been exclusively males.
43 tn Heb “who are at my feet.”
44 tn The words “I swear” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
45 tn Heb “brothers.”
46 tn Heb “to all the extended family of the house of the father of his mother.”
47 tn Heb “brothers.”
48 tn Heb “into the ears of.”
49 tn Heb “and all these words.”
50 tn Heb “Their heart was inclined after Abimelech.”
51 tn Heb “our brother.”
52 tn Heb “Should I stop my abundance, with which they honor gods and men, and go to sway over the trees?” The negative sentence in the translation reflects the force of the rhetorical question.
53 tn Heb “Should I stop my wine, which makes happy gods and men, and go to sway over the trees?” The negative sentence in the translation reflects the force of the rhetorical question.
54 tn Heb “are about to anoint [with oil].”
55 tn Heb “in my shade.”
56 tn Heb “If not.”
57 tn Heb “is your mouth that says.”
58 tn Heb “the people.”
59 tn Or “despised.”
60 tn Heb “the people, the officers.”
61 tn Heb “Who is the man who will begin fighting.”
62 tn Heb “Did you not hate me and make me leave?”
63 tn Heb “therefore”; “even so.” For MT לָכֵן (lakhen, “therefore”) the LXX has an opposite reading, “not so,” which seems to be based on the Hebrew words לֹא כֵן (lo’ khen).
64 tn Heb “we have returned to you.” For another example of שׁוּב אֶל (shuv ’el) in the sense of “give allegiance to,” see 1 Kgs 12:27b.
65 sn Then you will become the leader. The leaders of Gilead now use the word רֹאשׁ (ro’sh, “head, leader”), the same term that appeared in their original, general offer (see 10:18). In their initial offer to Jephthah they had simply invited him to be their קָצִין (qatsin, “commander”; v. 6). When he resists they must offer him a more attractive reward – rulership over the region. See R. G. Boling, Judges (AB), 198.
66 tn Heb “leader of us and all who live in Gilead.”
67 tn “All right” is supplied in the translation for clarification.
68 tn Heb “places them before me.”
69 tn Some translate the final statement as a question, “will I really be your leader?” An affirmative sentence is preferable. Jephthah is repeating the terms of the agreement in an official manner. In v. 10 the leaders legally agree to these terms.
70 tn Heb “you have brought me very low,” or “you have knocked me to my knees.” The infinitive absolute precedes the verb for emphasis.
71 tn Heb “You are among [or “like”] those who trouble me.”
72 tn Heb “I opened my mouth to the
73 tn The conjunction “since” is supplied in the translation for clarification.
74 tn Heb “you opened your mouth to the
75 tn Or “has given you vengeance against.”
76 tn Heb “Let this thing be done for me.”
77 tn Heb “Leave me alone for two months so I can go and go down on the hills and weep over my virginity – I and my friends.”
78 tn Heb “the men of Ephraim were summoned [or “were mustered”].”
79 tn Heb “cross over to fight.”
80 tn Or “calling”; or “summoning.”
81 tn Heb “Your house we will burn over you with fire.”
82 tn Heb A man of great strife I was and my people and the Ammonites.”
83 tn Heb “hand.”
84 tn Heb “If you really can tell it to me [during] the seven days of the feast and you find [its answer].”
85 tn Heb “changes.”
86 tn Heb “saying, I said.” The first person form of אָמַר (’amar, “to say”) sometimes indicates self-reflection. The girl’s father uses the infinitive absolute for emphasis.
87 tn Heb “hating, you hated.” Once again the girl’s father uses the infinitive absolute for emphasis.
88 tn Heb “Is her younger sister not better than her? Let her [i.e., the younger sister] be yours instead of her [i.e., Samson’s ‘bride’]).”
89 tn Heb “No,” meaning that they will not harm him.
90 tn Heb “you have placed into the hand of your servant.”
91 tn Heb “the uncircumcised,” which in context refers to the Philistines.
92 tn Or “moist.”
93 tn The word refers to a bowstring, probably made from animal tendons. See Ps 11:2; Job 30:11.
94 tn Heb “with which no work has been done.”
95 tn Heb “when your heart is not with me.”
96 tn Heb “are upon you.”
97 tn The Hebrew adds, “from his sleep.” This has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.
98 tn Heb “and said.”
99 tn Heb “I will go out as before.”
100 tn Heb “When their heart was good.”
101 tn Heb “before them.”
102 tn Heb “he stretched out with strength.”
103 tn Heb “And the ones whom he killed in his death were many more than he killed in his life.”
104 tn Or “When they were near.”
105 tn Heb “voice.” This probably means that “his speech was Judahite [i.e., southern] like their own, not Israelite [i.e., northern]” (R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 263).
106 tn Heb “turned aside.”
107 tn Heb “What [is there] to you here?”
108 tn Heb “Arise, and let us go up against them.”
109 tc Codex Alexandrinus (A) of the LXX adds “we entered and walked around in the land as far as Laish and.”
110 tn Heb “But you are inactive.”
111 tn Or “be lazy.”
112 tn Heb “to go”; “to enter”; “to possess.”
113 tn Heb “These went into Micah’s house and took.”
114 tn Heb “What is this you say to me, ‘What to you?’”
115 tn Heb “and he arose to go.”
116 tn Heb “Sustain your heart [with] a bit of food.”
117 tn Heb “And they sat and ate, the two of them together, and they drank.”
118 tn Heb “Be willing and spend the night so that your heart might be good.”
119 tn Heb “Sustain your heart.” He is once more inviting him to stay for a meal.
120 tn Heb “Wait until the declining of the day.”
121 tn Heb “and the day was descending greatly.”
122 tn Or “young man.”
123 tn Heb “turn aside” (also in the following verse).
124 tn The words “the sight” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
125 tn Heb “from the day.”
126 tc Codex Alexandrinus (A) of the (original) LXX has the following additional words: “And he instructed the men whom he sent out, ‘Thus you will say to every male Israelite: “There has never been anything like this from the day the Israelites left Egypt till the present day.”’”
127 tn Heb “I” (collective singular).
128 tn Heb “approach for battle.”
129 tn Heb “my brother” (collective singular).
130 tn Heb “Go up against him” (collective singular).
131 tn Heb “turned in the battle.”
132 tn Heb “And Benjamin began to strike down wounded ones among the men of Israel.”
133 tn The words “they struck down” are supplied in the translation for clarification.