Judges 5:26

5:26 Her left ¹  hand reached for the tent peg,

her right hand for the workmen’s hammer.

She “hammered” ²  Sisera,

she shattered his skull, ³ 

she smashed his head, ⁴ 

she drove the tent peg through his temple. ⁵ 

Judges 9:27

9:27 They went out to the field, harvested their grapes, ⁶  squeezed out the juice, ⁷  and celebrated. They came to the temple ⁸  of their god and ate, drank, and cursed Abimelech.

Judges 16:27

16:27 Now the temple ⁹  was filled with men and women, and all the rulers of the Philistines were there. There were three thousand men and women on the roof watching Samson entertain.

Judges 16:29-30

16:29 Samson took hold of the two middle pillars that supported the temple ¹⁰  and he leaned against them, with his right hand on one and his left hand on the other. 16:30 Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!” He pushed hard ¹¹  and the temple collapsed on the rulers and all the people in it. He killed many more people in his death than he had killed during his life. ¹² 

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¹ tn The adjective “left” is interpretive, based on the context. Note that the next line pictures Jael holding the hammer with her right hand.

² tn The verb used here is from the same root as the noun “hammer” in the preceding line.

³ tn Or “head.”

⁴ tn The phrase “his head” (an implied direct object) is supplied in the translation for clarification.

⁵ tn Heb “she pierced his temple.”

⁶ tn Heb “vineyards.”

⁷ tn Heb “stomped” or “trampled.” This refers to the way in which the juice was squeezed out in the wine vats by stepping on the grapes with one’s bare feet. For a discussion of grape harvesting in ancient Israel, see O. Borowski, Agriculture in Iron Age Israel, 110-14.

⁸ tn Heb “house.”

⁹ tn Heb “house.”

¹⁰ tn Heb “the pillars upon which the house was founded.”

¹¹ tn Heb “he stretched out with strength.”

¹² tn Heb “And the ones whom he killed in his death were many more than he killed in his life.”