Discovery BoxJudges 5:4 
Context5:4 O Lord, when you departed 1 from Seir,
when you marched from Edom’s plains,
the earth shook, the heavens poured down,
the clouds poured down rain. 2
Judges 5:13
Context5:13 Then the survivors 3 came down 4 to the mighty ones; 5
the Lord’s people came down to me 6 as 7 warriors.
Judges 5:20
Context5:20 From the sky 8 the stars 9 fought,
from their paths in the heavens 10 they fought against Sisera.
Judges 5:23
Context5:23 ‘Call judgment down on 11 Meroz,’ says the Lord’s angelic 12 messenger;
‘Be sure 13 to call judgment down on 14 those who live there,
because they did not come to help in the Lord’s battle, 15
to help in the Lord’s battle against the warriors.’ 16
Judges 5:31
Context5:31 May all your enemies perish like this, O Lord!
But may those who love you shine
like the rising sun at its brightest!” 17
And the land had rest for forty years.
1 tn Or “went out.”
2 tn Heb “water.”
3 tn This probably refers to those who responded to the call for war. They were “survivors” of the Canaanite oppression (see B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 250).
4 tn The translation assumes a repointing of the verb as a perfect or imperfect/preterite form of יָרַד (yarad, “to go down”). The form as pointed in the MT appears to be from רָדָה (radah, “to rule”). See GKC 188 §69.g. The same form, translated “came down,” occurs in the next line as well.
5 sn The expression mighty ones probably refers to the leaders of the army.
6 sn The speaker may be Deborah here.
7 tn The translation assumes the preposition ב (bet) prefixed to “warriors” has the force of “in the capacity of.” For this use of the preposition, see GKC 379 §119.i.
8 tn Or “from heaven.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heaven(s)” or “sky” depending on the context.
9 tn The MT takes “the stars” with what follows rather than with the first colon of v. 20. But for metrical reasons it seems better to move the atnach and read the colon as indicated in the translation.
10 tn The words “in the heavens” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied for clarity and for stylistic reasons.
11 tn Heb “Curse Meroz.”
12 tn The adjective “angelic” is interpretive.
13 tn Heb “Curse, cursing.” The Hebrew construction is emphatic.
14 tn Heb “[to] curse.”
15 tn Heb “to the help of the
16 tn Or “along with the other warriors.”
17 tn Heb “But may those who love him be like the going forth of the sun in its strength.”
