Judges 9:8

“The trees were determined to go out ¹  and choose a king for themselves. ²  They said to the olive tree, ‘Be our king!’ ³ 

One day the trees went out to anoint a king for themselves. They said to the olive tree, ‘Be our king.’

"Once the trees went forth to anoint a king over them, and they said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us!’

Once upon a time the trees decided to elect a king. First they said to the olive tree, ‘Be our king!’

The trees set out one day to anoint a king for themselves. They said to Olive Tree, "Rule over us."

One day the trees went out to make a king for themselves; and they said to the olive-tree, Be king over us.

The trees once went out to anoint a king over themselves. So they said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us.’

"The trees once went forth to anoint a king over them. And they said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us!’

“The trees were determined to go out ¹  and choose a king for themselves. ²  They said to the olive tree, ‘Be our king!’ ³ 

¹ tn Heb “Going they went, the trees.” The precise emphatic force of the infinitive absolute (“Going”) is not entirely clear. Perhaps here it indicates determination, as in Gen 31:30, where one might translate, “You have insisted on going away.”

² tn Heb “to anoint [with oil] over them a king.”

³ tn Or “Rule over us!”