Hakim-hakim 8:35--9:1

8:35 They did not treat ¹  the family of Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) fairly in return for all the good he had done for Israel.

Abimelech Murders His Brothers

9:1 Now Abimelech son of Jerub-Baal went to Shechem to see his mother’s relatives. ²  He said to them and to his mother’s entire extended family, ³ 

Hakim-hakim 9:46

9:46 When all the leaders of the Tower of Shechem ⁴  heard the news, they went to the stronghold ⁵  of the temple of El-Berith. ⁶ 

Hakim-hakim 10:9

10:9 The Ammonites crossed the Jordan to fight with Judah, Benjamin, and Ephraim. ⁷  Israel suffered greatly. ⁸ 

Hakim-hakim 11:30

11:30 Jephthah made a vow to the Lord, saying, “If you really do hand the Ammonites over to me,

[8:35]  ¹ tn Heb “did not do loyalty with,” or “did not act faithfully toward.”

[9:1]  ² tn Heb “brothers.”

[9:1]  ³ tn Heb “to all the extended family of the house of the father of his mother.”

[9:46]  ⁴ sn Perhaps the Tower of Shechem was a nearby town, distinct from Shechem proper, or a tower within the city.

[9:46]  ⁵ tn Apparently this rare word refers here to the most inaccessible area of the temple, perhaps the inner sanctuary or an underground chamber. It appears only here and in 1 Sam 13:6, where it is paired with “cisterns” and refers to subterranean or cave-like hiding places.

[9:46]  ⁶ sn The name El-Berith means “God of the Covenant.” It is probably a reference to the Canaanite high god El.

[10:9]  ⁷ tn Heb “the house of Ephraim.”

[10:9]  ⁸ tn Or “Israel experienced great distress.” Perhaps here the verb has the nuance “hemmed in.”