Hakim-hakim 1:9

1:9 Later the men of Judah went down to attack the Canaanites living in the hill country, the Negev, and the lowlands. ¹ 

Hakim-hakim 1:20

1:20 Caleb received ²  Hebron, just as Moses had promised. He drove out the three Anakites.

Hakim-hakim 4:3

4:3 The Israelites cried out for help to the Lord, because Sisera ³  had nine hundred chariots with iron-rimmed wheels, ⁴  and he cruelly ⁵  oppressed the Israelites for twenty years.

Hakim-hakim 4:10

4:10 Barak summoned men from Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh. Ten thousand men followed him; ⁶  Deborah went up with him as well.

Hakim-hakim 5:7

5:7 Warriors ⁷  were scarce, ⁸ 

they were scarce in Israel,

until you ⁹  arose, Deborah,

until you arose as a motherly protector ¹⁰  in Israel.

Hakim-hakim 5:9

5:9 My heart went out ¹¹  to Israel’s leaders,

to the people who answered the call to war.

Praise the Lord!

Hakim-hakim 7:9

Gideon Reassured of Victory

7:9 That night the Lord said to Gideon, ¹²  “Get up! Attack ¹³  the camp, for I am handing it over to you. ¹⁴ 

Hakim-hakim 8:11

8:11 Gideon went up the road of the nomads ¹⁵  east of Nobah and Jogbehah and ambushed the surprised army. ¹⁶ 

Hakim-hakim 8:16

8:16 He seized the leaders ¹⁷  of the city, along with some desert thorns and briers; he then “threshed” the men of Succoth with them. ¹⁸ 

Hakim-hakim 9:11

9:11 But the fig tree said to them, ‘I am not going to stop producing my sweet figs, my excellent fruit, just to sway above the other trees!’ ¹⁹ 

Hakim-hakim 9:23

9:23 God sent a spirit to stir up hostility ²⁰  between Abimelech and the leaders of Shechem. He made the leaders of Shechem disloyal ²¹  to Abimelech.

Hakim-hakim 10:17

An Outcast Becomes a General

10:17 The Ammonites assembled ²²  and camped in Gilead; the Israelites gathered together and camped in Mizpah.

Hakim-hakim 11:5

11:5 When the Ammonites attacked, ²³  the leaders ²⁴  of Gilead asked Jephthah to come back ²⁵  from the land of Tob.

Hakim-hakim 13:24

13:24 Manoah’s wife ²⁶  gave birth to a son and named him Samson. ²⁷  The child grew and the Lord empowered ²⁸  him.

Hakim-hakim 20:14

20:14 The Benjaminites came from their cities and assembled at Gibeah ²⁹  to make war against the Israelites.

Hakim-hakim 21:3-4

21:3 They said, “Why, O Lord God of Israel, has this happened in Israel?” An entire ³⁰  tribe has disappeared from Israel today!”

21:4 The next morning the people got up early and built an altar there. They offered up burnt sacrifices and token of peace. ³¹ 

[1:9]  ¹ tn Or “foothills”; Heb “the Shephelah.”

[1:20]  ² tn Heb “they gave to Caleb.”

[4:3]  ³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Sisera) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[4:3]  ⁴ tn Regarding the translation “chariots with iron-rimmed wheels,” see Y. Yadin, The Art of Warfare in Biblical Lands, 255, and the article by R. Drews, “The ‘Chariots of Iron’ of Joshua and Judges,” JSOT 45 (1989): 15-23.

[4:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “with strength.”

[4:10]  ⁶ tn Heb “went up at his feet.”

[5:7]  ⁷ tn The meaning of the Hebrew noun פְרָזוֹן (fÿrazon) is uncertain. Some understand the meaning as “leaders” or “those living in rural areas.” The singular noun appears to be collective (note the accompanying plural verb). For various options see B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 237-38.

[5:7]  ⁸ tn Or “ceased.”

[5:7]  ⁹ tn The translation assumes that the verb is an archaic second feminine singular form. Though Deborah is named as one of the composers of the song (v. 1), she is also addressed within it (v. 12). Many take the verb as first person singular, “I arose” (cf. NAB, NASB, NIV).

[5:7]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “mother.” The translation assumes that the image portrays Deborah as a protector of the people. It is possible that the metaphor points to her prophetic role. Just as a male prophet could be called “father,” so Deborah, a prophetess, is called “mother” (B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 239).

[5:9]  ¹¹ tn The words “went out” are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[7:9]  ¹² tn Heb “him”; the referent (Gideon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:9]  ¹³ tn Heb “Go down against.”

[7:9]  ¹⁴ tn The Hebrew verbal form is a perfect, emphasizing the certainty of the promise.

[8:11]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “the ones living in tents.”

[8:11]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and attacked the army, while the army was secure.” The Hebrew term בֶטַח (vetakh, “secure”) probably means the army was undefended (see R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 156), not suspecting an attack at that time and place.

[8:16]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “elders.”

[8:16]  ¹⁸ tc The translation follows the reading of several ancient versions (LXX, the Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate) in assuming the form וַיָּדָשׁ (vayyadash) from the verb דּוֹשׁ (dosh, “thresh”) as in v. 7. The MT reads instead the form וַיֹּדַע (vayyoda’, “make known”), a Hiphil form of יָדַע (yadah). In this case one could translate, “he used them [i.e., the thorns and briers] to teach the men of Succoth a lesson.”

[9:11]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “Should I stop my sweetness and my good fruit and go to sway over the trees? The negative sentence in the translation reflects the force of the rhetorical question.

[9:23]  ²⁰ tn Heb “an evil spirit.” A nonphysical, spirit being is in view, like the one who volunteered to deceive Ahab (1 Kgs 22:21). The traditional translation, “evil spirit,” implies the being is inherently wicked, perhaps even demonic, but this is not necessarily the case. The Hebrew adjective רָעַה (ra’ah) can have a nonethical sense, “harmful; dangerous; calamitous.” When modifying רוּחַ (ruakh, “spirit”) it may simply indicate that the being in view causes harm to the object of God’s judgment. G. F. Moore (Judges [ICC], 253) here refers to a “mischief-making spirit.”

[9:23]  ²¹ tn Heb “The leaders of Shechem were disloyal.” The words “he made” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[10:17]  ²² tn Or “were summoned;” or “were mustered.”

[11:5]  ²³ tn Heb “When the Ammonites fought with Israel.”

[11:5]  ²⁴ tn Or “elders.”

[11:5]  ²⁵ tn Heb “went to take Jephthah.”

[13:24]  ²⁶ tn Heb “the woman.” For clarity this has been specified in the translation as “Manoah’s wife.”

[13:24]  ²⁷ tn The name appears to mean “sun-like” or “solar.”

[13:24]  ²⁸ tn Traditionally, “blessed.”

[20:14]  ²⁹ tn Heb “assembled from the cities at Gibeah.”

[21:3]  ³⁰ tn Heb “one.”

[21:4]  ³¹ tn Or “peace offerings.”