Hakim-hakim 2:18

2:18 When the Lord raised up leaders for them, the Lord was with each leader and delivered the people ¹  from their enemies while the leader remained alive. The Lord felt sorry for them ²  when they cried out in agony because of what their harsh oppressors did to them. ³ 

Hakim-hakim 7:3

7:3 Now, announce to the men, ⁴  ‘Whoever is shaking with fear ⁵  may turn around and leave Mount Gilead.’” ⁶  Twenty-two thousand men ⁷  went home; ⁸  ten thousand remained.

Hakim-hakim 8:15

8:15 He approached the men of Succoth and said, “Look what I have! ⁹  Zebah and Zalmunna! You insulted me, saying, ‘You have not yet overpowered Zebah and Zalmunna. So why should we give bread to your exhausted men?’” ¹⁰ 

[2:18]  ¹ tn Heb “them”; the referent (the people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:18]  ² tn The phrase “for them” is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[2:18]  ³ tn Heb “the ones oppressing them and afflicting them.” The synonyms “oppressing” and “afflicting” are joined together in the translation as “harsh oppressors” to emphasize the cruel character of their enemies.

[7:3]  ⁴ tn Heb “call into the ears of the people.”

[7:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “afraid and shaking.”

[7:3]  ⁶ tc Many interpreters reject the MT reading “and leave Mount Gilead” for geographical reasons. A possible alternative, involving rather radical emendation of the Hebrew text, would be, “So Gideon tested them” (i.e., thinned the ranks in this manner).

[7:3]  ⁷ tn Heb “people.” The translation uses “men” because warriors are in view, and in ancient Israelite culture these would be only males. (This is also the case in vv. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.)

[7:3]  ⁸ tn Or “turned around, back.”

[8:15]  ⁹ tn Heb “Look!” The words “what I have” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[8:15]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Are the palms of Zebah and Zalmunna now in your hand, that we should give to your exhausted men bread?”

[8:15]  sn Gideon changes their actual statement (see v. 6) by saying exhausted men rather than “army.” In this way he emphasizes the crisis his men were facing and highlights the insensitivity of the men of Succoth.