Judges 10-12
New English Translation
Stability Restored
10 After Abimelech’s death,[a] Tola son of Puah, grandson[b] of Dodo, from the tribe of Issachar,[c] rose up to deliver Israel. He lived in Shamir in the Ephraimite hill country. 2 He led[d] Israel for twenty-three years, then died and was buried in Shamir.
3 Jair the Gileadite rose up after him; he led Israel for twenty-two years. 4 He had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys and possessed thirty cities. To this day these towns are called Havvoth Jair[e]—they are in the land of Gilead.[f] 5 Jair died and was buried in Kamon.
The Lord’s Patience Runs Short
6 The Israelites again did evil in the Lord’s sight.[g] They worshiped[h] the Baals and the Ashtoreths,[i] as well as the gods of Syria, Sidon, Moab, the Ammonites, and the Philistines.[j] They abandoned the Lord and did not worship[k] him. 7 The Lord was furious with Israel[l] and turned them over to[m] the Philistines and Ammonites. 8 They ruthlessly oppressed[n] the Israelites that eighteenth year[o]—that is, all the Israelites living east of the Jordan in Amorite country in Gilead. 9 The Ammonites crossed the Jordan to fight with Judah, Benjamin, and Ephraim.[p] Israel suffered greatly.[q]
10 The Israelites cried out for help to the Lord: “We have sinned against you. We abandoned our God and worshiped[r] the Baals.” 11 The Lord said to the Israelites, “Did I not deliver you from Egypt, the Amorites, the Ammonites, the Philistines, 12 the Sidonians, Amalek, and Midian[s] when they oppressed you?[t] You cried out for help to me, and I delivered you from their power.[u] 13 But since you abandoned me and worshiped[v] other gods, I will not deliver you again. 14 Go and cry for help to the gods you have chosen! Let them deliver you from trouble!”[w] 15 But the Israelites said to the Lord, “We have sinned. You do to us as you see fit,[x] but deliver us today!”[y] 16 They threw away the foreign gods they owned[z] and worshiped[aa] the Lord. Finally the Lord grew tired of seeing Israel suffer so much.[ab]
An Outcast Becomes a General
17 The Ammonites assembled[ac] and camped in Gilead; the Israelites gathered together and camped in Mizpah. 18 The leaders[ad] of Gilead said to one another, “Who is willing to lead the charge[ae] against the Ammonites? He will become the leader of all who live in Gilead!”
11 Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a brave warrior. His mother was a prostitute, but Gilead was his father.[af] 2 Gilead’s wife also gave[ag] him sons. When his wife’s sons grew up, they made Jephthah leave and said to him, “You are not going to inherit any of our father’s wealth,[ah] because you are another woman’s son.” 3 So Jephthah left[ai] his half brothers[aj] and lived in the land of Tob. Lawless men joined Jephthah’s gang and traveled with him.[ak]
4 It was some time after this when the Ammonites fought with Israel. 5 When the Ammonites attacked,[al] the leaders[am] of Gilead asked Jephthah to come back[an] from the land of Tob. 6 They said,[ao] “Come, be our commander, so we can fight with the Ammonites.” 7 Jephthah said to the leaders of Gilead, “But you hated me and made me leave[ap] my father’s house. Why do you come to me now, when you are in trouble?” 8 The leaders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “That may be true,[aq] but now we pledge to you our loyalty.[ar] Come with us and fight with the Ammonites. Then you will become the leader[as] of all who live in Gilead.”[at] 9 Jephthah said to the leaders of Gilead, “All right.[au] If you take me back to fight with the Ammonites and the Lord gives them to me,[av] I will be your leader.”[aw] 10 The leaders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “The Lord will judge any grievance you have against us,[ax] if we do not do as you say.”[ay] 11 So Jephthah went with the leaders of Gilead. The people made him their leader and commander. Jephthah repeated the terms of the agreement[az] before the Lord in Mizpah.
Jephthah Gives a History Lesson
12 Jephthah sent messengers to the Ammonite king, saying, “Why have[ba] you come against me to attack my land?” 13 The Ammonite king said to Jephthah’s messengers, “Because Israel stole[bb] my land when they[bc] came up from Egypt—from the Arnon River in the south to the Jabbok River in the north, and as far west as the Jordan.[bd] Now return it[be] peaceably!”
14 Jephthah sent messengers back to the Ammonite king 15 and said to him, “This is what Jephthah says, ‘Israel did not steal[bf] the land of Moab and the land of the Ammonites. 16 When they left[bg] Egypt, Israel traveled[bh] through the desert as far as the Red Sea and then came to Kadesh. 17 Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, “Please allow us[bi] to pass through your land.” But the king of Edom rejected the request.[bj] Israel sent the same request to the king of Moab, but he was unwilling to cooperate.[bk] So Israel stayed at Kadesh. 18 Then Israel[bl] went through the wilderness and bypassed the land of Edom and the land of Moab. They traveled east of the land of Moab and camped on the other side of the Arnon River;[bm] they did not go through Moabite territory (the Arnon was Moab’s border). 19 Israel sent messengers to King Sihon, the Amorite king who ruled in Heshbon, and said to him, “Please allow us to pass through your land to our land.”[bn] 20 But Sihon did not trust Israel to pass through his territory. He[bo] assembled his whole army,[bp] camped in Jahaz, and fought with Israel. 21 The Lord God of Israel handed Sihon and his whole army over to Israel and they defeated them. Israel took[bq] all the land of the Amorites who lived in that land. 22 They took all the Amorite territory from the Arnon River on the south to the Jabbok River on the north, from the desert in the east to the Jordan in the west.[br] 23 Since[bs] the Lord God of Israel has driven out[bt] the Amorites before his people Israel, do you think you can just take it from them?[bu] 24 You have the right to take what Chemosh your god gives you, but we will take the land of all whom the Lord our God has driven out before us.[bv] 25 Are you really better than Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he dare to quarrel with Israel? Did he dare to fight with them?[bw] 26 Israel has been living in Heshbon and its nearby towns, in Aroer and its nearby towns, and in all the cities along the Arnon for 300 years! Why did you not reclaim them during that time? 27 I have not done you wrong,[bx] but you are doing wrong[by] by attacking me. May the Lord, the Judge, judge this day between the Israelites and the Ammonites!’” 28 But the Ammonite king disregarded[bz] the message sent by Jephthah.[ca]
A Foolish Vow Spells Death for a Daughter
29 The Lord’s Spirit empowered[cb] Jephthah. He passed through Gilead and Manasseh and went[cc] to Mizpah in Gilead. From there he approached the Ammonites.[cd] 30 Jephthah made a vow to the Lord, saying, “If you really do hand the Ammonites over to me, 31 then whoever is the first to come through[ce] the doors of my house to meet me when I return safely from fighting the Ammonites—he[cf] will belong to the Lord and[cg] I will offer him up as a burnt sacrifice.” 32 Jephthah approached[ch] the Ammonites to fight with them, and the Lord handed them over to him. 33 He defeated them from Aroer all the way to Minnith—twenty cities in all, even as far as Abel Keramim. He wiped them out![ci] The Israelites humiliated the Ammonites.[cj]
34 When Jephthah came home to Mizpah, there was his daughter hurrying out[ck] to meet him, dancing to the rhythm of tambourines.[cl] She was his only child; except for her he had no son or daughter. 35 When he saw her, he ripped his clothes and said, “Oh no! My daughter! You have completely ruined me![cm] You have brought me disaster![cn] I made an oath to the Lord, and I cannot break it.”[co] 36 She said to him, “My father, since[cp] you made an oath to the Lord, do to me as you promised.[cq] After all, the Lord vindicated you before[cr] your enemies, the Ammonites.” 37 She then said to her father, “Please grant me this one wish.[cs] For two months allow me to walk through the hills with my friends and mourn my virginity.”[ct] 38 He said, “You may go.” He permitted her to leave[cu] for two months. She went with her friends and mourned her virginity as she walked through the hills.[cv] 39 After two months she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed. She died a virgin.[cw] Her tragic death gave rise to a custom in Israel.[cx] 40 Every year[cy] Israelite women commemorate[cz] the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite for four days.[da]
Civil Strife Mars the Victory
12 The Ephraimites assembled[db] and crossed over to Zaphon. They said to Jephthah, “Why did you go and fight[dc] with the Ammonites without asking[dd] us to go with you? We will burn your house down right over you!”[de]
2 Jephthah said to them, “My people and I were in a struggle and the Ammonites were oppressing me greatly.[df] I asked for your help, but you did not deliver me from their power.[dg] 3 When I saw that you were not going to help,[dh] I risked my life[di] and advanced against[dj] the Ammonites, and the Lord handed them over to me. Why have you come up[dk] to fight with me today?” 4 Jephthah assembled all the men of Gilead and they fought with Ephraim. The men of Gilead defeated Ephraim, because the Ephraimites insulted them, saying,[dl] “You Gileadites are refugees in Ephraim, living within Ephraim’s and Manasseh’s territory.”[dm] 5 The Gileadites captured the fords of the Jordan River[dn] opposite Ephraim.[do] Whenever an Ephraimite fugitive[dp] said, “Let me cross over,” the men of Gilead asked[dq] him, “Are you an Ephraimite?” If he said, “No,” 6 then they said to him, “Say ‘Shibboleth!’”[dr] If he said, “Sibboleth” (and could not pronounce the word[ds] correctly), they grabbed him and executed him right there at the fords of the Jordan. On that day 42,000 Ephraimites fell dead.
7 Jephthah led[dt] Israel for six years; then he[du] died and was buried in his town in Gilead.[dv]
Order Restored
8 After him Ibzan of Bethlehem led[dw] Israel. 9 He had thirty sons. He arranged for thirty of his daughters to be married outside his extended family,[dx] and he arranged for thirty young women to be brought from outside as wives for his sons.[dy] Ibzan[dz] led[ea] Israel for seven years; 10 then he[eb] died and was buried in Bethlehem.
11 After him Elon the Zebulunite led[ec] Israel for ten years.[ed] 12 Then Elon the Zebulunite died and was buried in Aijalon in the land of Zebulun.
13 After him Abdon son of Hillel the Pirathonite led[ee] Israel. 14 He had forty sons and thirty grandsons who rode on seventy donkeys. He led Israel for eight years. 15 Then Abdon son of Hillel the Pirathonite died and was buried in Pirathon in the land of Ephraim, in the hill country of the Amalekites.
Footnotes
- Judges 10:1 tn The word “death” has been supplied in the translation for clarification.
- Judges 10:1 tn Heb “son.”
- Judges 10:1 tn Heb “a man of Issachar.”
- Judges 10:2 tn Traditionally, “judged.”
- Judges 10:4 sn The name Habboth Jair means “tent villages of Jair” in Hebrew.
- Judges 10:4 tn Heb “they call them Havvoth Jair to this day—which are in the land of Gilead.”
- Judges 10:6 tn Heb “in the eyes of the Lord.”
- Judges 10:6 tn Or “served;” or “followed.”
- Judges 10:6 sn The Ashtoreths were local manifestations of the goddess Astarte.
- Judges 10:6 tn Heb “the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites, and the gods of the Philistines.”
- Judges 10:6 tn Or “serve”; or “follow.”
- Judges 10:7 tn Or “the Lord’s anger burned [or “raged”] against Israel.”
- Judges 10:7 tn Heb “sold them into the hands of.”
- Judges 10:8 tn Heb “shattered and crushed.” The repetition of similar sounding synonyms (רָעַץ [raʿats] and רָצַץ [ratsats]) is for emphasis; רָצַץ appears in the Polel, adding further emphasis to the affirmation.
- Judges 10:8 tn The phrase שְׁמֹנֶה עֶשְׂרֵה שָׁנָה (shemoneh ʿesreh shanah) could be translated “eighteen years,” but this would be difficult after the reference to “that year.” It is possible that v. 8b is parenthetical, referring to an eighteen year long period of oppression east of the Jordan which culminated in hostilities against all Israel (including Judah, see v. 9) in the eighteenth year. It is simpler to translate the phrase as an ordinal number, though the context does not provide the point of reference. (See Gen 14:4-5 and R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 191-92.) In this case, the following statement specifies which “Israelites” are in view.
- Judges 10:9 tn Heb “the house of Ephraim.”
- Judges 10:9 tn Or “Israel experienced great distress.” Perhaps here the verb has the nuance “hemmed in.”
- Judges 10:10 tn Or “served”; or “followed.”
- Judges 10:12 tc The translation follows the LXX which reads “Midian”; the Hebrew text has “Maon.”
- Judges 10:12 tn The words “Did I not deliver you” are interpretive. The Hebrew text simply reads, “Is it not from Egypt…when they oppressed you?” Perhaps the incomplete sentence reflects the Lord’s frustration.
- Judges 10:12 tn Heb “hand.”
- Judges 10:13 tn Or “served”; or “followed.”
- Judges 10:14 tn Heb “in your time of trouble.”
- Judges 10:15 tn Heb “according to all whatever is good in your eyes.”
- Judges 10:15 sn You do to us as you see fit, but deliver us today. The request seems contradictory, but it can be explained in one of two ways. They may be asking for relief from their enemies and direct discipline from God’s hand. Or they may mean, “In the future you can do whatever you like to us, but give us relief from what we’re suffering right now.”
- Judges 10:16 tn Heb “from their midst.”
- Judges 10:16 tn Or “served”; or “followed.”
- Judges 10:16 tn Heb “And his spirit grew short [i.e., impatient] with the suffering of Israel.” The Hebrew noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) also appears as the subject of the verb קָצַר (qatsar) in Num 21:4 (the Israelites grow impatient wandering in the wilderness), Judg 16:16 (Samson grows impatient with Delilah’s constant nagging), and Zech 11:8 (Zechariah grows impatient with the three negligent “shepherds”).
- Judges 10:17 tn Or “were summoned;” or “were mustered.”
- Judges 10:18 tn Heb “the people, the officers.”
- Judges 10:18 tn Heb “Who is the man who will begin fighting.”
- Judges 11:1 tn Heb “Now he was the son of a woman, a prostitute, and Gilead fathered Jephthah.”
- Judges 11:2 tn Heb “bore.”
- Judges 11:2 tn Heb “in the house of our father.”
- Judges 11:3 tn Or “fled from.”
- Judges 11:3 tn Heb “brothers.”
- Judges 11:3 tn Heb “Empty men joined themselves to Jephthah and went out with him.”
- Judges 11:5 tn Heb “When the Ammonites fought with Israel.”
- Judges 11:5 tn Or “elders.”
- Judges 11:5 tn Heb “went to take Jephthah.”
- Judges 11:6 tn Heb “to Jephthah.”
- Judges 11:7 tn Heb “Did you not hate me and make me leave?”
- Judges 11:8 tn Heb “therefore”; “even so.” For MT לָכֵן (lakhen, “therefore”) the LXX has an opposite reading, “not so,” which seems to be based on the Hebrew words לֹא כֵן (loʾ khen).
- Judges 11:8 tn Heb “we have returned to you.” For another example of שׁוּב אֶל (shuv ʾel) in the sense of “give allegiance to,” see 1 Kgs 12:27b.
- Judges 11:8 sn Then you will become the leader. The leaders of Gilead now use the word רֹאשׁ (roʾsh, “head, leader”), the same term that appeared in their original, general offer (see 10:18). In their initial offer to Jephthah they had simply invited him to be their קָצִין (qatsin, “commander”; v. 6). When he resists they must offer him a more attractive reward—rulership over the region. See R. G. Boling, Judges (AB), 198.
- Judges 11:8 tn Heb “leader of us and all who live in Gilead.”
- Judges 11:9 tn “All right” is supplied in the translation for clarification.
- Judges 11:9 tn Heb “places them before me.”
- Judges 11:9 tn Some translate the final statement as a question, “will I really be your leader?” An affirmative sentence is preferable. Jephthah is repeating the terms of the agreement in an official manner. In v. 10 the leaders legally agree to these terms.
- Judges 11:10 tn Heb “The Lord will be the one who hears between us.” For the idiom שָׁמַע בַּיִן (shamaʿ bayin, “to hear between”), see Deut 1:16.
- Judges 11:10 sn The Lord will judge…if we do not do as you say. The statement by the leaders of Gilead takes the form of a legally binding oath, which obligates them to the terms of the agreement.
- Judges 11:11 tn Heb “spoke all his words.” This probably refers to the “words” recorded in v. 9. Jephthah repeats the terms of the agreement at the Lord’s sanctuary, perhaps to ratify the contract or to emphasize the Gileadites’ obligation to keep their part of the bargain. Another option is to translate, “Jephthah conducted business before the Lord in Mizpah.” In this case, the statement is a general reference to the way Jephthah ruled. He recognized the Lord’s authority and made his decisions before the Lord.
- Judges 11:12 tn Heb “What to me and to you that…?”
- Judges 11:13 tn Or “took”; or “seized.”
- Judges 11:13 tn Heb “he” (a collective singular).
- Judges 11:13 tn Heb “from the Arnon to the Jabbok and to the Jordan.” The word “River” has been supplied in the translation with “Arnon” and “Jabbok,” because these are less familiar to modern readers than the Jordan.
- Judges 11:13 tc The translation assumes a singular suffix (“[return] it”); the Hebrew text has a plural suffix (“[return] them”), which, if retained, might refer to the cities of the land.
- Judges 11:15 tn Or “take”; or “seize.”
- Judges 11:16 tn Heb “For when they went up from.”
- Judges 11:16 tn Or “went.”
- Judges 11:17 tn Heb “me.” (Collective Israel is the speaker.)
- Judges 11:17 tn Heb “did not listen.”
- Judges 11:17 tn Heb “Also to the king of Moab he sent, but he was unwilling.”
- Judges 11:18 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Israel; the pronoun in the Hebrew text represents a collective singular) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Judges 11:18 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
- Judges 11:19 tn Heb “to my place.”
- Judges 11:20 tn Heb “Sihon.” The proper name (“Sihon”) has been replaced in the translation by the pronoun (“he”) because of English style; a repetition of the proper name here would be redundant in English.
- Judges 11:20 tn Heb “all his people” (also in the following verse).
- Judges 11:21 tn That is, took as its own possession.
- Judges 11:22 tn Heb “from the Arnon to the Jabbok, and from the desert to the Jordan.” The word “River” has been supplied in the translation with “Arnon” and “Jabbok,” because these are less familiar to modern readers than the Jordan.
- Judges 11:23 tn Heb “Now.”
- Judges 11:23 tn Or “dispossessed.”
- Judges 11:23 tn Heb “will you dispossess him [i.e., Israel; or possibly “it,” i.e., the territory]?” There is no interrogative marker in the Hebrew text.
- Judges 11:24 tn Heb “Is it not so that what Chemosh your god causes you to possess, you possess, and all whom the Lord our God dispossesses before us we will possess?” Jephthah speaks of Chemosh as if he is on a par with the Lord God of Israel. This does not necessarily mean that Jephthah is polytheistic or that he recognizes the Lord as only a local deity. He may simply be assuming the Ammonite king’s perspective for the sake of argument. Other texts, as well as the extrabiblical Mesha inscription, associate Chemosh with Moab, while Milcom is identified as the god of the Ammonites. Why then does Jephthah refer to Chemosh as the Ammonite god? Ammon had likely conquered Moab and the Ammonite king probably regarded himself as heir of all territory formerly held by Moab. Originally Moab had owned the disputed territory (cf. Num 21:26-29), meaning that Chemosh was regarded as the god of the region (see R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 203-4). Jephthah argues that Chemosh had long ago relinquished claim to the area (by allowing Sihon to conquer it), while the Lord had long ago established jurisdiction over it (by taking it from Sihon and giving it to Israel). Both sides should abide by the decisions of the gods which had stood firm for 300 years.
- Judges 11:25 tn The Hebrew grammatical constructions of all three rhetorical questions indicate emphasis, which “really” and “dare to” are intended to express in the translation. sn Jephthah argues that the Ammonite king should follow the example of Balak, who, once thwarted in his attempt to bring a curse on Israel, refused to attack Israel and returned home (Num 22-24).
- Judges 11:27 tn Or “sinned against you.”
- Judges 11:27 tn Or “evil.”
- Judges 11:28 tn Heb “did not listen to.”
- Judges 11:28 tn Heb “Jephthah’s words which he sent to him.”
- Judges 11:29 tn Heb “was on.”
- Judges 11:29 tn Heb “passed through.”
- Judges 11:29 tn Heb “From Mizpah in Gilead he passed through [to] the Ammonites.”
- Judges 11:31 tn Heb “the one coming out, who comes out from.” The text uses a masculine singular participle with prefixed article, followed by a relative pronoun and third masculine singular verb. The substantival masculine singular participle הַיּוֹצֵא (hayyotseʾ, “the one coming out”) is used elsewhere of inanimate objects (such as a desert [Num 21:13] or a word [Num 32:24]) or persons (Jer 5:6; 21:9; 38:2). In each case context must determine the referent. Jephthah may have envisioned an animal meeting him, since the construction of Iron Age houses would allow for an animal coming through the doors of a house (see R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 208). But the fact that he actually does offer up his daughter indicates the language of the vow is fluid enough to encompass human beings, including women. He probably intended such an offering from the very beginning, but he obviously did not expect his daughter to meet him first.
- Judges 11:31 tn The language is fluid enough to include women and perhaps even animals, but the translation uses the masculine pronoun because the Hebrew form is grammatically masculine.
- Judges 11:31 tn Some translate “or,” suggesting that Jephthah makes a distinction between humans and animals. According to this view, if a human comes through the door, then Jephthah will commit him/her to the Lord’s service, but if an animal comes through the doors, he will offer it up as a sacrifice. However, it is far more likely that the Hebrew construction (vav [ו] + perfect) specifies how the subject will become the Lord’s, that is, by being offered up as a sacrifice. For similar constructions, where the apodosis of a conditional sentence has at least two perfects (each with vav) in sequence, see Gen 34:15-16; Exod 18:16.
- Judges 11:32 tn Heb “passed over to.”
- Judges 11:33 tn Heb “with a very great slaughter.”
- Judges 11:33 tn Heb “The Ammonites were humbled before the Israelites.”
- Judges 11:34 tn Heb “Look! His daughter was coming out.”
- Judges 11:34 tn Heb “with tambourines and dancing.”
- Judges 11:35 tn Heb “you have brought me very low,” or “you have knocked me to my knees.” The infinitive absolute precedes the verb for emphasis.
- Judges 11:35 tn Heb “You are among [or “like”] those who trouble me.”
- Judges 11:35 tn Heb “I opened my mouth to the Lord and I am not able to return.”
- Judges 11:36 tn The conjunction “since” is supplied in the translation for clarification.
- Judges 11:36 tn Heb “you opened your mouth to the Lord, do to me according to [what] went out from your mouth.”
- Judges 11:36 tn Or “has given you vengeance against.”
- Judges 11:37 tn Heb “Let this thing be done for me.”
- Judges 11:37 tn Heb “Leave me alone for two months so I can go and go down on the hills and weep over my virginity—I and my friends.”
- Judges 11:38 tn Heb “he sent her.”
- Judges 11:38 tn Heb “on the hills.” The words “as she walked” are supplied.
- Judges 11:39 tn Heb “She had never known a man.” Some understand this to mean that her father committed her to a life of celibacy, but the disjunctive clause (note the vav + subject + verb pattern) more likely describes her condition at the time the vow was fulfilled. (See G. F. Moore, Judges [ICC], 302-3; C. F. Burney, Judges, 324.) She died a virgin and never experienced the joys of marriage and motherhood.
- Judges 11:39 tn Heb “There was a custom in Israel.”
- Judges 11:40 tn Heb “From days to days,” a Hebrew idiom for “annually.”
- Judges 11:40 tn Heb “go to commemorate.” The rare Hebrew verb תָּנָה (tanah, “to tell; to repeat; to recount”) occurs only here and in 5:11.
- Judges 11:40 tn The Hebrew text adds, “in the year.” This is redundant (note “every year” at the beginning of the verse) and has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Judges 12:1 tn Heb “the men of Ephraim were summoned [or “were mustered”].”
- Judges 12:1 tn Heb “cross over to fight.”
- Judges 12:1 tn Or “calling”; or “summoning.”
- Judges 12:1 tn Heb “Your house we will burn over you with fire.”
- Judges 12:2 tc Heb “A fighting man was I was and my people, and the Ammonites greatly.” The LXX reads “I was man fighting, and my people [also]. And the sons of Ammon were humiliating me greatly.” The imperfect form of ταπεινόω (tapeinoō) in the LXX probably represents the Hebrew verb עָנָה (ʿanah) as it commonly does elsewhere. Two nearby words begin with ע (ʿayin): עַמִּי (ʿammi; “my people”) and עַמּוֹן (ʿammōn; “Ammon”). So a form of עָנָה (ʿanah) could easily have been omitted by haplography. A piel perfect would begin with ʿayin, (עִנּוּ; ʿinnu), while a piel participle (as might be suggested by the Greek imperfect) would begin with mem and ʿayin, מְעַנֶּה (meʿanneh).tn The Hebrew verb רִיב (riv) often appears in a legal setting, to contend a legal case, but does not have to. In non-legal settings it can mean to strive against, quarrel, brawl (HALOT, 1224).
- Judges 12:2 tn Heb “hand.”
- Judges 12:3 tn Heb “you were no deliverer.” Codex Alexandrinus (A) of the LXX has “no one was helping.”
- Judges 12:3 tn Heb “I put my life in my hand.”
- Judges 12:3 tn Heb “crossed over to.”
- Judges 12:3 tn The Hebrew adds “against me” here. This is redundant in English and has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Judges 12:4 tn Heb “because they said.”
- Judges 12:4 tc Heb “Refugees of Ephraim are you, O Gilead, in the midst of Ephraim and in the midst of Manasseh.” The LXX omits the entire second half of the verse (beginning with “because”). The words כִּי אָמְרוּ פְּלִיטֵי אֶפְרַיִם (ki ʾameru pelite ʾefrayim, “because they said, ‘Refugees of Ephraim’”) may have been accidentally copied from the next verse (cf. כִּי יֹאמְרוּ פְּלִיטֵי אֶפְרַיִם, ki yoʾmeru pelite ʾefrayim) and the following words (“you, O Gilead…Manasseh”) then added in an attempt to make sense of the verse. See G. F. Moore, Judges (ICC), 307-8, and C. F. Burney, Judges, 327. If the Hebrew text is retained, then the Ephraimites appear to be insulting the Gileadites by describing them as refugees who are squatting on Ephraim’s and Manasseh’s land. The present translation assumes that “Ephraim” is a genitive of location after “refugees.”
- Judges 12:5 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarification.
- Judges 12:5 tn Or “against Ephraim,” that is, so as to prevent Ephraim from crossing.
- Judges 12:5 tn The Hebrew text has a plural form here.
- Judges 12:5 tn Heb “say to.”
- Judges 12:6 sn The inability of the Ephraimites to pronounce the word shibboleth the way the Gileadites did served as an identifying test. It illustrates that during this period there were differences in pronunciation between the tribes. The Hebrew word shibboleth itself means “stream” or “flood,” and was apparently chosen simply as a test case without regard to its meaning.
- Judges 12:6 tn Heb “and could not prepare to speak.” The precise meaning of יָכִין (yakhin) is unclear. Some understand it to mean “was not careful [to say it correctly]”; others emend to יָכֹל (yakhol, “was not able [to say it correctly]”) or יָבִין (yavin, “did not understand [that he should say it correctly]”), which is read by a few Hebrew mss.
- Judges 12:7 tn Traditionally, “judged.”
- Judges 12:7 tn Heb “Jephthah the Gileadite.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Judges 12:7 tc The Hebrew text has “in the cities of Gilead.” The present translation has support from some ancient Greek textual witnesses.
- Judges 12:8 tn Traditionally, “judged.”
- Judges 12:9 tn Heb “thirty daughters he sent off outside.” Another option is to translate, “He arranged for his thirty daughters….” It is not clear if he had more than the “thirty daughters” mentioned in the text.
- Judges 12:9 tn Heb “and thirty daughters he brought for his sons from the outside.”
- Judges 12:9 tn Heb “He”; the referent (Ibzan) has been specified in the translation for clarity and for English stylistic reasons.
- Judges 12:9 tn Traditionally, “judged.”
- Judges 12:10 tn Heb “Ibzan.” The pronoun “he” is used in the translation in keeping with English style, which tends to use a proper name first in a sentence followed by a pronoun rather than vice versa.
- Judges 12:11 tn Traditionally, “judged.”
- Judges 12:11 tn Heb “…led Israel. He led Israel for ten years.”
- Judges 12:13 tn Traditionally, “judged.”
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