Text -- Judges 10:1-13 (NET)

Stability Restored

10:1 After Abimelech’s death, Tola son of Puah, grandson of Dodo, from the tribe of Issachar, rose up to deliver Israel. He lived in Shamir in the Ephraimite hill country. 10:2 He led Israel for twenty-three years, then died and was buried in Shamir. 10:3 Jair the Gileadite rose up after him; he led Israel for twenty-two years. 10:4 He had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys and possessed thirty cities. To this day these towns are called Havvoth Jair– they are in the land of Gilead. 10:5 Jair died and was buried in Kamon.

The Lord’s Patience Runs Short

10:6 The Israelites again did evil in the Lord’s sight. They worshiped the Baals and the Ashtars, as well as the gods of Syria, Sidon, Moab, the Ammonites, and the Philistines. They abandoned the Lord and did not worship him. 10:7 The Lord was furious with Israel and turned them over to the Philistines and Ammonites. 10:8 They ruthlessly oppressed the Israelites that eighteenth year– that is, all the Israelites living east of the Jordan in Amorite country in Gilead. 10:9 The Ammonites crossed the Jordan to fight with Judah, Benjamin, and Ephraim. Israel suffered greatly. 10:10 The Israelites cried out for help to the Lord: “We have sinned against you. We abandoned our God and worshiped the Baals.” 10:11 The Lord said to the Israelites, “Did I not deliver you from Egypt, the Amorites, the Ammonites, the Philistines, 10:12 the Sidonians, Amalek, and Midian when they oppressed you? You cried out for help to me, and I delivered you from their power. 10:13 But since you abandoned me and worshiped other gods, I will not deliver you again.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Jdg 10:1

¹ tn The word “death” has been supplied in the translation for clarification.

² tn Heb “son.”

³ tn Heb “a man of Issachar.”

NET Notes: Jdg 10:2

¹ tn Traditionally, “judged.”

NET Notes: Jdg 10:4

¹ sn The name Habboth Jair means “tent villages of Jair” in Hebrew.

² tn Heb “they call them Havvoth Jair to this day – which are in the land of Gilead.”

NET Notes: Jdg 10:6

¹ tn Heb “in the eyes of the Lord.”

² tn Or “served;” or “followed.”

³ sn The Ashtars were local manifestations of the goddess Ashtar (i.e., Astarte).

⁴ map For location see Map1 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.

⁵ 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.”

⁶ tn Or “serve”; or “follow.”

NET Notes: Jdg 10:7

¹ tn Or “the Lord’s anger burned [or “raged”] against Israel.”

² tn Heb “sold them into the hands of.”

NET Notes: Jdg 10:8

¹ tn Heb “shattered and crushed.” The repetition of similar sounding synonyms (רָעַץ [ra’ats] and רָצַץ [ratsats]) is for emphasis; רָצַץ appears in the Polel, adding further emphasis to the affirmation.

² tn The phrase שְׁמֹנֶה עֶשְׂרֵה שָׁנָה (shemoneh ’esreh 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.

NET Notes: Jdg 10:9

¹ tn Heb “the house of Ephraim.”

² tn Or “Israel experienced great distress.” Perhaps here the verb has the nuance “hemmed in.”

NET Notes: Jdg 10:10

¹ tn Or “served”; or “followed.”

NET Notes: Jdg 10:12

¹ tc The translation follows the LXX which reads “Midian”; the Hebrew text has “Maon.”

² 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.

³ tn Heb “hand.”

NET Notes: Jdg 10:13

¹ tn Or “served”; or “followed.”