14:6 Jonathan said to his armor bearer, “Come on, let’s go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised men. Perhaps the Lord will intervene 1 for us. Nothing can prevent the Lord from delivering, whether by many or by a few.” 14:7 His armor bearer said to him, “Do everything that is on your mind. 2 Do as you’re inclined. I’m with you all the way!” 3
14:8 Jonathan replied, “All right! 4 We’ll go over to these men and fight them. 14:9 If they say to us, ‘Stay put until we approach you,’ we will stay 5 right there and not go up to them. 14:10 But if they say, ‘Come up against us,’ we will go up. For in that case the Lord has given them into our hand – it will be a sign to us.”
14:11 When they 6 made themselves known to the Philistine garrison, the Philistines said, “Look! The Hebrews are coming out of the holes in which they hid themselves.” 14:12 Then the men of the garrison said to Jonathan and his armor bearer, “Come on up to us so we can teach you a thing or two!” 7 Then Jonathan said to his armor bearer, “Come up behind me, for the Lord has given 8 them into the hand of Israel!”
14:13 Jonathan crawled up on his hands and feet, with his armor bearer following behind him. Jonathan struck down the Philistines, 9 while his armor bearer came along behind him and killed them. 10 14:14 In this initial skirmish Jonathan and his armor bearer struck down about twenty men in an area that measured half an acre.
1 tn Heb “act.”
2 tn Heb “in your heart.”
3 tn Heb “Look, I am with you, according to your heart.” See the note at 13:14.
3 tn Heb “Look!”
4 tn Heb “stand.”
5 tn Heb “the two of them.”
6 tn Heb “a thing.”
7 tn The perfect verbal form is used rhetorically here to express Jonathan’s certitude. As far as he is concerned, the victory is as good as won and can be described as such.
7 tn Heb “and they fell before Jonathan.”
8 tn Heb “and the one carrying his equipment was killing after him.”