Judges 1:3

1:3 The men of Judah said to their relatives, the men of Simeon, ¹  “Invade our allotted land with us and help us attack the Canaanites. ²  Then we ³  will go with you into your allotted land.” So the men of Simeon went with them.

Judges 2:3

2:3 At that time I also warned you, ⁴  ‘If you disobey, ⁵  I will not drive out the Canaanites ⁶  before you. They will ensnare you ⁷  and their gods will lure you away.’” ⁸ 

Judges 2:21

2:21 So I will no longer remove before them any of the nations that Joshua left unconquered when he died.

Judges 3:22

3:22 The handle went in after the blade, and the fat closed around the blade, for Ehud ⁹  did not pull the sword out of his belly. ¹⁰ 

Judges 3:31

3:31 After Ehud ¹¹  came ¹²  Shamgar son of Anath; he killed six hundred Philistines with an oxgoad and, like Ehud, ¹³  delivered Israel.

Judges 6:35

6:35 He sent messengers throughout Manasseh and summoned them to follow him as well. ¹⁴  He also sent messengers throughout Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, and they came up to meet him.

Judges 7:18

7:18 When I and all who are with me blow our trumpets, you also blow your trumpets all around the camp. Then say, ‘For the Lord and for Gideon!’”

Judges 9:19

9:19 So if you have shown loyalty and integrity to Jerub-Baal and his family ¹⁵  today, then may Abimelech bring you happiness and may you bring him happiness! ¹⁶ 

Judges 10:9

10:9 The Ammonites crossed the Jordan to fight with Judah, Benjamin, and Ephraim. ¹⁷  Israel suffered greatly. ¹⁸ 

¹ tn Heb “Judah said to Simeon, his brother.”

² tn Heb “Come up with me into our allotted land and let us attack the Canaanites.”

³ tn Heb “I.” The Hebrew pronoun is singular, agreeing with the collective singular “Judah” earlier in the verse. English style requires a plural pronoun here, however.

⁴ tn Heb “And I also said.” The use of the perfect tense here suggests that the messenger is recalling an earlier statement (see Josh 23:12-13). However, some translate, “And I also say,” understanding the following words as an announcement of judgment upon those gathered at Bokim.

⁵ tn The words “If you disobey” are supplied in the translation for clarity. See Josh 23:12-13.

⁶ tn Heb “them”; the referent (the Canaanites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁷ tn The meaning of the Hebrew word צִדִּים (tsiddim) is uncertain in this context. It may be related to an Akkadian cognate meaning “snare.” If so, a more literal translation would be “they will become snares to you.” Normally the term in question means “sides,” but this makes no sense here. On the basis of Num 33:55 some suggest the word for “thorns” has been accidentally omitted. If this word is added, the text would read, “they will become [thorns] in your sides” (cf. NASB, NIV, NLT).

⁸ tn Heb “their gods will become a snare to you.”

⁷ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Ehud) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁸ tn The Hebrew text has “and he went out to the [?].” The meaning of the Hebrew word פַּרְשְׁדֹנָה (parshÿdonah) which occurs only here in the OT, is uncertain. The noun has the article prefixed and directive suffix. The word may be a technical architectural term, indicating the area into which Ehud moved as he left the king and began his escape. In this case Ehud is the subject of the verb “went out.” The present translation omits the clause, understanding it as an ancient variant of the first clause in v. 23. Some take the noun as “back,” understand “sword” (from the preceding clause) as the subject, and translate “the sword came out his [i.e., Eglon’s] back.” But this rendering is unlikely since the Hebrew word for “sword” (חֶרֶב, kherev) is feminine and the verb form translated “came out” (וַיֵּצֵא, vayyetse’) is masculine. (One expects agreement in gender when the subject is supplied from the preceding clause. See Ezek 33:4, 6.) See B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 146-48, for discussion of the options.

¹⁰ tn Heb “him”; the referent (Ehud) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹¹ tn Heb “was.”

¹² tn Heb “also he”; the referent (Ehud) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹³ tn Heb “and he also was summoned after him.”

¹⁶ tn Heb “house.”

¹⁷ tn Heb “then rejoice in Abimelech, and may he also rejoice in you.”

¹⁹ tn Heb “the house of Ephraim.”

²⁰ tn Or “Israel experienced great distress.” Perhaps here the verb has the nuance “hemmed in.”