Judges 12:8

Order Restored

12:8 After him Ibzan of Bethlehem ¹  led ²  Israel.

Judges 12:10

12:10 then he ³  died and was buried in Bethlehem.

Judges 17:7

Micah Hires a Professional

17:7 There was a young man from Bethlehem ⁴  in Judah. He was a Levite who had been temporarily residing among the tribe of Judah. ⁵ 

Judges 19:2

19:2 However, she ⁶  got angry at him ⁷  and went home ⁸  to her father’s house in Bethlehem in Judah. When she had been there four months,

Judges 19:18

19:18 The Levite ⁹  said to him, “We are traveling from Bethlehem ¹⁰  in Judah to the remote region of the Ephraimite hill country. That’s where I’m from. I had business in Bethlehem in Judah, but now I’m heading home. ¹¹  But no one has invited me into their home.

Judges 17:9

17:9 Micah said to him, “Where do you come from?” He replied, “I am a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah. I am looking for a new place to live.” ¹² 

Judges 19:1

Sodom and Gomorrah Revisited

19:1 In those days Israel had no king. There was a Levite ¹³  living temporarily in the remote region of the Ephraimite hill country. He acquired a concubine ¹⁴  from Bethlehem ¹⁵  in Judah.

Judges 17:8

17:8 This man left the town of Bethlehem in Judah to find another place to live. He came to the Ephraimite hill country and made his way to Micah’s house. ¹⁶ 

Judges 19:3

19:3 her husband came ¹⁷  after her, hoping he could convince her to return. ¹⁸  He brought with him his servant ¹⁹  and a pair of donkeys. When she brought him into her father’s house and the girl’s father saw him, he greeted him warmly. ²⁰ 

¹ map For location see Map5-B1; Map7-E2; Map8-E2; Map10-B4.

² tn Traditionally, “judged.”

³ 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.

⁵ map For location see Map5-B1; Map7-E2; Map8-E2; Map10-B4.

⁶ tn Heb “There was a young man from Bethlehem of Judah, from the tribe of Judah, and he was a Levite, and he was temporarily residing there.”

⁷ tn Heb “and his concubine.” The pronoun (“she”) has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons.

⁸ tn Or “was unfaithful to him.” Many have understood the Hebrew verb וַתִּזְנֶה (vattizneh) as being from זָנָה (zanah, “to be a prostitute”), but it may be derived from a root meaning “to be angry; to hate” attested in Akkadian (see HALOT 275 s.v. II זנה).

⁹ tn Heb “went from him.”

⁹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Levite) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁰ map For location see Map5-B1; Map7-E2; Map8-E2; Map10-B4.

¹¹ tn Heb “I went to Bethlehem in Judah, but [to] the house of the LORD I am going.” The Hebrew text has “house of the LORD,” which might refer to the shrine at Shiloh. The LXX reads “to my house.”

¹¹ tn Heb “And I am going to reside in a place I can find.”

¹³ tn Heb “a man, a Levite.”

¹⁴ sn See the note on the word “concubine” in 8:31.

¹⁵ map For location see Map5-B1; Map7-E2; Map8-E2; Map10-B4.

¹⁵ tn Heb “He came to the Ephraimite hill country, to Micah’s house, making his way.”

¹⁷ tn Heb “arose and came.”

¹⁸ tn Heb “to speak to her heart to bring her back.”

¹⁹ tn Or “young man.”

²⁰ tn Heb “he was happy to meet him.”