1 tn The words “These were the nations,” though not present in the Hebrew text, are supplied in the translation for clarity.
2 tn Or “the entrance to Hamath.”
3 tn Heb “Let this thing be done for me.”
4 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.”
5 tn Another option is to translate, “you are already pregnant and will have a son.” The earlier reference to her being infertile (v. 3) suggests that her conception is still future, but it is possible that the earlier statement only reflects her perspective (as far as she is concerned, she is infertile). According to this interpretation, in v. 5 the angel reveals the truth to her – actually she has recently conceived and is now pregnant (see the translation in R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 217). Usage favors this interpretation. The predicate adjective הָרָה (harah, “[be/become] pregnant”) elsewhere has a past (1 Sam 4:19) or present (Gen 16:11; 38:25; 2 Sam 11:5) translation value. (The usage in Isa 7:14 is debated, but a present translation is definitely possible there.) A final, but less likely possibility, is that she miraculously conceived during the angel’s speech, sometime between his statements recorded in vv. 3 and 5.
6 tn Heb “a razor should not go up on his head.”
7 tn Or “set apart to God.” Traditionally the Hebrew term נָזִיר (nazir) has been translated “Nazirite.” The word is derived from the verb נָזַר (nazar, “to dedicate; to consecrate; to set apart”).
8 tn Heb “hand.”
7 tn The Hebrew has אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה (’adonay yehovih, “Lord Yahweh”).
8 tn Heb “so I can get revenge with one act of vengeance.”
9 tn Heb “He came to the Ephraimite hill country, to Micah’s house, making his way.”