4:1 The Israelites again did evil in the Lord’s sight 1 after Ehud’s death.
4:4 Now Deborah, a prophetess, 5 wife of Lappidoth, was 6 leading 7 Israel at that time. 4:5 She would sit 8 under the Date Palm Tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel 9 in the Ephraimite hill country. The Israelites would come up to her to have their disputes settled. 10
4:6 She summoned 11 Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali. She said to him, “Is it not true that the Lord God of Israel is commanding you? Go, march to Mount Tabor! Take with you ten thousand men from Naphtali and Zebulun! 4:7 I will bring Sisera, the general of Jabin’s army, to you at the Kishon River, along with his chariots and huge army. 12 I will hand him over to you.” 4:8 Barak said to her, “If you go with me, I will go. But if you do not go with me, I will not go.” 4:9 She said, “I will indeed go with you. But you will not gain fame 13 on the expedition you are undertaking, 14 for the Lord will turn Sisera over to a woman.” 15 Deborah got up and went with Barak to Kedesh. 4:10 Barak summoned men from Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh. Ten thousand men followed him; 16 Deborah went up with him as well. 4:11 Now Heber the Kenite had moved away 17 from the Kenites, the descendants of Hobab, Moses’ father-in-law. He lived 18 near the great tree in Zaanannim near Kedesh.
4:12 When Sisera heard 19 that Barak son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor, 4:13 he 20 ordered 21 all his chariotry – nine hundred chariots with iron-rimmed wheels – and all the troops he had with him to go from Harosheth-Haggoyim to the River Kishon. 4:14 Deborah said to Barak, “Spring into action, 22 for this is the day the Lord is handing Sisera over to you! 23 Has the Lord not taken the lead?” 24 Barak quickly went down from Mount Tabor with ten thousand men following him. 4:15 The Lord routed 25 Sisera, all his chariotry, and all his army with the edge of the sword. 26 Sisera jumped out of 27 his chariot and ran away on foot. 4:16 Now Barak chased the chariots and the army all the way to Harosheth Haggoyim. Sisera’s whole army died 28 by the edge of the sword; not even one survived! 29
4:17 Now Sisera ran away on foot to the tent of Jael, wife of Heber the Kenite, for King Jabin of Hazor 30 and the family of Heber the Kenite had made a peace treaty. 31 4:18 Jael came out to welcome Sisera. She said to him, “Stop and rest, 32 my lord. Stop and rest with me. Don’t be afraid.” So Sisera 33 stopped to rest in her tent, and she put a blanket over him. 4:19 He said to her, “Give me a little water to drink, because I’m thirsty.” She opened a goatskin container of milk and gave him some milk to drink. Then she covered him up again. 4:20 He said to her, “Stand watch at the entrance to the tent. If anyone comes along and asks you, ‘Is there a man here?’ say ‘No.’” 4:21 Then Jael wife of Heber took a tent peg in one hand and a hammer in the other. 34 She crept up on him, drove the tent peg through his temple into the ground 35 while he was asleep from exhaustion, 36 and he died. 4:22 Now Barak was chasing Sisera. Jael went out to welcome him. She said to him, “Come here and I will show you the man you are searching for.” He went with her into the tent, 37 and there he saw Sisera sprawled out dead 38 with the tent peg in his temple.
4:23 That day God humiliated King Jabin of Canaan before the Israelites. 4:24 Israel’s power continued to overwhelm 39 King Jabin of Canaan until they did away with 40 him. 41
10:17 The Ammonites assembled 44 and camped in Gilead; the Israelites gathered together and camped in Mizpah.
11:4 It was some time after this when the Ammonites fought with Israel. 11:5 When the Ammonites attacked, 45 the leaders 46 of Gilead asked Jephthah to come back 47 from the land of Tob. 11:6 They said, 48 “Come, be our commander, so we can fight with the Ammonites.” 11:7 Jephthah said to the leaders of Gilead, “But you hated me and made me leave 49 my father’s house. Why do you come to me now, when you are in trouble?” 11:8 The leaders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “That may be true, 50 but now we pledge to you our loyalty. 51 Come with us and fight with the Ammonites. Then you will become the leader 52 of all who live in Gilead.” 53 11:9 Jephthah said to the leaders of Gilead, “All right! 54 If you take me back to fight with the Ammonites and the Lord gives them to me, 55 I will be your leader.” 56 11:10 The leaders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “The Lord will judge any grievance you have against us, 57 if we do not do as you say.” 58 11:11 So Jephthah went with the leaders of Gilead. The people made him their leader and commander. Jephthah repeated the terms of the agreement 59 before the Lord in Mizpah.
11:12 Jephthah sent messengers to the Ammonite king, saying, “Why have 60 you come against me to attack my land?” 11:13 The Ammonite king said to Jephthah’s messengers, “Because Israel stole 61 my land when they 62 came up from Egypt – from the Arnon River in the south to the Jabbok River in the north, and as far west as the Jordan. 63 Now return it 64 peaceably!”
11:14 Jephthah sent messengers back to the Ammonite king 11:15 and said to him, “This is what Jephthah says, ‘Israel did not steal 65 the land of Moab and the land of the Ammonites. 11:16 When they left 66 Egypt, Israel traveled 67 through the desert as far as the Red Sea and then came to Kadesh. 11:17 Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, “Please allow us 68 to pass through your land.” But the king of Edom rejected the request. 69 Israel sent the same request to the king of Moab, but he was unwilling to cooperate. 70 So Israel stayed at Kadesh. 11:18 Then Israel 71 went through the desert and bypassed the land of Edom and the land of Moab. They traveled east of the land of Moab and camped on the other side of the Arnon River; 72 they did not go through Moabite territory (the Arnon was Moab’s border). 11:19 Israel sent messengers to King Sihon, the Amorite king who ruled in Heshbon, and said to him, “Please allow us to pass through your land to our land.” 73 11:20 But Sihon did not trust Israel to pass through his territory. He 74 assembled his whole army, 75 camped in Jahaz, and fought with Israel. 11:21 The Lord God of Israel handed Sihon and his whole army over to Israel and they defeated them. Israel took 76 all the land of the Amorites who lived in that land. 11:22 They took all the Amorite territory from the Arnon River on the south to the Jabbok River on the north, from the desert in the east to the Jordan in the west. 77 11:23 Since 78 the Lord God of Israel has driven out 79 the Amorites before his people Israel, do you think you can just take it from them? 80 11:24 You have the right to take what Chemosh your god gives you, but we will take the land of all whom the Lord our God has driven out before us. 81 11:25 Are you really better than Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he dare to quarrel with Israel? Did he dare to fight with them? 82 11:26 Israel has been living in Heshbon and its nearby towns, in Aroer and its nearby towns, and in all the cities along the Arnon for three hundred years! Why did you not reclaim them during that time? 11:27 I have not done you wrong, 83 but you are doing wrong 84 by attacking me. May the Lord, the Judge, judge this day between the Israelites and the Ammonites!’” 11:28 But the Ammonite king disregarded 85 the message sent by Jephthah. 86
11:29 The Lord’s spirit empowered 87 Jephthah. He passed through Gilead and Manasseh and went 88 to Mizpah in Gilead. From there he approached the Ammonites. 89 11:30 Jephthah made a vow to the Lord, saying, “If you really do hand the Ammonites over to me, 11:31 then whoever is the first to come through 90 the doors of my house to meet me when I return safely from fighting the Ammonites – he 91 will belong to the Lord and 92 I will offer him up as a burnt sacrifice.” 11:32 Jephthah approached 93 the Ammonites to fight with them, and the Lord handed them over to him. 11:33 He defeated them from Aroer all the way to Minnith – twenty cities in all, even as far as Abel Keramim! He wiped them out! 94 The Israelites humiliated the Ammonites. 95
11:1 Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a brave warrior. His mother was a prostitute, but Gilead was his father. 96
4:1 The Israelites again did evil in the Lord’s sight 97 after Ehud’s death.
1 tn Heb “did evil in the eyes of the
2 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Sisera) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
3 tn Regarding the translation “chariots with iron-rimmed wheels,” see Y. Yadin, The Art of Warfare in Biblical Lands, 255, and the article by R. Drews, “The ‘Chariots of Iron’ of Joshua and Judges,” JSOT 45 (1989): 15-23.
4 tn Heb “with strength.”
5 tn Heb “ a woman, a prophetess.” In Hebrew idiom the generic “woman” sometimes precedes the more specific designation. See GKC 437-38 §135.b.
6 tn Heb “she was.” The pronoun refers back to the nominative absolute “Deborah.” Hebrew style sometimes employs such resumptive pronouns when lengthy qualifiers separate the subject from the verb.
7 tn Or “judging.”
8 tn That is, “consider legal disputes.”
9 map For location see Map4-G4; Map5-C1; Map6-E3; Map7-D1; Map8-G3.
10 tn Heb “for judgment.”
11 tn Heb “sent and summoned.”
12 tn Heb “horde”; “multitude.”
13 tn Or “honor.”
14 tn Heb “on [account of (?)] the way which you are walking.” Another option is to translate, “due to the way you are going about this.” In this case direct reference is made to Barak’s hesitancy as the reason for his loss of glory.
15 tn Heb “for into the hands of a woman the
16 tn Heb “went up at his feet.”
17 tn Or “separated.”
18 tn Heb “pitched his tent.”
19 tn Heb “and they told Sisera.”
20 tn Heb “Sisera.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
21 tn Or “summoned.”
22 tn Heb “Arise!”
23 tn The verb form (a Hebrew perfect, indicating completed action from the standpoint of the speaker) emphasizes the certainty of the event. Though it had not yet taken place, the
24 tn Heb “Has the
25 tn Or “caused to panic.”
26 tn The Hebrew text also includes the phrase “before Barak.” This has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.
27 tn Heb “got down from.”
28 tn Heb “fell.”
29 tn Heb “was left.”
30 map For location see Map1-D2; Map2-D3; Map3-A2; Map4-C1.
31 tn Heb “for there was peace between.”
32 tn Heb “Turn aside” (also a second time later in this verse).
33 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Sisera) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
34 tn Heb “took a tent peg and put a hammer in her hand.”
35 tn Heb “and it went into the ground.”
36 tn Heb “and exhausted.” Another option is to understand this as a reference to the result of the fatal blow. In this case, the phrase could be translated, “and he breathed his last.”
37 tn Heb “he went to her.”
38 tn Heb “fallen, dead.”
39 tn Heb “The hand of the Israelites became more and more severe against.”
40 tn Heb “cut off.”
41 tn Heb “Jabin king of Canaan.” The proper name and title have been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
42 tn Or “the
43 tn Heb “sold them into the hands of.”
44 tn Or “were summoned;” or “were mustered.”
45 tn Heb “When the Ammonites fought with Israel.”
46 tn Or “elders.”
47 tn Heb “went to take Jephthah.”
48 tn Heb “to Jephthah.”
49 tn Heb “Did you not hate me and make me leave?”
50 tn Heb “therefore”; “even so.” For MT לָכֵן (lakhen, “therefore”) the LXX has an opposite reading, “not so,” which seems to be based on the Hebrew words לֹא כֵן (lo’ khen).
51 tn Heb “we have returned to you.” For another example of שׁוּב אֶל (shuv ’el) in the sense of “give allegiance to,” see 1 Kgs 12:27b.
52 sn Then you will become the leader. The leaders of Gilead now use the word רֹאשׁ (ro’sh, “head, leader”), the same term that appeared in their original, general offer (see 10:18). In their initial offer to Jephthah they had simply invited him to be their קָצִין (qatsin, “commander”; v. 6). When he resists they must offer him a more attractive reward – rulership over the region. See R. G. Boling, Judges (AB), 198.
53 tn Heb “leader of us and all who live in Gilead.”
54 tn “All right” is supplied in the translation for clarification.
55 tn Heb “places them before me.”
56 tn Some translate the final statement as a question, “will I really be your leader?” An affirmative sentence is preferable. Jephthah is repeating the terms of the agreement in an official manner. In v. 10 the leaders legally agree to these terms.
57 tn Heb “The
58 sn The
59 tn Heb “spoke all his words.” This probably refers to the “words” recorded in v. 9. Jephthah repeats the terms of the agreement at the
60 tn Heb “What to me and to you that…?”
61 tn Or “took”; or “seized.”
62 tn Heb “he” (a collective singular).
63 tn Heb “from the Arnon to the Jabbok and to the Jordan.” The word “River” has been supplied in the translation with “Arnon” and “Jabbok,” because these are less familiar to modern readers than the Jordan.
64 tc The translation assumes a singular suffix (“[return] it”); the Hebrew text has a plural suffix (“[return] them”), which, if retained, might refer to the cities of the land.
65 tn Or “take”; or “seize.”
66 tn Heb “For when they went up from.”
67 tn Or “went.”
68 tn Heb “me.” (Collective Israel is the speaker.)
69 tn Heb “did not listen.”
70 tn Heb “Also to the king of Moab he sent, but he was unwilling.”
71 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Israel; the pronoun in the Hebrew text represents a collective singular) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
72 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
73 tn Heb “to my place.”
74 tn Heb “Sihon.” The proper name (“Sihon”) has been replaced in the translation by the pronoun (“he”) because of English style; a repetition of the proper name here would be redundant in English.
75 tn Heb “all his people” (also in the following verse).
76 tn That is, took as its own possession.
77 tn Heb “from the Arnon to the Jabbok, and from the desert to the Jordan.” The word “River” has been supplied in the translation with “Arnon” and “Jabbok,” because these are less familiar to modern readers than the Jordan.
78 tn Heb “Now.”
79 tn Or “dispossessed.”
80 tn Heb “will you dispossess him [i.e., Israel; or possibly “it,” i.e., the territory]?” There is no interrogative marker in the Hebrew text.
81 tn Heb “Is it not so that what Chemosh your god causes you to possess, you possess, and all whom the
82 tn The Hebrew grammatical constructions of all three rhetorical questions indicate emphasis, which “really” and “dare to” are intended to express in the translation.
83 tn Or “sinned against you.”
84 tn Or “evil.”
85 tn Heb “did not listen to.”
86 tn Heb “Jephthah’s words which he sent to him.”
87 tn Heb “was on.”
88 tn Heb “passed through.”
89 tn Heb “From Mizpah in Gilead he passed through [to] the Ammonites.”
90 tn Heb “the one coming out, who comes out from.” The text uses a masculine singular participle with prefixed article, followed by a relative pronoun and third masculine singular verb. The substantival masculine singular participle הַיּוֹצֵא (hayyotse’, “the one coming out”) is used elsewhere of inanimate objects (such as a desert [Num 21:13] or a word [Num 32:24]) or persons (Jer 5:6; 21:9; 38:2). In each case context must determine the referent. Jephthah may have envisioned an animal meeting him, since the construction of Iron Age houses would allow for an animal coming through the doors of a house (see R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 208). But the fact that he actually does offer up his daughter indicates the language of the vow is fluid enough to encompass human beings, including women. He probably intended such an offering from the very beginning, but he obviously did not expect his daughter to meet him first.
91 tn The language is fluid enough to include women and perhaps even animals, but the translation uses the masculine pronoun because the Hebrew form is grammatically masculine.
92 tn Some translate “or,” suggesting that Jephthah makes a distinction between humans and animals. According to this view, if a human comes through the door, then Jephthah will commit him/her to the
93 tn Heb “passed over to.”
94 tn Heb “with a very great slaughter.”
95 tn Heb “The Ammonites were humbled before the Israelites.”
96 tn Heb “Now he was the son of a woman, a prostitute, and Gilead fathered Jephthah.”
97 tn Heb “did evil in the eyes of the