5:17 Gilead stayed put 1 beyond the Jordan River.
As for Dan – why did he seek temporary employment in the shipyards? 2
Asher remained 3 on the seacoast,
he stayed 4 by his harbors. 5
The Israelites retreated before 19 Benjamin, because they had confidence in the men they had hid in ambush outside Gibeah.
1 tn Heb “lived” or “settled down.”
2 tn Heb “Dan, why did he live as a resident alien, ships.” The verb גּוּר (gur) usually refers to taking up residence outside one’s native land. Perhaps the Danites, rather than rallying to Barak, were content to move to the Mediterranean coast and work in the shipyards. For further discussion, see B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 262.
3 tn Heb “lived.”
4 tn Heb “lived” or “settled down.”
5 tn The meaning of the Hebrew word מִפְרָץ (mifrats) is uncertain, but the parallelism (note “seacoast”) suggests “harbors.”
1 tn The Hebrew text adds “to you,” but this has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.
2 tn Heb “and I will bring out my gift.” The precise nuance of the Hebrew word מִנְחָה (minkhah, “gift”) is uncertain in this context. It may refer to a gift offered as a sign of goodwill or submission. In some cases it is used of a gift offered to appease someone whom the offerer has offended. The word can also carry a sacrificial connotation.
1 tn Heb “heads.”
2 tn Heb “the jars.” The noun has been replaced by the pronoun (“them”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
1 tn Heb “good.”
1 tn Heb “Now.”
2 tn Or “dispossessed.”
3 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.
1 tn Heb “He struck them, calf on thigh, [with] a great slaughter.” The precise meaning of the phrase “calf on thigh” is uncertain.
1 tn Heb “the pillars upon which the house is founded.”
1 tn Heb “turned aside.”
2 tn Heb “Micah’s house.”
3 tn Heb “they asked him concerning peace.”
1 tn Heb “gave place to.”
1 tn Heb “his inheritance.”