Judges 3:10

3:10 The Lord’s spirit empowered him ¹  and he led Israel. When he went to do battle, the Lord handed over to him King Cushan-Rishathaim of Aram and he overpowered him. ² 

Judges 3:19

3:19 But he went back ³  once he reached ⁴  the carved images ⁵  at Gilgal. He said to Eglon, ⁶  “I have a secret message for you, O king.” Eglon ⁷  said, “Be quiet!” ⁸  All his attendants left.

Judges 6:25

Gideon Destroys the Altar

6:25 That night the Lord said to him, “Take the bull from your father’s herd, as well as a second bull, one that is seven years old. ⁹  Pull down your father’s Baal altar and cut down the nearby Asherah pole.

Judges 6:28

6:28 When the men of the city got up the next morning, they saw ¹⁰  the Baal altar pulled down, the nearby Asherah pole cut down, and the second bull sacrificed on the newly built altar.

Judges 6:30-31

6:30 The men of the city said to Joash, “Bring out your son, so we can execute him! ¹¹  He pulled down the Baal altar and cut down the nearby Asherah pole.” 6:31 But Joash said to all those who confronted him, ¹²  “Must you fight Baal’s battles? ¹³  Must you rescue him? Whoever takes up his cause ¹⁴  will die by morning! ¹⁵  If he really is a god, let him fight his own battles! ¹⁶  After all, it was his altar that was pulled down.” ¹⁷ 

Judges 9:3

9:3 His mother’s relatives ¹⁸  spoke on his behalf to ¹⁹  all the leaders of Shechem and reported his proposal. ²⁰  The leaders were drawn to Abimelech; ²¹  they said, “He is our close relative.” ²² 

Judges 14:16-17

14:16 So Samson’s bride cried on his shoulder ²³  and said, “You must ²⁴  hate me; you do not love me! You told the young men ²⁵  a riddle, but you have not told me the solution.” He said to her, “Look, I have not even told my father or mother. Do you really expect me to tell you?” ²⁶  14:17 She cried on his shoulder ²⁷  until the party was almost over. ²⁸  Finally, on the seventh day, he told her because she had nagged him so much. ²⁹  Then she told the young men the solution to the riddle. ³⁰ 

Judges 14:19

14:19 The Lord’s spirit empowered him. He went down to Ashkelon and murdered thirty men. He took their clothes ³¹  and gave them ³²  to the men who had solved the riddle. He was furious as he went back home. ³³ 

Judges 15:14

15:14 When he arrived in Lehi, the Philistines shouted as they approached him. But the Lord’s spirit empowered ³⁴  him. The ropes around his arms were like flax dissolving in ³⁵  fire, and they ³⁶  melted away from his hands.

[3:10]  ¹ tn Heb “was on him.”

[3:10]  ² tn Heb “his hand was strong against Cushan-Rishathaim.”

[3:19]  ³ tn Or “returned” (i.e., to Eglon’s palace).

[3:19]  ⁴ tn The words “when he reached” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The Hebrew text simply reads “from.”

[3:19]  ⁵ tn Or “idols.”

[3:19]  ⁶ tn The words “to Eglon” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[3:19]  ⁷ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Eglon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[3:19]  ⁸ tn Or “Hush!”

[6:25]  ⁵ tn Or “Take a bull from your father’s herd, the second one, the one seven years old.” Apparently Gideon would need the bulls to pull down the altar.

[6:28]  ⁷ tn Heb “look!” The narrator uses this word to invite his audience/readers to view the scene through the eyes of the men.

[6:30]  ⁹ tn Heb “and let him die.” The jussive form with vav after the imperative is best translated as a purpose clause.

[6:31]  ¹¹ tn Heb “to all who stood against him.”

[6:31]  ¹² tn Heb “Do you fight for Baal?”

[6:31]  ¹³ tn Heb “fights for him.”

[6:31]  ¹⁴ sn Whoever takes up his cause will die by morning. This may be a warning to the crowd that Joash intends to defend his son and to kill anyone who tries to execute Gideon. Then again, it may be a sarcastic statement about Baal’s apparent inability to defend his own honor. Anyone who takes up Baal’s cause may end up dead, perhaps by the same hand that pulled down the pagan god’s altar.

[6:31]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “fight for himself.”

[6:31]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “for he pulled down his altar.” The subject of the verb, if not Gideon, is indefinite (in which case a passive translation is permissible).

[9:3]  ¹³ tn Heb “brothers.”

[9:3]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “into the ears of.”

[9:3]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and all these words.”

[9:3]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “Their heart was inclined after Abimelech.”

[9:3]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “our brother.”

[14:16]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “on him.”

[14:16]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “only”; or “simply.”

[14:16]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “the sons of my people.”

[14:16]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “Should I tell you?”

[14:17]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “on him.”

[14:17]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “the seven days [during] which they held the party.” This does not mean she cried for the entire seven days; v. 15 indicates otherwise. She cried for the remainder of the seven day period, beginning on the fourth day.

[14:17]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “because she forced him.”

[14:17]  ²⁰ tn Heb “she told the riddle to the sons of her people.”

[14:19]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “equipment”; or “gear.”

[14:19]  ²⁰ tn Heb “changes [of clothes].”

[14:19]  ²¹ tn Heb “he went up to his father’s house.”

[15:14]  ²¹ tn Heb “rushed on.”

[15:14]  ²² tn Heb “burned with.”

[15:14]  ²³ tn Heb “his bonds.”