Judges 4:11

4:11 Now Heber the Kenite had moved away ¹  from the Kenites, the descendants of Hobab, Moses’ father-in-law. He lived ²  near the great tree in Zaanannim near Kedesh.

Judges 7:8

7:8 The men ³  who were chosen ⁴  took supplies ⁵  and their trumpets. Gideon ⁶  sent all the men of Israel back to their homes; ⁷  he kept only three hundred men. Now the Midianites ⁸  were camped down below ⁹  in the valley.

Judges 10:8

10:8 They ruthlessly oppressed ¹⁰  the Israelites that eighteenth year ¹¹  – that is, all the Israelites living east of the Jordan in Amorite country in Gilead.

[4:11]  ¹ tn Or “separated.”

[4:11]  ² tn Heb “pitched his tent.”

[7:8]  ³ tn Heb “The people.”

[7:8]  ⁴ tn The words “who were chosen” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[7:8]  ⁵ tn The Hebrew text has “in their hands.”

[7:8]  ⁶ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Gideon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:8]  ⁷ tn Heb “tents.”

[7:8]  ⁸ tn Heb “Midian.”

[7:8]  ⁹ tn The Hebrew text adds “him” (i.e., Gideon).

[10:8]  ⁵ tn Heb “shattered and crushed.” The repetition of similar sounding synonyms (רָעַץ [ra’ats] and רָצַץ [ratsats]) is for emphasis; רָצַץ appears in the Polel, adding further emphasis to the affirmation.

[10:8]  ⁶ tn The phrase שְׁמֹנֶה עֶשְׂרֵה שָׁנָה (shemoneh ’esreh shanah) could be translated “eighteen years,” but this would be difficult after the reference to “that year.” It is possible that v. 8b is parenthetical, referring to an eighteen year long period of oppression east of the Jordan which culminated in hostilities against all Israel (including Judah, see v. 9) in the eighteenth year. It is simpler to translate the phrase as an ordinal number, though the context does not provide the point of reference. (See Gen 14:4-5 and R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 191-92.) In this case, the following statement specifies which “Israelites” are in view.