Judges 5:15-16

5:15 Issachar’s leaders were with Deborah,

the men of Issachar ¹  supported ²  Barak;

into the valley they were sent under Barak’s command. ³ 

Among the clans of Reuben there was intense ⁴  heart searching. ⁵ 

5:16 Why do you remain among the sheepfolds, ⁶ 

listening to the shepherds playing their pipes ⁷  for their flocks? ⁸ 

As for the clans of Reuben – there was intense searching of heart.

[5:15]  ¹ tn Heb “Issachar.” The words “the men of” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[5:15]  ² tn Or “was true to.”

[5:15]  ³ tn Heb “at his feet.”

[5:15]  ⁴ tn Heb “great was.”

[5:15]  ⁵ tc The great majority of Hebrew mss have “resolves of heart,” but a few mss read “searchings of heart,” which is preferable in light of v. 16.

[5:16]  ⁶ tn The meaning of the Hebrew word מִשְׁפְּתַיִם (mishpÿtayim) is uncertain. Some understand the word to mean “campfires.”

[5:16]  ⁷ tn Or “whistling.”

[5:16]  ⁸ tn Heb “listening to the pipe playing for the flocks.”