Judges 9:4

9:4 They paid him seventy silver shekels out of the temple of Baal-Berith. Abimelech then used the silver to hire some lawless, dangerous ¹  men as his followers. ² 

Judges 9:46

9:46 When all the leaders of the Tower of Shechem ³  heard the news, they went to the stronghold ⁴  of the temple of El-Berith. ⁵ 

[9:4]  ¹ tn Heb “empty and reckless.”

[9:4]  ² tn Heb “and they followed him.”

[9:46]  ³ sn Perhaps the Tower of Shechem was a nearby town, distinct from Shechem proper, or a tower within the city.

[9:46]  ⁴ tn Apparently this rare word refers here to the most inaccessible area of the temple, perhaps the inner sanctuary or an underground chamber. It appears only here and in 1 Sam 13:6, where it is paired with “cisterns” and refers to subterranean or cave-like hiding places.

[9:46]  ⁵ sn The name El-Berith means “God of the Covenant.” It is probably a reference to the Canaanite high god El.