B 388233
ºc ºcºcºons
edited by PAUL lºº"



THE SACRED BOOKS
OF THE
©to ano (lºw ºcºtaments
A NEW ENGLISH TRANSLATION
With Explanatory Notes and Pictorial Illustrations
º
PREPARED BY
cºmment Qºtºcaſ scºotars of Čurope amo of ſºmerica
AND ED ITED WITH THE ASS IS TA N C E OF
HORACE HO WARD FURNESS
By
(pauſ Daupt
PROFESSOR IN THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
BALTIMORE
PART 7
ºr ºcot of ºutgee
TRANSLATED BY
G - F - MOORE
£ombon
JAMES CLARKE & CO.
1898
(ſlºw Q) orå §tuttgart
DODD, MEAD, AND COMPANY DEUTSCHE VERLAGS-ANSTALT

THE
CŞoot of judges
A NEW ENGLISH TRANSLATION
PRINTED IN COLORS EXHIBITING THE COMPOSITE STRUCTURE OF THE BOOK
Cºttº &eptanatory Quotes
AND PICTO RIAL I LLUS T R ATIONS
By
| | | | Riº º MOORE D D
PROFESSOR 1 N ANDov ER THEOLOGICAL SEM.INARY
ANDover, MASS.
£ombom
JAMES CLARKE & Co.
- 1898
Qlem Q)ork Étuttgart
DODD, MEAD, AND COMPANY - DEUTSCHE VERLAGS-ANST ALT


zy can & *~~
<</2c - 424- %
Copprigºt
IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
1897
BY
PAUL HAUPT
§§
ENTERED AT STATIONERS’ HALL
LONDON
PRINTED BY
&$e $riebenwafo Compang
BALTIMoRE, M.D., U. S. A.
§
PolychroMY PATENTED FEB. 16, 1897
U. S. PATENT No. 577,253
D. R. G.M., No.28,784

&
§
SS
ºf:
ÜS. 22 ſº ºS
&E
º(ºſºvº
%a the Authorized Version, but a New Translation from the Hebrew,
º; in modern English. The aim has been to render the sense of
the original as faithfully as possible rather than to sacrifice that
sense in order to give a literal translation.
This new Translation appeals to all interested in the Bible.
The Explanatory Notes are free from technical details which
have no interest for the average reader. We had no desire (as
the translators of the Authorized Version say in their Preface)
to zweary the unlearned, zwho need not know so much, and trouble the learned,
zºho Amozy it already. The reader may rest assured, however, that all variations
from the Authorized Version in the present Translation are the results of the
ripest Biblical scholarship of the present generation both in Europe and in
America. The translation is based throughout on the new critical edition of the
Hebrew text of the Old Testament, published under the auspices of the Johns
Hopkins University, Baltimore.
Departures from the Received Text are indicated by special marks, whereby
the reader can see at a glance whether a variation is based on parallel passages,
or on the authority of the Ancient Versions, or is merely a conjectural emenda-
tion, &c. These critical marks are, designedly, so unobtrusive as not to inter-
fere with the comfort of the ordinary reader; they are mainly intended for the
benefit of those who are interested in the details of textual criticism.
&xpfanation of £ritica? (Iſlavág.
(I) - - (i. e. V = Versions) indicate a reading adopted on the authority of
the Antient Versions (Septuagint, Targums, Peshita, Vulgate, &c., in reference
to which the reader may consult the Preface to the Authorized Version, also
the List of Abbreviations below, p. ix, under LXX, Pesh., Targ., Vulg.).
(2) . » (i. e. c = conjecture) indicate Conjectural Emendations.
(3) (i. e. 5, the first letter of the Hebrew word ºp; migqūd “punctua-
tion') indicate changes involving merely a different division of the consonantal
text, or a departure from the vowel-points which the so-called Masorites added
to the original consonantal text in the eighth and ninth centuries A. D.
(4) e o (i. e. Q = Q&ré) indicate that the marginal reading (Heb. Ośré ‘what
is to be read') has been adopted instead of the K&thió ‘what is written.’
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VI →regº-Jntrobuctorp (kemarãe -ºs-
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(5) indicate changes introduced by reason of Parallel Passages.
(6) indicate Doubtful Words or Passages.
(7) . . indicate deviations from the Received (or Masoretic) Text, suggested
by the Versions as well as by Parallel Passages. g
(8) indicate departures from the Masoretic reading of the consonantal
text, which are supported by the Ancient Versions.
(9) In cases where critical marks occur without any letters or words
between them (<>, >, &c.), Omissions are indicated, based on the Versions or
on Conjectural Emendations, &c.
(IO) indicate words implied, but not expressed, in the Hebrew. These
marks, therefore, take the place of italics in the Authorized Version.
(II) [ ] indicate Transposed Passages, the traditional position of the words
in the Received Text being marked by [], while the transposed words are
enclosed in [ |; see e. g. PS. 35, 7.
(12) indicates transposition of the Masoretic “: ” which marks the end of
a verse in the Hebrew Text.
(13) . . . . . indicate Corrupt and Unintelligible Passages.
(14) # * * * * indicate Lacunae in the Hebrew Text.
&xpfanation of £ofors.
Older incorporated documents or later sections in Biblical Books of a com-
posite character are printed on backgrounds of different colors. The explana-
tion of the colors employed in the Books of Isaiah and of Judges is given on
p. 132 of the Notes on Isaiah and on p. 46 of the Notes on Judges, respectively.
$ootnotes.
Words or passages printed as notes at the bottom of the pages of the
translation represent subsequent additions to the original text; cf. Notes on
Judges, p. 47, ll: 5 ff.; Notes on Isaiah, p. 209, ll. 33 ff.
(\larginaf figures.
In the Explanatory Notes the figures in the margin on the right refer to
the chapters and verses commented on ; the figures in the margin on the left
merely number the lines. On those pages, however, where there are no
references to chapters and verses in the margin the line-numbers are placed in
the outer margin. In the Translation the lines are always numbered in the
inner margin, while the traditional numbers of the chapters and verses are
placed in the outer margin.
35eavp-faceo (ſlumerafe.
Heavy-faced numerals are used instead of Roman letters to distinguish the
number of the chapter from the number of the verse; e. g. Ps. 88, 8 = Psalm
lxxxviii, verse 8; but Pss. 88.89 = Psalm lxxxviii and Psalm lxxxix.
(§eferences to Q3ißfica? (pageages.
References to Biblical passages follow, throughout, the Authorized Version,
not the Hebrew Text. It is well known that the division of the chapters is
occasionally not the same in the Hebrew and in the English Bibles; and that
the title of a Psalm, where it consists of more than two words, is usually
reckoned in Hebrew as the first verse.
-->}eº. Jntrobuctorp (kemarke -ºst- VII
QIntrangfateo 1528tew (ſporos.
A few Hebrew words have been left untranslated, viz. ben, the Hebrew
word for son (e. g. Isaiah ben-Amoz = Isaiah, the son of Amoz); Sheół (Heb.
shě'ól), the abode of departed spirits, the habitation of the dead (Greek Hades);
Asherdh, the sacred post or pole, the wooden symbol of a goddess, beside an
altar (see Notes on Judges, p. 57, 1. 32; p. 69, l. 22); AVege6, the steppe-like
region in the South of Palestine (see Notes on Judges, p. 49, l. 8); Arabah,
the great geologic depression extending from the Dead Sea to the eastern
gulf of the Red Sea (see Notes on Judges, p. 64, 1.39; cf. Notes on Isaiah,
p. 159, 1. I4); Selah at the end of certain stanzas in the Psalms (see Notes on
the Psalms, p. 165, l. 8); Satan, in Hebrew = adversary, accuser (see Notes on
Ps. Io9, 6); Hallelujah (Ps. Ioa, 35 &c.) = Praise ye JAH (a shorter form of
JHVH); Sabaoth (cf. Jas. 5, 4; Rom. 9, 29 = Is. I , 9) in the name /HVH Sabaoth,
JHvh of the Hosts, i. e. the God of the armies of Israel (1 Sam. 17, 45; cf. Pss.
44, 9; 60, IO = Io8, II). For JHVH, see below, List of Abbreviations, p. viii.
&ransfiteration of Örientaf Qlames.
All Biblical names are given in the form used in the Authorized Version.
In the transliteration of other Hebrew words, or of modern Oriental (Arabic)
names, the vowels have their Italian sounds: á is like the a in far or father;
f is the i in marine; and it – oo in coo/; 3 = a in name; short i = i in pin ;
&c. (e. g. Tel-Abū-Oudés = Tel-Aboo-Aoodace). As to the consonants, 7 and y
are pronounced as in English ; 7 has about the same Sound as English c in cool
(not as AE in Keel, or qu in Queen); ' is the Arabic Ain, the zoiced form of the
Arabic h which may be described as a stronger variety of our h; Æh is the
guttural ch in German or Scotch Zoch (Spanish a or 7); c is a modification of
our s (with an immer rounding) which affects the pronunciation of the following
vowels (e. g. cin, not = seen, but more like same ; Cá = Sazey, &c.). In the
majority of English books of a popular character the letters AE and s are used
for q and c, respectively (e.g. el-Aksa for el-Aqſa ; see Psalms, p. 235, l. 4I).
Épeffing.
Fnglish readers who object to the “American' spelling, honor, &c., may be
referred to HENRY Sweet's Weze, English Grammar (Oxford, Clarendon Press,
1892), p. xi and Ž 1710, &c., or to Dr. MURRAY's remarks on the spelling of aar
in the Nezw English Dictionary on Historical Principles (Oxford, Clarendon
Press).
£63reviations.
The following List includes a large number of abbreviations which would
not require explanation if the present Translation were for the exclusive use of
American or English readers.
&c. stands for And others, or, and
so forth (Lat. et carteri, cartera, cartera,
respectively).
I, 2, 3, &c., before the name of a
Biblical book, 'stands for First Book,
Second Book, Third Book, &c., respec-
tively: I Kings is the First Book of
Kings; 2 Sam. = the Second Book of
Samuel ; 3 Psalms = the Third Book
of Psalms. 4 Isaiah = the fourth part
of the Book of Isaiah in the present
Translation, &c.
2, or 3, &c., after the title of a book
(e. g. Notes on Isaiah, p. 157, 1. I9),
stands for second or third editions, re-
spectively.— For D*, E°, &c., see D, E,
&c.
a stands for first part (or first line)
of a verse. Subdivisions of parts of
verses are indicated by * *, respec-
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—-seagºe jntrobuctorp (Remarke ºt-
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tively; e. g. 2, 14a” (Judges, p. 54,
1. 36) refers to the second clause (*)
of the first part (a) of the verse (and
delivered them to spoilers who despoiled
them). The first clause of the second
half of the verse (and he sold them into
the power of their enemies on all sides)
would be v. 14b*.
A. D. = In the year of Our Lord
Io (Lat. Anno Domini).
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Am... = Amos.
Amt. = Antiquities, especially the
work of the Jewish historian Josephus
(37–IOO. A. D.) on Jewish Antiquities.
ARV = Authorized and Revised
Versions.
AV = Authorized Version.
AVM = Authorized Version, mar-
gin.
b = Second part (or second line)
of a verse; see a.
Bar. = Baruch.
B. C. = Before Christ.
Bibl. = Biblical.
c = Third part (or third line) of a
verse ; see a.
c., or C. = Chapter.
cc., or CC. = Chapters.
ca. = about (Lat. circa).
Cant. = Song of Solomon (Canti-
cles). -
cent. = Century.
cf., or C/. = Compare (Lat. confer).
Chr., or Chron. = Chronicles.
col., or Col. = Column.
Col. = Colossians.
Cor. = Corinthians.
d = Fourth part (or fourth line) of
a verse ; see a.
D = Deuteronomy, or the author of
Deuteronomy; see Notes on Judges,
p. 46, l. I5; p. 53, 1. Io.
D* = Deuteronomistic editors.
Dan. = Daniel.
Deut. = Deuteronomy.
E = East.
E = Ephraimitic Writer; see Notes
on Judges, p. 46, l. 24.
E* = Later additions to E ;
Notes on Judges, p. 46, l. 40.
Eccl., or Eccles. = Ecclesiastes.
ed. = Edition.
e.g. = For example (Lat. e.templi
gratiâ).
See
ENE = East-North-East.
Eph. = Ephesians.
esp. = Especially.
Esth. = Esther.
Ex., or Exod. = Exodus.
Ez., or Ezek. = Ezekiel.
. = and the following verse (or
line, or page, &c.).
ff. = and the following verses (or
lines, or pages, &c.).
fig., or Fig. = Figure.
Gal. = Galatians.
Gen. = Genesis.
H = The Law of Holiness (Lev.
I7–26); see Notes on Leviticus, p. 56.
Hab. = Habakkuk.
Hag., or Hagg. = Haggai.
Heb. = Hebrew, or Epistle to the
Hebrews.
Her. = Herodotus.
Hom. = Homer.
Hos. = Hosea.
ió., or ibid. = In the same place
(Lat. ióidem).
i. e. = That is (Lat. id est).
IZ. = Iliad.
in. = inch, or inches.
Inscr. = Inscription.
Is., or Isa. = Isaiah.
J = Judaic Writer;
Judges, p. 46, l. 23.
Jas. = James.
JE = The Prophetic Narrative of
the Hexateuch, composed of J and E ;
see Notes on Judges, p. 46, ll. 26.4I ;
p. 53, l. 35.
Jer, = Jeremiah.
JHVH = the Hebrew name of the
Supreme Being, erroneously written
and pronounced Jehozyah. The true
pronunciation seems to have been Yah-
zvay; see Notes on the Psalms, p. 163,
ll. 36 f.
Jon. = Jonah.
Jos., or Josh. = Joshua.
K. = Kings.
1. or L. = Line.
ll. or LL. = Lines.
Lam. = Lamentations.
see Notes on
Lat. = Latin.
lb. = Pound (Lat. Zibra).
lbs. = Pounds.
/. c. = In the place before cited
(Lat. Moco citato).
—seggae Jntrobuctorp (Remarke ºt- IX
t
Lev. = Leviticus.
lit., or Lit. = Literally.
LXX = Septuagint, the ancient
Greek Version of OT, made in Egypt
by Hellenistic Jews (3d-1st cent. B. C.).
M = margin. Cº. AV, RV.
Macc. = Maccabees.
Mal. = Malachi.
Matth. = Matthew.
Meg. = Megillah (the Heb. word
for scroll, zolume).
Mic. = Micah.
MS = Manuscript.
MSS = Manuscripts.
Mt. = Mount, or Mountain.
n. = Note.
nn. = Notes.
Nah. = Nahum.
NE = North-East.
Neh. = Nehemiah.
NNE = North-North-East.
no., or No. = Number.
nos., or Nos. = Numbers.
NT = New Testament.
Num. = The Book of Numbers.
NW = North-West.
Ob., or Obad. = Obadiah.
Od., or Odyss. = Odyssey.
op. cit. = In the work before cited
Phil. = Philippians.
Prov. = Proverbs.
PS. = Psalm.
PSS. = Psalms.
R = Redactor or editor. 5
RJP = Redactor of JE ; see Notes
On Judges, p. 46, ll. 26.45.
Rev. = Revelation.
Rom. = Romans.
RV = Revised Version. IO
RVM = Revised Version, margin.
S = South.
S., or Sam. = Samuel.
SE = South-East.
sec. = Second. I5
Sir. = Ecclesiasticus (The Wisdom
of Jesus, the son of Sirach).
Sol. = Solomon.
SW = South-West.
Targ. = Targum, the Jewish trans- 20
lation or paraphrase of the Scriptures
in the Western Aramaic dialect.
Thess. = Thessalonians.
Tim. = Timothy.
Tob. = Tobit. 25
v., or V. = Verse.
vv., or VV. = Verses.
ziz. = Namely (Lat. widelicet).
vol., or Vol. = Volume.
(Lat. opere citato).
OT = Old Testament.
P = Priestly Writer; see Notes on Version of the Bible, made by St.
Judges, p. 92, 41 ; cf. Notes on Levit- Jerome about 400 A. D.
icus, p. 56. W = West.
p., or P. = Page. WNW = West-North-West.
pp., or PP. = Pages. WSW = West-South-West.
Pesh. = Peshita, the earliest Syriac Zech. = Zechariah.
Version of the Old Testament. Zeph. = Zephaniah.
vols., or Vols. = Volumes.
&xtracts from tºe (preface of tºe flut}ori;co Qersion.
In conclusion, no words of ours can so befittingly, or so eloquently, set
forth the motives which have guided us, or so amply justify our Translation,
as the following extracts from the Preface to the Authorized Version of 1611;
three hundred years have not veiled their truth, and they encourage us to-day
in tones as commanding as when the pious translators first uttered them : —
“Things of this quality have ever been subject to the censures of illmeaning
and discontented persons. For was there ever any thing projected, that savored
any way of newness or renewing, but the same endured many a storm of gain-
saying or opposition ? In some Commonweals it was made a capital crime, once
to motion the making of a new law for the abrogating of an old, though the
same were most pernicious. As oft as we do any thing of note or consequence,
we subject ourselves to every one's censure. So hard a thing is it to please all,
even when we please God best, and do seek to approve ourselves to every one's
Vulg. = Vulgate, the ancient Latin
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conscience. Whosoever attempteth any thing for the public (specially if it
pertain to religion, and to the opening and clearing of the word of God) the
same setteth himself upon a stage to be glouted upon by every evil eye; yea,
he casteth himself headlong upon pikes, to be gored by every sharp tongue.
For he that meddleth with men's religion in any part meddleth with their cus-
tom, nay, with their freehold ; and though they find no content in that which
they have, yet they cannot abide to hear of altering.
But now what piety without truth? What truth, what saving truth, without
the word of God? What word of God, whereof we may be sure, without the
Scripture? The Scriptures we are commanded to search, John 5, 39; Esa. 8, 20.
The Scripture is not only an armor, but also a whole armory of weapons, both
offensive and defensive; it is a fountain of most pure water springing up unto
everlasting life. Happy is the man that delighteth in the Scripture, and thrice
happy that meditateth in it day and night."
But how shall men meditate in that which they cannot understand? How
shall they understand that which is kept close in an unknown tongue? Trans-
lation it is that openeth the window, to let in the light; that breaketh the shell,
that we may eat the kernel ; that putteth aside the curtain, that we may look
into the most holy place; that removeth the cover of the well, that we may
come by the water. Indeed without translation into the vulgar tongue, the
unlearned are but like children at Jacob's well (which was deep)* without a
bucket or something to draw with ; or as that person mentioned by Esay,” to
whom when a sealed book was delivered with this motion : Read this, / pray
thee, he was fain to make this answer: I cannot, for it is sealed.
The godly learned were not content to have the Scriptures in the language
which themselves understood, but also for the behoof and edifying of the
unlearned, which hungered and thirsted after righteousness,” and had souls to
be saved as well as they, they provided translations into the vulgar for their
countrymen. So that to have the Scriptures in the mother tongue is not a
quaint conceit lately taken up, but has been thought upon, and put in practice
of old, even from the first times of the conversion of any nation; no doubt
because it was esteemed most profitable to cause faith to grow in men's hearts
the sooner, and to make them to be able to say with the words of the Psalm :
As we haze heard, so zve haze seen.
Many men's mouths have been open a good while (and yet are not
stopped) with speeches about the translation so long in hand, and ask what
may be the reason, what the necessity, of the employment. Hath the Church
been deceived, say they, all this while 2 We hoped that we had been in the
right way, that we had had the Oracles of God delivered unto us, and that
though all the world had cause to be offended, and to complain, yet that we
had none. Hath the nurse holden out the breast, and nothing but wind in it?
Was their translation good before, Why do they now mend it? Was it not
good, Why then was it obtruded to the people? We will answer them briefly
with St. Hierome: Do zve condemn the ancient 2 In no case, but after the
endeavors of them that were before us, we take the best pains zwe can in the
house of God. Blessed be they, and most honored be their name, that break
the ice, and give the onset upon that which helpeth forward to the saving of
souls |
Now what can be more available thereto, than to deliver God’s book unto
God's people in a tongue which they understand? Since of an hidden treasure,
and of a fountain that is sealed, there is no profit. As St. Augustine Saith :
3:6e-º-º-º:
<sºs
* Psalm I, 2. 8 John 4, 11. * Isaiah 29, 11 . I2. * Matth. 5, 6. • Psalm 48* 8.

—ºgº. Jntrobuctorp (Remarke ºt--- XI
A man had rather be with his dog than with a stranger (whose tongue is
strange to him). If we, building upon their foundation that went before us,
and being holpen by their labors, do endeavor to make that better which they
left so good, no man, we are sure, hath cause to mislike us ; they, we persuade
ourselves, if they were alive, would thank us. How many books of profane
learning have been gone over again and again, by the same translators, by
others? Let us bless God from the ground of our heart for working this
religious care to have the translations of the Bible maturely considered of and
examined. We do not deny that the very meanest translation of the Bible in
English containeth the word of God. But to whom ever was it imputed for a
fault (by such as were wise) to go over that which he had done, and to amend
it where he saw cause 2 If we will be sons of the truth, we must consider what
it speaketh, and trample upon our own credit, yea, and upon other men's too,
if either be any way an hindrance to it.
To that purpose there were many chosen, that were greater in other men's
eyes than in their own, and that sought the truth rather than their own praise.
And in what sort did these assemble P In the trust of their own knowledge,
or of their sharpness of wit, or deepness of judgment, as it were in an arm of
flesh 2 At no hand. They trusted in Him that hath the key of David, opening,
and no man shutting." In this confidence, and with this devotion, did they
assemble together ; not too many, lest one should trouble another ; and yet
many, lest many things haply might escape them. If you ask what they had
before them, truly it was the Hebrew text of the Old Testament, the Greek of
the New. These are the two golden pipes, or rather conduits, wherethrough
the olive branches empty themselves into the gold.”
Matters of such weight, and consequence are to be speeded with maturity;
for in a business of moment a man feareth not the blame of convenient slack-
ness. Neither did we think , much to consult the translators or commentators,
Chaldee, Æebrezv, Syrian, Greek, or Latin ; neither did we disdain to revise
that which we had done, and to bring back to the anvil that which we had
hammered ; but having and using as great helps as were needful, and fearing
no reproach for slowness, nor coveting praise for expedition, we have at length,
through the good hand of the Lord upon us,” brought the work to that pass
that you see.
Some peradventure would have no variety of senses to be set in the margin,
lest the authority of the Scriptures for deciding of controversies by that show of
uncertainty should somewhat be shaken. But we hold their judgment not to be
so sound in this point. There be many words in the Scriptures, which be never
found there but once (having neither brother nor neighbor, as the Hebrews
speak) so that we cannot be holpen by conference of places. Again, there
be many rare names of certain birds, beasts, and precious stones, &c., concern-
ing which the Hebrews themselves are so divided among themselves for judg-
ment, that they may seem to have defined this or that, rather because they
would say something, than because they were sure of that which they said.
Now in such a case, doth not a margin do well to admonish the Reader to
seek further, and not to conclude or dogmatize upon this or that peremptorily?
For as it is a fault of incredulity, to doubt of those things that are evident; so
to determine of such things as the Spirit of God hath left (even in the judgment
of the judicious) questionable, can be no less than presumption. Diversity of
signification and sense in the margin, where the text is not so clear, must needs
do good; yea, is necessary, as we are persuaded.
+ºsºv-
* Rev. 3, 7. * Zech, 4, 12. * Ezra 7, 9; Neh. 2, 8, 18.
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Another thing we think good to admonish thee of, gentle Reader, that we
have not tied ourselves to an uniformity of phrasing, or to an identity of words,
as some peradventure would wish that we had done, because they observe, that
some learned men somewhere have been as exact as they could that way.
Truly, that we might not vary from the sense of that which we had translated
before, if the word signified the same thing in both places (for there be some
words that be not of the same sense every where) we were especially careful,
and made a conscience, according to our duty. But that we should express the
same notion in the same particular word; as for example, if we translate the
Aſebrezºy or Greek word once by purpose, never to call it intent; if one where
journeying, never traveling ; if one where think, never suppose; if one where
pain, never ache; if one where joy, never gladness, &c., thus to mince the
matter, we thought to savor more of curiosity than wisdom, and that rather it
would breed scorn in the atheist, than bring profit to the godly reader. For is
the kingdom of God become words or syllables? Why should we be in bond-
age to them, if we may be free? Use one precisely, when we may use another
no less fit as commodiously P
A godly Father" in the primitive time reporteth that he was much abused
for turning cucurbita” (to which reading the people had been used) into
Aedera.” Now if this happen in better times, and upon so small occasions,
we might justly fear hard censure, if generally we should make verbal and
unnecessary changings.
We might also be charged (by scoffers) with some unequal dealing towards
a great number of good English words. If we should say, as it were, unto
certain words: Stand up higher, have a place in the Bible always; and to others
of like quality: Get you hence, be banished for ever; we might be taxed per-
adventure with St. James's words, namely, To be partial in ourselves, and
judges of evil thoughts.”
Lastly, we have on the one side avoided the scrupulosity of the Puritanes,
who leave the old Ecclesiastical words, and betake them to other, as when
they put Zvashing for baptism, and congregation instead of Church ; as also on
the other side we have shunned the obscurity of the Papists, in their azymes,
tumiée, rational, holocausts, prapuce, pasche, and a number of such like. We
desire that the Scripture may speak like itself, as in the language of Canaan,
that it may be understood even of the very vulgar. -
Many other things we might give thee warning of, gentle Reader, if we
had not exceeded the measure of a preface already. It remaineth that we
commend thee to God, and to the Spirit of His grace, which is able to build
further than we can ask or think. He removeth the scales from our eyes, the
veil from our hearts, opening our wits that we may understand His word,
enlarging our hearts, yea, correcting our affections, that we may love it above
gold and silver, yea, that we may love it to the end. Ye are brought unto
fountains of living water which ye digged not ; do not cast earth into them,
neither prefer broken pits before them. Others have labored, and you may
enter into their labors. O receive not so great things in vain. Be not like
swine to tread under foot so precious things, neither yet like dogs to tear and
abuse holy things. If light be come into the world, love not darkness more
than light; if food, if clothing be offered, go not naked, starve not yourselves.
Remember the advice, It is a grieznous thing to neglect a great fair, and to
seek to make markets afterwards. Amen.”
+ºğsºčo-—
“St. Jerome (about 400 A.D.). * gourd (Jonah 4., 6). Y ivy. *Jas. 2, 4.
so 35°
Seats of -
*T THE TWELVE TRIBES =
in the XI" century. -
By W. Si eglin -
ºº Mºchnash.
º Geº. * Jerº […"… -
Lon. o To M/ ſ Hºon,
- ſ º: Pyotº Z-1 - >
- Jerusalem /*H Mebo o
". .
o
Te/coa/u.
Longitude East ºo' from Greenwich 36°
Gºres Fropºiece























Conquests of the jeractite ºrifice
in Čanaam.
sº
S) º
ºſ(3)
º
º º
A Z E /ø ſhe death of Joshua the Israelites inquired
ſº of Javn Who of us shall first go up to make
ºº). Wº ºn the Canaanites?” JHvº answered: Judah
ºsº shall go; I will give the land into their power.
sº. The tribe of Judah said to their kinsmen of
º
MA
º º
º
* º tº us, that we may make war on the Canaanites, and
IO º --- º then we will go with you into your territory.” So
the Simeonites went with them. Then the tribe
of Judah invaded the country, and JHvº delivered the Canaanites
and Perizzites into their power, and they defeated them at Bezek,
and killed ten thousand men. And they came upon Adoni-bezeks
15 at Bezek," and fought with him, and defeated the Canaanites and
Perizzites.” Adoni-bezek fled, but they pursued and took him, and
chopped off his thumbs and his great toes. And Adoni-bezek
said: Seventy kings, with their thumbs and great toes chopped
off, used to pick up scraps under my table; according to my
20 own deeds God has requited me! And they brought him to
Jerusalem, and there he died.* Then the Judahites attacked Jeru-
salem, and took it, putting its inhabitants to the sword, and
destroying the city by fire.”
After this the Judahites went down to wage war on the
25 Canaanites who inhabited the Mountains, and the Negeb, and the
1.
I, I
2
4.
6
7
S











I, IO-27 —ººº- 3uegºs -ººººº- 2
IO
II
I2
I3
I4
I5
16
I7
18
I9
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2
I
22
23
24
25
26
27
I, 16
Lowlands.” And /uda/º went against the Canaanites who inhab-
ited Hebron (the older name of Hebron was Kirjath-arba), and
slew Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai.” Thence they went up-
against the inhabitants of Debir (the older name of Debir was
Kirjath-sepher).” And Caleb said: I will give my daughter Achsah
in marriage to the man who attacks Kirjath-sepher and takes it.
Caleb's younger brother,” Othniel ben-Kenaz, took it; and Caleb
gave him his daughter Achsah in marriage. When she came to
him, he incited her to ask her father for a piece of land. So
she leaped down from her ass, and when her father asked : What
is the matter? she answered : Give me a present; thou hast put
me off into the Negeb; therefore give me Gullath-maim. So
Caleb gave her Gullath-illith and Gullath-tahtith.*
o Hobab the Kenite, Moses' father-in-law, accompanied the
Judahites from the Palm City to the wilderness of oſ] Arad [...],
and went and lived with the Amalekites-ºs Then the tribe of
Judah went with their kinsmen of Simeon, and they defeated the
Canaanites who inhabited Zephath, and devoted it to destruction;
hence the city was named Hormah.” And Judah took Gaza, and
Ashkelon, and Ekron, with the districts belonging to them.” JHvh
was with Judah, and the tribe conquered the Highlands, but was
not cable to dispossess the inhabitants of the Plain, because the
latter had iron chariots.” Hebron was given to Caleb, as Moses
had bidden, and Caleb drove therefrom the three giants.” But
the Benjamites did not dispossess the Jebusites who inhabited Jeru-
salem; the Jebusites live with the Benjamites in Jerusalem to the
present day.”
The tribes of the House of Joseph,” also, went up to Beth-el,
and JHvii was with them. As they were reconnoitering at Beth-el
(the earlier name of the city was Luz)” their scouts saw a man
coming out of the city, and said to him : Show us the way to
enter the city, and we will treat thee well. Thereupon he showed
them the way to enter the city; and they put the people of the
city to the sword, but that man and all his kin they let go;
and he went to the country of the Hittites, and built a town
which he called Luz, a name it bears to this day.” Manasseh
did not conquer Beth-shean with the villages belonging thereto, nor
Taanach and its villages, nor the inhabitants of Dor, nor of Ibleam,
- -
º-ºe-
* which is in the Negeb
IO
I5
2O
25
30
35
3 -º-º-ºubges -º- I, 28–2, 5
nor of Megiddo, with their villages; * for the Canaanites maintained r
themselves resolutely in that region. But when Israel became 28
strong, they subjected the Canaanites to forced labor,” but did not
dispossess them. Nor did Ephraim dispossess the Canaanites who 29
5 inhabited Gezer, but the Canaanites remained in Gezer in the midst
of them.”
Neither did Zebulun dispossess the inhabitants of Kitron and 30
Nahalol;” the Canaanites dwelt in the midst of them, but had
to labor for them.” Asher did not dispossess the inhabitants of 31
Io Accho and Sidon, nor of Ahlab, nor of Achzib, nor of Helbah,
nor of Aphik, nor of Rehob;” the Asherites settled among the 32
Canaanite population of the region, they did not dispossess them.
Nor did Naphtali dispossess the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh, nor 33
of Beth-anath; they dwelt among the Canaanite inhabitants of the
15 region, but the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and of Beth-anath had
to labor for them.3°
The Amorites crowded the Danites into the hill-country, and 34
did not allow them to descend to the plain ; and the Amorites 35
maintained themselves resolutely in Har-heres, and Aijalon, and
20 Shaalbim.” But when the tribes of Joseph grew more powerful,
the Amorites had to labor ºf ºr them.
And the boundary of the Edomites, ran from the Akrabbim 36
Pass ºto: Sela and onward.3°
And the Messenger of JHvii went up from Gilgal to Beth-el,332,
25 and said: 3 x * x and I led you up from Egypt, and brought
you into the land which I swore to your forefathers that I would
give you; and I said: I will never break my covenant with you; 2
and ye, on your part, shall make no terms with the inhabitants of
this land; their altars ye shall pull down as But ye have not
3oheeded my words; what is this that ye have done? And I also 3
said: I will not expel them before you; they shall be enemies-
to you, and their gods shall be a snare to you.” When the 4
Messenger of JHvii uttered these words to all the Israelites the
people broke out into loud weeping; hence the place received the 5
35 name Bochim.” And they offered sacrifice there to JHvii.


2,6-19 -** 3 ubgcº º - 4.
15istory of Jeract umber tº 3 w83es
-->
º
Jntroduction.
(2, 6–3, 6)
2,6 HEN Joshua dismissed the people, and the Israelites went
7 to their several allotments to possess the land. And the 5
people served Jºvº all the days of Joshua, and of the Elders
who outlived Joshua and had seen all the great work which
8 Jºvº had wrought for Israel And Joshua ben-Nun, the Servant
90/ /HVH, died at the age of a hundred and ten years; and they
buried him within the bounds of his estate, at Timnath-heres in Io
Io the Highlands of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.3 And that
whole generation were gathered to their fathers,” and there suc-
ceeded another generation, who did not know JHvii, nor the work
which He had wrought for Israel.
II. 12. Then the Israelites offended Java, and served the Baa/s, and 15
forsook their fathers God, Jºvº, who had brought them up from
Egypt, and followed other gods, from among the gods of the
nations about them, and worshiped them, and exasperated Jºvº.
13 And they forsook JHVH, and burnt sacrifices to Baal and Astarted."
14 And Jºvi was incensed against Israel, and delivered them to 20
spoilers who despoiled them ; and He sold them into the power of
their enemies on all sides, so that they were no longer able to
15 withstand their foes. Whenever they went to war, the hand of
JHvº was against them to their hurt, as JHvº had foretold and
had sworn to them that it should be ſº and they were in great 25
16 straits. And JHvº raised up Judges, and delivered the Israelites
17 from those who despoiled them ;9 yet they would not obey even
their Judges, but went astray after other gods, and worshiped
them : * they soon turned aside from the way in which their
fathers had gone, who had obeyed the commandments of JHvº, 30
18 they did not follow their fathers' example. And when Jºvº raised
them up Judges. He would be with the Judge, and deliver them
from their enemies as long as the Judge lived; for Jºvi was
moved to pity by their groans under those who oppressed them
19 and tyrannized over them. But when the Judge died they would 35
slide back, and act worse than their fathers, in running after other

5 -** 3ubges -º- 2, 20-3, II
gods, in serving and in worshiping them; they did not abandon 2
any of their practices nor their obstinate ways.”
And JHvº was incensed against Israel, and said : Inasmuch as 20
this people have transgressed the injunction which I laid upon their
5 fathers, and have not heeded what I said, I, on my part, will not 21
drive out for them another one of the peoples which Joshua left
when he died; in order to try Israel by these peoples, to see 22
whether or not the Israelites would keep the ways of Java, walk-
ing in them as their fathers kept them. So Jºvi left these peoples, 23
to not dispossessing them at once, and did not give them into the
power of /oshua.”
These are the peoples which Jºvi left whereby to try Israel. 3, 1
(name/y, aſ those /sraelites who had no experience of a// //e wars
of Canaan),” solely for the sake of ~ the successive generations of 2
15 Israelites, to teach war to them's (only to those who /reviously
had no experience whereo/).” the five princes of the Philistines, 3
and all the Canaanites, and the Phoenicians, and the Hittites
inhabiting the Mountains of Lebanon from Mount Baal-hermon
to the Gateway of Hamath.” They served whereby to try Israel, to 4
20 know whether Israel would heed the commandments of JHvii which
He gave their fathers by Moses. So the Israelites dwelt in the 5
midst of the Canaanites, ////ites, Amorites, Perezites, //; vºtes,
and /ebusſes, and took their daughters as wives, and married 6
their own daughters to their sons, and served their gods.”
©tºmicſ beſivers Jeract from the sprians,
HE Israelites offended Jºvi, and forgot their God, Jºvº, and 7
served the Baals and Asherahs." And Jºvi was incensed s
against Israel, and sold them into the power of Cushan-rishathaim,
King of Syria on the Euphrates; and they were subject to Cushan-
3orishathaim eight years. Then the Israelites cried for help to Jºvi, 9
and Jºvº raised up a deliverer for the Israelites, who delivered
them, namely, Othniel ben-Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother. For to
the spirit of Jºvi came upon him, and he vindicated Israel; and
he went out to war, and Jºvº delivered Cushan-rishathaim, King
35 of Syria, into his power; and his might prevailed over Cushan-
rishathaim. So the land enjoyed security for forty years. in

3, 12 – 28 –reº-3 w83es -º- 6
&but ſtiffs &gton, amo frees Jaract from tº Oſloafittee.
*A* when Othniel ben-Kenaz died the Israelites again offended
JHvii, and Jºvº enabled Eglon, King of Moab, to prevail
13 over Israel, because they had offended Java. He added to his
own forces the Ammonites and Amalekites, and went and defeated 5
14 Israel, and occupied the Palm City. The Israelites were subject
15 to Eglon, King of Moab, eighteen years. Then the Israelites cried
to Java for help, and Jºvº raised them up a deliverer in Ehud
ben-Gera, a Benjamite man who had not the use of his right
hand. Now the Israelites sent by him their tribute to Eglon, ſo
16 King of Moab; and Ehud made him a two-edged dagger, more
than a foot long, which he hung under his garments on his right
17 thigh. He presented the tribute to Eglon, King of Moab [];
18 and when Ehud had finished the presentation of the tribute he
19 sent away the men who had carried the tribute; 5 but he himself 15
turned back at the sculptured stones near Gilgal,” and said: I have
a private communication for thee, O King.” Then the King com-
manded : Silence and all those who stood in his presence retired.
20 And Ehud went in to him as he was sitting alone in his airy upper
story.” And Ehud said: I have a divine communication for thee; 9 20
21 and as the King rose from his chair, Ehud reached round with
his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh, and
22 plunged it into the King's belly, so that the hilt went in after the
blade, and the fat closed upon the blade [*]; for he did not
23 draw the dagger out of the belly.” o And Ehud went out to the 25
-- ,” and closed the doors of the upper story on the
24 King.” After he was gone out, the King's servants came and
looked, and finding the doors of the upper story locked they said:
He must be relieving himself in the private chamber of the cool
25 story. So they waited till they perceived that they were mistaken; 30
and as he did not open the doors of the upper story they took
the key and opened them ;" and there was their lord lying on the
26 ground, dead. But Ehud made his escape while they were waiting,
27 and having passed the sculptured stones escaped to Seirah.” When
he reached that place, he sounded the alarm in the Highlands of 35
Ephraim, and the Israelites came down from the Highlands with
28 him at their head. For he said: Follow me -down- ; JHvh has
Hºsºe—
3, 17 ° Eglon was a very fat man 24 ° and locked them
7 -** 3 ubges -º- 3, 29-4, II
delivered your enemies, the Moabites, into your power. So they 3
followed him down, and seized the fords of the Jordan to cut off
the Moabites, and suffered not a man to cross.” At that time 29
they slew of the Moabites about ten thousand, all stout and valiant
5 men; not one escaped. Thus Moab was subdued that day, and 30
brought under the power of Israel; and the land enjoyed security
for eighty years.
§§amgar makes a staughter among tº ſpºttistines.
FTER him came Shamgar ben-Anath, who killed six hundred 31
IO Philistines with an ox-goad. He also delivered Israel."
ØefloraB amo Q3araß frce Jéract from the Canaanites.
HE Israelites again offended Java when Ehud was dead 4, 1
and Jºvº sold them into the power of Jabin, the King of 2
Canaan, who reigned in Hazor, and had as his general Sisera.
15 who lived at Harosheth ha-Goyim And the Israelites cried for 3
help to Jºvº for Jabin had nine hundred iron chariots, and
oppressed the Israelites cruelly for twenty years. Now a prophetess, 4
Deborah, the wife of Lapidoth, was judging Israel at that time,
and was ºf ſo sº wºnder pºoroº's Aa/m, between A'ama/, and 5
20 Beſ/-el in the //g//and's of Æ//ºraim, whºſer the /srae/i/es
resorted to her /or justice. She sent and summoned Barak ben-6
Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali;" and she said to him : Does not
Juvu, the God of Israel, command thee? Go, move on Mount Tabor,
and take with thee ten thousand men of the tribes of Naphtali and
25 Zebulum. And I will draw to thee, to the Kishon Valley, Jaſºn's 7
genera/, Sisera, with his chariots and his troops, and give him into
thy power. Barak replied: If thou wilt go with me, I will go is
but if thou wilt not go with me, I will not go. She answered 9
I will certainly go with thee; howbeit thou wilt not gain the
3o honors of this enterprise on which thou art setting out; for Jºvº
will sell Sisera into the power of a woman.” Thereupon Deborah
set out, and accompanied Barak to Kedesh. Then Barak called to
out Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh, and ten thousand men
marched at his back; Deborah also went with him. Now Heber, 11


4, 12-5, 2 -** 3 ubgcº º- 8
4 the Kenite, had separated from Kain (/rom the sons of Hobaº,
Moses' father-in-law), and pitched his tent as far away as the
12 Bazaanim Tree near Kedesh.” When Sisera was informed that
13 Barak ben-Abinoam had marched to Mount Tabor, he summoned
all his chariots, nine hundred iron chariots, and all the men that 5
14 he had, from Harosheth ha-Goyim to the Kishon Valley." Then
Deborah said to Barak , Arise this is the day whereon JHvii has
given Sisera into thy power; does not JHVH go out to battle at
your head? So Barak descended Mount Tabor with ten thousand
15 men at his back. Then JHVH threw Sisera and all his troop of Io
chariots and all his host into dismayo at Barak's approach.” Sisera
16 dismounted from his chariot and fled on foot. Barak pursued the
chariots and the rest of the host all the way to Harosheth ha-
Goyim ; and all Sisera's host were slain without quarter, not a
17 single one was left. But Sisera himself fled on foot to the tent 15
of Jael, the wife of Heber, the Kenite, for where were /riendly
relations between /abºn, Kºng of Hazor, and the family of Heber,
18//e Kenºſe. And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and said to him
Walk in my lord, walk into my tent, fear not. So he went into
19 her tent, and she covered him with a tent curtain.” And he said 20
to her. Give me a little water to drink, I am thirsty. So she
opened the milk-skin, and gave him a draught,” and covered him
20-again. Then he bade her Stand at the entrance of the tent; and
if anyone come and inquire of thee: Is there anyone here? say:
21 No. Then Jael, Heber's wife, took a tent pin and, taking a mallet 25
in her hand, stealthily slipped in to him, and drove the pin into
his temple, so that it went through into the ground ſº for he was
22 sound asleep and wearied out; so he died. At that moment
Barak came up in pursuit of Sisera, and Jael went out to meet
him, and said to him : Come, I will show thee the man thou art 3o
seeking. And he went in with her, and there was Sisera lying
23 dead, with the pin in his temple. Thus God on that day enabled
24 the Israelites to subdue Jabin, the King of Canaan. And the
power of the Israelites prevailed more and more over Jabin, the
King of Canaan, till they destroyed him altogether. 35
song of Øefloraß.
5, I' | "HEN Deborah sang, with Barak ben-Aºmoam, on that day:
2. With sacrifices of firstlings in Israel,”
With freewill-offerings of the people, bless JHvh
(Zz （） ºz9 ， 23s)
（IO 8 VJL JLN 0 OIN
saº，


9 -** 3 ubges ºeº- 5, 3 - 15
5, 3 Hear, O ye kings give ear, O ye sovereigns !
I to JHVH will raise my Song,
Will sing to JHVH, Israel's God.
4 JHVH, when from Seir Thou settest out,
When from the land of Edom Thou marchedst, - 5
The earth trembled, the heavens sway-ed,
5 The clouds dripped water, the mountains streamed,"
At the presence of JHVH, of JHvii, Israel's God.”
6 In the days of Shamgar ben-Anath,
In the days of Jael, caravans, ceased, IO
And solitary travelers took o roundabout ways."
7 Hamlets, ceased in Israel, * * ceased,
Till thou didst arise, O Deborah,
Till thou didst arise, a matron in Israel.
I5
No shield was seen, nor spear,
Among forty thousand in Israel.5
9 My heart is with the rulers of Israel;
Ye who offer freely among the people, bless JHVH !" 2O
Io Ye who ride tawny asses,
Sit upon . . and walk in the way, sing
There they rehearse the victories of JHvii,
The victories of . . . in Israel. 25
Then marched down to the gates the people of JHVH.7
12 Awake, awake, O Deborah
Awake, awake, lift up the song
Arise, Barak lead captive thy captives, son of Abinoam ſº
13 Then Israel, marched downs like nobles; 30
The people of Jhvi marched down for Him as heroes.
14 . . Ephraim
Benjamin . . . . . . . .
From Machir came truncheon-bearers,
From Zebulun those wielding the muster-master's staff.9 35
15 And the princes of o Issachar with Deborah,
ºº::=&cº-
5, 5 “that is, Sinai

5, 15-28 -º-º-ºubgcº º-
IO
15
I6
17
18
I9
2O
2I
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
And Naphtali . . Barak,
Into the plain was hurled at his back.”
Great were the dissensions in the divisions of Reuben.
Why didst thou remain amid ash-heaps,
Listening to pipings at sheep-folds Po"
Gilead sat still, beyond Jordan;
And why does Dan go abroad in ships?
On the shore of the sea tarries Asher,
Sitting still by his places for landing.”
But Zebulun and Naphtali were tribes
That recked not of life on the battle-field's heights.”
Kings came and fought;
Then fought the Kings of Canaan,
At Taanach, by the streams of Megiddo.”
Gain of silver they took not
From heaven itself fought the starst,
From their courses they fought against Sisera.
The stream of Kishon swept them away,
The . . . stream, the stream of Kishon's
Then were battered the hoofs of his horses,
By the galloping of his chargers.”
Curse Meroz, says the Messenger of JHVH,
Curse its inhabitants bitterly
Because they came not to the aid of JHvii,
To the aid of JHvil like heroes.”
Blessed above all women is Jael,”
Above all women in tents is she blessed
Water he asked, milk she gave ;
Curds in a mighty bowl did she bring him.
Her hand she puts forth, to the pin,
Her right hand to the
And smites,” crushes his head,
Shatters, pierces his temple.”
At her feet he sank down, he fell, he lay; o
Where he sank he lay, of life bereft.”
Through the window peered and
-ºº-ºo-
5, 24 "wife of Heber, the Kenite
26 & Sisera
IO
I5
2O
25
30
35
i

II. -** 3 ubgcº º- 5, 29-6, 1o
5 The mother of Sisera through the lattice:
“Why are his chariots so long in coming 2
Why tarries the trampling of his horses?”
29 The wisest of her princesses reply ºn,
Yea, she answers her words herself:
3o “They must be finding, dividing the spoil,
A wench or two for each man,
Booty of dyed stuffs for Sisera, o
--
A piece of embroidery oor two for the neck of . . "-
3. So perish Thine enemies all, O JHVH !
But be Thy friends as the sun when he rises in power.”
Ötöcom frees Jeract from the Qīliotamites.
6, 1 HE Israelites offended Java, and Jºvi delivered them to
2 Midian for seven years. The power of Midian prevailed over
Israel; for safety from Midian the Israelites made themselves
3 hiding-places in the mountains, and caves, and fastnesses; for
when Israel had sowed, Midian, and Amalek, and the Eastern
4-Bedouins would come up; and they came up against Israel, and
encamped upon their land, and destroyed the crops, as far as the
region about Gaza; they left nothing in Israel to live on, neither a
5 sheep, nor an ox, nor an assº For they themselves and their
flocks would come up, with their tents, and come in like locusts in
number; they and their camels were innumerable; and they invaded
6the land to its ruin; and Israel was brought very low by reason
of Midian. Then the Israelites cried for help to Juvu. And when
8 the Israelites cried to JHvii on account of Midian, JHvii sent a
prophet to the Israelites, who thus addressed them tº Thus says
JHvii, the God of Israel. It was I who brought you up from
9 Egypt, out of the place where ye were slaves; and I delivered
you from the Egyptians and from all who oppressed you; and I
to enabled you to drive them out, and gave you their land.” And I
said to you; I am JHVH, your God; ye shall not fear the gods of
the Amorites in whose land ye dwell; but ye have not heeded
my words.
7
IO
I
5
2O
25
3O
35


6, II – 27 -** 3 ubges ºesº- 12
I2
I3
I4
I5
16
17
18
I9
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23
24
25
26
27
Then the Messenger of JHVH came, and sat down under the
holy tree in Ophrah (which belonged to Joash, the Abi-ezrite?), when
Gideon, the son of Joash, was beating out wheat in the wine-press
to escape the notice of Midian.” And the Messenger of JHvh
appeared to Gideon, and said to him: JHVH is with thee, thou
mighty hero!9 Gideon answered: I pray, sir, if JHVH be indeed
with us, why has all this befallen us? Where are all His miracles
whereof our fathers told us, saying: Did not JHvii bring us up
from Egypt?” But now JHvh has cast us off, and surrendered us
to Midian. Then /HVH /aced him, and said: " Go, in this might of
thine, and deliver Israel from Midian; do not / send thee?” But
he replied: I pray, sir, how should I deliver Israel? My sept is
the poorest in Manasseh, and I the least in my family.'s ſºlº
answered: Surely, / will be with thee,” and thou shalt strike down
the Midianites as one man. And he said: If Thou wilt do me a
favor, give me a sign that it is 770, who speakes, with me, is
do not move from this spot till I come to Thee and bring out my
offering and set it before Thee. He replied: I will stay till thy
return. So Gideon went and prepared a kid, and an ephah of
flour made into unleavened cakes;” the meat he put in a basket,
and the broth in a pot, and brought it to the Messenger under the
tree, and presented it to him. The Messenger of JH whº bade him:
Take the meat and the cakes, and put them down on this rock,
and pour out the broth.” When Gideon had done so, the Mes-
senger of Jºvi, reached out the staff which he had in his hand,
and with the tip touched the meat and the cakes; and fire came up
from the stone, and consumed the meat and the cakes. Then the
Messenger of /HVH passed /rom his sight.” When Gideon per-
ceived that it was the Messenger of JHvii, he exclaimed: Oh, Lord
JHvii I have seen the Messenger of JHvh face to face!” But
JHVH said to him: Thou art safe; fear not, thou shalt not die.
Then Gideon built there an altar to JHvii, which he named JHvii-
shalom; it is standing to this day at Ophrah in Abi-ezer.”
That night JHvii said to him : Take the fat bullock belonging
to thy father,” . . . , and pull down the altar of Baal which
belongs to thy father, and cut down the sacred pole which stands
beside it,” and build an altar to JHvii, thy God, on the top of this
stronghold . . . . ; and take the fat bullock, and offer it as a
burnt-offering, using the wood of the sacred pole which thou art to
30
35
cut down. So Gideon took ten of his servants, and did as JHvº 40
bade him; but since he feared to do it by day, on account of his

I3 -** 3 ubges ºesº- 6, 28–7, 2
father's family and the men of the town, he did it by night. When 6, 28
the men of the town rose up in the morning, they found the altar of
Baal pulled down, and the sacred pole that stood beside it cut down,
and //e ya/, /w//ock offered on the new aſſar w/º/, /ad been bººſt.
5 The townsmen therefore inquired of one another. Who has done 29
this? And when they found by inquiry that Gideon ben-Joash had
done it, the townsmen demanded of Joash; Bring out thy son, 30
that he may die; for he has pulled down the altar of Baal, and
cut down the sacred pole that stood beside it. But Joash answered 31
Io all who thus assailed him: Will ye take up Baal's quarrel?—will
ye vindicate him? Whoever Zakes ºf Æaa/'s Quarre/ sha/ be put
to death by morning.” If Baal be a god, let him take his own
part.” Thus Gideon got that day the name Jerubbaal, that is 32
to say, ‘Let Baal contend with him,” because he puſ/ed down
15-/Paa/'s aſſar.
Now all Midian, and Amalek, and the Eastern Bedouins had 33
gathered together, and crossed the Jordanº, and encamped on the
Plain of Jezreel.” And the spirit of JHVH possessed Gideon,” and 34
he sounded the alarm, and the men of Abi-ezer were called out
20 to follow him. He sent messengers also through all Manasseh, and 35
they, too, were called out to follow him; he sent messengers also
through Asher, and Zebulum, and Vaſºta/, and they marched to
wzeez //enz.”
*Then Gideon said to God. If Thou wilt really deliver Israel 36
25 by my hand, as Thou sayest, I am going to put a fleece of wool. 37
on the threshing-floor; if there be dew on the fleece alone, while
all the ground is dry, I shall know that Thou wilt deliver Israel
by my hand, as Thou sayest. And so it was: in the morning he 38
rose, and squeezed the fleece, and wrung dew out of the fleece, a
3o bowlful of water. And Gideon said to God: Be not angry with 39
me; ſet ºne speak this once more, sº let me make trial with the
fleece only this once more. Now let only the fleece be dry, and
let there be dew on all the ground. And God did so that night:40
the fleece only was dry, while there was dew on all the ground.
35 Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) and all the people who were with 7, 1
him set out in the morning, and encamped near En-harod, the camp
of Midian was o north of Gibeah ha-moreh.os. Then Jºvi said 2
to Gideon: The people who are with thee are too many for me
+&=3&e-
6, 31 * because he pulled down his altar

7, 3-15 -º-º-ºwoges -º- - I4
7 to give Midian into their power; lest Israel vaunt itself against me,
3 saying: I wrought deliverance for myself.” So now make proc-
lamation to the people: Whoever is fearful and timid shall turn
back and . . . . .” In consequence, twenty-two thousand of
4 them returned; but ten thousand remained. Then JHvii said to
Gideon : The people are still too many; lead them down to the
water, that I may separate them for thee there; every one of those
of whom I say to thee: He shall go with thee, shall go with thee;
and every one of those of whom I say to thee. He shall not go
5 with thee, shall not go. So he led the people down to the water;
and JHVH said to Gideon: All those who lap water with their tongues,
as a dog laps, thou shalt set by themselves; and all those who
6 kneel down to drink shalt thou set by themselves.” And the
number of those who lapped [] amounted to three hundred; all the
7 rest of the people knelt down to drink water. [...] And JHvii said
to Gideon: By the three hundred men who lapped I will deliver
you, and will give Midian into thy power; all the rest of the
8 people shall return whence they came. So they took the jars of
the people in their hands, and their horns; and Gideon dismissed
to their homes all the levy of Israel, but kept the three hundred
men.” Now he had the camp of Midian below him in the plain.
9 That night JHVH said to him: Arise! descend on the camp,
Io I deliver it over to thee. And if thou fearest to descend on it, go
11 down thyself to the camp, with Phurah, thy page, and hear what
they say; thereafter thou wilt have courage to descend on the
camp. So he went down with Phurah, his page, to the outermost
12 of the armed men who were in the camp. Now Midian, and
Amalek, and all the Eastern Bedouins were lying in the plain, like
locusts in number, and their camels were innumerable, like the sand
13 on the sea-shore in number,3° Just as Gideon reached the camp,
a man was telling his comrade a dream, saying: I dreamed that
a cake of barley griddle-bread 37 was rolling hither and thither
through the camp of Midian; and it came to the tent, and struck
14 it,” and turned it upside down.” His comrade answered: This
means nothing else than the sword of Gºdeon ben-ſoas/, the men
of Israel; God has given into their power /idian and all the
15 camp.” When Gideon heard the dream repeated and interpreted,
he bowed in adoration; and returning to the camp of Israel, said:
Arise JHvii has delivered the camp of Midian into your power.
7, 6 “with their hands to their mouth 13 * and it fell * and the tent fell
2O
25
30
35

I5 -*-3 woges ºesº- 7, 16–8, 4
Then he divided his three hundred men into three companies, 7, 16
and furnished them all with horns, and empty jars, and torches in
the jars; and said to them: Ye must watch me, and do as I 17
do; when I come to the edge of the camp, ye must do just what
5.I do; and when I and all those who are with me give a blast 18
on the horn, then ye also must blow your horns all about the
camp, and say. For /HVH and Gideon / Now Gideon and -the-19
hundred men who were with him reached the edge of the camp
at the beginning of the middle watch” (the guards had just been
Io posted), and they blew their horns, and broke the jars they he/a
in their hands. Then the three companies blew their horns, and 20
shattered the jars, grasping with their ſe/? /and's the torches, and
zoz//, //ear right hands ſhe horns to blow w/a/, and shouted.
o For JHvii and Gideon And they stood where they were, about 21
15 the camp; and all the camp awoke, and sent up a wild cry, and
fled. And ſhe ſhree hundrew blew their horns, and Juvu set every 22
man's sword against his comrade • throughout the whole camp, and
the camp fled to Beth-shittah, to Zereldah, to the brink of Abel.
meholah near Tabbath.” And the men of Israel were called out 23
20 from Ma///a/, and Asher, and all Manasseh, and pursued Midian.”
Gideon also sent messengers through all the Highlands of Ephraim, 24
saying: Come down to meet Midian, and hold the streams against
them as far as Beth-barah, and the Vordazz, * so all the men of
Ephraim were called out, and held the streams as far as Beth-
25 barah, and the Vordazz. And they took the two chiefs of Midian, 25
Oreb and Zeeb, and slew Oreb at Oreb's Rock and Zeeb at Zeeb's
Press; * and they pursued - Midian, and brought ſhe heads of
Oreº and Zeeſ, ſo Gideoſ, on the other side of the Vordan.*
Then the Ephraimites said to Gideon What trick is this thou 8, 1
3o hast played us, not to summon us when thou wentest to fight with
Midian? And they found fault with him angrily.” But he answered 2
them : What have I done now in comparison with you? Is not
Ephraim's gleaning better than Abi-ezer's vintage 2 Into your hands 3
God has given Oreb and Zeeb, the chiefs of Midian; What have
351 been able to do in comparison with what ye have done? By
this speech their anger against him was appeased. -
Gideon came to the Jordan," he and the three hundred men 4
whom he had with him, ſaint from hunger, yet in full pursuit.
ºº::=3:
8, 4 “crossing

8, 5–21 -*-3 woºts º- I6
8, 5 And he said to the inhabitants of Succoth, 46 Give loaves of bread
to the men who are following me; for they are faint; I am
6 pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, the Kings of Midian.” But the
magistrates of Succoth answered: Are Zebah and Zalmunna already
7 in thy power, that we should give thy soldiers bread? Then 5
Gideon said: When Jºvi gives Zebah and Zalmunna into my
power, I will trample your bodies on a bed of thorns of the desert
and of knapweeds:
8 Thence Gideon went up to Penuel,” and made the same
request of them; but the inhabitants of Penuel answered him as Io
9 those of Succoth had answered. Then he threatened the inhabi-
tants of Penuel: When I return successful, I will pull down this
tower. 49
IO Now Zebah and Zalmunna were at Karkor,5° and their horde
with them, about fifteen thousand men—all that were left of all the 15
hordes of the Eastern Bedouins, but the slain were a hundred and
II twenty thousand fighting men. And Gideon went up by the way
- east of Nobah and Jogbehah,” and attacked the camp
12 as it lay in security. Zebah and Zalmunna fled; but he pursued
them, and caught both the Kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna; 20
13 and scattered all the horde.* Then Gideon ben-Joash returned
14 from the war, . . .” And he captured a boy of the inhabitants
of Succoth, and questioned him, and the boy gave him a list of
the Magistrates of Succoth, and of its Elders, seventy-seven men.
15 So he came to the people of Succoth, and said: See, here are Zebah 25
and Zalmunna concerning whom ye taunted me, saying: Are
Zebah and Zalmunna already in thy power, that we should give
16 bread to thy famishing men 2 Then he took the Ælders of the
city, and taking thorns of the desert and knapweed, trampled
17 thereon the men of Succoth.54. He also pulled down the tower go
18 of Penuel, and killed the inhabitants of the town. Then he
demanded of Zebah and Zalmunna: Who, thens, were the men
whom ye killed at Tabor?” They answered: They were just like
19 thee; in stature like king's sons, every one. He exclaimed: They
were my brothers, my own mother's sons ! By JHvii, if ye had spared 35
20 their lives, I would not have killed you!” And he bade Jether,
his eldest son: Arise kill them But the boy did not draw his
21 sword; he was afraid, being still but a boy. Zebah and Zalmunna
said: Arise thyself, and fall on us; a man has a man's strength.
Then Gideon himself arose, and killed Zebah and Zalmunna, and 46
took the crescents that were on the necks of their camels.57

I7 —reº-3 wogee -º- 8, 22-9, 2
The men of Israel said to Gideon: Rule over us, thou, and 8, 22
thy son, and thy son's son; for thou hast delivered us from the
power of Midian. But Gideon replied: I will not rule over you, 23
nor shall my son rule over you; JHvii shall rule over you.”
5 And Gideon said to them : I will ask one thing of you :59 24
every man give me the ear-ring that he has taken from the spoil,
(they had golden rings, for they were Ishmaelites).” They 25
answered : We will gladly give them. So he spread out his
mantle, and every man threw down on it the ring that he had
io taken from the spoil. And the weight of the golden rings for which 26
he had asked was seventeen hundred shekels of gold;"not including
the crescents and pendants, and //e ſºle garmen/s which ſhe
Aºngs of Mºdian wore, nor the neck/aces which were on the necks
of Z/eir came/s.” And Gideon made it into an Ephod-idol, and set 27
is it up in his native town, Ophrah,” and all Israel went astray after
it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and to his family
Thus the Midianites were subdued by the Israelites, and did not 28
lift their heads again; and the land enjoyed security for forty years
in the days of Gideon.
2O So Jerubbaal ben-Joash went, and dwelt in his home." Now 29.
Gideon had seventy sons, all begotten by him, for he had many
wives. And his concubine also, who lived in Shechem, bore him 31
a son, whom he named Abimelech.” Then Gideon ben-Joash died 32
at a hoar old age, and was buried in the tomb of his father Joash,
25 in Ophrah.” But as soon as Gideon was dead the Israelites 33
relapsed, and went astray after the Baals, and established Baal-
berith as their god.” The Israelites did not remember their God. 34
Jºvi, who had rescued them from the power of all the enemies
who encompassed them ſº nor did they deal as well by the family 35
30 of Jerubbaal as all the good that he had done to Israel deserved.
15istory of £6tmcfc.c5, King of $52c%m.
BIMELECH ben-Jerubbaal went to Shechem to his mother's 9, 1
kinsmen, and spoke to them and to the whole clan to which
his mother's family belonged, saying : Put this question to all the 2
35 citizens of Shechem : Which is better for you? that seventy men
should rule over you—all these sons of Jerubbaal–or that one
man should rule over you? And remember that I am your own
&=3:
8, 32 ° of Abi-ezer 35 °Cideon
2

9, 3-2I -** 3 urges -º- 18
9, 3
IO
II
flesh and blood. So his mother's kinsmen spoke in his behalf to
all the citizens of Shechem, repeating what he had said, and the
citizens were persuaded to follow Abimelech; for they said. He is
our kinsman. And they gave him seventy shekels of silver from
the temple of Baal-berith ; * with this money Abimelech hired a band
of worthless and reckless followers. Then he went to his father's
home at Ophrah, and killed his brothers, the sons of Jerubbaal,
seventy men, on one stone, there was left only Jotham, Jerubbaal's
youngest son, who had hidden himself. And all the citizens of
Shechem and all Beth-millot assembled, and went and made Abi-
melech king, by the monument-tree which was in Shechem. When
Jotham was told of this, he went and stood on the top of Mount
Gerizim, and shouted to them is Hearken to me, ye citizens of
Shechem, as ye hope that God will hearken to you.-Once upon a
time the trees went about to anoint a king over them. And they
said to the olive: Reign thou over us! But the olive answered:
Shall I leave off my fatness, where with gods and men are hon-
orted, and come to hold sway over the trees? Then the trees said
to the fig Come thou, reign over us! But the fig answered: Shall
I leave off my sweetness and fine crop of fruit, and come to hold
I 2
I3
I4
I5
16
17
18
I9
2O
21
sway over the trees? Then the trees said to the vine: Come
thou, reign over us! But the vine answered: Shall I leave off my
juice, which gladdens gods and men, and come to hold sway
over the trees P. Then all the trees said to the box—thorn. Come
thou, reign over us! And the thorn answered the trees: If in
good faith ye are anointing me king over you, come, take refuge
in my shade; but if not, fire shall go forth from the thorn, and
devour the cedars of Lebanon lº And now, if ye have acted in
good faith and honor in making Abimelech king, and if ye have
dealt well by Jerubbaal and his family, and requited him as he
deserved, seeing that my father fought for you, and ventured his
life, and rescued you from Midian, albeit ye are to-day risen up
against my father's family, and have slain his sons, seventy men
on one stone, and made Abimelech, the son of his maid-servant,
I5
2O
25
3O
king over the citizens of Shechem, because he was your kinsman,—35
if I say, ye have acted in good faith and honor toward Jerubbaal
and his family this day,” I wish you joy of Abimelech, and I wish
him joy of you; but if not, may fire come forth from Abimelech,
and devour the citizens of Shechem and Beth-millo; and fire go
forth from the citizens of Shechem and Beth-millo, and devour 4o
Abimelechº Then Jotham took to flight, and went to Beer,” and
dwelt there, to be out of the reach of his brother Abimelech.
|
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19 -*3tºgee -º- 9, 22-37
After Abimelech had ruled over /srael three years.” God sent 9, 22.23
a spirit of discord between Abimelech and the citizens of Shechem,”
and the citizens of Shechem played Abimelech false; that the 24
murder of the seventy sons of Jerubbaal and that their blood
5 might come" upon their brother Abimelech, who killed them, and
upon the citizens of Shechem, who enabled him so to kill his
brothers.” And the citizens of Shechem put men in ambush on 25
the hill-tops, and robbed all who passed on the road through their
country; and this was told Abimelech.”
IO And Gaal ben--O-bed and his kinsmen came and moved into 26
Shechem ; and the citizens of Shechem put confidence in him.”
And they went out into the country, and gathered the grapes 27
from their vineyards, and trod them; and they made festivities, and
went to the temple of their god, and ate and drank, and cursed
15 Abimelech.'s And Gaal ben-O-bed said: Who is this. Abimelech? 28
and who are the Shechemites, that we should serve him P Were not
this son of Jerubbaal, and Zebul, his lieutenant, subjects of the
family of Hamor? Why, then, should we serve him?" Would that 29
I had the leading of this people, I would get rid of Abimelech! I
20 would say to Abimelech : Recruit your army, and come out!
When Zebul, the governor of the city,” heard what Gaal ben-3o
-O-bed said, he was angry, and sent messengers to Abimelech at 31
Arumah,” saying : Gaal ben-O-bed and his kinsmen are coming
to Shechem, and are stirring up the city against thee. Now, 32
25 therefore, set out by night with the men thou hast with thee,
and lie concealed in the fields; and in the morning at sunrise 33
thou must get up and march forth against the city; and when he
and the men who are with him go out to meet thee, thou must
do to him as the occasion serves.
30 So Abimelech and all the men he had with him set out by 34
night, and lay in ambush against Shechem in four companies.
And Gaal ben-O-bed came out and stood at the entrance of the 35
city gate, as Abimelech and the men who were with him rose
from their place of concealment. When Gaal saw the troops, he said 36
35 to Zebul: See, there is a body of men coming down from the
mountain tops. Zebul replied: It is the shadow of the mountains
which thou takest for men. But Gaal spoke again. There are men 37
coming down from the Navel of the Land, and one body is coming
ºº::=ºe-
9, 24 “to put it 28 °the father of Shechem

9, 38-54 -** 3 ubges -º- 2O
9,38 by the road from the Meonenim Tree.” Then Zebul said to
him : What become of thy boastful words when thou saidst:
Who is Abin ech, that we should serve him? Are not these the
men whom thou didst so despise? March out now, and fight with
39 them And Gaal marched out at the head of the citizens of
40 Shechem, and fought with Abimelech. And Abimelech pursued
him, and he fled before Abimelech; and many fell slain, even to
41 the entrance of the gate. And Abimelech returned, and dwelt at
Arumah; but Zebul drove out Gaal and his kinsmen, that they
should no longer live in Shechem.”
42 On the following day the people went out into the country,
43 and Abimelech was informed of it.” So he took his men, and
divided them into three bodies, and lay in ambush in the open
country; and when he saw the people coming out of the city, he
44 rose against them and attacked them. Abimelech and the com-
panºy that was with him made a dash, and stood at the entrance
of the city gate; while the two other companies rushed upon all
45those who were in the fields, and slew them. And Abimelech
fought against the city all that day, and took the city, and slew
the people who were in it, and razed the city, and sowed the site
with salt.* -
46 When all the citizens of the Tower of Shechem heard of it,
47 they went into the crypt of the temple of El-berith; * and it was
told Abimelech that all the citizens of the Tower of Shechem were
48 gathered there. So Abimelech and all the men who were with
him went up on Mount Zalmon, and Abimelech took his axe in
his hand, and cut brushwood, and took it up and put it on his
shoulder, and said to the men who were with him : Make haste,
49 and do what ye have seen me do. Then all the people cut their
brushwood, and followed Abimelech, and put it upon the crypt;
and set fire to the crypt over the heads of those who were in it.
Thus died also all the inhabitants of the Tower of Shechem, about
a thousand men and women.
so And Abimelech went to Thebez, and encamped against it, and
51 took it.” Now there was a donjon-tower within the city; thither
all the men and women fled, o all the citizens of the town, and
closed it after them, and went up on the roof of the tower.
52 Abimelech came to the tower, and attacked it; and as he drew
53 near to the door of the tower, to burn it, a certain woman threw
an upper millstone on Abimelech's head, shattering his skull.”
54 And he called quickly to his attendant armor-bearer, and bade
IO
2O
25
30
35
40
*l ºr
(&#7 “az ºſºas)
INGH HOCHHS

2I -** 3 ubges ºesº- 9, 55-IO, 12
him: Draw thy sword, and kill me, lest men say: A woman slew 9
him. So his page ran him through, and he died.” And when the 55
Israelites saw that Abimelech was dead they dispersed to their
homes. -
5 Thus God brought home to Abimelech the crime which he 56
committed against his father in murdering his seventy brothers;
and all the crime of the men of Shechem was brought upon their 57
own heads; the curse of Jotham ben-Jerubbaal came true to them.”
&B, judges &ota and 3air.
to FTER Abimelech there arose to deliver Israel Tola ben-Puah ro, I
- ben-Dodo, a man of Issachar, who dwelt at Shamir in the
Highlands of Ephraim. He judged Israel twenty-three years; then-2
he died, and was buried at Shamir.”
After him arose Jair, the Gileadite, who judged Israel ºn
15two years. He had thirty sons, who rode on thirty asses; and 4
they had thirty towns called Havoth-jair to this day, in the land
of Gilead.” And Jair died, and was buried at Camon. 5
Jntroduction to tº 15istory of the oppression of Jeract
by the Ammonites and Philistines.
*A* the Israelites again offended Juvu, and served the Baals 6
and the Astartes, and the gods of Syria, and of Phoenicza,
and of Moab, and of the Ammonizes, and of the Pºlis/?nes, and
forsook Jºvi, and did not serve Him. And Jºvi was incensed 7
against Israel, and sold them into the power of the Philistines and
25 into the power of the Ammonites.” And they crushed a thes
Israelites that year, e.g.://een years, all the Israelites who were
across the Jordan in the land of the Amorites who were in Gilead.
And the Ammonites crossed the Jordan to make war also upon 9
Judah" and Benjamin, and upon the tribe of Ephraim; and Israel
3o was in great straits. Then the Israelites cried to Jºvi for help, ſo
saying: We have sinned against Thee,' … in that we have forsaken
our God, “JHVH-, and served the Baals. And JHvº answered the 11
Israelites: Did not - the Egyptians, and - the Amorites, and the
Ammonites, and - the Philistines, and the Phoenicians, and the 12


IO, 13-II, Io -º- 3ubges -ºººººº- 22
ro Amalekites, and the Midianites oppress you; and when ye cried
13 to me for help I delivered you from their power?” But ye, on
your part, have forsaken me, and served other gods; therefore I
14 will not deliver you again. Go and cry to the gods whom ye have
15 chosen; let them deliver you in your time of distress!” And the 5
Israelites replied to JHVH - We have sinned; do Thou to us what-
16 ever Thou wilt; only save us to-day !” Then they put away the
foreign gods from among them, and served JHVH 59 and He could
17 bear the misery of Israel no longer. Now the Ammonites were
called out, and encamped in Gilead, and the Israelites were to
18 assembled, and encamped at Mizpah. And the people said one
to another: Who is the man that will begin the war with the
Ammonites P. He shall be head of all the inhabitants of Gilead.*
3-pºtaſ beſivers ðīfeat from tº ſimmonites.
II, I OW Jephthah, the Gileadite, was a great warrior; he was the 15
2. son of a harlot, Gilead bego, yeſ/a/. Cºcadºs wºe also
bore him sons, and when ſhe wife's sons grew up, they //rus/
Jephſ/a/ out, and said ſo ſºm. Zhou s/a/ not inſer” in our
3/a/er's house, /or ſhow art the son of another woman. So
Jephthah fled from his brothers, and dwelt in the land of Tob; 20
and there gathered about him worthless fellows, who went out with
4 him on forays.” After a time, the Ammonites made war with Israel's
5 And when the Ammonites made war with Israel,” the Elders of
6 Gilead came to bring Jephthah back from the land of Tob, and said
to Jephthah Come and be our commander, and let us fight against 25
7 the Ammonites. But Jephthah answered the Elders of Gilead : Are
not ye the men who hated me, and thrust me out of my father's
house? Why then do ye come to me now, when ye are in straits?:
sand the Elders of Gilead replied to Jephthah: Therefore have we
now returned to thee;" and if thou wilt go with us and fightso
against the Ammonites, thou shalt be our chief of all the inhabitants
9 of Gilead. Then Jephthah said to the Elders of Gilead If ye
take me back to fight against the Ammonites, and JHvº gives
to them over to me, I shall be your chief.” And the Elders of
Gilead answered Jephthah Jºvº shall be witness to what has 35
passed between us; we swear that we will do just as thou sayest.
-º-º-º-
Io, 18 “the chiefs of Gilead

23 —ºº-jubgcº º- II, II-26
IO
I5
2O
25
30
35
40
Then Jephthah went with the Elders of Gilead, and the people
made him chief and commander over them.” And Jephthah uttered
all his words before JHVH at Mizpah.9
And Jephthah sent messengers to the King of the Ammonites
to say: What is there between us, that thou art come to war
upon my country?” The King of the Ammonites replied to Jeph-
thah's messengers . It is because Israel, when it came up from
Egypt, took my territory, from the Arnon to the Jabbok, and west.
to the Jordan; * now, therefore, restore it peaceably. Jephthah a
second time sent messengers to the King of the Ammonites, and
said to him. Thus says Jephthah : “Israel did not take the territory
of Moab or the territory of the Ammonites; * for when they
came up from Egypt, Israel passed through the desert as far as
the Red Sea,” and came to Kadesh. Then Israel sent messengers to
the King of Edom, saying : Let me pass, I pray thee, through thy
land; but the King of Edom would not hearken to it; * they sent
also to the King of Moab, and he refused ; 's so Israel remained
at Kadesh. Then they went through the desert, and made a circuit
about the land of Edom and the land of Moab, and came up on
the east of the land of Moab, and encamped on the opposite side
of the Arnon, but did not enter the borders of Moab (for the
Arnon was the boundary of Moab).” Thence Israel sent mes-
sengers to Sihon, King of the Amorites, King of Heshbon;
and Israel requested of him : Let me pass, I pray thee, through
thy land, to my place.” But Sihon refused to allow, Israel
to pass through his borders; he collected all his people, and
encamped at Jahaz, and made war with Israel.” But JHvii,
the God of Israel, delivered Sihon and all his people into the
power of Israel, and Israel defeated them, and took possession of
all the land of the Amorites who inhabited that region. Thus they
got possession of all the territory of the Amorites from the Arnon
to the Jabbok, and from the desert to the Jordan.” Thus JHWH,
the God of Israel, dispossessed the Amorites to give their land to
His people, Israel; and shalt thou possess the land P Shouldst not
thou possess the territory of those whom Chemosh, thy god, dis-
possesses o and we possess that of all those whom JHVH, our
God, dispossesses for us?” Art thou so much better than the
King of Moab, Balak ben-Zipporº Did he have any contention
with Israel, or did he ever go to war against them ** When
Israel dwelt in Heshbon and the villages belonging thereto, and in
*Jaazer and the villages belonging thereto, and in all the towns
II, II
18
I9
2O
2I
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23
24

II, 27-I2, I -** 3 uogee -º- 24
II.
27
28
29
30
3I
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
I2, I
which are along the Jordan-, for three hundred years, why didst
thou not reclaim them during that time?” I have committed
no fault against thee; but thou art doing me a wrong in making
war upon me; let JHVH, who is arbiter this day, decide between
Israelites and Ammonites.”—But the King of the Ammonites would 5
not hearken to the message which Jephthah sent him.
7%en Z/e spirit of /Hºw came upon /eſ///a/, and /e passed
over ſo Gºead and Mazzasseſ, and passed over to J/º/e/ in
Gilead, and /rom Mºe/ in Gilead /e passed over to the Ammo-
ºfes.” And Jephthah made a vow to Jºvi If Thou wilt give to
the Ammonites completely into my power, whosoever it may be
that comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I
return successful from the Ammonites shall be Jºvi's, I will
offer him as a burnt-offering.” Then Jephthah passed over to the
Ammonites to make war on them, and Jºvi gave them into his 15
power, and he smote them from Aroer till you come to Minnith,
Zwenty cºes, and even to Abel-cheramim, with very great slaughter; *
and the Ammonites were subdued by the Israelites.
And when Jephthah came to Mizpah, to his home,” his
daughter came out to meet him, with tabrets and dances; ” she 20
was his only child, beside her he had neither son nor daughter.
And when he saw her he rent his garments, and exclaimed: Oh,
my daughter thou hast stricken me! thou, thou art become my
ruin! But I have given a solemn promise to JHvii, and cannot
go back. She answered: My father, thou hast spoken a solemn 25
word to JHvii; do to me what thou hast vowed, forasmuch as
JHvº has wrought for thee vengeance on thy foes, the Ammonites.
And she said to her father: Let this be done for me grant me a
respite of two months, that I may depart and go down to the
mountains, and weep with my companions, because of my maiden-3o
hood. And he bade her go, and sent her away for two months;
so she went, with her companions, and wept on the mountains,
because of her maidenhood. And at the end of two months she
returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed to
do; and man had never approached her.” Thus it became a 35
custom in Israel yearly the Israelitish maidens go to lament four
days in the year for the daughter of Jephthah, the Gileadite.
The Ephraimites were called out, and crossed to Zaphon; and
they said to Jephthah : Why didst thou go over to attack the
Ammonites, and didst not summon us to go with thee? We will 4o
25 —regº. 3 woges -º- I2, 2-15
burn thy house over thy head.” But Jephthah replied: I and my 12, 2
people were engaged in a contest, and the Ammonites oppressed
us sorely; and when I called to you, ye did not deliver me
from them.” And when I saw that ye were not going to help 3
5 me, I took my life in my hand, and passed over to the Ammonites,
and JHVH delivered them into my power. Why, therefore, have ye
come up against me to-day to make war on me? Then Jephthah 4
assembled all the men of Gilead, and fought with the Ephraimites;
and the men of Gilead defeated the Ephraimites -3 . - -
Io And the Gileadites seized the fords of the Jordan to intercept the 5
Ephraimites; and when one of the survivors of the Ephraimites would
say: Let me cross, the men of Gilead would ask him: Art thou
an Ephraimite? And if he answered : No, they would bid him say 6
Shibboleth; and if he said Sibboleth, and could not pronounce
15 it as they did, they took him, and slaughtered him at the fords
of the Jordan.” And there fell of Ephraim at that time forty-two
thousand. Jephthah judged Israel six years; then Jephthah, the 7
Gileadite, died, and was buried in his city, Mizpah in Gilead.33
&5° 3ubges j63am, &ſon, and 488cm.
2O FTER him Ibzan, of Beth-lehem, judged Israel. He had thirty 8.9
sons, and thirty daughters whom he married abroad, and
thirty daughters-in-law whom he brought from abroad for his sons.”
He judged Israel seven years. Then Ibzan died, and was buriedro
at Beth-lehem.
as After him Elon, the Zebulonite, judged Israel; he judged º
ten years. Then Elon, the Zebulonite, died, and was buried at 12
Elon in the land of Zebulun's
After him Abdon ben-Hillel, the Pirathonite, judged Israel. 13
He had forty sons and thirty grandsons, who rode on seventy 14
30 He judged Israel eight years. Then Abdon ben-Hillel, the 15
rathonite, died, and was buried at Pirathon in the Highlands of
Ephraim, in the district of Shalim-


I3, I-I4 —ºº-jubges ºr 26
storics of Šamson
AND THE MISCHIEF HE DID TO THE PHILISTINES
-ºud-
º
Śamson's Q3irtù.
I3, I HE Israelites again offended Jºvi, and He gave them into the
-- -
2 power of the Philistines for forty years. Now there was a 5
certain man of Zorah. of the can of the Danites, named Manoah,
3 whose wife was barren and had no child.” And the Messenger
of JHVH 3 appeared to the woman, and said to her . Thou art
barren and hast borne no child; but thou shalt conceive and bear
4 a son. Now, therefore, beware, and do not drink wine or other to
5 intoxicating drink, and do not eat anything unclean. For thou art
with child, and wilt bear a son; and no razor shall touch his
head, for from the womb the boy shall be a religious votary;5 he
will make a beginning of delivering Israel from the Philistines.
6. The woman came and told her husband. A man of God came to 15
me," and his appearance was like that of the Messenger of God,
very venerable; but I did not ask him whence he came, nor did
7 he tell me his name. And he said to me: Thou art with child,
and wilt bear a son; now, therefore, do not drink wine nor intoxi-
cating drink, and do not eat anything unclean, for from the womb 20
8 to the day of his death the boy shall be a religious votary. Then
Manoah besought JHvii, and said: I pray. Thee, O Lord, let the
man of God whom Thou didst send come again to us and teach
9 us what we shall do to the boy that is to be born. And God
hearkened to the prayer of Manoah, and the Messenger of God 25
came again to the woman as she was tarrying in the field
Io (Manoah her husband was not with her). And the woman ran
at once, and told her husband, saying to him : The man who came
11 to me the other day has appeared to me. So Manoah rose, and
followed his wife; and when he came to the man, Manoah said to 3o
him : Art thou the man who spoke to the woman? He answered:
12 I am. Then Manoah said: Now, when that which thou dost foretell
comes true, what shall be the rule for the boy and his mode of
13 life. And the Messenger of JHVH replied to Manoah : Let the
14 woman avoid all that I bade her; she must not eat any product 35
of the vine, and let her not drink wine or other intoxicating drink,

27 -** 3 ubges -º- I3, 15-I4, 5
nor eat anything unclean; every thing that I commanded her she 13
must observe. And Manoah said to the Messenger of JHVH - Let us 15
press thee to stay, and let us prepare thee a kid." But the Mes- 16
senger of JHvii answered Manoah. Though thou press me, I will
5 not eat of thy food; but if thou wilt make a burnt-offering, thou
must offer it to JHvii. [..] And Manoah said to the Messenger of 17
JHvii. What is thy name? that if thy prediction come true we may
honor thee...[*] The Messenger of JHVH answered him: Why dost 18
thou inquire my name, seeing it is ineffable Pº So Manoah took a 19
1o kid, and ſhe cerea/ offering, and offered it as a burnt-offering on the
rock to JHvii, the Wonder Worker o.º. When the flame ascended 20
heavenward from the altar, the Messenger of JHVH ascended in the
flame of the altar, while Manoah and his wife were looking on; and
they fell on their faces to the earth.” And the Messenger of JHvº 21
15 appeared no more to Manoah and his wife. Then Manoah knew
that it was the Messenger of JHvii. And Manoah said to his 22
wife: We shall certainly die, for we have seen a god.” But his 23
wife said to him: If JHvii had meant to kill us, He would not
have received at our hands a burnt-offering and a cerea/ offering,
20 and would not have shown us all these things, and would not
now have announced to us such a thing.” And the woman bore a 24
son, and named him Samson; and the boy grew up, and JHVH
blessed him. And the spirit of Jºvi began to stir him aſ Mahane/- 25
Dam, between Zora/, and Eshtao/*
§amson's Qmarriage amo w8at foſłowce.
AMSON went down to Timnath," and saw there a woman of 14, 1
the Philistines. When he went home he told his father and 2
his mother : I have seen at Timnath a woman of the Philistines;
now, therefore, get her for me to be my wife. But his father and 3
so his mother remonstrated with him Is there not a woman among
the daughters of thy kinsmen, or in all my people,” that thou must go
and take a wife among those uncircumcised Philistines?: But Samson
answered his father: Get this woman for me; she pleases me. His 4
father and mother did not know that this stirring was from JHvii,
35 because He was seeking a grievance against the Philistines. (At
that time the Philistines ruled over Israel). So Samson went down, 5
-º-º-º-c-
13, 16 “for Manoah did not know that he was the Messenger of JHvh

I4, 6–18 -** 3 ubges -º- 28
14 with his /a/er and moſ/her, to Timnath; and when //ey came to
the vineyards of Timnath, a fierce young lion came roaring toward
6 him. And the spirit of JHvii came mightily upon him," and he tore
the lion asunder as a man tears a kid; he had nothing whatever
in his hands. But he did not ſe// his father and mother what he
had dome. Then he went down, and talked to the woman, and
8 she was pleasing to Samson. When he returned, after a time, ſo
marry her,” he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion, and
9 found a swarm of bees in the body of the lion, and honey. And
he scraped out the honey into his hands, and went on, eating as
7
he went, and came to his father and mother, and gave some to
them, and they ate ; but he did not tell them that he had scraped
To the honey from the body of the lion.” And his father” went down
to the woman; and Samson gave a feast there, for so bridegrooms
II used to do. And when ſ/ey saw him, they took thirty comrades,
12 and they were with him.” And Samson said to them : I will
propound to you a riddle; if ye can tell me what it is, during the
seven days that the feast lasts, and find ºf out,” I will give you
13 thirty fine robes and thirty festival dresses. And if ye cannot tell
me, then ye shall give me thirty fine robes and thirty festival
14 dresses. They answered: Propound your riddle, let us hear it! He
said:
Out of the eater came something to eat,
And out of the strong came something sweet.
15 And they were not able to guess the riddle /or sºr days; * so
on //e seven// day they said to Samson's wife : Cozen thy hus-
band, and make him tell us the riddle, or we will burn thee and
16 thy family. Didst thou invite us -hither to impoverish us? So
Samson's wife hung on him with tears, and said: Thou only hatest
me, and dost not love me at all. Thou hast given a riddle to
my countrymen, and hast not explained it to me. He answered:
Lo, I have not told even my father and mother, and shall I tell
17 thee? But she hung on him weeping the seven days that they
kept the feast; and on the seventh day he told her, because she
18 so beset him ; and she told the riddle to her countrymen. On the
seventh day, before he entered the bridal chambers,” the men of
the town said to him : What is sweeter than honey? and what is
stronger than a lion P. He replied:
If with my heifer ye did not plough,
Ye had not found out my riddle, "I trow.
IO
30
35
40

29 - —sº- 3ubges -º- I4, 19-15, 14
IO
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30
35
40
Then the spirit of JHVH came mightily upon him, and he went
down to Ashkelon, and killed thirty of them, and took their spoil,
and gave the festival dresses to those who had found out the
riddle.” And he was very angry, and went away to his home.
But Samson's bride was given to the comrade who had been his
bridal companion.” -
After a time, at the season of wheat harvest,” Samson went
to visit his wife, taking with him a kid. But when he was about
to go into the inner apartment to his wife her father said to
him : I thought that thou must certainly hate her, so I gave
her to thy friend; but her younger sister is more beautiful than
she, take her instead. Then Samson said to them : In this case I
shall not be to blame if I do the Philistines an injury.” So
Samson went and caught three hundred foxes,” and took torches,
and turned the foxes tail to tail, and fastened a torch between
every pair of tails, and set fire to the torches, and turned the foxes
loose among the Philistines' standing grain, and burned both the
shocks and the standing grain, and the vineyards and olive frees.
When the Philistines inquired : Who has done this? they were
told : Samson, the Timnathite's son-in-law; because the Timnathite
took Samson's wife, and gave her to Samson's friend. Then the
Philistines went up, and burned her and her father's family. And
Samson said to them : Since ye act thus, I swear I will be avenged
on you; and after that, I will leave off. So he smote them, hip
and thigh,” with great slaughter; and went down, and stayed in
the cleft of the Cliff Etam.” Then the Philistines came up, and
encamped in Judah, and made a raid upon Lehi.” And when the
people of Judah asked them : Why have ye come up against us?
they said: We have come to make Samson prisoner, to do to him
as he has done to us. So three thousand men out of Judah went
down to the cleft of the Cliff Etam, and said to Samson : Dost
thou not know that the Philistines rule over us? What is this that
thou hast done to us? He replied: As they did to me I have
done to them. Then they told him : We have come down to
make thee prisoner, and deliver thee to the Philistines; and Sam-
son said: Swear to me that ye yourselves will not fall upon me.
They said: No, but we will bind thee, and deliver thee to them :
we will not put thee to death. So they bound him with two new
ropes, and brought him up from the Cliff. Now when he reached
Lehi the Philistines came to meet him with loud shouts, and the
spirit of JHVH came mightily upon him, and the ropes that were
I4, 19
I5, 1
3
IO
II

15, 15–16, 7 -º-º- ºutges-º- 30
15 on his arms became like flax that has caught fire; his bonds
15 melted from off his hands.” And he found the fresh jaw-bone of
an ass,” and reached out, and picked it up, and killed with it a
16 thousand men. Then Samson said:
With the jaw-bone of an ass 5
I assailed my assailants; 25
With the jawbone of an ass
Have I slain a thousand men.
17 After he had said this, he threw away the jaw-bone which he had
18 in his hand; thus the place came to be called Ramath-lehi.” And Io
he was very thirsty, and called to JHVH - Thou hast given Thy
servant this great victory, and shall I now die of thirst, and fall
19 into the hands of the uncircumcised P. Then God cleft The Mortar
which is in Lehi, and water flowed from it; and he drank, and his
spirits revived. (Hence the spring, which is in Lehi to this day, 15
20 got the name En-hakkore.) Samson judged Israel in the days of
the Philistines for twenty years.”
§amson carries off tºc (5ates of 543a.
16, 1 & HENCE Samson went down to Gaza, and saw there a harlot,
2 and went in to her. When the Gazeans were told that 20
Samson was come thither, ſ/hey went about, and ſay ºn waſ for
him aſ might at the gate of the city, and they kept still all night,
3 saying : -Let us wait till the morning light, and then kill him. But
Samson lay till midnight; and at midnight he rose, and laid hold
of the doors of the city gate and the two gate-posts, and pulled 25
them up, bar and all, and put them on his shoulders, and carried
them up to the top of the hill which is in front of Hebron.3
Śamson amo ºctifaſ.
4. FTER this, Samson fell in love with a woman in the Valley of
5 Sorek," whose name was Delilah. And the princes of the 30
Philistines came to her, and said, Cozen him, and find out what
makes his strength so great, and how we can cope with him, and
bind him, to overpower him ; * and we, on our part, will each give
6 thee eleven hundred shekels of silver. So Delilah asked Samson :
Tell me, I pray thee, what makes thy strength so great, and how 35
7 couldst thou be bound to overpower thee? Samson answered : If
men should bind me with seven new bowstrings which have not
º -
º º
|
|
|
|
|
º
|

3I - —-tº-3 wogee ºt- I6,8–19
been dried, my strength would leave me, and I should be like any ré
other man. Then the princes of the Philistines brought her seven 8
new bowstrings which had not been dried, and she bound him with
them. She had the men waiting in concealment in the inner apart- 9
ment. Then she said to him : The Philistines are upon thee, Sam-
son | But he snapped the bowstrings as a strand of tow snaps at
the breath of fire; 4 so the secret of his strength was not dis-
covered. Thereupon Delilah said to Samson: Lo, thou hast cheated Io
me, and told me falsehoods; now tell me wherewith thou II
Io canst be bound. He answered : If men should bind me fast
with new ropes wherewith no work has been done, my strength
would leave me, and I should be like any other man. So Delilah 12
took new ropes, and bound him with them ; and said to him : The
Philistines are upon thee, Samson 1 (Now the men were lying in
15 wait in the inner apartment.) But he snapped the ropes off from
his arms like thread. Then Delilah said to Samson : Hitherto thou 13
hast cheated me, and told me falsehoods; tell me wherewith thou
canst be bound. And he said to her : If thou shouldst weave the
seven braids of my hair into the web,” and beat it up with the
20 pin, my strength would leave me, and I should be like any other
man. So while he was asleep Delilah took the seven braids of 14
his hair, and wove them into the web-, and beat it up with the
pin. Then she said to him : The Philistines are upon thee, Samson
And he started from his sleep, and pulled up “the loom with the
25 web. Then she said to him : How canst thou say : I love thee, 15
when thou dost not confide in me? Three times now thou hast
cheated me, and hast not told me what makes thy strength so
great. And as she beset him every day with her importunities, and 16
pressed him hard, he grew tired to death of it,7 and told her his 17
3o whole secret; and said to her : A razor has never come near my
head, for from my birth I have been a religious votary; * if my
head, were shaved, my strength would depart from me, and I should
become weak, and like the rest of men. When Delilah saw that he 18
had told her his whole secret, she sent a message, and summoned
35 the princes of the Philistines, saying : Come, this once; for he has
told omeo his whole secret. So the princes of the Philistines came to
her, bringing the money with them. And she put Samson to sleep 19
in her lap, and called a man -who- shaved off the seven braids
5
#sºftsºo-
I6, 14 “the pin
16, 20–31 -** 3 ubges-º- 32
I6
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22
23
24
I
25
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27
28
29
30
3
I
of his hair; and he began to be brought under-, and his strength
departed from him. Then she said: The Philistines are upon thee,
Samson and he awoke from his sleep, and said to himself. I
shall get off as I have done time and time again, and shake myself
free; for he did not know that JHvii had departed from him.9
Then the Philistines seized him, and bored out his eyes, and took
him down to Gaza, and made him fast with shackles, and he was
set to turning the mill in the prison.” But his hair began to grow
again after it had been shaved off.”
The princes of the Philistines came together at Gaza to offer
a great sacrifice to their god Dagon,” and to hold festivities; for
they said : Our god has given our enemy, Samson, into our power.
And when the people saw him, they set up a shout in honor of
their god; for they said : Our god has given into our power our
enemy, who devastated our fields, and slew many of us.” And
when they were in high spirits, they commanded : Call Samson,
that he may make sport for us. So they called Samson from the
prison, and he made sport before them. And they placed him
between the columns.” Then Samson said to the attendant who
led him by the hand Place me where I can feel the columns by
which the house is supported, that I may lean against them. Now
the house was full of the men and women; and aſ the princes of
the Philºsºmes were where, while on the rooſ were about three
//ozasazza' mez and women, who were looking on while Samson made
sport. Then Samson prayed to JHVH - O Lord JHvii, remember
me, I beseech Thee, and give me strength only this once, O God,
that I may avenge myself on the Philistines for one of my two
eyes.'s Then Samson grasped the two middle columns by which
the house was supported, and leaned his weight upon them, one with
his right hand and the other with his left. And Samson said: Let
me die with the Philistines. Then he bowed with all his might,
and the house fell on the princes and on all the people that were
in it; so that those whom he killed at his death were more than
those whom he had killed during his life. His brothers and all
2O
25
30
his father's family came down, and took him up, and went up, and 35
buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol, in the tomb of his father
Manoah. He had judged Israel twenty years.


33 -seº. 3 ubgcº º- 17, 1–18, 2
38°itional storics of the times of the 3veges
-º-
º
Qīlicab's toots; Qīligration of the ºamites.
HERE was a man in the Highlands of Ephraim whose name 17, 1
was Micah. He said to his mother. The eleven hundred 2*
5 shekels of silver which were taken from thee, and about which
thou didst make a solemn declaration, saying before me: I sacredly 3”
consecrate the silver to JHVH, from my hand alone, to make a
carved and a mo//en image,3–this silver is in my possession : I.2°
took it; but now I will restore it to thee. And his mother said sº 2b
Io Blessed by JHVH is my son o Thereupon he restored the silver to 4
his mother, who took two hundred shekels of silver, and gave them
to a silversmith, who made a carved and a mo//en image; 5 and it
was in Micah's house. Now the man Micah had a small temple,” 5
and made an Ephod and Teraphim,” and consecrated one of his
15 sons, who became his priest. (In those days there was no king in 6
Israel; every man did as he pleased.)” And there was a youth 7
from Beſ/-/e/em ºn Judah, of the clan of Judah; he was a Levite,
residing there.” And the man left the city, Beth-lehem in Judah,” s
to sojourn in whatever place he might chance upon, and came, in
20 the course of his journey, to the Highlands of Ephraim, to Micah's
home. And Micah asked him : Whence comest thou? He answered: 9
I am a Levite from Beth-lehem in Judah, and am traveling to
sojourn in whatever place I may chance upon. Then Micah said to
to him : Stay with me; be my father and priest,” and I will give
25 thee ten shekels of silver a year and a suit of apparel, and thy
victuals, eand the Levite agreed to stay with the man; and the 11
youth was treated by him as though he had been one of his own
sons. And Micah consecrated the Levite,” and the youth became 12
his priest, and lived in Micah's house. Then Micah said: Now I 13
3o know that JHvii will prosper me, because I have a Levite for
priest.” (In those days there was no king in Israel.)” 18, 1°
And in those days the tribe of the Danites was seeking for "
themselves a landed possession to dwell in ; for up to that ſºme
there had not ſa/en to them a possession among the tribes of
35/srae/* So the Danites sent, of their several clans, five men, 2
representing all their branches, valiant men, from Zorah and Eshtaol,
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18 to explore the land and examine it, bidding them : Go, examine
the land.” And they came to the Highlands of Ephraim, to
3 Micah's home, and stayed there over night. When they were in
the neighborhood of Micah's house, they recognized the voice of
the young Levite; so they turned aside thither, and asked him : 5
Who brought thee here P and what art thou doing in this place 2
and what art thou here for? He replied. Thus and so Micah has
5 done to me; and he hired me, and I became his priest.” Then
they said to him : Inquire of God, that we may know whether the
6 errand on which we are going will be successful. The priest to
answered them : Go, and prosper, the errand on which ye are
7 going is under the eye of JHVH.” So the five men went on, and
came to Laish, and they found the people who were in the city
living after the Phoenician fashion without fear,” secure and unsus-
picious of danger. There was no lack of anything which the land 15
produced , . . . and they were remote from the Phoenicians, and
8 had nothing to do with any one else. Then the explorers returned
to their kinsmen, to Zorah and Eshtaol; * and when their kinsmen
9 asked: What do ye report P they answered : Arise, let us march
against them ; for we have seen the land, and it is very good. . . 20
to Do not delay to set out to enter and possess the land. When ye
reach it, ye will come to a people unsuspicious of danger, and the
region is of wide extent; God has given it into your power, a
place wherein there is no lack of anything which the land produces.
II Accordingly there removed thence of the clan of the Danites, 25
12 from Zorah and Eshtaol, six hundred men under arms.” And they
went up, and encamped at Kirjath-jearim in Judah; from this cir-
cumstance the place received the name Mahaneh-Dan, which it
13 bears to this day; it lies west of Aºya/-year”,” Thence they
passed on to the Highlands of Ephraim, and came to Micah's 30
14 home. And the five men who had gone to explore the land."
spoke up, and said to their kinsmen: Do ye know that in these
houses there is an Ephod and Teraphim, and a carved and a
is mo/en image? Now think what ye will do. And they turned
aside thither, and came to the house of the young Levite (to 35
16 Micah's house), and gave him a friendly greeting.” And the six
hundred men under arms stationed themselves at the entrance of
17 the gate.” But the five men who had gone to explore the land
18, 14 "Laish
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went up, went in there, took the carved image, and the Ephod,
and the Teraphim, and the molten image; – now the priest was
standing at the entrance of the gate, and the six hundred men
under arms. And these came to Micah's house, and took the
carved image, and the Ephod, and the Teraphim, and the moſ/en.
image. And when the priest said to them : What are ye doing?”
they replied : Keep still put thy hand over thy mouth, and go
with us, and be our father and priest.” Is it better for thee
to be priest to one man's household, or priest to a tribe and a
clan in Israel? The priest was pleased, and took the Ephod, and
the Teraphim, and //e carved image, and placed himself in the
midst of the men. Then they turned, and marched away, putting
the children and the cattle and their property in front of them.
When they were at some distance from Micah's house, the men
who lived in the houses near Micah's were called out, and pur-
sued the Danites. They shouted to the Danites, who turned
their face, and said to Micah : What is the matter with thee, that
thou art called out? He answered: Ye take my gods that I made,
and my priest, and go off; what have I left? What do ye mean
by asking : What is the matter with thee? The Danites answered:
Let not thy voice be heard among us, lest some savage fellows
fall upon thee, and thou sacrifice thine own life and the lives
of thy household.” Then the Danites continued their march; and
Micah, seeing that they were too strong for him, turned and went
back to his home. But they took the idol, which Micah had
made, and the priest whom he had, and came to Laish,” upon a
people secure and unsuspicious of danger, and slew them without
quarter, and burned the town itself. There was no one to save it,
for it was remote from the Phoenicians, and had no relations with
any one else; it lay in the plain belonging to Beth-rehob. And they
rebuilt the city, and dwelt in it, calling it Dan, the name of their
ancesſor who was born to /srael,” but the original name of the
city was ſlais/. The Danites set up for themselves the idol;3° and
Jonathan, the son of -Moses' son Gershom,” and his descendants
were priests to the tribe of Dan till the depopulation of the land.”
And they put in place Micah's idol which he had made, and it
continued there as long as the house of God was at Shiloh.*
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and the Vengeance of the Israelites on the Tribe of Benjamin.
N those days, when there was no king in Israel, there resided
in the remote parts of the Highlands of Ephraim” a Levite
who took him a concubine from Beth-lehem in Judah. And his
concubine fell out with him, and left him, and went to her father's
house, in Beth-lehem in Judah; and was there of ºur months. Then
her husband followed her, to speak affectionately to her,” and bring
ahera back; having with him his servant and a pair of asses; and -he
came to her father's house. When the girl's father saw him, he
came to meet him, rejoicing. And his father-in-law, the girl's
father," detained him, and he stayed with him three days; they ate
and drank, and lodged there. On the fourth day, when they rose
in the morning, he was about to set out, but the girl's father
said to his son-in-law: Stay thy stomach with a bit of bread, and
after that thou mayst go. So the two sat and ate together, and
drank; and the girl's father said to the man. Be persuaded, now,
and pass the night, and be merry. And when the man rose to go,
his father-in-law urged him, and he passed the night there again.
And when he got up in the morning on the //?/ day to go, the
girl's father said to him: Stay thy stomach; so they tarried till
the decline of day, and ate together. And when the man rose
to go, with his concubine and his servant, his father-in-law, the
girl's father, said to him: See, the day is declined toward evening;
pass the night here to-day also-, and be merry; then ye may
rise in the morning for your journey and go to thy home." But
the man refused to pass the night, and rose, and set out,’ and
came to a point opposite Jebus" (that is, Jerusalem), having a pair
of saddled asses, and his concubine with him. When they were
near Jebus, and the day was far spent, the servant said to his
master: Come, let us turn aside to this town of the Jebusites, and
pass the night in it. But his master replied: We will not turn
aside to a city of aliens, who are no Israelites;2 we will keep
on to Gibeah. And he said to his servant. Let us draw up
to one of these places and pass the night in Gibeah or in
Ramah.” So they continued their way, and the sun went down
on them as they were beside Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin.
There they turned aside to enter and pass the night in Gibeah,
and he entered, and sat down in the market place of the town;
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old man was coming home at evening from his work in the fields.
Mow // is old man was /rom the A/g//and's of Æ//ºraim, and was
on/y sojourning ºn Gºea/, whereas the inhabitants of Z/e //ace
were Benjamiſes.” And when he looked he saw the traveler in
the market place of the town; and the old man said: Whither
goest thou, and whence comest thou? He answered: We are
passing through from Beth-lehem in Judah to the distant parts of
the Highlands of Ephraim. I came thence, and went to Beth-lehem
in Judah, and am now returning to my home, and no one invites
us into his house. We have here both chopped straw and grain
for the asses, and bread and wine for me and thy maid-servant
and the boy who is with thy servant-; we need nothing.” Then
the old man said: Welcome! Let all that thou needest be my
charge; only do not pass the night in the market place.” So he
took them into his house, and mixed feed for their asses, and
washed their feet; and they ate and drank.” But while they were
feasting merrily, the men of the town, vile scoundrels, gathered
about the house, beating on the door, and bidding the old man,
the master of the house: Bring out the man who has come into
thy house, that we may know him.” The master of the house
went out to them, and said: Nay, my brethren, be not so wicked;
since this man has come under my roof, do not commit this wanton
deed. Here are my virgin daughter and his concubine; let me
bring them out, and ye may ravish them, and do with them what-
ever ye please; but to this man do not do this wanton deed. But
the men would not listen to him. Then the man laid hold of his
concubine, and thrust her out to them into the street;" and they
knew her and abused her all night till morning; and let her go
only at the approach of dawn. As the morning began to appear,
the woman came and lay at the door of the man's house where
her lord was, till daylight. And when her lord rose in the
morning, and opened the door of the house, and went out to
continue his journey, there was the woman, his concubine, lying at
the door of the house, with her hands on the sill. And he said
to her: Get up; let us go! but there came no answer. Then the
man put her body, upon the ass, and set out to return to his
home. And when he came to his house, he took a knife, and laid
hold of his concubine, and cut her up, joint by joint, into twelve
pieces,” and sent them throughout all the borders of Israel. And
he commanded the men whom he sent out . Thus shall ye say to
all the men of Israel: Did ever a thing like this happen, from the
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20, I-15 – reº-3 ubges -º- 38
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time that the Israelites came up from Egypt to this day-2 [Take
counsel about it! Speak your mind!] And every one who saw
it said: Such a thing as this has not happened nor been seen
from the time that the Israelites came up from Egypt to this
day. [...]”
Then all the Israelites went out to war, and the Congregation
assembled as one man, from Dan to Beersheba and the land of
Gilead, to the sanctuary of JHVH at Mizpah.” And the principal
men of all the people took their stand, and all the tribes of Israel,
in the assembly of the people of God,” four hundred thousand
footmen who drew sword.” And the Benjamites heard that the
Israelites were gone to Mizpah.” And the Israelites said: Say, how
did this crime happen? The Levite, the husband of the murdered
woman, answered : I came with my concubine to Gibeah which
belongs to Benjamin, to pass the night; and the citizens of Gibeah
assailed me, and gathered about the house where I was, by night.
Me they meant to kill,” and they ravished my concubine so that
she died. Then I took my concubine, and cut her in pieces, and
sent the pieces throughout all the country, the possession of Israel;
because they committed" a wanton crime in Israel. Here ye all
are, Israelites; give your word and counsel here ! Then all the
people stood up as one man, saying : We will not go to our
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several habitations, and we will not turn to our several homes.**
Now this is what we will do to Gibeah : * 'we will go up against
it by lot; and will take ten men out of a hundred, through all the
tribes of Israel, and a hundred out of a thousand, and a thousand
out of ten thousand, to procure provisions for the people,” to do?
to Gibeah of Benjamin what the wanton crime which its inhabitants
have committed in Israel deserves. And aſ/ //e ºzen of /srae/ were
gaſ/ered against the city as one man, as com/ederaſes.” Then the
tribes of Israel sent men throughout all the tribe of Benjamin, say-
ing: What is this crime which has been committed among you?
Now, therefore, give up those vile scoundrels, who are in Gibeah,
and let us put them to death, and extirpate the evil from Israel.
But the Benjamites refused to listen to the words of their Israelite
brethren. The Benjamites gathered from their cities to Gibeah, to
go out to war with the Israelites.” And the Benjamites mustered
* lewdness and Io e for them to go
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that day from their cities twenty-five thousand fighting men, besides
the inhabitants of Gibeah, who mustered seven hundred young
warriors; * ~ *every one of them could sling a stone to a hair's
breadth, and not miss.” The Israelites mustered, exclusive of Ben-
jamin,” four hundred thousand fighting men, all warriors. And
//ey rose, and went ºf to Bet/-e/, and inquired of God, and //e
Zsrae//es asked. Wºo of us sha/ go ſirst ſo baſſ/e wiſ/, //e
Aenyamites, and /º/, responded. Juda/, s/a/ go-ſirs’.” So the
Israelites set out in the morning, and encamped against Gibeah.34
And the Israelite forces marched out to battle with Benjamin ; and
the Israelite forces formed their line of battle against them in the
vicinity of Gibeah.35 Then the Benjamites sallied out from Gibeah,
and wrought havoc with Israel on that day, leaving twenty-two
thousand men on the ground. But the Israelite forces took
courage, and formed their lines again on the same ground on which
they had formed them on the first day.” And the /srae/ºes went
*/ ſo Beſ/-eſ, and weftſ before ///VH ſº evening, and ºnquired
of //ſºſ. S/a// we again advance to baſſ/e wiſh our /Senjamiſe
Øreſ/reſ, 2 /HVH responded. March against Z/emº/ So ſhe ſsrae//es
closed upon the Benjamiſes the second day; and the Benjamites
sallied from Gibeah to meet them on the second day, and wrought
havoc again with Israel, leaving eighteen thousand men on the
ground, -all these were fighting men. And all the Israelites’ went
up and came to Beth-el, and wept and sat there before Jºvi, and
fasted that day till evening; and offered burnt-offerings and peace-
offerings before JHVH.” And the Israelites inquired of JHvii (//e
Ark of the Covenant of God was there ºn those days, and
Phºneſias, ſhe son of Aaron's son Æ/eazar, ministered before //ºm
ºn those days),” saying : Shall we again march out to battle with
our Benjamite brethren, or shall we desist? Jºvº responded :
March to-morrow I will give them into your power. And Israel
put men in ambush against Gibeah, on all sides.” So the Israelites
marched against the Benjamites on the third day, and formed their
lines against Gibeah as on the former occasions. And the Ben-
jamites sallied out to meet the people, and began to slay some
of the people as on former occasions in the open field, about
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thirty men of Israel. And the Benjamites said: We are beating
them again, as we did the first time. But the Israelites had
passed the word: Let us flee, and draw them away from the city
to the highways. Then all the men of Israel rose o and formed
line at Baal-tamar; * and the ambush of Israel rushed from its
position, west of Gibeahº, and gained a position opposite Gibeah,
ten thousand young warriors picked from all Israel; * and the
fighting being severe, the Benjamites did not perceive the disaster
which was imminent. And JHvii gave Israel the victory over Ben-
jamin; the Israelites destroyed of Benjamin that day twenty-five
thousand one hundred men; all these were fighting men.” And the
Benjamites saw that they were defeated. But the men of Israel
gave ground to Benjamin, relying upon the ambush which they
had set for Gibeah.45 Then the ambush made haste, and rushed
upon Gibeah; and //e amºus/ moved out, and s/ew without quarter
a// //e ºn/abſ/av/s of 4/e city.” Now it had been agreed between
the men of Israel and the ambush or that when the ambush.
sent up a signal-smoke from the city, then the men of Israel
should turn about in the battle.47 Now Benjamin had begun to
make slaughter among the men of Israel, and had slain about
thirty men; for they said: We have surely beaten them again, as
in the former battle. Just then the fire-signal began to rise from
the city, a column of smoke; and the Benjamites looked back,
and saw the whole city going up in flames heavenward.* Then
the Israelites turned about, and the men of Benjamin were in
dismay; for they saw that disaster had overtaken them. And they
turned before the men of Israel toward the wilderness; 49 but the
main battle clung to them, and those who came from the city-
were making havoc with them in the midst oº They cut Ben-
jamin to pieces o from Nohah, o as far as opposite Geba, east-
wards. There fell of Benjamin eighteen thousand men; all these
were valiant warriors.” Then they turned, and fled to the desert,
to the Cliff of Rimmon , sº and the Israelites gleaned on the high-
ways five thousand men, and dogged their heels to Geba, and
slew of them two thousand men. The whole number of Benja-
mites that fell on that day was twenty-five thousand fighting
men; sº these were all valiant warriors. So they turned, and fled
to the desert, to the Cliff of Rimmon, six hundred men; and
abode on the Cliff of Rimmon four months.55 But the men of
Israel returned to the Benjamites, and slew them without quarter,
both man and beast-everything that was there; also all the
towns that there were in Benjaminº, they burned.*
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Now the men of Israel had sworn at Mizpah : No one of us
shall give his daughter in marriage to a Benjamites? Soº the
people came to Beth-el, and stayed there till evening before JHvii,
and wept loud and long,59 and said: Why, O JHvii, God of Israel,
is this come about in Israel; that one tribe is lacking to-day in
Israel?' And on the new day the people rose, and built where
an aſſar, and offered burnt-offerings and peace-offerings. And the
Zsrae//es said. Wºo is ſhere, of a// / e ºrºes of /srae/, //a/ did
not come zºº, ºn the assembly, ſo ſº; /or a great oaſ/, /ad
been taken, ſ/a/ any who should not come ºf ſo y HVH in Mºe/a/.
show/a, without ſº be // ſo deaſ/. And the Israelites were sorry
for their Benjamite brethren, and said: One tribe is cut off this
day from Israel. What shall we do for them" in regard to wives;
seeing that we have sworn by JHVH not to give them any of
our daughters as wives? Then they inquired : What one is there
out of the tribes of Israel that did not come up to JHvii in
Mizpah P. Now not a man had come to the camp from Jabesh
in Gilead, ſo the assembly. So the people were counted, and there
was not a man there of the inhabitants of Jabesh in Gilead.” And
the Congregation sent thither twelve thousand men, of the valiant
warriors, commanding them : Go, slay the inhabitants of Jabesh in
Gilead without quarter, men, women, and children! This is what
ye must do every male, and every woman who has lain with a
male, ye must devote to destruction!” And they found among the
inhabitants of Jabesh in Gilead four hundred virgin girls, who had
not lain with a male,” and brought them to the camp, to Shiloh
in the land of Canaan.* Then all the Congregation sent a message
to the Benjamites who were at the Cliff of Rimmon, and proclaimed
peace to them. So the Benjamites returned at that time; and they
gave them the maidens of the women of Jabesh in Gilead whom
they had saved alive; but there were not enough for them. *The
people were sorry for Benjamin, because JHVH had made a breach
in the tribes of Israel.” And the Elders of the Congregation said:
What shall we do in regard to wives for those who remain :
for women had been wholly destroyed among Benjamin.” And
they said: “How shall a remnant of Benjamin be saved-, and no
tribe be blotted out from Israel Pºº since we ourselves cannot
give them wives from among our daughters. For the Israelites
21, 7 "for those who are left
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21 had sworn . Cursed be the man who gives a wife to a Benjamite!
19 Then they said: The festival in honor of JHvii is held every year
at Shiloh, which is nor//, of Bet/-el, east of the road //a/ rººms
20 /rom Beſ/-e/ ſo S/ec/em, and south of Zebomaſ.” And they bade
2 //e /*enjamiſes.” Go, lie in wait in the vineyards; and ye must
watch, and when the maidens of Shiloh come out to dance in the
religious dances,” ye must come out of the vineyards, and snatch
for yourselves every man a wife of the maidens of Shiloh, and
22 make off to the land of Benjamin. And if their fathers or brothers
come to us to complain of you, we will say to them : “Let them
keep them: ; because they did not each get a wife in the war.”
23 For had ye given them to them, ye would now be guilty. The
Benjamites did so ; and took wives, equal to their own number, of
the dancers whom they stole; and they went back again to their
24 possession, and rebuilt their towns, and dwelt in them. Then the
Israelites dispersed thence, at that time, each to his tribe and clan;
25 and thence they went each to his own possession. In those days
there was no king in Israel; every man did as he pleased.”
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* 17–21. The body of the Book, to which alone the title in strict
# propriety belongs, represents the history of Israel, from the
generation succeeding the Invasion to the ‘days of the Philis-
tines’ preceding the establishment of the kingdom, as a series
of apostasies, judgments, and deliverances, recurring in this order
with unbroken regularity. A comprehensive survey and estimate
of the whole period is given in the Introduction, 2, 6–3, 6: As
soon as Joshua and his contemporaries had passed away, the
Israelites forsook their own God, JHVH, and adopted the religions of the peoples
about them. Indignant at this unfaithfulness, God allowed them to be overrun
and subjugated by their enemies. When in their distress they cried to Him for
help, He relented, and raised them up champions (Judges), who delivered them
from their foes. But the efforts of these leaders wrought no thorough or lasting
amendment; when they were dead the people relapsed, and did worse than their
fathers, thus bringing upon themselves fresh judgments of JHVH by the hand of
their enemies.
In the sequel, the history of the period is set forth in a corresponding
scheme: The Israelites offended JHVH by defection from Him ; He gave them
into the power of their enemies for so many years; then He raised up a deliv-
erer, who freed them from their oppressors; under him the land enjoyed
security for so many years. This is repeated briefly, and for the most part in
set phrases, in the case of the Judges Othniel, Ehud, Deborah and Barak, Gideon,
Jephthah, Samson, and forms the setting for the recital of the heroic deeds of
these champions, which are narrated at greater length and evidently derived from
older sources. (See further below, note on 2 , 6.)
CC. 17–21 form an appendix to the Book of Judges, containing two stories
of the times, relating events of great moment in the history of two of the tribes:
the migration of the Danites (cc. 17–18), and the vengeance taken by Israel
for the outrage at Gibeah, resulting in the almost complete extirpation of the
Benjamites (cc. 19–21). -
The section I , I – 2, 5 is a brief and obviously fragmentary account of the
conquests and settlements of the Israelite tribes in Canaan. As c. I records
particularly the districts which they did not at once get possession of, and tells
how, in many parts of the land, Canaanite cities remained in the midst of Israel,
while in others the Israelites settled peaceably among the native inhabitants, it
stands not unsuitably before 2, 6 ff.; the presence of these heathen was a snare
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to Israel, the cause of all the evils which followed (see 2, 1b. 5a). It is, however,
plainly not a part of the original Book of Judges, whose introduction (2, 6–3, 6)
not only makes no allusion to I, I – 2, 5, but connects itself immediately with the
Book of Joshua in such a way as to leave no place for c. I, which must, there-
fore, have been inserted by a later editor.
(pface of 3ubges in tº 15istory of Jeract.
From the Book of Judges we learn all that we know directly about the
formative period of the two Israelitish nations. The tribes which invaded
Western Palestine were shepherds or herdsmen; in their new home they were
constrained to settle, and till the soil. As c. I shows us, the conditions under
which this change was made were not the same in all parts of the land, nor
was it everywhere accomplished with equal rapidity; among the most southern
tribes, indeed, it was never complete. The passage from the nomadic life to
fixed habitation in cities and towns brought many other changes with it. The
old clan organization must have been much impaired in the invasion; clans
were broken up ; several clans or fragments of clans settled side by side in
the same village or city, and were united by new ties of common interest. The
old simple customary law did not provide for the new questions which arose
out of private property in land, for example; the old sanctions, based on blood
kindred, were no longer effective. The old social order was thus dissolved,
and was only slowly replaced by a new one, which must have conformed in the
main to that of the Canaanites among whom the Israelites lived.
From the Canaanites, also, the Israelites learned the arts of husbandry. In
so doing, they learned, of course, not only to plough, and sow, and reap; to
cultivate the fig, the olive, and the vine, and to make wine and oil; but to
practice the religious rites which were equally an indispensable part of ancient
agriculture. They made their offerings for the grain and the wine and the oil
to the Baals and Astartes of the land, who bestowed these gifts on their
worshipers. In so doing, they did not dream of abandoning their own sGod,
30 JHVH, for the gods of Canaan. But JHVH was a shepherd's God, whom they
honored with the firstlings of their flocks and herds, not a God of the fruitful soil
(cf. Gen. 4, 4 ff.). Later, indeed, when Canaan had become Israel’s land, JHVH
was regarded as its proprietor, and the worship of the nameless Baals, without
any change in its character, was addressed to JHVH, as the Baal of Israel. The
35 judgment of the later writers, who see in the whole period of the Judges an
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apostasy from JHVH to Canaanite heathenism, is thus not without foundation.
Nor is it to be supposed that in the times of the Judges themselves there were
none to protest against the adoption of Canaanite religions. On the contrary,
there is every reason to believe that then, as in later times — down even to the
fall of Judah — there were zealots for JHvh who condemned the whole Canaanite
civilization which Israel had adopted, and contended for the old simplicity of
life and purity of religion — the ancient nomadic ideal.
The Israelites were not left in undisputed and undisturbed possession of
their conquests. Their kinsmen on the other side of the Jordan, the Moabites
and Ammonites, contested with them their newly acquired territories; the
Bedouins of the southern and eastern deserts harried them. But the most
serious struggle of the period was with the Canaanites under Sisera, from whom
Israel was delivered by Deborah and Barak. The general rising of the tribes at
Deborah's summons shows that in the religion of JHVH they had a strong bond
of unity. The actual consolidation of the independent tribes in a national
kingdom was forced upon them by the conquering progress of the Philistines;
but this lies beyond the limits of our Book.
—-sºº (ſlotee on 3 ubges ºest- 45
The great value of the Book of Judges lies in the faithful and vivid pictures
which it gives us of this troubled and turbulent time in which historical Israel
was making. Hardly any narrative in the OT throws more light on the
social and religious life of the ancient Israelites than the story of Micah's idol and
the migration of the Danites (cc. 17. 18). The stories of Samson (cc. 13–16)
are specimens of a kind of literature of which there are few other examples in
the OT. Beside their historical importance, the stories themselves, so simply,
directly, and strongly told, have a perpetual human interest.
ČBronofogp of tº Q30off of 3ubges.
The chronology of the Book of Judges presents very difficult problems, a
completely satisfactory solution of which has not yet been achieved. A glance
at the synoptical table below (p. 52) shows that in the case of the greater
Judges the round numbers 40, 20, 80, predominate; that is, according to the
Hebrew way of reckoning, a generation, half a generation, two generations. The
same numbers meet us frequently in the preceding and following periods: the
life of Moses is divided into three stages of forty years each ; the wandering in
the desert lasted forty years; Eli judged Israel forty years; David reigned forty
years; Solomon, forty; &c. The key to this system is found in I Kings 6, I,
according to which the entire interval between the exodus from Egypt and the
building of Solomon's temple was four hundred and eighty years, or twelve
generations of forty years each. The same system underlies the chronology of
the Books of Kings. This simple theoretical construction, which strikingly
resembles the first attempts of the Greeks in the same direction (Hecataeus of
Miletus, about B. c. 550–476), is crossed by other numbers, which do not appear
to be systematic; e. g. the rule of the Minor Judges. The chronology was
probably constructed upon the assumption that the Judges formed a continuous
succession, like the Kings who succeeded them, as follows: Moses 4o ; Joshua
[40]; Othniel 4o; Ehud 8o ; Barak 40; Gideon 4o ; the Minor Judges with Jeph-
thah, together 76; Samson 20 ; Eli 20 (LXX); Samuel [40]; David 40; Solomon,
till the building of the Temple, 4; total, 480. The duration of the periods of
oppression was not originally given; these numbers were introduced by a later
hand, destroying the symmetry of the system.
How long a time actually intervened between the first invasion of Western
Palestine by Israelite tribes and the establishment of the kingdom, which may
be put, in round numbers, at about IOOO B. C., it is not possible to determine.
The date commonly assigned to the Exodus, in the reign of Merneptah, about
1300 B.C., would leave for the whole period of the Judges about two centuries
and a half. A recently discovered inscription of this King shows, however, that
in his time Israel was settled in the central or northern part of Palestine, and
was even then an agricultural people (Israel is devastated; his seed— i. e. grain
— is destroyed). Many scholars think that the A7tabiri, who according to the
dispatches of Egyptian officials in Palestine to King Amenophis IV. (about
I400 B.C.) were at that time threatening the continuance of Egyptian authority
in the land, were Hebrezey tribes.
Most, if not all, of the struggles narrated in the Book of Judges probably
fall in the latter part of the period, say between 1200 and IOOO B. c.; the state
of society depicted in the stories is certainly not that of the first generations
after the Invasion. Of the great migration of the northern peoples, who in the
reign of Ramses III. (about 1200 B.C.) poured into Syria, overthrew the Hittite
Empire, and were only turned back at the borders of Egypt; and of the subse-
quent campaigns by which Ramses III. re-established the Egyptian supremacy
in southern Syria, we find no memory in the Book. Nor do we learn anything
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46 →s* (ſlotes on 3 ubges ºest-
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about the time or way in which the Philistines, who first appear among the
northern hordes in the inscriptions of Ramses III., established themselves in
Palestine. The wars of the great Assyrian King, Tiglath-pileser I., in Euphratene
Syria (about 1125 B.C.), were beyond the horizon of the Israelites.
šources of tºc Q3008.
The Book of Judges has come down to us only as a part of a comprehensive
History of Israel from the Creation of the World to the Babylonian Exile
(Gen.— 2 Kings), and, like the other parts of this work, bears the marks of a
post-Exilic age. The task of criticism is to discover and, if possible, identify
the sources from which the author drew his materials, and to determine in what
way he dealt with them. The results of this investigation may be briefly set
forth as follows:—
CC. 2, 6– 16, 31 are taken, with little change, from a History of Zsrael under
the Judges written probably in the 6th century B. C., by an author of the Deuter-
onomistic school. For this book and its author the symbol D is employed.
The Introduction of D is preserved in Jud. 2, 6–3, 6; but it is not probable
that it ended with 16, 31 (or 15, 20); there is, on the contrary, some evidence
that it included at least the times of Eli and Samuel. The stories of the
exploits of the Judges in D were ultimately derived from two considerably older
historical works, which seem, in their turn, to have drawn directly from the
stream of popular tradition. One of these may have been written in the 9th
century B. C.; the other is somewhat younger. The former is with considerable
probability identified with the Judaic History which is one of the main sources
of the Hexateuch (J); the latter with the Ephraimitic History (E). D did
not himself combine these two narratives, but found them already united by
an earlier compiler (RJP), whose work (JE), commonly called Prophetical
Marrative, composed in the 7th century, was perhaps D's only authority for the
period. JE, if not J and E separately, survived by the side of D until some
time after the Exile (the latter part of the 5th or the beginning of the 4th
century), when the author of the present Book of Judges drew upon it to
supplement D's work, prefixing I, I – 2, 5, and co. 17. 18 and 19–21 — the last
named chapters with considerable additions of his own, or at least of post-Exilic
origin. See further below, p. 47, ll. Io ff., and pp. 52–54.
&xpfanation of the Čofors.
In the foregoing translation these sources of the Book of Judges are repre-
sented by colors as follows:
Parts derived from J are printed black, without any colored background
(e. g. I, 5–7).
DARK BLUE (e. g. 4, 6) is employed for E.
LIGHT BLUE (e. g. 2, 6) represents later additions to E (E*).
DARK PURPLE (e. g. Io, I) is used for JE, that is for those parts of the
work in which J and E are so intimately fused that they cannot be separated
by analysis.
LIGHT PURPLE (e. g. 7, 2) for additions of the redactor or editor of J and
E (RJP) who interwove the two documents with one another.
GREEN (e. g. 2, 7) for D, which in many cases overlies RJP.
YELLow (e. g. I, 4) for the additions of the post-Exilic author or editors.
ItAlics indicate the latest strata of the respective documents (e. g. 8, 26;
3, 12; co. 20. 21); especially redactional changes or additions, made in the pro-
cess of uniting and harmonizing different sources (e. g. 4, 7; 5, I ; 7, 20), or in
—-regºe (ſlotee on 3 ubgee ºiet- 47
adjusting the narrative to the point of view of the editor (e. g. I, 8; 6, 18;
9, 22; 13, 19; c. 14) or glossator (e. g. 17, 2.4), or under the influence of a
parallel passage (e. g. 6,39; Io, 3; 19, 24). Some of these latest additions to
the text might have been treated as glosses (e. g. 3, I. 2; 15, 5); but as a rule
words and clauses have been removed to the foot of the page only when there
was some external evidence, such as the omission of the words in the Ancient
Versions (e. g. 7, 6), or grammatical irregularity (e. g. 3, 24; 7, 14; 8,4; 16,41),
or misplacement, the marginal note having been inserted in the text in a false
connection (e. g. 3, 17).
(ſlotes on 1, 1–2, 5.
The section 1 , I – 2, 5, although a comparatively late addition to the Book
of Judges, is derived in the main from a very ancient source; it preserves, in
fact, the fragmentary remains of the Judaic (J) narrative of the Conquest of
Canaan. According to this account, the Israelite tribes invaded the land singly,
or in groups, as the bond of kindred, proximity, or common interest united
them ; the movements of Judah and its allies (Simeon, Caleb, the Kenites) in
the South, of the Josephite tribes in the Central Highlands (Mount Ephraim),
and of the northern tribes in Galilee, being quite independent of one another.
The conquest of the land was at first far from complete; the tribes north of the
Great Plain were able to do little more than find settlements for themselves
among the older inhabitants, while even the stronger tribes south of the Plain
succeeded only in occupying the Highlands, the Canaanites by means of their
war chariots maintaining possession of the plains and broad valleys. The
fortified cities, with few exceptions, defied the invaders. The conquests of Judah
were separated from those of Joseph by a chain of strongholds with Jerusalem
in its centre, which remained in the hands of the Canaanites till the time of Saul
and David (i. e. about IOOO B. C.); the cities along the line of the Great Plain,
from Beth-shean near the Jordan to Dor on the sea-coast, shut up Ephraim
and Manasseh in their mountains, and separated them from Asher, Zebulun,
and Naphtali, in Galilee. The history of Israel in the time of the Judges is in
many ways determined by these conditions. The overthrow of these barriers,
the creation of a United Israel, was the work of the early monarchy.
This account of the Conquest is strikingly at variance with that which we
have in the Book of Joshua. In the latter, Israel invades Palestine in one great
army, under command of Joshua. Two campaigns, two decisive battles (Josh.
Io. II), achieve the conquest of the whole country, from the mountains on the
Edomite border in the south to Mount Hermon in the north (see Josh. II, 15–23).
In these wars the entire population of the land was ruthlessly extirpated (Io, 40 ;
II, II. I4. 21). The land was then allotted to the several tribes, who had nothing
to do but to take possession of their respective territories (13 ff.). That this
representation is unhistorical needs no demonstration ; the history of the times
of the Judges and of the early kingdom proves that many generations elapsed
5
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after the invasion before Israel was in full possession of the land ; and that, far
from being extirpated at one stroke, the Canaanites remained for centuries by
the side of the Israelites, and disappeared at last by gradual absorption in the
dominant population. In all this, the subsequent history confirms the general
truthfulness of the representation in Jud. I.
45

I, I – 7 —ºtagºe (ſlotes on 3 ubges *- 48
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50
Unfortunately, this oldest account of the Conquest has not been preserved
complete, but only in an abridgment adapted by the editor to his own purpose
and point of view. In vv. 1 – 21, narrating the conquests of Judah and its
kindred and allied clans in the south, the order has been deranged by the
transposition of v. 20, which in the original context stood before v. Io (cf. Josh.
15, 13), and of vv. 19. 21 (or 21. 19) which followed v. 7. The beginning of the
story of Adoni-bezek seems to have been omitted ; a clause or two from it
may be preserved in v. 4, which as a whole is editorial. The beginning of the
account of Caleb’s achievements has been altered in such a way as to attribute
them to Judah (v. Ioa), the original introduction being removed to v. 20. To
the hand of an editor are also to be ascribed v. 8 and v. 18 (the capture of Jeru-
salem, and conquest of the seaboard by Judah), which contradict v. 21 and v. Ig;
and probably v. 9. V. Ia, which puts the invasion and conquest as related in
I after the death of Joshua, is also editorial (cf. 2, 6 ff.). In the rest of the
chapter, relating the conquests of Joseph (vv. 22–29) and of the northern
tribes (vv. 30–33), and the failure of Dan to get a foothold in the region where
it first sought to establish itself (vv. 34.35), the editor seems to have confined
himself to abridging his source; v. 36 appears to be mutilated at the end. But
the rebuke which the Messenger of JHVH administers to Israel at Bochim for
sparing the Canaanites, and the sentence he pronounces (2, Ib-5a) are an
addition by the editor, and disclose the motive with which he prefixed c. I to
the Book. Aſ
Fragments of the same ancient source are preserved also in the Book of
Joshua : see Josh. I5, 14–19; 15, 63; 16, Io; I'7, II – I3; 13, 13; 19, 47 (LXX);
17, 14 – 18.
(1) Formula of the final editor of the Historical Books (see p. 46, l. 7),
marking the beginning of the Book of Judges; cf. Josh. I , I. Jud. I is not,
however, a sequel to the Book of Joshua, describing a second conquest or
re-conquest of the land, but an independent account of the invasion and settle-
ment of Western Palestine by the Israelite tribes, parallel to the Book of Joshua
(See above, p. 47, l. 32, and below, note on 2, 6 ff.). What originally preceded
Ib is lost.
(2) The tribes, which are supposed to be encamped together in the valley
of the Jordan, near Jericho (v. 16) and Gilgal (2, 1), consult the oracle to
determine which shall begin the invasion of the interior.
Canaanites, in J the collective name for the inhabitants of Western Palestine.
(3) Judah and Simeon formed, with Reuben and Levi, a distinct group of
tribes (Leah). The pastures and settlements of Simeon were in the south of
Judah ; cf. v. 17, and see Josh. 19, I-9; 15, 26–32.42; 1 Chr. 4, 24–43.
(4) It is assumed that the region in which each tribe, or group of tribes, was
to seek its fortune, had been determined, probably by the sacred lot, before the
actual invasion began ; a representation which can hardly be deemed historical.
(5) The name Adoni-bezek is of anomalous formation ; it is a probable
conjecture that in the original context of J he was called Adoni-2edek, King
of Jerusalem (cf. 7b; Josh. Io, 3).
(6) The Bezek of 1 Sam. 11, 8, now Khirbet Ibziq, fourteen or fifteen miles
NE of Wäbulus (Shechem), cannot be the place meant here. If the text be
sound, we must suppose that there was another Bezek, nearer Jerusalem.
(7) The Perizzites are frequently mentioned in the catalogues of the nations
of Canaan (see Deut. 7, I); and, as here, by the side of the Canaanites (Gen.
I3, 7; 34, 30 ; J).
(8) If the following verse is a late and unhistorical addition to the narrative
of J (see next note), 7b must mean that his own people took him (home) to
I, I
49 —-º- Quotes on 3 ubges ºest- - I, 8– 17
5
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Jerusalem, where he died,—a possible, but not very natural interpretation of the I
words. The alternative is to suppose that 7b is itself an addition to the original
text.
(9) This verse contradicts v. 21 and Josh. 15, 63. Jerusalem was a Jebusite
city (I9, II f.) till it was taken by David (2 Sam. 5, 6–9).
(IO) V. 9 is a general introduction to the following description of the con-
quests. The Mountains are the Central Highlands, the backbone of Southern
Palestine, attaining their greatest elevation near Hebron ; the Negeb (or
‘Barrens,’ AV the South) is the steppe region in the South, between the
mountains of Judah and the steep transverse ridges now named the Mountains
of the Azazimeh, by which it is separated from the level desert; the Lozwlands
(Heb. shepheldh, AV the plain) are the ranges of hills, intersected by broad
and fertile valleys, between the mountains and the coast-plain of Philistia. The
fourth region of Judah, the Wilderness, the rocky steeps in which the mountains
fall off to the east to the level of the Dead Sea (1300 feet below the Mediter-
ranean), is mentioned in v. 16.
(II) The account of the taking of Hebron and Debir is found in a more
original form in Josh. 15, 13 ff.: the Israelites give Hebron to Caleb, who drives
out the three giants (Sons of Anak), Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai. Thence he
goes against Debir, &c. In the redaction of Judges, the conquest of Hebron is
attributed to Judah, which afterwards gives the captured city to Caleb (v. 20);
but the confusion about the subject of v. II and the conflict between v. Iob and
v. 205 remain as evidence of the older representation.
The words the older name of Hebron was Airjath Arba are a gloss; but
may have been introduced by the editor to whom the other changes in the
verse are due. V. IIb is a similar gloss. -
(12) Debir, probably the modern ed-Dāharīyeh, four or five hours SW of
Hebron, on the way to Beersheba, on the border between the Hill-country and
the Nege6 (see note Io).—Airjath-sepher, see note II, end.
(I3) Younger (not in Josh. I5, 17) is a gloss, to explain that the disparity
in age was not so great as might be inferred from the relation of uncle and
niece. .
(14) The form shows that these are Canaanite proper names of places,
meaning, perhaps, Upper and Lower Basin. Probably the groups of springs in
Seil ed-Di/beh are meant.
(15) Cº. 4, 11. The Kenites were a branch of the Amalekite stock. They
had settlements in the Negeb on the south of Judah, part of which was called
by their name (I Sam. 27, IO; cf. 30, 29), but were at least semi-nomadic,
roaming with Amalek in the southern deserts (1 Sam. 15, 6). Unlike the Ama-
lekites, they lived on friendly terms with Israel (see the passages cited above);
only Num. 24, 21 f. breathes a different spirit. In J it seems that Moses was
connected by marriage with this people, and that Hobab, his father-in-law, guided
Israel through the desert (Num. Io, 29–32). (In E Moses' father-in-law is
Jethro, the Midianite.) According to our verse, the family of Hobab accom-
panied Judah in the Invasion, and then, wandering farther to the south, joined
the Amalekites. Another family of the clan is found in the north (4, II).
The Palm City is Jericho, Deut. 34, 3; 2 Chron. 28, 15. The palms of
Jericho, celebrated in antiquity, have now entirely disappeared. -
The Amalekites were the wild Bedouins of the southern deserts, bearing a
reputation much like that of the modern Azazimeh in the same region; see
further, note on 6, 3.
Arad (Num. 21, 1) is believed to be Te/ ‘Arad, 16 miles south of Hebron.
(16) Zephath only here ; Hormah, Num. 21, 3 ; I Sam. 30, 30 ; Josh. I5, 30 ;
19, 4; &c.; the site is unknown. The name Hormah probably signified Juvio-
/ab/e, Ho/y City; the author interprets it Dezoted City.
4
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I, 18–35 →s** Qlotee on 3 ubges ºest- 50
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(17) V. 18, which ascribes to Judah the conquest of the coast-plain, conflicts
with vv. 19 and 34; cf. 3, 3 and Josh. 13, 3. It is, as the diction also shows,
an editorial addition of the same kind as v. 8.
(18) VV. 19. 21 probably stood, in the original context, immediately after
v. 7, either in this order or perhaps 7. 21. I9. The Plain is, as in v. 34, the
coast-plain, west of Judah.
(19) V. 20 originally preceded v. Io; see note on the latter verse, and cf.
Josh. I5, 13 ff.
The three giants; often misunderstood: Sons of (a giant named) Anak.
(20) See note on v. 19. In Josh. I5, 63, where this verse occurs otherwise
zerbatim, we find, in place of the Benjamites, the Judahites, which is doubt-
less original. Benjamin is substituted in Jud. in conformity with the theory of
the partition of the land which included Jerusalem within the borders of that
tribe.
(21) Including Benjamin, and perhaps Issachar, as well as Ephraim and
Manasseh.
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(22) Luz, Gen. 28, 19; 35, 6; Josh. I 8, 13; &c.
(23) See note on 3, 3. The site of the northern Luz is unknown.
(24) Beth-Sheam, cf. Josh. 17, 16. It is the modern Beisdin, commanding
the passage from the Jordan Valley to the Great Plain.— Zaanach (Ta'anuk;
see the full page illustration facing p. Io, in which the village of Ta'anuk is seen
on the top of the middle hill in the background) and A/egiddo (Lejjūn), fre-
quently named together, lie on the main road along the southern edge of the
Plain, the latter commanding also one of the principal passages from the sea-
coast into the Plain.— Ib/eam (Bel'ameh) lies on the main road from the Plain
south to Samaria, and near another of the chief routes from the coast.— Dor
(Tantúrah), on the sea-coast, south of Carmel.—These cities, occupying strategic
positions, separated the tribes of Joseph, in the Central Highlands, from the
Great Plain, and from the tribes which lay north of it in Galilee; they were
not all in the possession of Israelites till after the establishment of the kingdom.
(25) A system of compulsory labor (corvée) upon public works or in the
king's service (I Kings 9, 15. 20 fſ. ; 5, 13 f.), such as the Israelites themselves
were subjected to in Egypt.
(26) C/. Josh. 16, Io, where the original text of J is more completely pre-
served. Gezer, on the SW border of Ephraim, still independent in David's time,
was conquered by the Egyptians in the reign of Solomon, and presented to
his queen, Pharaoh's daughter (I K. 9, 15–17). It is the modern Tel /ezer,
between 'Amzvás (Nicopolis) and 'Aqir (Ekron).
(27) Zebulun settled in the western part of Lower Galilee; the places named
have not been identified. (28) See note 25.
(29) Asher settled the Hinterland of the Phoenician coast (cf. 5, 17).—Accho,
in New Testament times named Polemais (Acts 21, 7), modern ‘AAA’d (Acre),
on the coast north of the headland of Carmel.--— Achció, now ex-Zíb, between
Acre and Tyre.—Ah/ab, Pſe/bah (possibly variants of the same name), Aphié,
and Rehob are still unidentified. The first was probably on the coast, the last
two further inland. º
(30) Naphtali settled in the eastern part of Upper Galilee, north of Zebulun
and Issachar, and east of Asher.—Beth-anath, which had its name from the
worship of the goddess Anath (cf. note on 3, 31), may be the modern 'Ainitha,
six miles NW of Kedesh in Naphtali. The site of Beth-Shemesh, sacred to the
Sun, is not known. .
(31) Cº. v. 19; Josh. 17, 16. The Danites first tried to establish themselves
on the southwest of Ephraim ; but succeeded in occupying only a small district
around Zorah and Eshtaol (cc. 13 – 16). The greater part of the tribe afterwards
I, 18
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23.
26
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5 I —geºtex. Quotes on 3 ubges ºst- I, 36–2, 5
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migrated to the head-waters of the Jordan, where they conquered Laish, and
renamed it Dan (cc. 17. 18; Josh. 19, 47 f.).-The Amorites are the native pop-
ulation of Western Palestine, who in the preceding part of the chapter are called
Canaanites. The change of name here has not been satisfactorily explained.—
Aar-heres seems to be the same as Beth-shemesh (I Kings 4, 9, &c.) or Ir-
shemesh (Josh. 19, 41), the modern 'Ain Shems.—Aijalon, now Yáló, is about
two miles east of ‘Amzvás. The two places command the descent from the hills
to the plain by Wadies Qurār and Se/mán.—Shaalbim is not identified.
(32) The Edomites adjoined the territory of Judah on the southeast.—The
Akrabbim Pass (“Scorpion Pass'), probably Magö ec-Qaſi, by which the main
road from Edom to Hebron ascends.-The later Nabatean capital, Petra, with
which Sela is generally identified, is much too far south to be the place meant
in our text, which we should look for near the southern end of the Dead Sea;
perhaps in ec-Qāfieh. It is doubtful whether the end of the verse is intact.
(33) The Messenger of JHWH,
the appearance of JHVH Himself,
usually in human form ; a theo-
phany; cf. 6, II ff.; 13, 3 ff. and the
note on Is. 63,9. – Gilga/, in the
Jordan valley near Jericho, the
standing camp of the Israelites
after they first crossed the river.
The name was probably given it
from an old stone circle or crom-
lech.--To Beth-eſ, in the times of
the kingdom one of the most
famous sanctuaries in Central Pales- PALESTINIAN CROM LECH.
time. The original sequel of these
words was v. 5b, and they offered sacrifice there to /HVH. The theophany marked
the spot as a holy place of JHVH ; it was inaugurated by sacrifice.
(34) With the following reproof of the Messenger cf. 6, 7 – Io; Io, II – 16;
I Sam. 7, 3 f.; Io, 17 – 19 ; I2, 6–25. It is made up of reminiscences of older
texts; cf. v. 2 with Exod. 34, 13 f.; 23, 2I f.; v. 3 with Josh. 23, 13 (itself late);
Exod. 34, 12; Deut. 7, 16; &c. The reference to the forefathers is common in
Deuteronomy and Deuteronomistic editors.
(35) Exod. 34, 13: Pu// dozun their altars, and break in pieces their (stone)
pillars, and heavy dozen their sacred poles. It has been suspected that the text
in Jud. has been accidentally mutilated by a copyist; but it is at least equally
possible that it was abridged by the author of the verses.
(36) The parallels have a fuller text: A scourge on your flanks and thorns
in your eyes (Josh. 23, 13); thorns in your sides (Num. 33, 55). The received
Hebrew text here: they shall be sides to you.
(37) That is, Weepers. Cf. the etymological legends attaching themselves
to local names in 15, 14 – 19. The name which is the subject of the Midrash
in our verse may have been Bežaim (cf. 2 Sam. 5, 23 f.); cf. also Allon Bacuth
(Gen. 35, 8, below Beth-el), and the Va//ey of Baca (Ps. 84, 6).
36
2
3
5


52 →regº. Q'otes on 3 uogee ºiet-
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
35
4O
45
50
(ſloted on 2, 6–16, 31.
The History of Israel under the Judges covers the period from the death
of Joshua (2, 8) to that of Samson (16, 30 f.). The general character of the
times is described in the introduction, 2, 6–3, 6. No sooner were the Israelites
fairly settled in the land than they abandoned the God of their fathers, JHVH,
for the worship of the gods of Canaan or of the neighboring nations. For this,
JHVH delivered them to their enemies, who subdued and oppressed them.
When they were reduced to extremities, He sent a leader, or champion, who
freed them from the yoke of their oppressors, only to fall again into the same
sins and bring on themselves the same calamities (see above, p. 43, l. 8). The
periods of the history are marked by these successive oppressions and deliver-
ances, each of which, as the author does not fail to note, illustrates and confirms
the characterization given in the introduction (see 3, 7 - II. I2 – 15; 4, 1 ff.; 6,
1 — Io; Io, 6–16; 13, 1). The chronology follows this divisióñº it gives us, in
the case of each of the greater Judges, the duration of the oppression which
preceded the deliverance, and of the peace and security which succeeded it
under the rule of the Judge; and these data were doubtless meant to be under-
stood as continuous. The following conspectus exhibits, therefore, both the
outline of the history and the structure of the Book:
Introduction, 2, 6–3, 6
Oppression by Cushan-rishathaim, 8 years,
Deliverance by Othniel ; peace, 40 years, 3, 7 – II
Oppression by Eglon, King of Moab, 18 years,
Deliverance by Ehud ; peace, 80 years, 12 – 30
Shamgar kills 600 Philistines, - 3I
Oppression by the Canaanites (Jabin and Sisera), 20 years,
Deliverance by Deborah and Barak; peace, 40 years, 4.5
Oppression by the Midianites, 7 years,
Deliverance by Gideon ; peace, 40 years, 6–8
Abimelech, King in Shechem, 3 years, 9
Tola judges Israel 23 years, IO, I – 2
Jair judges Israel 22 years, 3–5
Oppression by the Ammonites, 18 years,
Deliverance by Jephthah ; he judges Israel 6 years, Io, 6–I 2, 7
Ibzan judges Israel 7 years, I2, 8– Io
Elon judges Israel Io years, II – I2
Abdon judges Israel 8 years, I3 - 15
Oppression by the Philistines, 40 years,
Samson vexes the Philistines, and judges Israel 20 years, I3–16
The religious interpretation and judgment of the history in 2, 6–3, 6 and
in the introductions to the stories of the several Judges is in general that of the
Deuteronomistic historians, and bears considerable resemblance to the commen-
tary on the history of the monarchy in the Books of Kings (cf. e. g. 2 Kings
17, 6 ff.). It is plainly intended to impress on the readers of the Book the
great lesson that unfaithfulness to the religion of JHVH has for its unvarying
consequence national calamities; God withdraws His protection, and leaves
Israel a prey to its foes ; but with it also the lesson of JHVH’s unfailing readiness
to come to the help of His people, when in their deep distress they turn to
Him. This interpretation of history as God’s moral dealing with His people,
and the use of it to illustrate and enforce moral and religious lessons, is the
fruit of the teaching of the Prophets, and, in this form, has its closest parallels
in the Books of Jeremiah and Ezekiel, and in the Exilic additions to Deut-
eronomy. The composition of Jud. 2, 6–16, 31 (often called, from these
→regº- (ſtotee on 3 ubge6 -ºst- 53
peculiarities, the Deuteronomic Book of Judges) may therefore with some confi-
dence be ascribed to the 6th century B. C., probably somewhat later than the
redaction of the Books of Kings. -
Numerous repetitions and slight but appreciable differences of diction and
point of view, in the Introduction (2, 6–3, 6) and in the introductions to the
histories of the several Judges, especially the longer ones, 6, I – Io and Io,
6–16, indicate that these parts of the Book are not entirely the work of a single
author. Many critics are of the opinion that these phenomena are due, mainly
if not wholly, to that kind of interpolation, enlarging upon and emphasizing
the original text, to which the Deuteronomistic moralizing, here as in other
Books, presented a peculiar temptation; in this work of retouching and height-
ening, the editor of the present enlarged Book of Judges may have had the
chief part. Others think that the Deuteronomistic author himself took as the
basis of his work an older collection of Lives of the Judges, in which his way
of interpreting and commenting on the history was preformed. Upon the
former hypothesis, the alien elements in the introduction and the setting of the
stories are later than the composition of the Deuteronomic Book of Judges;
upon the latter, they would be older. See above, p. 46.
The stories of Ehud, Deborah and Barak, Gideon and Abimelech, Jephthah,
and Samson were not written or rewritten by the Deuteronomistic author, but
were taken from older sources; scarcely a trace of D's distinctive literary style
or moralizing is to be discovered in them. They remind us of the Prophetical
narratives of the lives of the patriarchs in Genesis, and still more closely
resemble the histories of Samuel, Saul, and David in the Books of Samuel,
with which they are doubtless coeval. Slight differences among the stories in
diction and tone might be naturally explained by reference to their ultimate,
and not very remote, source in unwritten tradition, and would not prove
diversity of literary origin. But the story of Gideon is clearly composite; two
originally independent narratives have been combined by a redactor; and the
same thing is probably true of more than one of the others. At least two
older written sources, therefore, were drawn upon for the histories of the
Judges, and in some instances the parallel narratives had been united before
they came into the hands of the Deuteronomic author. The similarity of these
phenomena to those which exist in the Hexateuch, where the narratives of J
and E were united by a pre-Deuteronomic redactor RJP, has led to the surmise
that in Judges also the two chief sources from which the stories are derived
were the works of J and E, which were united by an editor in a pre-Deutero-
nomic Book of Judges. To this redactor the non-Deuteronomistic elements in
the Introduction and the setting of the stories might then be, at least in part,
ascribed. The hypothesis receives support from a closer examination of the
tales themselves. In the story of Samson some noteworthy resemblances to J
in the Hexateuch have been pointed out; in other places, as in Io, 6–16, we
are strongly reminded of E. The evidence for the identification of the main
sources of Judges with J and E is, however, far from demonstrative; the
question is still a disputed one. The same question arises in the Books of
Samuel also, part of which seems, at one period in the history of the Books, to
have been included in a Book of Judges, the present division is compara-
tively late.
Of the so-called Minor Judges, Tola, Jair (Io, I – 5), Ibzan, Elon, and
Abdon (12, 8 – 15), we have only brief notices, like extracts from a chronicle,
giving the name and clan, the number of years each judged Israel, and the
place where he was buried, in formulas differing from those by which the
histories of the other Judges are introduced and closed. To these standing
2O
25
3O
35
4O
45
2, 6-9 —-seºk. Quotes on 3u83¢6 ºt- 54
5
IO
15
2O
25
3O
35
4O
45
50
data there is added, in some instances, a sentence or two about the numerous
posterity, matrimonial alliances, and possessions of the Judge, which are of
such a nature as to confirm the conjecture which the names themselves suggest,
that these /udges are in reality not individuals but clans. Comparison of the set
phrases in these verses with 12, 7; 15, 20; I Sam. 4, 18; 7, 15, has led some
critics to infer that the notices of the Minor Judges are ultimately derived from
one of the older sources of the Book of Judges. Others are of the opinion that
they were invented by the last editor to make up the number of twelve Judges.
The question is of importance chiefly in connection with the chronology of the
Book. The account of the subjugation of Israel by Cushan-rishathaim and its
deliverance by Othniel (3,7 – II) consists almost entirely of the characteristic
formulas of the Deuteronomistic author, and seems to have been composed by
him as a typical example to illustrate his view of the whole history as set
forth in 2, 6–3, 6.-Shamgar (3, 31) was introduced by a later editor, and is not
included in the chronological scheme.
Qlotee on 2, 6–3, 6.
This Introduction contains a general survey of the history of the whole
period of the Judges (see above, p. 52), which it represents as “an almost
rhythmical alternation of idolatry and subjugation, return to JHVH and libera-
tion ” (VATKE). The text is not homogeneous, as is proved by the numerous
repetitions, and still more conclusively by the conflicting reasons given in
2, 20–3, 6 for JHVH’s leaving some of the native nations within the limits of
Palestine. In 2, 23; 3, 2a. 5 f we have fragments of J, which may have formed
the conclusion of c. 1, explaining why JHVH did not enable the tribes to expel
the Canaanites all at once ; cf. Exod. 23, 29 f.; Deut. 7, 22 f. The verses have
passed through the hands of more than one editor; the catalogue of nations
in 3, 5b is probably an addition by RJP, to whom also 3, 6 may owe its present
form. The verses 2, 6.8— Io (= Josh. 24, 28–30) are beyond doubt from E ; the
continuation of this source is found in 2, 13. 20 f., which was probably followed
by 3, 4. To the author of the Deuteronomistic Book of Judges (D) may be
ascribed 2,7. IIa. 12. I4 (in the main). I5. 18 f. 22; 3, 1a. 3. In these verses,
which exhibit throughout the distinctive peculiarities of D's diction and point
of view, the history of the whole following period is briefly characterized as a
series of apostasies. E, on the contrary, narrates the first defection, after the
death of Joshua, with its consequences. The representation of D has been
heightened by a later hand in 2, 14aº. 16 f. The color given to these verses in
the text (YELLOw) signifies only that they were added by a post-Exilic editor,
not necessarily the same whose hand is recognized in I, 8. 18; 2, Ib–54; a
remark which applies also to 3, 1b. 2b. D appears to have worked upon the
basis of E, not to have been combined with it by a third hand.
(1) After the great assembly and solemn renewal of the covenant at
Shechem, Josh. 24. VV. 6.8. 9 = Josh. 24, 28–30; the repetition was occasioned
by the introduction of Jud. I, I – 2, 5. According to this narrative, the land
had been completely conquered and divided among the tribes.
(2) The great work of ///VH includes the deliverance from Egypt, the
wandering, and the conquest, of all which Joshua's generation had been wit-
nesses; cf. Deut. I I, 2–7.
(3) 7 immath-heres, in Josh. 24, 30; 19, 50, corrupted to Timnath-serah. It
is the modern Tibneh, NW of Jiſrud (Gophna), on one of the main roads from
the coast into the Highlands of Ephraim (Beth-el). On the side of the hill over
against the town are remarkable rock-tombs. Local tradition in the Middle
2, 6
55 -** Quotes on 3 ubges -º-º- 2, IO-14
5
IO
I5
2O
25
30
Ages fixed on a site nearer Shechem, at Awerfeh or Kefr Häriſh ; some recent 2
scholars have revived the latter identification.— Mount Gaash, cf. 2 Sam. 23, 30.
(4) The original reference is to the family sepulchre. Like the cognate Io
expressions, be gathered to his people, go to his fathers, sleep with his fathers,
it becomes a mere circumlocution for die.
(5) Lit., did ſhe ſhing that was evil in the eyes of ///VA, a standing formula II
in the introductions to the stories of the several Judges.
ROCK-TOMBS OF TIBNEH.
(6) Baa/ and Astarte; cf. Io, 6; I Sam. 7, 4; 12, Io; see also Jud. 3, 7, 13
Aaa/ means proprietor, possessor of something. The Baal of a place, e. g. the
Baal of Tyre, Sidon, Lebanon, &c., is the god to whom it belongs, just as the
citizens of a town are its baſa/im (proprietors, e. g. 9, 2.3). There were thus
innumerable Baals, some of them having a proper name, like //e/garſ, the
Baal of Tyre, or some distinctive attribute or title; others distinguished solely
by the place where they were worshiped. The Baal of any particular com-
munity would ordinarily be spoken of in that community simply as the Baal.
When we speak of Baal as the principal god of the Canaanites, it is not to
be understood that there was one god, Baal, whom all the Canaanites wor-
shiped, but that the many local divinities were all called by this significant
name. In the OT the plural is often used, the Baa/s, i. e. the gods of Canaan;
less frequently, the generic singular, as here.-Asfarfe, Phoenician Ashtarſ, in
the Received Text pronounced Ashfºreſh, the great goddess of the Semitic
peoples, Babylonian and Assyrian /shfar, Syrian Azhar, South Arabian Aſhfar
(masc.). With these names many scholars would connect the Greek Aphrodite.
Numerous inscriptions from Phoenicia and its colonies, as well as the testimony
of the OT and, in later times, of Greek and Roman writers, show how great
a place the worship of this deity had in the religion of the peoples of Canaan.
In the OT the plural is frequently used, especially in conjunction with the
/*aa/s, as equivalent to goddesses, a conception for which the Hebrew language
has no word. In Assyrian, /s/ſar (sing, and plur.) is used in a similar way.
(7) Was incensed, &c., ºf 20; 3,8; ro, 7, &c.—Spoilers, 16; 1 Sam. 14, 48; 14
2 Kings 17, 20.-So/d them, &c., 3, 8; 4, 2; Io, 7; I Sam. 12, 9; &c.

2, I5-3, 3 →s* Qlotee on 3ubges ºet- 56
*
(8) The reference is not to any specific threat, but to the whole tenor of 2, 15
the Deuteronomic warnings; see e. g., Deut. 28, 20.30-34; cf. Is. 30, 17.
(9) The Judges are the champions whom JHVH raises up to vindicate and 16
deliver Israel. But as Saul's relief of Jabesh in Gilead made him king, so,
5 in the theory of the compilers and editors of this Book, the Judges, after they
had rid their country of its oppressors, ruled it for the rest of their lives.
Upon this basis, as has been noted above, the chronology of the Book is
based. So, too, the Minor Judges form a regular succession. In vv. 16. 17,
accordingly, the . Israelites are accused of resisting the efforts of their divinely
Io constituted rulers to reclaim them from their evil way; a somewhat different
representation from that of v. 19, according to which they relapsed at the death
of the Judge.—It is natural enough that the leader in a successful war of
liberation, or the hero of some daring exploit, should gain a great authority,
which might be formally acknowledged, as in the cases of Gideon and Jeph-
I5 thah ; but the error of the editor's theory is that it makes of the heroes of
local struggles, deliverers and rulers of all Israel.
(IO) Went astray (or in faithlessness); see the note on Lev. 17, 7 and com- 17
pare Jud. 8, 27.33; Exod. 34, 15. 16; Deut. 31, 16; &c. The worship of other
gods is described, in a figure which was suggested to Hosea by his own bitter
2O experience (Hos. I – 3), as the unfaithfulness of a wife who abandons her hus-
band to run after other lovers and prostitute herself to them.
(II) VV. 18. 19 set forth succinctly the scheme of the Deuteronomistic 18. 19
Book of Judges, illustrated by the histories of the successive Judges from
Othniel to Samson.
25 (I2) The verses are the continuation of 6.8 – Io. 13 (E). The consequence 20. 21
of Israel’s speedy lapse into heathenism upon the death of Joshua was that
JHVH determined not to let them complete the subjugation of Palestine ; the
regions which Joshua had not conquered should remain in the possession of
their old inhabitants, partly as a punishment for the defection of that genera-
30 tion, partly as a standing test of Israel's loyalty in the future to JHVH and
His religion. The latter motive is declared in v. 22, in terms which are unmis-
takably Deuteronomistic; and in 3, 4, which is on this account ascribed to E ;
See also 3, 1a.
(13) /HVH left these peoples, &c. The words can only refer to something 23
35 which precedes; if they are correctly attributed to J, they would form a natural
close to c. 1. The second half-verse is a harmonistic addition which does not
harmonize.
(14) These two parentheses are glosses, probably of the same origin. 3, I. 2
(15) The nations of Canaan were to be driven out gradually in order to 2
4o teach the succeeding generations of Israel the arts of war, and constrain them
to cultivate military discipline. Another, perhaps preferable, restoration of the
text is : merely in order that the Israelites might have experience of war; the
sense is not materially different.
(16) Many critics think that this list of nations is derived from the same 3
45 source as 2, 23a; 3, 2a ; but it does not accord with the representation in c. 1,
and has its closest parallel in Jos. 13, 2 ff. (D).— The five princes of the Philis-
times, see I Sam. 6, 16–18; the rulers of the cities of Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod,
Gath, Ekron, in the coast-plain west of Judah. —The Canaanites, in E and D
particularly the inhabitants of the lowlands of Southwestern Palestine; see Num.
50 13, 29; Deut. I, 7; Josh. 5, 1 ; cf. Josh. 13, 3.4; 2 Sam. 24, 7; Zeph. 2, 5-The
Phoenicians, occupying the maritime plain from Mount Carmel north, with the
cities of Tyre, Sidon, &c.— The Hittites, inhabiting the range of Lebanon; by
an accident of transcription which occurs also in Josh. II, 3, the Received Text
57 -º-º-Qlotes on 3 ubges -º- 3, 5-10
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
35
40
45
50
names the Hizzites, a petty people of Southern Palestine, whose seats were in
the vicinity of Jerusalem (see v. 5a).-Mount Baa/ Hermon, not far from the
sources of the Jordan, was their southern limit; they extended northward in
the Lebanon and Coele-Syria to the neighborhood of Hamath.
(17) The verses are substantially from J.; the catalogue in 5b (differing
entirely from that in 3) has been supplemented by an editor, as in many similar
cases; cf. Deut. 7, 1. The Israelites intermarried with these people, and, as a
consequence, adopted their religion; see Exod. 34, 16; Deut. 7, 3 f.; Josh. 23, 12.
Qlotes on 3, 7–11.
The account of the oppression of Israel by the Syrians and its deliverance
by Othniel is Deuteronomistic throughout, written by the author of 2, 11 f. 14 f.
18 f., as a typical example. Besides the standing formulas of D and his chro-
nology, it contains only the names of Oſhnie/ (1, 13; Josh. 15, 17), and Cushan-
rishathaim, King of Syria on the Euphraſes. The latter is not Mesopotamia, i. e.
the whole area included between the Euphrates and the Tigris, from the mountains
of Armenia to the latitude of Babylon, but the much smaller region on the
upper Euphrates, extending eastward perhaps to the Chabóras (AAdibºr), and
probably including also a strip of varying breadth on the west side of the river.
Cushan occurs elsewhere only as the name of a nomadic tribe cognate to Midian
(Hab. 3,7; cf. Num. 12, 1). A Syrian invasion from which the Israelites were
delivered by Othniel, whose seats were at Debir in the extreme south, is too
improbable to be accepted without better attestation than it possesses. If the
verses have any historical basis, it may be surmised that it was an account
of an inroad of the Bedouins from the Southeast (Cushan), repulsed by the
Kenizzites of Debir (Othniel). It has been further suggested that Syria, Heb.
Aram (v. Io) may have arisen, by a confusion of which there are many other
instances in the OT, from an original Edom (GRATz); Syria on the AEuphraſes,
Heb. Aram-maharaſim (cf. the title of Ps. 60), in v. 8 would then be a second
stage in the progress of the error. See also p. 90, 1, 22.
(1) The Baa/s and the Asherahs; see note on 2, 13. Asherah stands beside
Aaal here precisely as Astarte does elsewhere (2, 13; Io, 6; I Sam. 7, 4; 12, Io),
and must be, as in - - post or pole which
I Kings 18, 19; 2 -º stood at the place
Kings 23, 4, the of worship (see
name of a divinity. note on 6, 25).
In by far the great- Such sacred poles
er number of pas- are frequently re-
sages, however, the presented on an-
asherāh (appella- ASHERAH AND SACRED TREE. cient Oriental seal-
tive) is the sacred cylinders as shown
in the accompanying engraving. These poles were not the symbols of any
particular divinity, e. g. Astarte; they were erected beside the altars of JHvh
as well as Baal; and there is good reason to doubt whether a goddess Asherah
ever existed, except as the sacred pole itself was an object of worship.
(2) Cushan-rishafhaim is so pronounced in the Received Text as to make
the name mean Cushan of twofold-wickedness'; cf. Bera and Birsha, Gen. 14, 2.
(3) The spirit of VA/VH, see 11, 29; 6,34; 13, 25; 14,6; 15, 14; 1 Sam.
II, 6. Induing him, as God's champion, with superhuman might and courage.
Afe windicated Israe/= conquered their right. The Hebrew verb is the same
from which the noun Judge is derived; the Judge, in this Book, is one who
vindicates his country from a tyrant.’ See further I Sam. 8, 20.
3

3, II – I 8 —-seº (ſlotes on 3 ubges ºst- - 58
(4) After this victory the land enjoyed security under the rule of Othniel 3, II
until his death; cf. 2, 18.—Forty years, a whole generation; see above, p. 45, l. Ioff.
Qlotes on 3, 12–30.
The introduction and conclusion of the story (12–15. 28–30) are the work
of D. The concrete facts, such as the Moabite occupation of Jericho (13b), the
sending of the tribute to Eglon by Ehud (15b), and the seizure of the fords
(28b), are, of course, derived from the story itself, the original beginning and
end of which have been supplanted by D's pragmatic scheme. Traces of the
hand of the pre-Deuteronomistic editor may also be discovered in the verses.
Io The story itself bears no marks of Deuteronomistic redaction. The Moabites,
whose territory lay east of the Dead Sea, and, except when Israel was strongest
on that side of the Jordan, as in the days of Omri and Ahab, reached to
the Jordan opposite Jericho (the Steppes of Moab), crossed the river, captured
Jericho, and occupied its fertile plain. From the story itself it does not appear
15 that their power extended beyond this into the mountains behind. The Ben-
jamites were the sufferers by this invasion ; and it was a Benjamite who, by a
bold stroke, rid them of the tyrant. The Deuteronomistic author, as in other
cases, transforms the local struggle into the subjugation and liberation of all
Israel.
2O The exploits of the tribal hero were, doubtless, preserved in memory and
often retold at the sanctuary of the tribe at Gilgal. The story, as we read it,
shares the general character of the oldest narratives in the Book, and is therefore
ascribed to J, to whom some slight indications in the language also point. It
may have been retouched in some places by later hands; but the attempt to
25 Separate it into two strands (J and E) is not convincing.
5
(I) On the Ammonites see note on II, 4; on the Amalekites, notes on I3
I, I6; 6, 3. - (2) The Palm City = Jericho; see 1, 16.
(3) Gera is the name of a Benjamite clan (Gen. 46, 21 ; 2 Sam. I6, 5; &c.).— I5
A man who had not the use of his right hand, cf. 20, 16. The etymology of
30 the Hebrew word suggests that the hand was shrunken in consequence of an
injury; in the later language, however, the phrase means no more than Jeff-
handed, and that is perhaps all that is intended here. It was by taking advan-
tage of this bodily defect that Ehud succeeded in his plan.
(4) The weapon 16
which he made for the
purpose was a long and
heavy dagger, measur-
ing thirteen or fourteen
inches in the blade;
sharp on both edges,
and without guard or
Cross-piece (v. 22).
(5) The tribute was 18
paid in the products of
the land, and a consid-
erable number of bear-
ers was doubtless neces-
** §:
5
:#
s
º
|
ſº
º
|i
ISRAELITES BEARING TRIBUTE. sary. Our engraving,
- from the Black Obelisk
50 of Shalmaneser II (B. c. 860–824) represents the tribute brought to the Assyrian
king by Jehu of Israel (B. c. 842).

59 -** Qlotes on 3 ubges -ºs- 3, 19-23
(6) We are to suppose that Ehud accompanied the bearers on their return 3, 19
to this point; then, leaving them to pursue their journey, retraced his steps
alone to Eglon's residence. The sculptured stones near Gi/gaſ were perhaps
roughly carved standing stones, the intermediate stage between the rude stone
5 and the idol. From v. 26 it has been inferred that they marked the limit of the
Moabite occupation in this direction, once beyond which, Ehud was safe from
pursuit. They are not mentioned elsewhere.
(7) And said, &c. We are to imagine that when he returned, Ehud sent
word to the King that he had a matter to communicate to him which required
Io secrecy; the King dismissed his attendants, and Ehud was admitted to his
presence as he sat alone in his upper story. The words would connect better
with the end of v. 18: He dismissed the bearers, and said, &c. Cº. however, Ex.
18, 6.7.
(8) The upper story in Oriental houses is raised above the roof at one 20
I5 corner, or upon a tower-like annex to the building, and contains usually only
- º -
* - .* º
- º '. º º
º "..."
in- º, * *
--~
j º
"I
º [...] ºil-
| | - º º iT
- * * - º --> - - º infº H
alº Flºº-º-º-º-º: I.
- - - - Hºrºſiº º º
* Tº \ll \lſº º | Miº º
iº
º - -
º: º ºf gºv/izºğl
º º | Fº ſºlº º §
º
tº º º ſº º º ſº
\º ºft º
UPPER STORY OF AN ORIENTAL, HOUSE.
one room, through which windows on all sides allow the air to circulate freely;
c/. I Kings 17, 19. 23; 2 Kings 4, Iof ; (in palaces) 2 Kings 1, 2; Jer, 22, 13 f.; also
Acts I, 13; 9, 37.39; 20,8.
(9) Ehud's secret is a divine communication, whether by oracle, seer, or
20 prophet, which concerns the king. Eglon reverently rises from his seat at this
announcement, and in doing so gives Ehud his opportunity.
(Io) The words, Eg/on was a very ſaf man, which in the Received Text 22
stand in v. 17, are perhaps a misplaced marginal gloss. Not only the long blade,
but the hilt also, was buried in his belly.
25 (II) The word omitted in translation was probably the name of some part 23
of the building (porch, gaſ/ery?) through which Ehud passed in his exit.
























































3, 25 - 3 I → *** Qiotee on 3 ubges ºst- 6O
(12) The lock was doubtless like those now in use in the East, so con- 3, 25
structed that the bolt our ignorance of the
was shot by the hand - topography. The site
or by a thong; the key • of Seirah is unknown;
5 was only used for un- - from the context it ap-
locking the door. C/. [o @ G) @ Q) @ G) - | pears that it was in the
the note on Isaiah 22, mountains. The resi-
22. • I dence of the King was
(13) The sculptured probably not at Jericho, 26
Io stones; see note 6 but on the other side
above. Here, as well H= Tº of the Jordan. If it
as in v. 19, the clause were quite sure that
L
;
i
is not without difficulty, MODERN SYRIAN LOCK. v. 1922 and v. 26ba were
but this may be due to part of the original nar-
15 rative, this would be certain; for the way from Jericho to the land of Benjamin
or the Highlands of Ephraim does not pass by Gilgal, which lies in the oppo-
site direction, between Jericho and the fords of the Jordan.
(I4) Compare chapter 12, verse 5. 28
Qlote on 3, 31.
2O (I) 4, I ignores Shamgar, connecting immediately with 3, 30. Shamgar is 31
often reckoned as the first of the (six) Minor Judges; but the brief story of
his exploit has no resemblance to Io, I – 5; 12, 8–15, and no place in the
chronological scheme. The verse is one of the latest additions to the Book.
The name, Shamgar ben-'Amath, is probably derived from 5, 6; the story of
25 the slaughter of the Philistines reminds us of Samson (cf. especially 15, 14 f.),
and still more of one of David's heroes, Shammah ben-Agee (2 Sam. 23, II f.).
As a Philistine fighter Shamgar comes too soon. Anath is the name of a
goddess who was widely worshiped in Palestine and north of it (cf. note on I, 33).
The Syrian ox-goad is a very good substitute for a spear, being a stout
30 staff six or eight feet long armed at one end with a spike.
Qlotes on £50pters 4.5.
The war with the Canaanites and the defeat and death of Sisera are the
subject of the Triumphal Ode, c. 5, as well as of the prose narrative, c. 4. The
poem is much the older of the two, and the prose version is manifestly
35 dependent upon it. The discrepancies between them are to be attributed in
part, perhaps, as in the description of the death of Sisera, to misunderstanding
of the poem, but chiefly to the union in c. 4 of the story of Sisera with an
originally independent story of a war with Jabin, King of Hazor. Sisera, who
in the ode is at the head of the Kings of Canaan, is in 4, 2.7 only the general
40 of Jabin, the King of Canaan. It is easy, as usual, to recognize D's introduction
and close (4, I – 4. 23 f.), in which material derived from the story itself (e. g.
in vv. 3. 4) and perhaps traces of the older setting are incorporated. V. 5 seems
to be a late editorial gloss to v. 4; cf. 1 Sam. 7, 16 f. The stories of Jabin and
Sisera were probably united, not by D, but by an older compiler (RJP), to
45 whom, in this case, the harmonistic device which makes Sisera Jabin's general

6I —seek (ſlotes on 3 ubges ºst- 4, 2.3
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is to be ascribed. Jabin has no part in the action; and it is difficult to deter-
mine what may have led to the connection of his history with that of Sisera,
or what elements in vv. 6 – 22 are derived from it. The theatre of the war with
Sisera was the valley of the Kishon, near Mount Tabor (cf. notes on 4, 6.7);
his city, Harosheth, is generally identified with Æðrithiyeh, at the western gate-
way to the Great Plain from the coast. Hazor, Jabin's city, on the contrary, is
far away in Upper Galilee. Kedesh in Naphtali, Barak's home (v. 6) and the
rendezvous of the tribesmen whom he led to the war (v. Io), in the neighbor-
hood of which Jael’s tent was pitched (v. II; cf. v. 17), is a little way north of
Hazor. Sisera’s flight from the battle-field to this remote point can hardly be
imagined ; and it has been thought improbable that it would be chosen as the
rendezvous of forces gathered to attack the Canaanites in the Plain, or that
Zebulun and Naphtali only, and not the tribes about the Plain, should have
been raised for such a war. Some critics have inferred, therefore, that these
features of the story were brought in by association with the story of Jabin of
Hazor; in the original story of Sisera, another Kedesh, nearer the scene of
action (in Issachar), may have been named as Barak’s home.
The narrative clearly implies that Jael's tent, in which Sisera sought refuge,
was not very far from the field of battle ; the clauses in v. II and v. 17 which
seem to put it forty miles or more away, near Kedesh and Hazor, cannot
belong to this source. The other inference is not so certain ; in the Ode also
Zebulun and Naphtali play a distinguished part, and a commander planning to
occupy Mount Tabor by a sudden movement, might well assemble his force of
hardy hill-men at a more remote point. In the text, therefore, vv. 6 – 22 are
ascribed as a whole to one source, and the clauses which conflict with its
representation are treated as editorial additions, whether directly derived from
the story of Jabin, or suggested by the connection with it established in
I – 4. 23 f. Some slight stylistic indications point to E, rather than J, as the
source of the story of Sisera ; decisive marks are lacking.
Qlotes on £30pter 4.
(I) In Josh. II, Jabin, king of Hazor, is the head of the Canaanite con-
federacy in the north, whose armies Joshua destroyed in the decisive battle by
the Waters of Merom, achieving at one stroke the conquest of all Palestine
north of the Great Plain. Jabin thus plays in the conquest of the north the
same part which Adoni-zedek does in the south ; and as the account of
Joshua's victory over the latter in Josh. Io appears to be based upon J's
narrative of the conquests of Judah in Jud. I (Adoni-bezek), so, it may be
conjectured, Josh. II is dependent on the older story of Jabin, a fragment of
which is preserved in Jud. 4, which may also have been taken from J. Jabin,
King of Hazor (Jud. 4, 17; Josh. II, I), has become for D the King of Canaan
(cf. v. 23), who oppressed all Israel.—Hazor (see I Kings 9, 15; 2 Kings 15, 29,
and especially I Macc. 11, 67 ff.) probably stood on one of the hills west of the
lake el-Hitleh; perhaps on Jebel Hadireh, three miles SSW of Kedesh (Qades),
near the modern village of Deishūm.
(2) The identification of Harosheth with Hárithiyeh (see above, 1.5) is
4, 2
possible only if the story of Sisera is independent of that of Jabin. The
positive arguments for it, beyond the similarity of the names, which may be
accidental, are not very conclusive.
(3) The chariots belong to Sisera ; see vv. 13. I6; 5, 28. As represented on
the Egyptian monuments, the Syrian chariots regularly carry three men, the
driver, the warrior, and his shield-bearer. At the battle of Megiddo, near the
scene of Sisera's defeat, Thothmes III. (about 1500 B. C.) captured from the
4, 4 – II -->4tº. Úlotes on 3 ubges *— 62
allied Syrian kings nine hundred and twenty-four chariots and over two thou-
sand horses.
(4) A prophetess, an in-
spired woman ; cf. Exod.
I5, 20.- Was judging Israel.
This is the meaning of the
words as given in the Re-
ceived Text, and as inter-
preted in the verse follow-
ing. Comparison with 3, IO
makes it probable that the
author intended a preterit:
she windicated Israel, de-
livered it; see notes on 2, 16
and 3, Io.
H ITTITE CHARIOT. (5) There was a Tomb
of Deborah below Beth-el
(Gen. 35, 8), where, according to the patriarchal legend, Rebekah’s nurse was
buried, beneath a sacred tree (Allon-bachuth) whose name was by popular ety-
2O mology supposed to commemorate the weeping for Deborah. It was probably
this Deborah Tree, together, perhaps, with a reminiscence of I Sam. 7, 16 f.,
which led the author of v. 5 to fix the home of the prophetess in the heart
of the Highlands of Ephraim. From 5, 15a it has been with good reason
inferred that she was of the tribe of Issachar.
25 Ramah is the modern er-Rám, two hours north of Jerusalem; see 19, 13.
(6) On Kedesh see above, p. 61, 1. 7 ff., and below, 1. 43.
(7) Mount Tabor, now /ebel ef- Tór, at the head of the northern arm of
the Great Plain, was from its situation and natural strength a most advantageous
position for the Israelites in a war with the Canaanites in the Plain. Its sum-
3O mit is a platform on which a considerable army could encamp, and could not
be easily taken by assault. The picture facing p. 8 shows, on the right hand
in the foreground, the summit of Mount Tabor; the view is toward the north,
with Mount Hermon in the distance on the left.
4
5
(8) The Kishon (see p. 63) drains the Great Plain, flowing in general 7
35 parallel to the range of Carmel, and emptying into the Mediterranean at Haifa.
Its northern branch rises west of Mount Tabor.
(9) Barak's refusal to go alone is generally interpreted as a sin of little
faith, for which he is punished by losing the crowning honor of the victory,
the destruction of Sisera himself; but it is by no means evident that this was
4O in the mind of the author. -
(Io) This verse prepares us to understand vv. 17 ff., and is introduced here
in order that it may not be necessary to interrupt the description of the battle
and flight to make this explanation. If Kedesh is the city of that name in
Naphtali, as the author of v. 17b supposes, the whole of v. II must belong, not
45 to the story of Sisera, but to that of Jabin; and in v. 17 the words the wife of
Aſeber, the Aemite, must be attributed to an editor, as a harmonistic device
similar to that which makes Sisera Jabin's general, while v. 17b might in that
case be derived from the story of Jabin. We could then only imagine that in
the original history of Jabin the leader of the enemy met at the tents of Heber
5o a fate similar to that which overtook Sisera at the hands of Jael. If v. II
comes from the principal narrator (E), as is assumed in the text, the Kedesh
meant must be sought in or near the Great Plain. Tel Abū-Oudés, between
Taanach and Megiddo, would meet the requirements of the story, as far as
we can be sure that we understand them.
55 The words from the Sons of Hobab, &c., appear to be a gloss from I, 16.
8.
9

63 -** Qlotes on 3 ubges -ºs- 4, 13-2I
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(II) See notes on v.v. I (p. 61, I. 3 ff.). 2.7. 4, 13
(12) Exod. 14, 24; 23, 27; Josh. Io, Io; I Sam. 7, Io. I5
(13) See note on v. II. 17
(14) So the old-
est Version; the ex-
act meaning of the
word is unknown.
As the object was
concealment, thisin-
terpretation is more
probable than wrap,
cover/eſ, generally
adopted by subse-
quent translators
and commentators.
(15) See 5, 25.
There is no ground
for the opinion,
often advanced, that
the sour milk had a
stupefying or intox-
icating quality; cf.
v.21b and the notes
on Isaiah 7, 21.
(16) Pitching
the tent is among
the nomadic Arabs to this day woman's business; Jael was therefore handling
accustomed implements, the wooden pin to which the tent ropes are secured and
the mallet with which they are driven.
The description of Sisera’s death in 5, 26 f. is different; see note there.
ARAB TENTS.
Qlotes on £5apter 5.
C. 5, commonly called the Song of /9eborah, is a Triumphal Ode celebrating
the victory of the Israelites under Deborah and Barak over the Canaanite
kings and the death of the leader of the enemy, in his flight, by the hand of
Jael. This poem is one of the oldest monuments of Hebrew literature, and
is attributed by almost all critics to a contemporary of the great events which
are so vividly, and with so much feeling, portrayed in it. It has been, indeed,
the almost universal opinion that the heroine, Deborah, is-herself-its-author;
but the invocation in v. 12, Azwałe, awake, Deborah / and v. 15, in which she


5, I – 6 →s* (ſtotee on 3 ubgee ºest- 64
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is spoken of in the third person, seem conclusive against this view, while in
v. 7, which is its principal support, the form of the Hebrew verb may be either
the first person, Till I, Deborah, arose, or the second, Till thou didst arise,
IXaborah ; the oldest Versions have the third person, Till Deborah arose.
After a brief exordium the poet depicts the state of things which preceded
and provoked the war (vv. 2–11); in the second part (vv. 12 – 22) he tells of
the rising of the tribes, inscribing on a monument “more lasting than bronze '’
the names of those who threw themselves with ardor into the great cause,
heaping contumely upon those who in base inertness stood aloof from the
struggle; in the third (vv. 23 – 31) he describes the battle, and the flight and
death of Sisera, and lingers upon the suspense of the chieftain's mother as,
between foreboding and forced hope, she waits for the return of her warrior son.
As might be expected from its great antiquity, the Ode is in many places
obscure ; in vv. 8 – 15, in particular, the text has suffered so much from the
injuries of time that even the general tenor of the passage can hardly be
made out. The Song of Deborah is much older than any of the prose stories
of the Judges. We may surmise that it was preserved in one of those col-
lections of old Hebrew poetry, like the Book of Jashar and the Book of the
Wars of JHWH, from which the historians quote; and we may be reasonably
sure that it was included in one of the sources from which the Prophetical Book
of Judges (JE) was compiled; if c. 4 is rightly attributed to E, we should be
inclined to give c. 5 to J, though this is by no means a necessary consequence.
(1) The day of victory; cf. Exod. I 5, I. The title, ascribing the poem to
Deborah, is of course not part of the poem itself. The grammatical construc-
tion of the clause gives ground for the suspicion that the name of Barak was
introduced by a later editor.
(2) The first hemistich has been rendered in a great variety of ways; that
given in the text best agrees with the parallel clause and the construction of
the sentence. The poem seems properly to begin with v. 3, Hear, ye kings,
&c.; v. 2 is not, however, as has sometimes been suspected, a misplaced frag-
ment, but a preliminary word addressed to the actual hearers, the Israelites
assembled to celebrate the triumph, bidding them unite in spirit in the praises
of JHVH to which the following song gives voice.
(3) VV. 4 f. describe JHVH leaving His sacred mountain in the distant
South to fight with His people against their foes; cf. Deut. 33, 2; Hab. 3, 3 ff.;
Ps. 68, 7 ff.; also 2 Sam. 22, 8 ff.; Mic. I, 3 f.; and above, Jud. 4, 14.—Seir is
the land of Edom, given by JHVH to Esau, as He gave Palestine to Jacob (Josh.
24, 4; Deut. 2, 5; cf. Gen. 32, 3; 33, I4). It is the mountainous region east of
the great depression (the ‘Arabah) which extends from the Dead Sea to the
eastern gulf of the Red Sea. The southern prolongation of this range, east of
the Red Sea, are the mountains of Midian, among which was Horeb, the Mount
of God; see Exod. 3, 1 ; I Kings 19, 8.-The words, that is, Sinai (v. 5), are an
ancient gloss, inserted by a scribe who understood the verses of the descent
of JHVH on Sinai at the giving of the Law (Exod. 19).
(4) VV. 6–7 depict the state of things before the war; the insecurity of the
roads, the abandonment of the runwalled villages. Neither Shamgar nor Jael
had done aught to put an end to these ills until Deborah arose. This seems to
be the only explanation of the mention of Shamgar and Jael. The strange
juxtaposition of these names has led to the surmise that the latter was not the
heroine of vv. 24 ff., but an otherwise unknown Judge; or that her name has
displaced that of another Judge; but neither of these hypotheses has any
external support.—The first line of v. 7 seems to be imperfect. The next two
lines are thought by some critics, on formal as well as material grounds, to be
a later addition to the poem.
5, I
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4. 5
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(5) V. 8 continues the description of the situation at the beginning of the 5,8
war; the Israelites were almost without arms. The first half of the verse is
unintelligible, and from this point to the middle of v. I5 we can make out
single words and clauses, but not the connection. It is clear only that vv.
12 – 15° sound the praises of the tribes which threw themselves, heart and soul,
into the struggle; but it is more doubtful whether vv. 9 – II also refer to the
past, lauding the part which the nobles took in the national uprising, or are,
like v. 2 (to which v. 9 has a noticeable resemblance), a summons to those who
hear the Song to bless God for the great deliverance He has wrought. In the
latter case vv. IO – IIa may point the contrast between the state of things
described in vv. 6–7 and the security which now exists.
(7) If the preceding verses be taken in the second of the ways suggested in
the last note, i. e. as a summons to bless God, this line is out of place; it has
been conjectured that it originally stood at the beginning of v. 134.
(8) This apostrophe begins the second part of the ode; the gathering of
the clans and the battle with the Canaanite kings. The last words may also
be read capture thy captors; and have been thought to indicate that, like Gideon
(8, 18 ff.), Barak had personal wrongs to avenge. The text continues to be very
imperfect; in the following we can read little more than the names of the tribes.
(9) Lit. the writer's staff. The zwriter (Heb. sophér) is properly the title
of an officer who was charged with the mustering of the forces; here, apparently,
another synonym for leader.
(Io) The tribes of Ephraim, Benjamin, Machir (here West Manasseh), Zebulun,
Issachar, and Naphtali, under their own chiefs and captains, flock to the
rendezvous, eager for the conflict. In contrast with their ardor, the indifference
of other tribes, which stood aloof and took no part in the great struggle,
provokes the poet to bitter taunts.
(II) Reuben, the oldest branch of the Leah stock, sought to establish itself
in Northern Moab, east of the Dead Sea (Num. 32, 37 f.). As the verse before
us shows, it was a pastoral tribe, which probably, like Simeon on the other
side of the Dead Sea, never settled down to husbandry; and, like Simeon,
early disappears from history altogether.
(I2) Gilead, the region east of the Jordan, north and south of the Jabbok
(see note on II, 13), with shifting limits in both directions. It was occupied by
the tribe of Gad, which is meant here.— Pan, after an unsuccessful effort to
establish itself in the southwest (see note on 1, 34), migrated to the north, and
settled at the headwaters of the Jordan (c. 18). The conjunction of the name
with that of Asher shows that the northern seats of the tribe are in the author's
mind. Dan was not on the sea-coast, but it was neighbor to the Phoenicians, and
perhaps under the protection of that seafaring people, as the inhabitants of Laish
had been before them ; or the meaning may be that the Danites actually went
to sea as rowers on Phoenician ships (E. MEYER).-The territory of Asher was
nearer the coast; though we have no reason to think that it actually occupied
a portion of it. .
(13) Literally: Zebulum zwas a people that contemned its life unto death, And
Maphtali, on the heights of the field; but contemmed its life unto death and on
the heights of the field refer to both Zebulun and Naphtali. Unlike the tribes
just named, who pursued their separate interests without regard to the common
good, Zebulun and Naphtali were conspicuous for an impetuous valor that recked
not of life.
(14) With this verse begins the description of the battle itself. The Kings
of Canaan are probably the kings of the cities in or near the Great Plain. On
Taanach and Megiddo see note on I, 27. With the last clause cf. v. 3o; Exod.
I5, 9.
5
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(15) JHVH, whose departure for the war is described in vv. 4 f., intervenes
to discomfit the enemy and give His people victory; the hosts of heaven fight
against the hosts of Sisera; the river Kishon (cf. note on 4, 7) sweeps them
away in ruin. The battle may have been fought in the spring; a violent storm
may have thrown the Canaanites into confusion, and a sudden spate in the
stream have completed their destruction.
(16) Description of the precipitate flight of the enemy; cf. the description
of the charge in Nah. 3, 2 f.
(17) From the contrast between the curse of Meroz and the blessing of Jael
it is probable that Meroz was an Israelite village which Sisera passed in his
flight, whose people, instead of cutting him off, allowed him to escape. The
name Meroz does not occur elsewhere, and the site is unknown.
The Messenger of /HVH is not a prophet or an angel (in the sense of later
Jewish and Christian angelology), but the manifest presence of JHVH Himself.
Of the notes on 2, I and 6, II.
(18) Synonyms are accumulated to describe the terrible blow she dealt,
crushing Sisera’s head and utterly destroying it. In the second line the name
of the implement, parallel to the pin in the first hemistich, is obscure. From
the following verbs it appears that it was a heavy blunt weapon; and we most
naturally think of a mallet, as in 4, 2I.
(19) The words plainly describe the collapse of a man who, standing, is
felled by a crushing blow; not the death agony of one who is killed in his sleep
by a tent-pin driven through his temples (4, 2I). The poem here differs from
the prose story; the description of Sisera's death in the latter is believed by
many scholars to have originated in a misunderstanding of this verse.
(20). With great art, the poet shifts the scene from Jael's tent, where the
King, mangled and bleeding, lies dead at the feet of his slayer—a woman l—
to the palace, where the queen-mother anxiously watches for him who shall
return no more. Her vague presentiment of evil, the efforts of her court to
banish it by the assurance of victory and rich booty, are admirably depicted;
a most effective close to the Triumphal Ode.
(21) Splendid and irresistible.—The prose note, v. 31b, forms D's conclusion
to the story of Deborah and Barak, cc. 4.5.
Qlotes on £50 pters 6–8.
In the story of the deliverance of Israel from the Midianites, it is evident
at first glance that 8, 4 ff. is not the sequel of 7, 23–8, 3. In the latter verses
the hordes of the enemy have been routed, pursued, intercepted ; the two chiefs
have been captured and slain ; the victors have quarreled and composed their
quarrel. In 8, 4, however, Gideon with his three hundred men crosses the
Jordan in hot pursuit of the two Kings of Midian; he overtakes them on the
edge of the desert, surprises the camp, and takes prisoner the Kings. There
can be no doubt, therefore, that 8, 4 – 21 comes from a different source from
the main narrative in 6, 1 – 8, 3. The latter chapters themselves are not homo-
geneous: 6, 25 ff. is not the continuation of 6, II – 24; 6, 36–40 can hardly be
from the same hand with 6, 21 ff.; compare also 6,34 with, 6,35; 7, 2 – 8 ; and
6, 35 with 7, 23 f.; 8, I. The literary analysis of the chapters is peculiarly diffi-
cult, and its results are more than usually uncertain.
The opening verses, 6, 1–6, are the usual Deuteronomistic introduction ;
cf. 3, 7 ff. The description of the annual forays of the Midianites is doubtless
derived from older sources—perhaps, indeed, both narratives of Gideon's
exploits are represented in it—but it has been so amplified and heightened
by editorial hands that it is not possible to recover the original form of the
5, 20. 2 I
22
23
26
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introduction. VV. 7 – Io, the speech of the prophet, recalling the great things
JHVH has done for His people, and reproving them for their disobedience, is
plainly neither part of D's introduction nor of the story which follows (vv.
II – 24). It is ascribed in the text to E, or rather to the secondary stratum
of E (E*); it may, perhaps, equally well be attributed to a post-Deuterono-
mistic editor (D2). VV. II – 24 are substantially from J (cf. Gen. 18, 1 ff.; Jud.
13, 2 ff.), but have received some additions from a later hand, which may be
recognized by the fact that they anticipate Gideon's recognition of the Mes-
senger (v. 22), and consequently convert Gideon’s proffer of hospitality into a
proposal to offer sacrifice. VV. 25–32 are plainly not by the author of vv.
II – 24. Most critics regard them as a mere accretion to the original story,
showing how the deliverer first purged himself of the national sin, and how
he came by the name Jerubbaal. But as the verses have not the characteristic
stamp of the Deuteronomistic school, and seem to be connected with a second
strand in the subsequent narrative, they are here ascribed to a different source
(E). V. 33 does not belong to the same source as vv. II – 24, in which the
Midianites are already in the land (v. II); v. 34, in which Gideon calls out his
clan, may be the continuation of v. 24; v. 35 is apparently an exaggerating
addition to v. 34, and contains the premises of 7, 2–8. VV. 36–40, the sign
of the fleece is plainly from E.
7, I, describing the position of the two camps, probably belongs to the
main narrative (J); cf. also v. 8b; vv. 2 – 8a, the reduction of Gideon's 32,000
men to 3oo, is secondary ; perhaps by RJP, perhaps E*. VV. 9 – 15 belong to
the principal narrative (J), in which they immediately followed v. I. The
redundancy and confusion in the account of Gideon's stratagem, vv. 16–22, are
generally attributed to editorial officiousness, some critics regarding the jars and
torches, others the horns, as interpolated. If two strands of narrative are
recognized in the chapters, however, it is more natural to suppose that the
confusion here is due to the attempts to unite two versions of the story. The
analysis is very uncertain; the story in which the horns play the chief part
(E) is the more completely preserved ; the other seems to have run substan-
tially as follows: They took empty jars with torches concealed in them, and
surrounded the camp; following Gideon's example, they smashed the jars,
holding on to the torches, and shouted For /HVH and Gideon, &c. The
description of the pursuit in vv. 23 – 25 seems to come from the second nar-
rative (E) ; 8, 4 follows naturally after J’s part of 7, 22. The verses 8, 1 – 3
are the continuation of E's narrative.
The section 8, 4 – 21 is another account of the pursuit of Midian and the
death of the chiefs. Most critics think that it is derived from an independent
source and that the beginning of the narrative has been omitted (cf. especially
v. 18). In the text an attempt has been made to connect it with the older
version of the story in 6. 7 (J), in which it followed 7, 22. (See note on that
verse.)
The offer and refusal of the kingdom (v. 22 f.) have no possible con-
nection with vv. 4 – 21, and can hardly be by the author of vv. I – 3. The
theocratic estimate of the kingdom resembles I Sam. 8, 7; Io, 19; I2, I2, and
like those passages may be attributed to a secondary Ephraimitic hand (E*);
the verses were probably meant to stand after 8, 3. VV. 24 – 27 are probably
derived substantially from J, but have suffered some editorial alterations. The
request was originally made of Gideon’s followers, his own clan of Abi-ezer.
In v. 26 the additions to the primitive text are obvious. The latter part of v.
27 is a Deuteronomic censure; v. 28 is D's closing formula. V. 29 perhaps
originally stood after 8, 3; vv. 33–35 are also from D, and were probably meant
as a substitute for c. 9; vv. 30–32, on the contrary, seem to be an introduction
6, I – I5 →regº (ſlotes on 3 uogee ºst- 68
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
35
4O
45
to 9, prefixed by the later editor who restored the history of Abimelech to its
place in the Book.
(I) Midian, a tribe of Northwestern Arabia which the Israelite historians
regarded as an inferior branch of their own race (descendants of Abraham by
the concubine Keturah). The Land of Midian, in which the sacred mountain
of JHVH, Horeb (Exod. 3, 1), was situated, lay east of the Gulf of Aqabah and
the Red Sea; but, like modern Arab tribes, the Midianites, in search of pasture
or plunder, often wandered far to the north (see e. g. Gen. 36, 35).
(2) The translation hiding-places gives only the general sense which the
context requires; the exact meaning of the word is unknown. See further,
I Sam. I3, 6 (J).
(3) The Amalekites were Bedouins, of the deserts south of Palestine; see
I Sam. I5; 30 ; Num. I4, 43.45; also Exod. I7, 8 f.; Deut. 25, 17–19; Num.
24, 20. The eastern Bedouins (in Heb. the Sons of the East) are the tribes of
the Syrian Desert, east of Moab and Ammon (Jer. 49, 28; Ezek. 25, 4. Io; Is.
II, 14). These names, like those of Ammon and Amalek in 3, 13, were very
likely introduced by an editor.
(4) Gaza, the most southern city on the coast, on the road to Egypt (cf.
notes on 16, 1). This exaggeration also is probably to be attributed to an
editor.
(5) With this reproof compare 2, 1a – 5b ; Io, I I – 16; I Sam. 7, 3 f.; Io, 17–19;
12, 6–25; also 2 Kings 17, 35 ff. It comes to a very abrupt termination; we
should expect it to close, as in other cases, with a denunciation of judgment.
(6) C/. Josh. 24, 12 f... 18; and especially I Sam. Io, 18.
(7) In all the old accounts of the appearances of the Messenger of JHWH,
the Messenger is identified with the deity; see Gen. I6, 7–14; 21, 17 — 19:
22, II – I4. I5 – 18; 31, II – I 3 ; Exod. 3, 2 ff.; Jud. I3, 2 f.; cf. also Gen. 32, 24–30
with Hos. I2, 4 f.; and Gen. 18. 19.—Ophrah seems to have been not very far
from Shechem (see 9, I – 5); the site is not certainly identified.—Abi-ezer was
a clan of Manasseh (Josh. I7, 2). Joash was the proprietor of the Holy Tree,
just as, in the paral-
lel account of the
calling of Gideon, he
£AW
tºº W.S. sº was of the sanctuary
N ºš.
zº Vat § % of Baal (v, 25).
wº- ſº - |. e
(! § à fi! Vat ; (8) The wine-
sº º 4. press was a square
\\ WºźKūlºsº-
*Gººgº or oblong excava-
SECTION OF A WIN E-PRESS. tion in the surface
rock, in which a
man could beat out a few sheaves of wheat unobserved. In the illustration
the larger excavation on the left is the press, in which the grapes were
trampled with the feet; the juice ran through channels into the two deeper vats
on the right. The threshing-floor, always on a hill-top, was, on the contrary,
a peculiarly exposed place.
(9) C/. I I, I ; I Kings II, 28; 2 Kings 5, 1 ; &c.
(IO) These words seem to be the addition of an editor; hardly of D, in
whom the word translated miracles does not occur.
(II) With vv. 14 – 16 cf. Exod. 3, Io- 12.
(I2) If the words be an original part of the narrative, we must suppose
that the author wrote: Does not /Hi’H send thee 2 (4, 6).
(I3) Such protestations, as I Sam. 9, 21 shows us, are not to be taken lit-
erally.
6, I
4
7 — Io
I 2
I3

69 -** Qlotes on 3 ubges -º- 6, 16–33
(14) Here also the author must have written: He replied, Sure/y, ///V// 6, 16
zeri// be zwiſh ſhee.
(15) Gideon asks the stranger to wait till he can prepare him a meal; cf.
Gen. 18, 3–8; Jud. 13, 15-19. The request for a sign, which presumes that
5 Gideon already recognized his visitor, anticipates v.v. 21 f., and is an addition
by the same author who altered the text in the following verse in the belief
that Gideon from the first intended a sacrifice. -
(16) The quantity of cakes is excessive, especially under the circumstances;
cf. Gen. 18, 6; I Sam. 17, 17.
IO (17) V. 20, together with the end of v. 192 (the meat he put in a baskeſ, and
the broth in a poſ), is perhaps secondary.
(18) Cº. Lev. 9, 24; 1 Kings 18, 38; 2 Chron. 7, 1; 2 Macc. 2, Io-13. The
last clause, which conflicts with what follows, has been brought over from 13, 20.
(19) To see God (or His Messenger, which is the same thing) is death; see
15 13, 22; Gen. 16, 13; 32, 30; Exod. 20, 19 (16); 33, 20; Is. 6, 5.
(20) Explanation of the origin of the name of the altar JHvh-shalom at
Ophrah.
(21) The text is corrupt; the simplest emendation is that adopted in the
translation; but it is far from certain.
2O (22) The altar, of which Joash was the proprietary custodian, was the village
sanctuary (vv. 28 f.), sacred to the Baal of the place (see on 2, 13); the sacred
pole (asheróh) beside the altar was doubtless dedicated to the same deity.
Such poles or posts seem to have stood at every Canaanite place of worship
(Exod. 34, 13; Deut. I2, 3); and were erected by the Israelites beside the altars
25 of JHvii (1 Kings 14, 23; 2 Kings 17, Io); even in the Temple in Jerusalem (2
Kings 21,7; 23, 6). See also note on 3, 7.
(23) These words were perhaps a gloss intended for a different place or in
a different sense.
(24) C. Job 13, 8; 1 Kings 18, 21–39. Oeorum iniuriae dis cura.
3O (25) The explanation of the name Jerubbaal, /e/-/*aa/-com/end-zoith-him, is a
fanciful etymology. The name is now commonly interpreted, Baa/ contends (cf.
Jehoiarib, I Chron. 24, 7); better, Baa/ ſounds, estab/ishes, like Jeruel. The
story seems to be spun out of the etymology, but need not, on that account,
be very late; cf. 15, 14-19.
35 (26) The annual invasion, such as is described in viv. 2–6. The Plain, or
Valley (Hos. 1, 5; Josh. 17, 16), of Jezreel, the eastern end of the great depres-
PLAIN OF JEZR.E.E.L.
sion which divides the mountains of Central Palestine from Galilee, takes its
name from the city of Jezreel, the modern Zerºin. The cut shows a part of the
Plain, as seen from Jenin.
17
2O
2I
22
25
3I
32
33
. 24

6, 34–7, 23 —ºte: Qlotee on 3 ubges ºt- 7o
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
35
4O
45
5O
55
(27) Possessed Gideon, lit. put him on, as a garment; cf. 1 Chron. I2, 18;
2 Chron. 24, 20 ; and see the note on 3, Io.
(28) In 7, 23 these tribes are first called out to pursue the fleeing foe; but
7, 2–8 suppose that Gideon had assembled at least his own tribe, Manasseh,
and perhaps v. 35a may come originally from E. If so, it would naturally stand
after vv. 36–40. &
(29) This second miraculous sign is superfluous after vv. 21 – 24; it is very
natural, however, if, in a parallel account of the call of Gideon, the summons
to deliver Israel came to him, as often in E, in a dream or night vision. Notice
God (E/ohim) throughout, instead of JHVH.
(30) The words are probably a reminiscence of Gen. 18, 32.
(31) These places are generally thought to have been in or near the Plain
of Jezreel. En-harod has been identified with 'Ain Jālūd, a copious spring at
the foot of Mount Gilboa; Gibeah ha-moreh is then supposed to be the hill
on the northern side of the valley, now called Jebel Dahi (often put down on
the maps as Zittle Hermon). The positions would then be much the same
which were occupied by Saul and the Philistines before the disastrous battle
of Mount Gilboa (I Sam. 28, 4; cf. 29, I); but all this rests on very slender
foundations. The name ha-moreh elsewhere occurs only in the neighborhood
of Shechem (Gen. 12, 6; Deut. II, 30).
(32) The host which Gideon has collected (6, 35) is reduced to a handful,
to teach the lesson that it is as easy for JHVH to deliver by few as by many
(I Sam. I4, 6), and to compel men to give the glory to Him alone (v. 2; Is. Io,
I3 - I5; Deut. 8, II – 18; 9, 4 f.; cf. I Cor. I , 25–27).
(33) The text, let him return and . . . from Mount Gilead, is unintelligible;
no Satisfactory emendation has been proposed.
(34) The significance of this test is not quite clear; perhaps those who
lapped like dogs were thus discovered to be rude, fierce men (cf. the name
Caleb).
(35) The verse explains how Gideon's three hundred men came to have
as many horns and jars (v. 16). -
(36) Cº. 6, 3–5; 8, 10. The verse, as it stands, is the work of an editor;
probably, however, a description of the great numbers of Midian stood here
in J also. The attempt in the text to distinguish this element is merely a
possibility. *.
(37) Probably a particular kind of flat, round, hard-baked ash-cake. The
barley bread represents, not without a touch of Bedouin contempt, the Israelite
peasantry; the tent is the natural symbol of the nomad.
(38) An erroneous definiteness has been given to the first part of the inter-
pretation of the dream by a gloss from v. 20; the second clause has been also
made unnecessarily explicit by the introduction of the name Midian.
(39) The night was divided into three watches; not, as among the Romans,
into four (Matth. I4, 25; Mark 6, 48; 13, 35; Luke 12, 38).
(40) The direction of the flight is none the clearer for this multiplication
of names, which is due in part to the fusion of two sources, in part probably
to later glosses. The places are all unknown; but the following narrative
shows that we are to look for them in the valley of the Jordan, between
Beth-shean and the middle fords leading to Succoth. Sererah (Heb. ) is
probably miswritten for Seredah (1 Kings I I, 26), which is generally believed to
be the same as Sarthan (I Kings 4, 12; 7, 46; cf. 2 Chron. 4, 17) opposite Succoth.
Abel-mehoſah, named with Sarthan in I Kings 4, 12, may also come from J.
(41) This verse conflicts with 6, 35, according to which these tribes were all
called out before the attack on the camp of Midian (see note on 6, 35).
Naphtali and Asher may be the exaggeration of an editor; those tribes were
much too remote to be of any use in such a pursuit.
6, 34
35
36 - 40
39
7, I
2 – 8
3
22
23
71 —- tº Qlotee on 3 uogee ºest- 7, 24–8, 24
(42) The Ephraimites, descending into the valley of the Jordan by some of 7, 24
the great wadies, intercepted the Midianites in their flight southward ; perhaps
at the stream which empties into the Jordan from Wady Făr'ah. In the spring
this stream is impassable, as are also the adjacent fords of the Jordan. In the
5 angle between the two the enemy would be in a trap.
(43) Cº. Is. Io, 26. The slaughter of Midian is also referred to in Is. 9, 4; 25
Ps. 83, 9–12. -
(44) This verse is intended to harmonize the preceding account with 8, 4 f.:
a large part of the Midianites escaped across the Jordan; the Ephraimites
IO pursuing them came up with Gideon, who had crossed at another ford. The
author of 7, 24 f., on the contrary, represents Gideon as following the Midianites
down the valley, driving them into the arms of the Ephraimites.
(45) C/. I2, I – 6. The great tribe was jealous of its leadership, and angry 8, 1
that it should seem to be ignored. Gideon appeased them by a conciliatory
I5 answer; why should they be angry, when the glory of the victory had fallen
to them, after all P
(46) Succoth was on the eastern side of the Jordan, not far from the fords at 5
which the main road from Shechem to Gilead crossed the river, and probably
South of the Jabbok (see note on II, 13).
2O (47) Zebah and Zalmunna, the two Kings of Midian, take the place of Oreb
and Zeeb, the two chiefs of Midian in 7, 25 (cf. Ps. 83, II). The traditional
pronunciation of the names represents a popular etymology.
(48) Pemuel was in the upland, apparently on the Jabbok at the point where 8
the road from the north crossed that stream; see Gen. 33, 17; I Kings 12, 25.
25 (49) The stronghold of the town, which was itself probably unwalled; cf. 9
V. I7; 9,47. 51 f.
(50) The situation of Karkor is not known. The latter part of the verse, Io
with its enormous numbers, is the exaggeration of a late editor; cf. Num. 31.
(51) Jogbehah (Num. 32,35) is probably Khirbet el-Jubeihál, about midway 11
30 between es-Salt and ‘Ammān. If this identification be correct, the direction of
the flight and pursuit was southeast, toward the desert. The site of Nobah is
unknown; it is not el-Qanawāt, in the Hauran, with which, on the strength of
Num. 32, 42, it has been sometimes connected.
(52) It has been suggested that the description which might be here 12
35 expected of the surprise of the camp, has been combined with that of the
attack on the Midianites west of the Jordan in 7, 16 f.
(53) The text, apparently describing the way by which Gideon returned, is 13
unintelligible.
(54) He carded them, dragging them over a bed of thorns and knapweed 16
40 (Cf. Yömá 69a); a form of torture to which there are many references in Greek
authors; e. g. Herodot. 1, 92.
(55) He does not need to be told; the question was a menace, and was so 18
understood. The kings answer in the same spirit, boasting of their deed with
Savage bravado.
45 (56) His brother's blood cries for vengeance. Of this personal wrong 19
nothing is related in the preceding chapters; and it has been inferred that the
antecedents of 8, 4–21 were entirely different from what we read in 6.7; but
the history of the tradition has been too complex to justify much confidence
On this point.
5O (57) Strings of jingling crescents, which were both ornaments and amulets. 21
Riding camels are still often decorated in a similar way.
(58) With this offer and rejection of the kingdom on theocratic grounds cf. 23
I Sam. 8, 7; Io, 19; 12, 12. 17, 19; Hos. 13, Io f.; (9, 9; 10, 9, ).
(59). In the present connection, this appears to be a surrogate for the offer 24
8, 24–9, 3 —-seº (ſlotes on 3 ubges ºest- 72
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
35
4O
45
5O
of the kingdom which he had declined; but it is very unlikely that the same
author who in v. 22 f. makes Gideon so scrupulous, proceeded in the next breath
to tell how he collected gold to make an idol. VV. 24–27 are attributed by
most critics to the older source (J); in that case the request must have been
addressed to Gideon's own clansmen of Abi-ezer.
(60) These caravan traders, whose connections extended to the gold lands
of Arabia, were richer in such things than the peasants; and, like other nomads,
they carried all their wealth about them.
(61) About seventy pounds weight.
(62) The second half-verse, with its irrelevant enumeration of the other
spoils which fell to Gideon, is plainly a later addition.
(63) The Ephod here, as in c. 17, was an idol of some kind, as the author
of the latter part of the verse understood it. See note on 17, 5.
(64) The cause of their ruin; cf. 2, 3.
(65) On this and the following verses (30–32.33–35) see above, p. 67, 11. 53 ff.
(66) As in all similar names, mélek (king) is the name or title of a god.
(67) Cº. 2, 19; 3, II. I2; 4, I. On Baal-berith see note on 9, 4.
(68) C/. I Sam. Io, 18 f.; I2, II.
Qlotes on £3apter 9.
The history of Abimelech differs from all the others in 2, 5 – 16, 31 in
having no introduction or conclusion such as D has provided for the rest.
The story did not lend itself to his moralizing, and was therefore omitted from
the Deuteronomistic Book of Judges. It is, however, the original sequel of the
story of Gideon ; is derived from the same sources; and had a place in the
pre-Deuteronomic Judges. A post-Exilic editor restored it to its place, providing
it with a few words of introduction (8, 31 f.) derived in substance from the
history itself. The chapter is not a unit, as appears most plainly in the two
accounts of the attack upon Shechem, vv. 30–4I and vv. 42–45. The greater
part of the chapter is derived from E ; but the story of Gaal and the unsuc-
cessful revolt of the Shechemites (vv. 26–41) is from a different source; pre-
sumably J. -
The chapter is of great interest for the glimpse which it gives us of the
relations of the Israelites to the older population of the land, among or beside
whom they settled (c. 1). It has often been regarded as a kind of prelude to
the history of the kingdom of Saul; but it is doubtful whether so much signifi-
cance should be ascribed to it. Abimelech was king of the Canaanite city of
Shechem ; how far his authority was recognized by purely Israelite communities
does not appear.
(1) Abimelech's mother was a Canaanite woman of Shechem, who, like
Samson's Timnathite wife (14. I 5, 1–8), was not married into the man's family,
but remained in her own. The offspring of such a union naturally belonged
to the mother's clan. Abimelech makes use of this relation to gain over the
people of Shechem.— Shechem, the modern Náðulus (Neapolis) lies in the heart
of the Highlands of Ephraim, in a valley between Mount Ebal on the north
and Mount Gerizim on the south (see full page illustration facing p. 20). Its
position at the intersection of the great roads, east and west and north and
south, made it at all times a place of commanding importance.— The citizens
of Shechem, lit. the proprietors (Heb. ba'a/im). That they were Canaanites
appears plainly from vv. 26 ff.; but it is not so clear that the author of vv.
I – 25. 42 ff. so represented them ; Josh. 24, I – 25 (F) supposes that Shechem
was in the hands of the Israelites before the death of Joshua.
8
24
26
27
29
3I
33
34
9, I – 3
73 → *** Qlotes on 3 ubgee *— 9, 4- 24
(2) Baal-berith was the god of Shechem. El-berith (v. 46) is doubtless the 9, 4
same deity; the names are entirely equivalent in meaning; el is the divinity
who inhabits the place, ba'al, the divinity to whom it belongs. The origin
and significance of the name Baal-(El-)berith is unknown; the most natural
5 interpretation of the words is, One who is a party to a covenant. — Seventy
shekels of silver, intrinsically worth thirty-five or forty dollars (seven or eight
pounds sterling) of our money, but having, of course, in ancient times a vastly
greater purchasing power.
(3) Like cattle slaughtered in the open field (I Sam. I4, 33 f.; cf. Deut. 5
IO I2, 16. 23 f.). The motive is probably to be sought in animistic superstitions;
he disposed of the blood of his victims, in which was their life (cf. Lev. 17, Io f.),
so that they should give him no further trouble.
(4) Beth-millo (cf. v. 20) must have been a town in the vicinity of Shechem. 6
It is often, but without sufficient ground, thought to be the same as the Tower
I5 of Shechem (vv. 46–49).-The Monument Tree, a holy tree beside which was a
Standing stone (maccebáh); see Josh. 24, 26 f., and Gen. 35, 4.— Mount Gerizim
was famous in later times as the Holy Mountain of the Samaritans, whose
temple (from the 4th or 5th cent. B. C.) stood upon its summit, on the spot
where the ruins are seen in the picture facing p. 18. See John 4, 20 f.; Jose-
2O phus, Amt. xi. 7, 2; 8, 2 f., and cf. Neh. 13, 28 f.
(5) Jotham’s fable of the trees who chose a king, with its pointed appli- 7 ff.
cation to the citizens of Shechem and their new lord, is the most striking.
example of this kind of apologue in the OT. It is believed by many scholars
that the fable itself (vv. 8–15) is a piece of ancient Hebrew folk-lore, which
25 the author of vv. 7 – 21 borrowed and applied. In confirmation of this view it
is urged that the application does not altogether correspond to the fable: in
v. I5 the question is, whether the trees are acting in good faith in making
the thorn king; in v. 16 it is, whether the Shechemites have acted in good faith
toward the House of Jerubbaal in making Abimelech king. Such looseness
3O in the logic of the moral is not uncommon; more than one of the parables
in the NT might be adduced in which the connection of text and application
is no closer than in Jotham's fable. We are hardly warranted, therefore, in
attributing vv. 8 – 15 to a different author from the following verses. Nor is
there sufficient reason for regarding, with other critics, vv. 7–21 altogether as a
35 secondary addition to the story.
(6) The natural teaching of the fable is that the good and faithful members 15
of the community have too much to do in their own calling to lay it aside
for the sake of ruling their fellows; it is only the worthless and pestilent sort
who are willing to be vested with such authority.
4O (7) VV. 16b – 192 are regarded by some critics as a long gloss on v. 16a : 19
this rehearsal of Jerubbaal's services and the Shechemites' ingratitude interrupts
the speech (observe the resumption of the thread in v. 192). The verses are
certainly not indispensable ; but they are appropriate enough, and have a vigor
and individuality of expression not usually found in glosses.
45 (8) Cº. v. I5b; vv. 42–49. 50–54. 56 f. 2O
(9) The site of Beer is not certainly known ; perhaps el-Bireh (Beeroth), 21
north of Jerusalem. -
(IO) There is no hint in what precedes that Abimelech ruled over Israel 22
at all; either the verse is altogether from the hand of an editor, or the name
50 Israel has been substituted for an original Shechem.
(II) Literally, an evil spirit; cf. 1 Sam. 16, 14; 18, IO (an evil divine spirit); 23
19, 9; 1 Kings 22, 19 – 23 (in Ahab's prophets).
(12) The verse is not improbably by RJP, emphasizing again the moral of 24
the history.
9, 25-50 →s* Qlotes on 3 ubges -ºst- 74
5
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
35
4O
45
5O
55
(13) The sequel of V.,25 is not vv. 26–41, but vv. 42 ff.; the episode of
Gaal is from a different source.
(14) The story of Gaal begins abruptly; in the original source from which
it was taken, it is probable that the readers had already been informed who this
agitator was, and perhaps what his previous relations to Abimelech had been.
His name was perhaps Goal (Josephus, Gyales), rather than Ga'al.
(15) The vintage was doubtless, as among other peoples, a season of
religious festivities in honor of the god of the vine. Gaal took advantage of
this, and when the heads of the vintagers were hot with wine and with the
excitement of the feast, instigated a revolt against Abimelech. -
(16) That is, What is this Abimelech to us, the citizens of Shechem, that
we should serve him / This verse is difficult, and has been variously interpreted.
It seems clear, however, that Gaal is inciting the native Shechemites to revolt
against this Israelite half-breed who presumes to lord it over the ancient
Hamorite aristocracy of Shechem, to whom he himself had once been subject.
(17) Abimelech's representative in the city.
( 18) Arumah seems to have been Abimelech's residence; see v. 41. The
Hebrew text is generally translated secretly (it would be better, treacherously);
but this appears impossible in the context.
(19) The localities thus designated are not known; the first, to judge from
the name, would seem to have been a rounded knob ; the second was, or had
been, the seat of a certain class of soothsayers (me'omenim); cf. the Moreh
Tree, Gen. I2, 6; and, perhaps, Jud. 7, I.
(2O) Abimelech did not force his way into the town, but, having sufficiently
chastised the rebels, returned to Arumah. The Shechemites had experienced
enough of Gaal, and were willing to have him made a scape-goat. Zebul
accordingly expelled him and his kin, and peace was restored.— The site of
Arumah is not identified ; E/- Ormeh, two hours SE of Shechem, has been
suggested, but without any reason except the fancied resemblance of the names.
(21) VV. 42–45 are not the continuation of vv. 34–41, but of the parallel
narrative in vv. 22–25. When the news was brought to Abimelech that the
Shechemites were infesting the highways, he resolved to punish them ; and the
9, 25
26
27
28
3O
3I
37
4I
42
next time they set out on a marauding expedition he laid an ambush for them. .
The stratagem is very similar to that described in vv. 34–41 ; cf. also Josh. 8.
(22) Probably a symbol of perpetual desolation. In Hebrew, as well as in
Assyrian, Arabic, and Syriac, salt ground, properly ground coziered zwith a
saline crust, is a barren waste in which not even the scanty vegetation of the
desert can grow. Cf. Deut. 29, 23; Job 39, 6; Ps. Io'7, 34; Jer. 17, 6. Parallels
to the strewing of a devastated country with salt are found in the cuneiform
inscriptions. If Shechem was actually destroyed during the period of the Judges,
it was soon rebuilt (see I Kings I2, I. 25).
(23) The Tower of Shechem was not a stronghold within the city, like
that at Thebez (v. 51), but stood outside of the walls, and apparently at some
little distance. The people in the Tower were Shechemites, and had joined in
the revolt. The temple of El-berith is not improbably the same which in v. 4
bears the name of Baal-berith ; see note on the latter verse. The word trans-
lated crypt is found besides only in 1 Sam. 13, 6, where it plainly denotes a
hiding place, probably subterranean ; and the same meaning is perhaps admissible
here, if we may suppose that the crypt was an excavation in the earth or rock,
not under, but behind the temple. The interpretation is, however, extremely
uncertain. Others translate tower, which will not at all apply in Samuel.
(24) Thebez also had joined in the revolt begun by Shechem, and, like
the latter, was probably a Canaanite town (see v. 55). It is identified with the
modern Tilbás, a large village about four hours NE of Náðulus (Shechem) on
the road to Beisdºm.
45
46
50
75
9, 53–IO, 4
—regºe Quotes on 3 ubges ºst-
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
35
4O
(25) The upper
thirty pounds.
(26) To die by
a woman's hand was
an ignonniny; cf.
lech's followers were
Israelites is of prime
importance for the
understanding of the
º; ... whole story. The
* revolt of Shechem
and the other towns
Canaanite
4, 9. Compare in
general the death of
Saul, I Sam. 31, 4 f. MODERN PALESTINIAN HAN D-MILL.
That Abime- WaS a
rising against the power of the half-Israelite Abimelech.
(27) The moral of the history; cf. vv. 16–20. 24.
º, 3
| hº
Qlotes on 10, 1–5.
Tola and Jair, with Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon (12, 8–15) constitute the group
of Minor Judges; so-called because in comparison with Ehud, Deborah and
Barak, Gideon, Jephthah, and Samson, little or nothing is narrated of them ;
See above, p. 53, ll. 49 ft.
The color (DARK PURPLE) which is given to these verses in the text here
indicates only that the Minor Judges were probably included in the pre-Deuter-
onomic Book of Judges (JE).
(1) Toſa is the name of a clan of Issachar (Gen. 46, 13; Num. 26, 23),
apparently the leading clan of the tribe (I Chron. 7, 1 ff.); Puah, here Tola's
father, appears in the genealogical lists as his brother, that is, another clan
of the same tribe. The name /Xodo (or Dodai) appears in the catalogue of
David's heroes (2 Sam. 23, 9. 24), and has been lately found in the Amarna
tablets (ZOildu). Shamir has not been identified ; as the seat of a clan of
Issachar, we may infer that it lay in the northeastern part of the Highlands
of Ephraim, not far from the Plain of Jezreel (see on 6, 33). The branches
of Issachar which settled south of the plain by the side of the great tribe of
Joseph seem often, like Benjamin in the south, to be included in Joseph.
Observe the form of the chronological note, differing from that which
regularly concludes the histories of the Greater Judges.
(2) Jair is a clan of East Manasseh (Machir), Num. 32, 39–41, whose vil-
lages (Havoth-jair) formed a district in Gilead. The conquest of this region
by Manassite clans was the result of a returning wave of migration from Western
Palestine (cf., perhaps, Josh. 17, 14–18). Camon is perhaps Kumém, west of
Irbid. The thirty saddle-asses have been brought from 12, 14, probably through
a confusion of the words for cities (Heb. 'arim) and asses (Heb. 'ayarím).
Qlotes on 10, 6–18.
This passage repeats and enforces the moral of the history, as a preface
to a new period of oppression ; cf. 2, 6–21 ; 6, 7 – Io. It is not all of one piece;
vv. II – 16 is not, as a whole, the work of D; its affinities are rather with 6,
7 – Io; Josh. 24; 1 Sam. 7. 12 (E*). The antecedents of vv. II – 16 are (in vv. 6–10)
wrought into D's introduction to the Ammonite oppression from which Israel
stone of a hand-mill, which might weigh twenty-five or 9, 53
54
57
IO, 2


IO, 6–18 →º- (ſtotes on 3 ubges ºest- 76
5
IO
I5
2O
2
5
3O
35
4O
45
was delivered by Jephthah. It is possible that the words into the power of the
Philistines (v. 7) are a fragment of this source, in which case the passage will
have been E’s introduction to the Philistine oppression in the days of Eli and
Samuel. On the other hand, it is possible that the name of the Philistines was
inserted here by a later hand, to make the introduction serve for the story
of Samson as well as for that of Jephthah. In the catalogue of foreign gods
worshiped by the Israelites (v. 6) and in the long list of their oppressors (v.
II) we cannot fail to recognize the hand of later editors or scribes; in v. II,
indeed, the glosses have wrecked the sentence. The color of vv. II – 16 is
meant to indicate that these verses are not originally D's ; the question whether
they may have been retouched by him, and to what extent, is not decided. In
the rest, though a basis of E may underlie v.v. 6- Io, it is impossible to separate
it from the overlying introduction of D.
(1) This catalogue comprises all the neighboring nations; cf. 2, 12; Deut.
6, I4; 13, 7 f. It is probably an editorial gloss. On the Baa/s and Astartes, the
gods of Canaan, see note on 2, 13.
(2) On this verse see above, l. I. The following narrative deals only with
the oppression of the Israelites in Gilead by the Ammonites; the Philistines first
appear in the story of Samson, co. 13–16.
(3) That year, eighteen years, is obviously a doublet; the latter belongs to
D’s chronology; the former seems to be a fragment of E; cf. II, 4, where we
might translate, after a year. The rest of the verse is very likely by the same
hand as v. 9a, an editorial gloss emphasizing the universality of the judgment,
and explaining how the Ammonites oppressed the tribes west of the Jordan. It
need hardly be said that the story of Jephthah knows nothing of such a state
of things.-For the land of the Amorites zwho were in Gilead, cf. I I, 19 ff.
(4) Judah is mentioned besides only in 15, 9–13; 18, 12.
(5) Cº. v. I5; I Sam. 12, Io; Num. I4, 40; 21, 7. This formula of confession
is peculiarly frequent in E.
(6) This enumeration of Israel’s oppressors has apparently grown under the
hand of successive editors, as is the wont of such lists. The deliverance from
the Ammonites, and the oppression by the Philistines and deliverance from
them, were still future, and could not be appealed to as conspicuous evidences
of JHVH’s goodness in the past; of an Amorite oppression we know nothing—
the conquest of the Amorite Sihon by Israel (Num. 21, 21 ff.) can hardly be
reckoned an oppression of Israel by Sihon — and we have equally little informa-
tion about a Phoenician oppression.
For Maomites of the Received Text we are to read Midianites; otherwise
we should have here another unknown oppressor, while the Midianites, whose
devastations are so vividly depicted in 6, 1 ff., would be lacking. Finally, Moab
(c. 3) and the Canaanites (CC. 4.5) are not included in this singular list (both
are added by some of the Versions). Compare, for the rest, I Sam. I2, Io.
(7) See Jer. 2, 28; Deut. 32, 37 f.; 2 Kings 3, 13.
(8) C/. 2 Sam. 24, I4; 2 Macc. Io, 4.
(9) C. Josh. 24, 20. 23; 1 Sam. 7,3; Gen. 35, 2.4; Deut. 31, 16.
(IO) In its original connection, v. 16 must have been immediately followed
by the raising up of the deliverer; vv. 17 f. are an editorial introduction to the
story of Jephthah, the material for which is chiefly extracted from c. I I, much
as 8,33–35 is drawn from c. 9.-With the last sentence Cf. I I, 8.9. II.
IO, 6
IO
I 2
I4
I5
I6
I6 – 18
77 —º-Qlotes on 3 ubges -º- II, I-4
Quotes on 11,1-12, 7.
In the story of Jephthah the long argument defending Israel's title to Gilead
(11, 12–28) is clearly foreign to the original narrative. The material for it is
taken, in part word for word, from Num. 20.21; and though it purports to
5 be addressed to the King of Ammon, it really deals exclusively with Israel's
relations to the Moabites: Chemosh (v. 24) is the national god of Moab; Balak
(v. 25), whose course is contrasted with that of the present King, was King of
Moab; the places named in v. 26 are Moabite cities. The introduction of this
long interpolation has done some injury to the context; v v. 30 ſ are the original
to sequel of v. 11a; v. 11b seems to belong after v. 31; v. 29 is a doublet to v. 32.
The section 12, 1–6 is also regarded by some critics as an addition in imitation
of 8, 1–3, but without sufficient grounds. From what source the story of
Jephthah is derived it is not possible to say with confidence. So far as the
general impression which the narrative makes may be trusted, we should be
15 inclined to attribute it to E. It is, of course, ultimately of Gileadite origin.
(1) VV. Ib. 2 are a late gloss, spun out of v. Ia combined with v. 7.
(2) The outlawed man took to the life of a freebooter, just as a modern
Arab inevitably does under like circumstances—there is no other way in which
he can live; cf. the case of David, I Sam. 22, 1 f.; 23, 1–5; 25; 27.7 ff. Like
20 David (1 Sam. 22, 2), Jephthah gathered around him a band of broken men
(9,4), who went on forays with him.–7%e (and of Zob appears to have been an
Aramean district (2 Sam. Io, 6.8); it therefore lay north or northeast of Gilead.
RUINs of AMMAN.
II, I. 2
3
(3) The Ammonites were of the same stock with the Moabites, and adjoined 4
them on the northeast, where, on the borders of the desert, they lived a semi-
25 nomadic life. Their chief town was Rabbath-ammon (“The Great Town of the
Ammonites”), now ‘Ammān, on the upper Jabbok. The Israelite settlements

II, 5-II
78
-º-º-Qlotes on 3 ubges -º-
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
35
40
45
50
in Gilead were frequently invaded by them (see I Sam. 11, 1 ff.); David waged
an embittered war with them (2 Sam. Io-12).
On the site of the ancient
Ammonite capital, Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285–247 B. c.) built a new city,
which he called
Philadelphia. The
ruins of this Ptole-
maic city, as shown
in the engraving,
are among the fin-
est in the region
east of the Jordan.
(4) V. 5a is su-
perfluous beside v.
4, and may be sec-
ondary.- The AE/d-
ers of Gi/ead were
the heads of the
families and clans;
the Hebrew word
corresponds in mea-
ning and use to
the Arab
The name Gilead
is often given to the
whole country oc-
cupied by Israel on
the east of the Jor-
dan, as Canaan is
to that on the west
of the river. The
natural boundaries
sheiðh.
GORGE OF THE AR NON NEAR ITS MOUTH.
writer tries to supply the deficiency in viv. Ib. 2.
(6) Because we did banish thee, we have now come to recall thee.
(7) He makes them solemnly repeat their pledge.
(8) Cº. 9, 6.
So Saul at Gilgal
(I Sam. II, 15);
see also I Kings
12, 1, 20; I , 9 ft.,
33 ff. It is safe to
infer that in Jeph-
thah's case also
the acclamation
took place at a *
sanctuary, proba-
bly at Mizpah, as
the author of Io,
17 supposed. But
II, IIb, which ap-
pears to give di-
rect testimony on
this point, really
refers not to these
JABBok.
of this region are
the Yarmú4 on the
north and Wädy
Móñó (Arnon) on
the south. The
Zergé (Jabbok; see
note II) divides it
into two parts: the
northern, Jebel 'Aſ.
/ſºn, the southern,
the Be/76, each of
which is some-
times called Gilead.
The latter is the
scene of our story.
(5) Expulsion
from the clan was
not merely banish-
ment; by severing
the bond of kin-
dred blood, it made
a man an outlaw,
whose wrongs or
whose death there
was none to avenge.
Why Jephthah was
driven out is not
narrated; a later
ceremonies, butto
Jephthah's vow;
See next note.
(9) /*efore
JHWH, that is at
a holy place, be-
fore the upright
stone, altar, or
idol, in which in
olden times the
god was believed
to be; by which,
for less crude con-
ceptions, his pres-
ence was symbol-
ized. The words
have no appro-
priateness in their
present connec-
tion, while they are essential to the description of Jephthah's vow (vv. 30 f.).
II


79 —-tºe Qlotee on 3 ubgeg ºt- II, I2 - 24
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
35
4O
45
5O
The displacement is one of the consequences of the long interpolation, vv. 12 – 28;
see further on v. 31.
For Mizpah, see note on v. 34. -
(Io) On the general character of this interpolation see p. 77, ll. I f. It may
be surmised that this defense of Israel's rights in Gilead is not a mere piece
of antiquarianism, but was produced at a time when the Sons of Lot were
contesting with the Israelites (Gad) the possession of these territories. The
style of this passage has no distinctive marks. In the text it is colored LIGHT
PURPLE (RJP), merely to indicate that it exhibits no traces of the peculiar
manner of D or of the language of the latest redactors.
(II) The Arnon, now Wädy Mójib, flows into the Dead Sea from the east,
about midway between the northern and southern ends of the sea. Its course
is a deep gorge with precipitous sides. The Jabbok (Gen. 33, 17; cf. 32, 30.31 ;
Josh. 13, 27), now Nahr ez-Zerqā (i. e. The Blue River), is the principal eastern
affluent of the Jordan, rising near ‘Ammām and flowing in a generally northerly
direction to about the middle of its course; then west, through a deep ravine
between Jebel 'Ajlūm on the north and the very different physical region of the
Belgá (see note 4) on the south.
(12) Cº. Deut. 2, 9. 19. The cities north of the Arnon belonged to the old
territory of Moab. They were conquered by Israel under Omri (9th cent. B. C.),
but recovered by Mesha, King of Moab (see on Is. 15, 1–4), a generation later.
In the Prophets they always appear as Moabite cities (Is. I5. 16; Jer. 48; &c.).
In the decadence of Israel, the Ammonites as well as the Moabites enlarged
their borders at the expense of the Israelites (see Jer. 49, I ; Ezek. 25, 1 ff.; cf.
I Macc. 5, 6 ff.). .
(13) This is not very clear; by the connection it can hardly refer to the
crossing of the Red Sea (Exod. 13, 18; 1.4); perhaps it is an indistinct reminis-
cence of Num. I4, 25b and 20, 14 ff. -
(I4) This verse is dependent on Num. 20, 14 – 21 ; in Deut. I ; 2, 4–8 there
is no reference to these negotiations with Edom.
(15) Of this embassy to Moab there is no account in the Pentateuch. The
author probably reasoned that, if Israel proposed to pass around the southern
end of the Dead Sea, the consent of Moab as well as Edom would be neces-
sary; and he was especially concerned to emphasize the fact that the Israelites
had respected the rights of Moab. With the close of the verse cf. Num. 20, 1 ;
Deut. I , 46.
(16) On this movement see Num. 20, 22; 21, 4. Iof 12 f. (cf. Deut. 2). The
Arnon is the boundary of Moab, Num. 21, 13; 22, 36. The Israelites marched
along the edge of the desert, beyond the eastern frontier of Moab, till they
were north of the latitude of the Arnon, and then turned westward; so Num.
2I , I 3.
(17) According to Num. 21, 26–30, the Amorites had recently conquered
this territory north of the Arnon from Moab.— Heshbon, often named in the
Prophets as one of the chief cities of Moab (see, e. g. Is. 15, 4; Jer. 48, 2), is
the modern Hesbän, about sixteen miles east of the northern end of the Dead
Sea. It was on the debatable ground between Moab and Israel (Gad), and
was doubtless more than once conquered and reconquered.
(18) See Num. 21, 23; Deut. 2, 32. Jahaz also was a town of northern
II
I
7
Moab (Is. 15, 4; Jer. 48, 21.34; Inscription of Mesha, 1. 19); the site has not
been recovered.
(19) This was exactly the territory now claimed by Ammon (v. 13); cf.
Num. 21, 24 – 26; Deut. 2, 36 f. In the latter passages it is explicitly affirmed
that Israel took no land from the Ammonites.
(2O) Each people should possess the territory which its own god has given
22
24
II, 25–I2, I —sº- (ſtotes on 3 ubgee ºt- 8O
it by conquest, and should recognize the same right in others.- Chemosh was II
the national god of Moab, not of Ammon, whose god was Milcom ; see
I Kings II, 5.7.33; 2 Kings 23, 13; Jer. 48, 46; 49, I. 3; cf. also the Inscription
of Mesha, King of Moab (see on Is. 15, 4). The name here is not an accidental
5 slip on the part of the writer; the whole argument deals with Moab only,
though nominally addressed to Ammon.
(21) Balak, the King of Moab. at the time of the Conquest, did not venture 25
to contest with Israel the possession of the land north of the Arnon (Num.
22, 2 ff.). Should the present King be better able to do so?
IO (22) On A/eshôon see note on v. 19.-Jaazer (Num. 21, 32 ; 2 Sam. 24, 5; 26
&c.) was eight or ten miles west of Rabbath-ammon (‘Ammām), the boundary
of Ammon in that direction (Num. 21, 24, LXX). For /aazer and the tozºms
which are along the Jordan, the Received Text has Aroer and the towns which are
along the Arnon, — places much farther south.- Three hundred years is almost
I5 exactly the sum of the years of oppression before, and of security after, the
successive Judges, which count up (exclusive of the Ammonite oppression, Io, 8)
301 years. This agreement, which can hardly be accidental, shows that the
computation was made on the basis of the present chronology of the Book,
and is consequently very late. It is not quite certain, however, that the words
2O are part of the original text. The last clause of v. 26 (at that time) would be
more naturally understood of the first occupation of the region.
(23) V. 29 is the work of the editor who introduced vv. 12 — 28, a some- 29
what unskilful attempt to pick up the thread of the narrative. The Israelites
were already assembled, probably at Mizpah (v. II); the invasion of Ammon
25 comes in due course in v. 32. The movements described in the text are quite
unintelligible. The first clause, however, may be original (before v. 32).
(24) Before the interpolation of vv. 12 — 28, vv. 30 and 31 stood after v. IIa : 31
having been made chief by the people, Jephthah vowed that if JHVH would
give him victory in the coming campaign he would offer Him a burnt-offering.
3O V. I Ib followed v. 31 : this vow was made with all solemnity at the holy place at
Mizpah. Then the spirit of JHvh came upon him (v. 292.a.); he placed himself
at the head of the men of Gilead and marched against the enemy (v. 32).
That Jephthah vows to sacrifice a human victim, of his own household, is
as plain as words can make it. Whom it shall be is left to JHVH to designate:
35 whoever comes first out of the house to meet the returning conqueror will be
recognized by Jephthah as JHVH's choice. With the vow cf. Gen. 28, 20 – 22 ;
I Sam. I, II; 2 Sam. I5, 7 f.; for the sign, cf. Gen. 24, 12 ff.
(25) Aroer is here not the Moabite city of that name on the Arnon (see 33
above, 1. 13, note on v. 26), but Aroer zwhich is east of Rabbah (Josh. I3, 25),
40 an Ammonite town ; the other places are unknown. The words twenty cities,
which stand in a strange connection, are very likely a gloss.
(26) Mizpah in Gilead, v. 29; Hos. 5, 1 ; see note on Jud. I2, 7. The site is 34
unknown; the identification of the place with Ramoth in Gilead is not probable.
From the present story it may be, perhaps, inferred that Mizpah was not very
45 far from the modern es-Salt, and we might then think of Jebel Ósha', an hour
north of that place; but the data are insufficient for more than a surmise.
(27) C/. I Sam. 18, 6 f. (21, II ; 29, 5); Exod. I5, 20 f.
(28) The fine reticence with which the author draws a veil over the last 39
act of the tragedy is abused by those who interpret: he consecrated her as a
50 virgin priestess, or shut her up for life in a cell, which was not what Jephthah
had vowed to do at all.
(29) Cº. 8, 1 – 3. The two stories are alike only in the arrogance with which I2, I
the great tribe of Ephraim asserts its right to have a hand in every fray.
8I . —-º- Quotes on 3 ubges ºst- I2, 2– I5
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
35
Zaphon lay east of the Jordan, in the valley, not far from Succoth (Josh.
13, 27), in the vicinity of the principal ford crossing from the Highlands of
Ephraim to Gilead.
(30) Jephthah speaks in the person of his countrymen of Gilead. In the
foregoing narrative there is no mention of this attempt to get help from their
kinsmen across the river. Such an appeal would be very natural, however,
and may well be imagined to have preceded the calling of Jephthah.
(31) The latter part of this verse is in part an accidental repetition of
a clause from v. 5, in part a series of glosses—unsuccessful attempts to make
the text intelligible.
(32) With the seizure of the fords cf. 3, 28; 7, 24. A peculiarity in the
pronunciation of the sibilants betrayed the Ephraimites, just as our th is the
shibboleth of foreigners. Some scholars think that the Ephraimites said skiö-
boleth, with sé instead of sh (cf. our schedule, i. e. Skedu/, in England commonly
shedu/). Others believe that the Ephraimites pronounced shibboleth with an
initial th, thibboleth. Similarly, in the great massacre of the French in Sicily on
March 31, 1282 A. D. (the Sicilian Vespers), the foreigners, it is said, were made
to betray themselves by their pronunciation of the words ceci e ciceri : those
who pronounced Italian c (i. e. English ch) as in French (Sesi e siseri) were
hewn down on the spot.
(33) The formula is the same that is used of the Minor Judges, and differs
from that employed by D, e. g. 3, 29. 30.
Qlotes on 12, 8–15.
The second group of Minor Judges, including 162am, Elon, and Abdon ; see
above, Io, I – 5, and p. 53, ll. 49 ft.
(I) By this verse the succession of Judges following is annexed to the
story of Jephthah, as the former series to the story of Abimelech by Io, 1.
Aethlehem is not the place of that name in Judah, but the less known
Bethlehem in Zebulun (Josh. 19, 15), now Beit Lahm, about seven miles WNW
of Nazareth.
(2) These family statistics are probably to be understood, as in the case
of Jair (Io, 3 – 5), of the branches and alliances of a considerable clan.
(3) The traditional pronunciation makes an artificial distinction between the
man E/om and the town Aija/on ; in the Hebrew consonantal text the names are
written in precisely the same way. Eſon is a Zebulonite clan (Gen. 46, 14;
Num. 26, 26); its seat, where is the tomb of its eponymous ancestor, bears the
same name. The site is unknown. -
(4) Of Io, 4 ; 12, 9. The saddle-asses are evidence of wealth and rank;
Cſ. 5, IO; 2 Sam. I 6, 2; 13, 29.
(5) Pirathon was the home of one of David's heroes (2 Sam. 23, 30); cf.
also I Macc. 9, 50. It is generally identified with Fer'atá, six miles WSW of
Nábulus (Shechem), which others take for Ophrah.
The district of Shaſim, I Sam. 9, 4. The Received Text has: in the ſand
of Ephraim in the Mount of the Amaſekites.
I2

I3, I – IQ —geº- Quotes on 3 ubgee ºt- 82
Qlotes on ČBapters 13–16
CŞe $tories of Šamson.
These chapters contain a collection of stories narrating the exploits and
adventures of the Danite hero, Samson. The stories are connected with one
5 another, and all come from the same source (J). They differ from the other
stories in the Book in that Samson does not, like Ehud, Gideon, or Jephthah,
deliver his people from their enemies, but single-handed and in his own quarrel
makes havoc among the Philistines. These adventures did not lend themselves
in the least to the moralizing bent of D, who has given them only the briefest
Io of introductions (13, I ; cf. 15, 20 and 16, 31b); that he preserved them at all
may be taken as evidence that they were too great favorites to be suppressed.
More clearly than any other tales in the Book they bear the marks of popular
origin, and doubtless had been repeated by generations of Israelite story-tellers
before they were first written down. It is likely that the cycle was of gradual
15 growth ; it may be surmised that c. 13 is not as old as the rest. The stories
of Samson àe specimens of a kind of literature which has few other examples
in the OT, and illustrate a side of old Israelite life and character not often
represented in it.
Qlotes on £50pter 13.
2O (I) The forty years probably cover the judgeship of Samson (15, 20 ; 16,
3I) and that of Eli (20 years; I Sam. 4, 18, LXX).
(2) Zorah was one of the settlements of the Danites in the southwest
(I, 34 f.); from which the greater part of the tribe subsequently migrated to
the north (cc. 17. 18). It is the modern Qur'ah, on the northern side of Wädy
25 Qurār, opposite 'Ain Shems (Beth-shemesh).-The child of a long unfruitful
marriage is peculiarly the gift of God (cf. I Sam. I, 2 ; Luke I, 7); this is a
constant trait of the patriarchal story (Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel).
(3) On the Messenger of JHVH, see note on 6, II.
(4) C/. I Sam. I , 15. Intoxicating drinks were made, not only from the
30 grape (wine), but from other fruits, such as dates, and from grain (beer), per-
haps also from honey (mead); distilled liquors were unknown. The prohibi-
tion to eat anything unclean probably refers to certain animal kinds and to the
flesh of cattle that had died of disease or been accidentally killed (cf. the notes
on Lev. 7, 24). The child, who is to be consecrated to God, must be kept
35 from defilement even in his mother’s womb.
(5) Religious votary, Heb. mazár (AV, Nazirite). In the law-books the
Nazirite binds himself by his own vow for a certain time, at the termination
of which he shaves off his hair at the sanctuary. While the vow is on him
he has to abstain from all the products of the vine; see especially Num. 6;
4o cf. Jud. 13, 14; Amos 2, II f. Samson and Samuel (I Sam. I, II) are devotees
from birth and for life; but this is represented as exceptional.
I3, I
3
(6) The Messenger appeared as a man ; his words proved that he was an 6
inspired man.
(7) C. Gen. 18, 3 ff.; Jud. 6, 17 ff.
45 (8) C/. Gen. 32, 29. The name is beyond Manoah's capacity to hear and
understand ; cf. Ps. I39, 6.
(9) C/. Exod. I5, II; PS. 77, 14.
I5
I8
I9

83 - →s* (ſlotee on 3 ubgee ºt- I3, 20-I4, 3
5
I5
2O
25
3O
35
(IO) The similarity of the scene to 6, 21 has led to conformation in the 13, 20
latter passage; see note there. The a/tar (in Hebrew the slaughter-place) is
the rock (v. 19); it is possible, however, that the word altar has been substituted
in v. 20 by a later hand (cf. I Sam. 14, 33–35). The rock altar here figured
is from the neighborhood of Çur'ah.
a : Surface of the altar, with hollows for blood
or libations.
6 : Place for the priest to stand, with a flat
surface at his left hand to set vessels on.
c: Platform on all sides of the
altar.
d: Steps.
Present surface of the
ground.
ROCK A LTAR.
(II) See note on 6, 22. God (Heb. elohim) is any superhuman being ; cf. 22
I Sam. 28, 13 (Samuel's ghost). -
(12) Namely, the birth of a son. Possibly the preceding clause is a gloss. 23
(I3) Mahaneh-Dam (Dan's Camp) was west of Kirjath-jearim, in Judah 25
(18, 12), not between Zorah and Eshtaol, where Samson's tomb was (16,31).
Perhaps neither of these conflicting topographical notices is original.
Qlotes on £5apters 14.15.
The narrative is homogeneous, but has been retouched in various places
by later editors or scribes, it is not always possible to say which. Particularly
in c. 14, a misunderstanding of the nature of Samson's marriage has led to a
Series of changes which cause not a little confusion.
(I) Timmath is the modern Tibneh, about an hour west of 'Ain Shems I4, I
(Beth-Shemesh), and somewhat farther southwest of Qur'ah (Zorah), Samson's
home.
(2) C/. Gen. 24, 3 f.; 26, 34 f.; 28, I f. and 8 f. 3
(3) The opprobrious epithet is applied almost exclusively to the Philistines
(cf. 15, 18; 1 Sam. I4, 6; 17, 26.36; &c.); the peoples of Palestine seem gen-
erally to have practiced circumcision. The Philistines were of a different race,
invaders from the north, most likely from Cyprus or southeastern Asia Minor.
(4) The unusual word translated grievance seems to mean a pretext for 4
hostilities, a casus belli; see 2 Kings 5, 7.- It is not said that Samson’s father
refused to comply with his son’s request; but that the author intended to convey
the idea is clear from what follows, and it has been with some plausibility
conjectured that a statement to this effect originally stood at the end of v. 4.
Since his father declines to negotiate a marriage in the ordinary way, Samson,
on his own account, contracts a marriage of a different kind, in which the wife,
instead of coming into her husband's family, remains in her own father's house.
A later writer, either misunderstanding this relation, or taking offense at it,
altered the text of the verses following, making it appear that Samson's parents


I4, 5-19 -º-º-Qlotes on 3 ubges *- 84
yielded, and that an ordinary marriage was contemplated. The changes were 14
not, however, sufficiently thorough and consistent to efface the original repre-
sentation.
(5) The first of the changes spoken of in the last note. 5
5 (6) Lit., Weaped, founced upon him, indicating the suddenness and violence 6
of the seizure; see v. 19 ; 15, 14; I Sam. Io, 6. Io; II, 6; 18, Io; 16, 13; also
(with other verbs) Jud. 3, Io; 6,34; 13, 25. The spirit of ///V// is here super-
human strength.
(7) An addition consequent upon that in v. 5; see above, notes 4 and 5.
IO (8) The words ſo marry her are also an erroneous addition; the following 8
narrative shows that he was on his way home to Zorah when he found the
honey in the carcass of the lion, and that it was in Zorah he met his parents.
(9) See verse 16b (p. 28, 1. 32). 9
(Io) //is /a/her is not the least absurd of the editor's alterations. IO
I5 (II) The only possible understanding of the present text is, that when the II
Philistines saw how formidable Samson was (or, according to LXX, because
they were afraid of him), they appointed thirty special guards to see that he
did no mischief. In the original story, on the contrary, Samson chose thirty
young Philistines as his companions to take the place which in an ordinary
20 marriage would have been filled by his own young kinsmen and friends.
(12) A caveat against the unfair means they employed to learn the secret. 12
(13) Their vain effort to solve the riddle for six days accords well with 14
the vehemence of their speech in v. 15, but is hard to reconcile with v. 17,
according to which Samson's bride teased him the whole week to tell her the
25 riddle. We must either assume a certain inconsistency in the author's repre-
sentation or regard the words for sir days and on the seventh day (vv. 14b. 15a)
as glosses.
(14) The week's festivities preceded the consummation of the marriage. 18
º
****22 ºf
º º ſº
* u, ºft/º
…tº
Žº
º
- ºº::
ºyºta º
º
| - º // % Wſzºº -
º ſºunº 24/ - غºlſ. 7.2 ×
|º 4;º
º
ſº
RUINS OF ASHKELON.
(15) Ashkelon is two days’ journey from Timnath, on the sea-coast. It has 19
3o been conjectured, with much plausibility, that this raid is the afterthought of an
editor to whom it seemed unbecoming that Samson should run away without
paying the wager. It has no consequences in the following story.

85 →s* (ſlotes on 3 ubgee ºest- I4, 20–I6, 2
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
35
4O
45
5O
(16) Angry at being betrayed by his comrades and his bride, Samson rushed
away, without consummating the marriage, thus inflicting the keenest disgrace
on the bride and her family. To repair this disgrace, the bride's father gave her
on the spot to Samson's groomsman, and the interrupted wedding was completed.
(17) The season of the year is particularly noted to prepare for vv. 4 ff.
(18) i. e., I cannot be blamed for retaliating upon the Philistines.
(19) The fox is a solitary animal, but the jackal is gregarious; hence it has
been often surmised that Samson's foxes were jackals. It would not be remark-
able if the same Hebrew word included both foxes and jackals; but there is
not sufficient evidence that this was actually the case.—Some of the grain was
cut and in the shock; some was still standing. The words at the end of the
verse are probably a later addition exaggerating the mischief Samson wrought.
(20) The exact meaning of the phrase rendered hip and thigh (lit., leg on
thigh) is not known, nor does the context explain how Samson made this great
slaughter among his enemies.
(21) The Etam of 2 Chron. II, 6 and Josephus (Ant. viii, 7, 3) is doubtless
the modern 'Ain Atăm, about half an hour south of Bethlehem ; and most
scholars assume that the Cliff Etam in our story, which was in Judah (vv. 9 ff.),
was in the same neighborhood. Some lay the scene of Jud. I5, 9 ff. in the
vicinity of 'Artūſ, much nearer Timnath and Zorah, where in an almost vertical
cliff is a large cave, difficult and dangerous of access.
(22) /lehi ; see vv. 14– 19. The site is unknown. The name was probably
given it on account of some resemblance in the configuration of the rocks to
the under-jaw of an animal ; see note 26.
(23) Compare chapter 16, verses 9 and I2.
(24) The only weapon within reach was the fresh jawbone of an ass, heavy
and tough ; an old and weathered bone would have been too light and brittle
for such a use. Compare the slaughter of the Philistines by Shamgar with his
Ox-goad (3, 3I), and by Shammah (2 Sam. 23, II f.).
(25) In Hebrew: Biſāhi ha-hāmór hamór him martim, lit., I piled them in
/leaps, or perhaps, Z flayed them clean. In the translation an attempt has been
made to imitate the pun.
(26) VV. I7 – 19 contain a series of popular etymologies, explaining the names
of certain places in the vicinity of Lehi : Ramath-Weh? (“Height of Lehi') is
the place where Samson threw away (ramáh) the jawbone (/ºhi); Ain-haggóré
(‘Partridge Spring ') commemorates his calling (gará) on God for help; Maktésh
(‘The Mortar,” cf. Zeph. I , II) is the hollow which God cleft, and from which
the water gushed in answer to his prayer. It is not improbable that Samson's
singular weapon, the jawbone of an ass, is in like manner derived from the
name of a place, Zehi ha-hamór; cf. ZPeer-lahai-roi, Gen. I6, 14, and the Arabic
Idhy jama/ (‘Camel's jawbone’).
(27) See 16, 31. It has been conjectured that this closing formula was
inserted here by an editor who omitted the tragic close of Samson's career
(c. 16), which was subsequently restored by another hand. With the formula
itself cf. Io, I ff.; 12, 7 ff. -
(ſlotes on 16, 1–3.
The short story of this exploit has no connection with either the preceding
or the following narratives, but no doubt comes from the same source.
(I) Gaza, the most southern city of Palestine, on the road to Egypt
through the desert, was from the earliest times a place of great commercial
and military importance, and is still a city of 16, OOO inhabitants.
(2) V. 3 hardly permits us to suppose that the Philistines were lying in
I4, 20
I5, I
I4
I5
I6
2O
I6, I
2
I6, 3–14 →reº Qlotee on 3 ubges ºst- 86
IO
I5
2O
wait for Samson at the gate of the city; and v. 2b seems to imply that, confident I6
that he could not leave the city after the gates were closed, they resolved to
do nothing till the following morning; the second clause of v. 2 is therefore
probably a gloss exaggerating the precautions they took and the wonderful
character of his escape.
(3) He pulled up the gate-posts, with the two leaves of the gate and the 3
bar by which they were secured ; cf. v. 14.—As Hebron is not less than twelve
hours distant from Gaza, many have thought that a hill nearer the latter must
be meant. Latin tradition has fixed on AE/-Mumtér, only a quarter of an hour
outside the walls of the city, and not even in the direction of Hebron.
(ſlotes on 16, 4–31.
(1) The Valley of Sorek is probably the great Wädy Qurār, in which 4
Qur'ah (Zorah) also lies; the ruins of Súrik are three-quarters of an hour west
of Qur'ah.
(2) They imagined that there was some secret about his strength, which, if 5
they could come by it, would enable them to get the better of him.
(3) The bowstrings were doubtless made from the intestines of animals. 7
Green gut, not yet dried, would not so readily fray or split, and could be
more securely knotted. Seven is a charmed number.
(4) Cº. v. I2 and 15, 14. The men who were concealed in the inner apart- 9
ment did not disclose themselves, but waited to see the result of the experiment.
(5) New ropes, as in 15, 13. I I
(6) The Hebrew text is defective ; but the Greek Versions and the parallel 13. I4
places enable us to restore it. The loom was a simple upright frame the
sº tº as sº ºars ºr sº
//
Cº. º
EGYPTIAN LOOM.
_2 |
Sº 2
25 posts of which were planted in the earth.
Seated on the ground before the loom with Samson's head in her lap,
Delilah passed the long strands of his hair in and out of the standing warp
with her fingers, and beat it up to a firm texture with a pointed pin of wood.
He was thus most securely fastened in a prostrate position. But he sprang
30 to his feet, pulling the posts of the loom out of the ground by the hair of his
head.
The Egyptian loom shown in the cut, primitive as it appears, represents a
considerable advance upon this method of weaving.


87 —iegº. Quotes on 3 ubges º I6, 16–28
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
35
4O
45
(7) Compare chapter 14, verse I7. (8) See chapter 13, verse 5.
(9) See I Sam. 18, 12; 28, 15. Samson's superhuman strength was given
him by the Spirit of JHVH (13, 25; see note on 14, 6), which now left him.
(IO) Grinding at the hand-mill was hard and menial labor. Among the
Romans, slaves were often punished by being set to work at the mill; and under
the Theodosian Code the same penalty was inflicted upon freemen for certain
misdemeanors. -
(II) Samson's strength is in his sacred locks; before he can perform such
a feat as is narrated in vv. 28–30 they must grow again.
(I2) Dagon was the chief deity of the Philistines; besides the temple at Gaza
he had one at Ashdod (I Sam. 5, 1 ff.; I Macc. Io, 84; II, 4), and doubtless in
the other cities of the Pentapolis. Several places bearing the name Beth-dagon
were also ancient seats of his worship, which was wide-spread in Palestine
before the Philistine invasion ; cf. also Dagam-takala, the name of a man, in
the Amarna dispatches. Of the character of the god and his worship we
know no more than may be gathered from the passage before us and
I Sam. 5, 1 ff. That Dagon was represented in the form of a fish, or half
man half fish, as medieval Jewish commentators aver, rests only upon a possible
etymology (Hebrew dag “fish ’). If, as seems probable, Dagon is the same
as the Babylonian god Dagan, this etymology must be given up as false. Older
writers saw in the name the Hebrew and Phoenician dagam (“grain'), and make
Dagon a god of agriculture; which is probably no more correct than the other
etymology. *
(13) See chapter 15, verses 4 ft., 14 ff.
(14) When Samson has sufficiently amused them, perhaps by harmless feats
of strength, he is left to rest. He asks the attendant who leads him about, to
let him lean against the columns which support the roof. By a Herculean effort
he overthrows these columns, and brings down the whole edifice in ruins, burying
in its fall the multitude who were assembled to witness his performance, and
himself perishing with them. We are, of course, not to think of the temple
proper, but of a building for the use of the worshipers, probably a hall for
sacrificial feasts. The text gives ground for the conjecture that the three
thousand men and women on the roof are a later addition to the story. Much
ingenuity has been expended in the endeavor to explain the architectural con-
struction of this building; see particularly Sir CHRISTOPHER WREN, Parenta/ia,
p. 359.
(15) The destruction of all these Philistines would be but partial retaliation.
Qlotes on £50pters 17.18.
The first of the two stories supplementary to the Book of Judges; see p. 46,
ll. 30 ff. More than one hand has evidently been at work upon the narrative.
The origin of Micah's idol (or idols), the way in which he got his priest, the
I6, 16.17
2O
2I
22
23
24
27–30
28
sending out and return of the Danite spies, the robbery of Micah's temple, the
duration of the sanctuary at Dan, are all related with a great deal of unnecessary
and confusing repetition; in some places positive contradictions occur. It is
peculiarly difficult to decide whether these phenomena are to be ascribed to
interpolations and glosses, or to the combination of two parallel versions of the
Story. The latter hypothesis appears, on the whole, the more probable. In

I7, I — 4 —-º. (ſlotes on 3 uogee ºt- 88
the text the main, and apparently older, strand of the narrative is ascribed to
J, chiefly on account of its resemblance in spirit and style to the stories of
Samson, the first version of the history of Gideon, and other parts of the Book
which are probably derived from that source; the other to E, the second chief
5 source of the Book of Judges. The analysis would not be materially different
if the latter should be attributed to a later hand, or to editorial interpolation.
The first version ran substantially as follows: A man of Mount Ephraim
owned a temple containing an Ephod and Teraphim, and consecrated one of
his sons as priest (17, I. 5). Afterwards a wandering Levite from Bethlehem
IO in Judah came that way in search of employment, and was hired by Micah,
who installed him in the place of his son (vv. 8 – Io. IIa. 12b. 13). The Danites,
who had as yet found no place to settle, sent out an exploring party (18, I. 2a
in part). They came to Micah's home and lodged there (v. 2b). Falling in with
his priest, they learned of him his relation to Micah, and had him consult the
I5 oracle for them, and received a favorable response (v. 3b in part, vv. 4b. 5.6).
Continuing their journey, they came to Laish (v. 7 in part); and returning,
urged their clansmen to march against it, assuring them that it would be an
easy conquest (vv. 8 – Io in part). Six hundred fighting men of the tribe, with
their families, set out on the expedition (v. II in part, vv. 12. I3). Arrived at
2O Micah’s village, the spies informed them that it contained an Ephod and
Teraphim (v. 14). The .armed band halted at the gate, while the five spies went
to the house to take the idols (vv. 16. 18a). The priest challenged them, but
was speedily persuaded to join the party and become the priest of the tribe
(v. 17b in part, vv. 18b. 19). He took the images; they joined the main body,
25 and marched away. Micah and the villagers pursued them, but were rudely
repulsed (vv. 20–26). The Danites took Laish, and set up Micah’s idols in
their sanctuary (vv. 27–29. 30). -
This story is, without question, very old. It relates the origin of the image
in the famous sanctuary of Dan without any trace of religious antipathy, and
30 speaks of the Ephod with as little prejudice as the original author in c. 8 speaks
of that set up by Gideon at Ophrah. The writer evidently enjoys telling of the
stroke by which the Danites got possession of it, and of the owner’s discom-
fiture. The picture which he gives of the social and religious state of the times
is of the highest value. The rest of the chapter has at least no affinity to the
35 post-Exilic additions to co. 19–21; there is nothing to show that it is later than
other parts of the Book which are attributed to E.
(1) The name, Micah, and the scene of the story seem to be common to I7, I
both versions.
(2) Dreading his mother's curse and the anger of God for the sacrilege 2–4
40 committed in appropriating a consecrated thing, he makes restitution of the
stolen silver. There seems to be some derangement of the text; the words,
I sacred/y consecrate the silver, &c. (v. 3b), seem to be necessary after and
a/so saidst in v. 2.; and v. 3a is premature before v. 4a. The restoration pro-
posed in the translation is the simplest remedy for all these difficulties.
45 (3) The mother had added to the curse a dedication which made the silver 3
sacrosanct, so that the thief incurred the perils of sacrilege by keeping it.
(4) The curse launched at the head of the thief cannot be unsaid, but it 2
may be neutralized by a blessing; see 2 Sam. 21, 3; Exod. I2, 32. Curses and
blessings were not to the old Israelites mere wishes or prayers; the word has
50 a magical potency, and is a real cause of good or evil.
(5) The first word (pésel) properly denotes a carved wooden idol, but is 4
not infrequently employed generically for idol, without regard to the material
(see Is. 40, 19; 44, Io; Jer. Io, 14, &c.); the second word (massekáh) denotes
89 → * (ſlotes on 3 ubges ºest- I7, 5–18, I
5
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
35
4O
45
5O
usually an idol of precious metal, cast in a mold. In the present passage it is
highly improbable that the author meant that Micah had two images, one of
wood, and one of metal ; see also 18, 30 f. More likely he spoke throughout
only of a pésel; some one who observed that the idol was of metal then
glossed it by the more exact term, massekdh.
Various explanations have been given of the fact that only two hundred
shekels of the silver (i. e. about 8% pounds weight) were used in making the
idol; the truth seems to be that the consecration should not be understood as
a dedication of the whole sum to God, but of an indefinite part of it, which
made the whole inviolable.
(6) Lit. a god-house; a shrine in which the idol stood. Such a building
was necessary only where there was an image, or other sacred object, like the
Ark of JHVH, to keep in it. The older and commoner representatives of the
deity, the sacred post (asheróh, see note on 6, 25) or pillar (maccebáh, 9, 6; cf.
2, 2), stood beside the altar on the high-place under the open sky.
(7) The Ephod, like that which Gideon made of seventeen hundred shekels
of gold and set up at Ophrah, where it was worshiped by the Israelites (8, 27),
was clearly an idol (see 18, 24); but of what form we do not know ; see also
I Sam. 21, 9. The Ephod was employed by the priest in consulting the oracle
of JHVH ; see I Sam. I4, 18 (LXX; cf. 3); 23, 6.9 ; 30, 7. To carry the Ephod
before JHVH is the prerogative of the priesthood (I Sam. 2, 28 ; 22, 18). The
Teraphim, which are coupled with the Ephod in Hos. 3, 4 also, were idols (see
Gen. 31, 19; cf. 30 ; 35, 2.4; 1 Sam. 19, 13 - 16), and were used in divining
(2 Kings 23, 24; Ezek. 21, 21; Zech. Io, 2). It has been surmised, on insufficient
grounds, that they were household gods, or images of the ancestors.
(8) This verse is an editorial note explaining how such irregularities were
possible ; cf. 21, 25; also 18, I ; 19, I.
(9) The young Levite of Judah residing in Micah's neighborhood, who
is to him as one of his own sons, and becomes his priest (vv. 7. I Ib. I2a),
is the counterpart of the Levite from Bethlehem who comes in his wanderings
to Micah's home, and is hired by him as his priest. The words from
Bethlehem in Judah were probably inserted by the editor from the premises
of v. 8 in the parallel narrative. Levite must here denote his calling, not his
extraction ; he was a professional priest, though of the clan of Judah, just as
the Ephraimite Samuel was brought up as a priest at Shiloh. The relation
of the Levite priests to the old tribe of Levi (Gen. 34, 25 – 31 ; 49, 5 – 7) is
obscure. Probably the remnants of that broken tribe, like those of Simeon,
attached themselves to Judah; the Levites in the Book of Judges are all in
some way connected with Judah.
(Io) In the original context this Levite must have been introduced in some
way; perhaps simply, Nozay there zeyas a /Levite from Bethlehem in Judah.
(II) Father is a title of respect given to prophets, priests, the king's
ministers, and others; it does not necessarily imply that the Levite was
advanced in years.- The last words of the verse may be an accidental error,
corrected by the scribe in the following verse, or a fragment of the other source.
(12) This first clause would also be entirely in place in the other version
of the story after v. IIa.
(13) Micah is elated that he has now a trained priest to take charge of
17
5
his shrine and oracle. His son, who had first filled the place, had not the
same skill.
(14) This first half-verse is an editorial comment on the preceding chapter;
see 17, 6.
(15) The Danites first tried to establish themselves on the southwest of
Ephraim, but were crowded back by the native population (1,34) into the
I8, 2 – II -** Qlotes on 3 ubges -ºs- 90
little district about Zorah and Eshtaol. They now resolved to try their fortune 18
in another quarter.
(16) The duplication in this and the following verses is obvious, but the 2
literary analysis has only slight clues to work with, and its results are corres-
5 pondingly uncertain.
(17) The redundancy in both question and answer points to the union of 3.4
closely similar accounts.-In what way the Danites recognized the young Levite
is not explained; probably it did not occur to the writer that the question
could be asked.
IO (18) The consultation of the oracle may have been related in both accounts; 5.6
vv. 5.6, however, appear to be homogeneous, and to be derived from the older
narrative. The response was probably obtained by casting lots in some way;
see especially I Sam. 14, 4off. (LXX).
(19) The phrase Ziving without year, &c., does not grammatically agree with 7
I5 the foregoing noun (the peop/e); in its original context it must have been
preceded by some such words as, they found the city, or Laish-Am Phoenician
fashion, an unwarlike trading people.—The words rendered in RV for there
was none in the ſand, possessing authority, who might put them to shame in
anything, are corrupt; the text must be emended in conformity to v. Io.— For
20 they had nothing to do with any one else (Heb. adám) most Greek manuscripts
have, with Syria (Heb. Arám), which would suit the context equally well; the
difference in the Hebrew alphabet is very slight (r-n, d-T); cf. p. 70, 1. 49.
QARYET EL-INEB.
(20) In verses 8–10 the difficulty of separating the sources is much 8-10
increased by the disorder of the text; a completely satisfactory restoration
25 and analysis are hardly possible. The question in v. 8b seems to belong to
the same source with v. 2a (bidding them : Go, earamine the ſand). At the
end of the verse the verb is lacking; the simplest emendation is, What word
do ye bring back º' (cf. 2 Sam. 24, 13; Num. 13, 26). Upon this the clauses
assigned in the text to E would naturally follow. At the beginning of v. 9
3o some recensions of the Greek Bible have a long addition: We entered the land
and went about in it as far as Laish, and we found the people who inhabit it
/iving without fear after the Phoenician fashion, and they are remote from Sidon
and have nothing to do with Syria. But arise / ſet us march against them, &c.
Part of this may, perhaps, be genuine.
35 (21) The clan of the Danites which migrated from Zorah and Eshtaol II
mustered six hundred fighting men, who seem to have been the major portion
of the tribe, since they gave the tribal name to their new settlement. But,
as the story of Samson shows, some of the tribe remained in their old seats.

9I —sº- Quotes on 3 ubges -º- 18, 12–26
(22) Kirjath-jearim (1 Sam. 6, 21; 7, 1 f.) lay nine or ten miles west of 18, 12
Jerusalem, on the road to Lydda. It has been conjecturally identified with the
modern Qaryeſ el-Jºzeb (Abſº Ghāsh), see p. 9o; by others with Ahirbet Arma.
The topographical gloss at the end of the verse is probably correct, though
5 at variance with that in 13, 25.
(23) The verse is a parallel to vy. 13 f., just as v. 3 is to v. 29. I5
(24) The narrative is much confused; probably not so much from the 16-18
union of different sources as through glosses and accidental corruption. J
seems to have related simply and briefly that the six hundred armed men
Io halted at the gate of the village while the five spies went up to Micah's house,
and seized his idols. V. 16, which exhibits some grammatical irregularities,
seems to be an awkward redactional doublet to the end of v. 17; v. 17, with
the exception of the last words, is of the same character. At the close of v.
17 the text is not intact; we have either to supply the predicate, stood aſ the
15 gaſe, as in v. 16 (cf. v. 17, ſhe priest zwas standing at the gaſe), or make the
six hundred men the subject of v. 18, and suppose that the whole armed band
marched to Micah's house. The former is the more probable alternative. It
seems from v. 22b that the villagers were in the fields, so that the Danites
had got some distance away before Micah’s neighbors could be collected for the
20 pursuit.
(25) The priest was not at the entrance of the village, but at the sanctuary. 18
He was easily persuaded to cast in his lot with them, and himself carried off
his master's image and oracle (v. 20).
(26) Verses 19–26 are throughout by one hand. The story is admirably 19–26
25 told; the author's sympathy is evidently with the bold robbers rather than with
their victim.

I8, 25–31 →s* (ſlotee on 3vogee ºst- 92
IO
2O
25
3O
35
4O
45
5O
(27) See 2 Samuel, chapter 17, verse 8.
(28) Laish, or Léshem (Josh. 19, 47), under its later name, Dam, often
mentioned in the OT as the northern limit of the land of Israel, was not far
from the Lebanon and the sources of the Jordan. The name seems to be
preserved in the modern Tel el-Qādī, i. e. ‘Hill of the Judge' (qādī, ‘judge,’
is the Arabic equivalent of the Hebrew Dan), about an hour distant from
Aámiás (Paneas, Caesarea Philippi). On the summit of the hill is now the tomb
of a Moslem saint, under a magnificent oak tree, as shown in the engraving
on p. 91. On the west side of the hill is a great basin (see full page illustration
facing p. 34). It is fed by one of the largest springs in the world, and is looked
upon by the people as the true source of the Jordan.
Beth-rehob was in the time of David a petty Aramean kingdom (1 Sam.
14, 47, LXX ; 2 Sam. Io, 6.8), but its exact situation is not known. The note
on the site of Laish may be a gloss.
(29) These words are also probably a gloss. The last clause of the verse
is of the same origin.
(30) VV. 30.31 are parallel. Jonathan is probably not the young Judean
Levite of 17, 7, but the man of 17, 8. It is possible that his pedigree
originally stood before the latter verse, rather than where it now stands.--For
the idol (Heb. pesel), it may be conjectured that the author wrote, the Ephod.
(31) /onatham, the son of Gershom, the son of Moses. The later Jews, by
inserting an m above the line in the last name (mºsh), indicated their opinion
that this idolatrous priest might better have been a descendant of Manasseh,
the idolatrous king of Judah. — Our verse proves that the priests of Dan, in
the 8th century, traced their lineage to Moses, as other priestly families in
Israel did (see especially Deut. 33, 8).
(32) The depopulation of the land may be the deportation of the inhabitants
of Northern Galilee by Tiglath-pileser in 734 B.C., or the overthrow of the
Kingdom of Israel by Sargon in 721. It is difficult to believe, however, that
the whole verse is of so late a date, and we are tempted to conjecture that
the author wrote, unto this day, which a later editor changed to the present
text.
(33) When the house of God at Shiloh (I Sam. I, 7. 24; 3, 15) was
destroyed is not certainly known. It is generally believed to have fallen in
the Philistine wars; but Jeremiah’s references to the fate of Shiloh (7, 12. I4)
might suggest a more recent date. Cf. the note on 21 , 19.
Qlotes on £6apters 19–21.
In this story of the outrage at Gibeah and the sanguinary vengeance of Israel
upon the tribe of Benjamin two elements are readily recognized; one of which
is closely akin to the older narrative in ce. 17. 18, the other strikingly resembles
the latest stratum of the so-called Priestly Narrative (P) in the Hexateuch (see
Notes on Leviticus, p. 56, 1. 26; p. 58, l. 7), and the Book of Chronicles. To
the former belong c. 19 almost entirely, 21, 15–23 in the main, and the
original account of the battle and its consequences in 20, 29. 36p–44 (in the
main). 47; to the latter, most of 20. 21, I – I4. The secondary element seems
to be not an originally distinct narrative combined with the older version by
a redactor, but in part a supplement to the original account of the war, in part
a substitute for it, in which a contemporary of the Chronicler illustrates the way
in which such a crime should have been — and therefore must have been —
punished by the Congregation. The dependence of this Midrash upon the older
story is not questioned, even by those who think that it once existed separately.
It is possible that the older story was itself composite; 19, 5–15, in particular,
I8, 25
27
29
3O
3I
93 —-tº-Qlotes on 3 ubgee ºt- I9, I-3O
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
35
4O
45
50
give ground for this opinion; but the attempts at analysis have not been hitherto
very successful.
(I) See I7, 6; 18, 1 ; 19, 1 ; 21, 25.
(2) The remote part of Mount Ephraim is probably the northern part; it
is noteworthy that neither here nor in 17. 18 is a town named.
(3) See Gen. 34, 3; and especially Hos. 2, 14.
(4) Concubinage was a kind of marriage; the girl’s father was the man’s
father-in-law (see also vv. 5. 9). The relation was perfectly legitimate, whether
the concubine was a slave or a free woman; and children born of such a union
had a right of inheritance (Gen. 21, II).
(5) In vv. 5–9 the Levite is repeatedly on the point of setting out, but is
persuaded to postpone his departure. The primary narrative seems to be found
in vv. 4-6a. 8aft. 9 (in part). The rest may be attributed to a second source, as
has been done above, or to the amplifying hand of an editor. If the former
alternative be adopted, we should understand that in the second version the
man stayed but one night at Bethlehem ; the fusion of the two accounts has
given the editor his fifth day.
(6) In v. 9 the Hebrew text is seriously corrupt; the restoration adopted
follows the oldest Greek Version. In view of the unusual expression, the last
words are probably to be regarded as a gloss.
(7) The repetitions and redundancies continue, and raise the same questions
as in vv. 5–9. The analysis in the translation is merely tentative.
(8) Jerusalem is here called Jebus with reference to its non-Israelite popu-
lation (v. 12); see also Josh. 15,8; 18, 16. 28; 1 Chron. I I, 4 f. There is no
evidence that Jebus was the older name of Jerusalem, as is often asserted; the
latter name is found not only in the oldest texts in the OT (see Jud. I, 7.21;
Josh. 15,63; 2 Sam. 5, 6), but also in the Amarna tablets (ca. I400 B.C.). The
road from Bethlehem north would lead them, in about an hour and a half, past
Jerusalem on the west.— At the end of the verse some Greek manuscripts add,
for the sake of completeness, and his servant. It is possible that the whole
clause is a gloss from v. 3.
(9) The refusal to spend the night in a city of strangers puts in a stronger
light the base violation of the rights of hospitality by the Israelites of Gibeah.
(IO) Ramah is the modern er-Rám, two hours north of Jerusalem; Gibeah
is located by Robinson and others at Tel e/-Fú/, about half-way between Jeru-
salem and er-Râm. Gibeah of Benjamin (see p. 94; cf. I Sam. I3, 2. 15; I4, 16)
is probably the same which, as the home of Saul, is called Gibeah of Saul
(I Sam. II, 4; Is. Io, 29, &c.); and is to be distinguished from Geba (Isaiah, /. c.).
(II) The first evidence of the churlishness of the inhabitants; contrast Gen.
24, 29–31 ; 18, 2 f.; 19, I – 3.
(12) In the author's time the explanation that the inhabitants of Gibeah
were Benjamites cannot have been necessary; probably the note that the one
good man in the town was a stranger is also a later addition.
(13) C/. Gen. 24, 25. 32.- (14) C/. Gen. I 9, 2 f— (15) C/. Gen. 24, 32; 18, 4.
(16) VV. 22 – 24 have a striking resemblance to Gen. 19, 4–8; it is not
unlikely that the similarity of the situation has led to some conformation of
the story in Judges to that of Lot. V. 24, in particular, is, not without reason,
thought to be an interpolation from Gen. 19, 8. -
(17) The Levite's conduct in exposing the woman to save himself strikes
us as dastardly; but the author evidently did not so regard it; cf. Gen. 19,8;
12, Io ff.; 20. 26.
(18) The words used are the proper terms for cutting up the carcass of an
animal; see I Sam. II, 7; I Kings 18, 23.33; Lev. I, 6; &c.
(19) The text is restored in conformity with the oldest Greek Version.
I9, I
3
4
5 – 9
9
IO – I 5
I 2
I9–2I
22 – 24
29
3O
20, I-IO –regº-Qlotes on 3 ubges *- 94
5
IO
I5
2O
25
30
(20) The characteristics of the secondary element in the narrative appear
very clearly in vv. 1. 2, in the fondness for prodigious numbers, and in a habitual
representation of Israel as a Congregation instead of a people or a nation, an
ecclesiastical body acting as by a common impulse under the leadership of its
F/ders. In all these traits we recognize the product of an age when the national
life of Israel was a thing of the remote past, and could only be imagined under
the likeness of a Church. No greater contrast to the old stories of the Judges
could be conceived.—The last words of v. I belong to the older source, but
hardly followed immediately the first clause. Mizpah in Benjamin was an ancient
holy place; see I Sam. 7, 5 ft.; Io, 17 ff.; Jer. 40, 6 f.; 1 Macc. 3, 44 f. It is
generally believed to be the modern Nebi Samzví/, about two hours north of
Jerusalem, and about two miles from Tel eſ-Fú/ (Gibeah ; see note Io).
(21) The assemb/w of the people of God, the people assembled in their
religious capacity; I Sam. 17, 47; 1 Kings 8, 14. 55.65; frequent in P.
(22) The numbers are on the same scale with the standing 6oo, ooo of P.
To realize how exaggerated they are we need but remember that the Roman
army with which Vespasian and Titus put down the revolt of the Jews in 66–70
A. D., consisted of about 60,000 men of all arms. The German army which
besieged Paris in 1870 numbered about 240,000.
GIBEAH OF BENJAMIN.
20, I
2
(23) It has been conjectured that v. 3a, in its original context, stood before 3
V. I.4.
(24). He might very well describe their purpose as an attempt on his life,
since his concubine actually died under their maltreatment.
5
(25) The conclusion of the sentence (until we have azenged this wrong) is 8
wanting. -
(26). It is doubtful whether any part of these verses belongs to the original 9 f.
narrative. In the last words of v. 9 the verb, we wil/ go up, seems to have
been accidentally omitted; cf. then v. 18, perhaps in a tertiary stratum.
(27) The detail of one man in every ten to collect provisions for the host
belongs to the later version; it is only for its huge army that an organized
commissariat is necessary.
IO

95 →º Qlotee on 3 uogee ºst- 2O, II – 31
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
4O
45
5O
(28) The city must be Gibeah, but this movement seems premature; see v.v.
18. 19. V. II seems to be one of the latest additions to the chapter.
(29) See note on v. 3.
(30) The statements about the numbers of the Benjamites do not exactly
tally: our verse gives them a total of 25,700 (Heb. 26,700); according to vv.
44–47 their losses amounted to 25,000, while 600 escaped ; v. 35 gives their loss
as 25, IOO. The text has suffered at the end of v. I5 and the beginning of v.
16, apparently by the accidental repetition of the words seven hundred young
zvarriors.
(31) The skill of the Benjamites as slingers was famous in later times; see
I Chron. 12, I f. This skill may be noted here to explain how the Israelites
lost so many men in the first two engagements, while the Benjamites lost none,
— if this does not attribute to the writer too subtle reflections.
(32) The author's conception of the unity of Israel is such that he thinks it
necessary formally to except Benjamin from the levy raised to make war on that
tribe.
(33) V. 18 is perhaps a later addition to the narrative ; in the sequel nothing
of any such precedence of Judah appears; cf. 1 , I f.
(34) V. 19, parallel to v. 20, seems to belong to the older narrative, in which
it would follow v. 14, and may have been continued by v. 29. Possibly, how-
ever, the old story also told of a repulse of Israel on the first day; see note
on v. 22.— From Mizpah, where they assembled, they marched on Gibeah.
(35) See vv. 22.30; Gen. 14,8. r
(36) VV. 22 and 23 conflict; after the Israelites were in line of battle on the
second day, they could not go to Beth-el, and weep the day before. Either the
Older version also told of a repulse on the first day and a renewal of the fight
on the second (v. 22), or, if v. 22 belongs to the younger writer, v. 23 is a still
later addition from vv. 26–28. The latter alternative is perhaps the more
probable; v. 24 was then inserted to recover the connection, and v. 25 is the
Original sequel of v. 22.
(37) Beth-el was three hours or more north of Gibeah. The Israelites made
the most strenuous efforts to propitiate JHVH by fasting and tears as well as
sacrifices; see 21, 2.4; Ezra Io, I ; Joel 2, 15. 17; I Sam. 7, 6, &c.
(38) Verses 27b. 28a, which interrupt the connection, are late glosses, to
explain how they came to offer sacrifices and consult the oracle at Beth-el,
instead of Shiloh, where, according to the late theory, the Ark and the central
sanctuary were from the days of Joshua to those of Eli. The same reflection
has led interpreters to take beth-eſ' appellatively, as in AV : they came unto
the house of God (at Shiloh). The name of Phinehas, the grandson of
Aaron, would fix the time of the action in the first generation after the entrance
of the Israelites into Canaan, to which period it is accordingly assigned by
Josephus and others; but the mention of Phinehas comes only from a very
late editor or scribe.
(39) V. 29, which conflicts with v. 30, comes from the old story; it has its
continuation in v. 36b, vv. 37a. 38.39 (in part). 40. 4I. 44a. 47. The stratagem
has a striking resemblance to that employed by Joshua against Ai (Josh. 8, 14 f.;
cf. especially Jud. 20, 37 ff. with Josh. 8, 19 ff.), but the phraseology is throughout
different; see also Jud. 9, 34–41; 42 – 45.
(40) The words, they were drazºn away from the city, which are not syntac-
2O, I I
I4
I5
2O
22. 23
26
27. 28
29
3I
tically connected with the sentence, are a gloss from Josh. 8, 16; see below, v. 32.
(41) The roads are mentioned also in vv. 32.45; but the description here
is hard to understand. There was, of course, a road from Gibeah to Beth-el,
but what are we to make of the other road, leading to Gibeah? If we assume
that the writer had sufficient knowledge of the topography, we should probably
2O, 33–21, 2 —4tagºe (ſtotes on 3 ubge6 Kºest- 96
emend, Géða. The whole clause, which separates in the open country from the 20
words which this phrase qualifies, is probably a misplaced fragment of the
preceding gloss; cf. v. 32b.
(42) The site of Baal-tamar is not known. 33
(43) The ten thousand picked men are the ambush of v. 33. 34
(44) This statement of the loss of Benjamin properly concludes the account 35
of the battle, as in vv. 21. 25.46; cf. 3, 29; Josh. 8, 25 f., &c. That the fighting
begins anew in v. 36b, as if nothing had happened, is to be ascribed to the
fact that vv. 36 ff. come in the main from the older story.
IO (45) V. 29 must have been followed by an account of the beginning of 36
the engagement, which has been supplanted by vv. 30 ff.; after this came vv.
36b ff.
(46) The second half of the verse merely repeats the first in other words, 37
and is probably a gloss.
I5 (47) This construction of the sentence removes the difficulties under which 38 f.
the common interpretation labors. It had been agreed that when the ambush
got possession of the city, they should send up a smoke signal ; and that
when this appeared, the main body should turn from their feigned flight, and
attack the Benjamites. The execution of this stratagem is related in vv. 4o f.
2O (48) The holocaust of the city; see Josh. 8, 20; and for the expression 4o
Deut. I 3, 16.
(49) The wilderness was east of Gibeah, the steep uncultivated slopes 42
which descend to the Jordan; see note on v. 47.
(50) The men of the ambush now issued from the destroyed city, and
intercepted the retreating Benjamites, who were thus caught and cut to pieces
between the two bodies of the enemy.
(51) The text of this verse is extremely corrupt. It apparently gives us 43
the limits of the murderous pursuit; from Wohah (see I Chron. 8, 2) to a point
opposite Geba eastward. Geba lies in the line of flight from Gibeah to Rim-
3O mon (the modern Rammón); and the valley between Geba and Michmash
(Wady es-Suzweinit), with its steep and difficult pass ( 1 Sam. 14, 4 ff.), would
naturally bring the pursuers to a halt.
(52) It is possible that v. 44a is derived from the older source; the phrase- 44
Ology is not that of vv. 21. 25.35. If genuine, it can hardly have stood in
35 this place (v. 47a seems to be the immediate sequel of v. 41), but rather in or
after v. 47.
(53) The first clause is identical with v. 47a, from which it is borrowed. 45
(54) See the note on verse 15. 46
(55) The Cliff of Rimmon, now Rammón, is a high and rocky hill, some- 47
4O what more than three miles east of Beth-el (Beitín). It was in a corner of
the territory of Benjamin, in the wilderness of Beth-aven (Josh. 18, 12).
(56) Returning from the pursuit, the Israelites extirpated man and beast 48
through all the land of Benjamin, and burned all the towns; they treated the
land as devoted to destruction (Heb. herem); see Josh. 6, 17 ff.; Deut. 13, 15 f.
45 In substance this must have been narrated in the original story (see 21, 18 ff.);
but in its present form the verse is to be attributed to the later writer.
5
2
5
(57) This oath is the point on which the older story turned (see vv. 21, I
I8. 22), as well as the younger (v. 7b).
(58) These verses bear throughout the marks of a very late age ; the account 2 - I2
50 of the expedition against Jabesh in Gilead is an imitation of Num. 31, which
itself belongs to a tertiary stratum in P. V.V. 4 f. appear to be additions by a
still more recent hand. The building of an altar at Beth-el (v. 4) is very strange
after 20, 26; v. 5a awkwardly anticipates v. 8a; both verses interrupt the con-
nection between v. 3 and v. 6.
97 -->reº Qlotee on 3 uogee ºiest- 2I, 2–25
5
IO
I5
2O
25
3O
(59) See chapter 20, verses 18. 23. 26.
(60) See v. 15, in the old story, from which v. 6 also is derived.
(61) Jabesh in Gilead (I Sam. I I ; 31, 1 I – 13; 2 Sam. 2, 5 f.; 21, 12 f.) lay
east of the Jordan, within a day's march of Beth-shean. The name survives in
Wädy Yaibis, but the site of the city has not been recovered.
(62) See Num. 31, 17. The injunction to preserve the virgin girls (Num.
31, 18; see below v. 12) is omitted in the Hebrew text; most Greek copies
have inserted it. (63) Nunn. 31, 35.
(64) Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, i. e. west of the Jordan; see
below, v. 19. -
(65) The story of the rape of the Shilonite maidens is of a wholly different
character from the story of the expedition against Jabesh, and is as unques-
tionably very old as the latter is very late. It has been glossed by a younger
hand in vv. 16. 19. 22; v. 24 is the conclusion of the later version. The text
also has suffered considerably in v. 17a and perhaps in v. 22.
(66) The extinction of a tribe or clan was a serious calamity, just as it is
to-day regarded among the Arabs. See DOUGHTY, Arabia /Xeserta, i, p. 335.
(67) The first half of the verse is to connect the story of the maidens of
Shiloh with that of the four hundred virgins from Jabesh in Gilead. The rest
of the verse seems to be properly in place between v. 15 and v. 17a.
(68) The text is corrupt ; the proposed emendation follows certain Greek
translations. .
(69) The annual feast of JHvh at Shiloh was doubtless, like that of Baal-
berith at Shechem (9, 27), a local vintage festival.— Shiloh is the modern Seiliſm,
the position of which is accurately described in the topographical gloss which
follows. The author of this gloss (see also v. 12b) must have written for
readers, perhaps in foreign lands, who had little knowledge of the ancient
holy places of Israel.— Mebomah, now Zubban, was about an hour NW of Shiloh.
(70) The insertion of the gloss in v. 19 necessitated the further change in
v. 20a, to recover the connection ; it is most natural to regard v. 194 as
addressed to the Benjamites.
(7I). Such dances were performed in celebration of victory (I I, 34; Exod.
I5, 20 ; I Sam. I 8, 6), or at religious festivities (Exod. 32, 19; cf. Cant. 6, 13).
(72) The clause, because they did not get each a wife in the war, which
Creates great difficulty in the context, is apparently a gloss referring to the
attack on Jabesh. The following clauses are probably to be understood, You
have not broken your oath, since they were taken by force.
(73) See the note on chapter 17, verse 6.
º, O G
C ſº fl OC
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a
2I, 2
I5 – 25
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25






—ºte:- 3ubgee ºest-
I
IO.
II.
I 2.
I3.
I4.
I5.
I6.
I7.
I8.
I9.
2O.
2 I.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
£ist of Jºſuéfrations
º,
(pfates.
Seats of the Twelve Tribes (Map) . . . . . . . Frontispiece
Mount Tab or (Copyright by D. Appleton & Co. in the
United States of America) . . . . . . . . . . . . facing p. 8
. “Taan a ch, by the Stre a ms of Megid do” (Copyright
by D. Appleton & Co. in the United States of America). . facing p. Io
Top of Mount Gerizim (Copyright by D. Appleton & Co.
in the United States of America) . . . . . . . . . . facing p. 18
She chem (Copyright by D. Appleton & Co. in the United
States of America) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . facing p. 20
Gaza . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . facing p. 30
Dan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . facing p. 34
jffustrations in the Qlotes.
Palestinian Cromlech . . . . . . . p. 51
Rock-tombs of Tibneh (See p. 5./, /, /9) p. 55
Asherah and Sacred Tree . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 57
Israelites bearing tribute (From LAYARD, Monuments of Nineveh. By
permission of John Murray, London). p. 58
Upper Story of Oriental House near Sidon D. 59
Modern Syrian Lock p. 60
Hittite Chariot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 62
Banks of the Kishon (Copyright by D. Appleton & Co. in the United
States of America). See p. 62, Z. 3/ . . . . . . . . p. 63
Arab Tents . e tº e º $ tº e p. 63
Section of a Wine-press . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 68
Plain of Jezreel (Copyright by D. Appleton & Co. in the United States
of America) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 69
Modern Palestinian Hand-mill . p. 75
Ruins of ‘Ammān & e is e º e º ºs e º e p. 77
Gorge of the Arnon near its mouth (See p. 79, Z. ſ r.) p. 78
Jabbok (See p. 79, A. Z3) * * * * * * * p. 78
Rock-altar . . . . . p. 83
Ruins of Ashkelon . . p. 84
Egyptian Loom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 86
Qaryet el-'Ineb (Copyright by D. Appleton & Co. in the United States
of America). See p. 91, l. 3. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 90
Laish (Copyright by D. Appleton & Co. in the United States of
America). See p. 92, Z. & . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 91
Gibeah of Benjamin (See p. 97, Z. 56) D. 94
t

$º§ſº
NO S&
% ſ
fº
Atef of Čontributors.
Genesis: C. J. Ball (London).
Exodus : Herbert E. Ryle (Cambridge).
Leviticus: S. R. Driver and H. A. White (Oxford).
Numbers : J. A. Paterson (Edinburgh).
5 Deuteronomy : Geo. A. Smith (Glasgow).
Joshua : W. H. Bennett (London).
Judges: George F. Moore (Andover).
Samuel : K. Budde (Strassburg).
Kings: B. Stade (Giessen) and F. Schwally (Strassburg).
Io Isaiah : T. K. Cheyne | Oxford).
Jeremiah : C. H. Cornill (Königsberg).
Ezekiel : C. H. Toy (Cambridge, Mass.).
Hosea : A. Socin (Leipzig).
Joel : Francis Brown (New York).
15 Amos : John Taylor (Winchcombe).
Obadiah : Andrew Harper (Melbourne).
Jonah : Friedrich Delitzsch ( Breslau).
Micah : J. F. McCurdy (Toronto).
Nahum : Alfred Jeremias (Leipzig).
20 Habakkuk : W. H. Ward (New York).
Zephaniah : E. L. Curtis (New Haven).
Haggai : G. A. Cooke (Oxford).
Zechariah : W. R. Harper (Chicago).
Malachi: C. G. Montefiore and I. Abrahams (London).
25 Psalms : J. Wellhausen (Göttingen).
Proverbs: A. Müller" and E. Kautzsch (Halle).
Job : C. Siegfried (Jena).
Song of Songs : Russell Martineau (London).
Ruth : C. A. Briggs (New York).
3o Lamentations: Morris Jastrow, Jr. (Philadelphia).”
Ecclesiastes : Paul Haupt (Baltimore).
Esther : T. K. Abbott (Dublin).
Daniel : A. Kamphausen (Bonn).
Ezra-Nehemiah : H. Guthe (Leipzig).
35 Chronicles: R. Kittel (Breslau).
: cº-3; e.
* Died September 12th 1892.
::
* Professor A. Kuenen who had agreed to do the Book died December 10th 1891.



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