Then Abijah stood up on Mount Zemaraim which is in the hill country of Ephraim: The Hebrew assumes that the armies of Judah and Israel had already traveled to Mount Zemaraim and were now there along with their respective leaders without stating that they went there. Good News Translation adds this implied information by saying “The armies met in the hill country of Ephraim.” Compare also “When the army of Judah arrived in the hill country of Ephraim…” (New Living Translation)

Josh 18.22 mentions a city named Zemaraim in the territory of Benjamin, but the location of the mountain by this name in the hill country of Ephraim is uncertain. Mount Zemaraim was probably about 30 kilometers (19 miles) north of Jerusalem. The Hebrew says only that Abijah stood up on Mount Zemaraim, without indicating specifically whether he was on top of the mountain or only part way up. New Revised Standard Version says “Abijah stood on the slope of Mount Zemaraim.” Contemporary English Version, on the other hand, states that “Abijah went to the top of Mount Zemaraim.” But most versions avoid making a decision about the precise location and translate more generally “on Mount Zemaraim,” reflecting the ambiguity of the text.

The hill country of Ephraim refers to the central mountainous area of Palestine where the tribe of Ephraim had settled (see the comments on 1 Chr 6.67). It was in the territory of the northern kingdom.

And said, “Hear me, O Jeroboam and all Israel!”: In this context said is better rendered “called out” (Good News Translation), “cried out” (Bible en français courant), or “shouted” (Contemporary English Version, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch). Some languages may also require an indirect object. Good News Translation takes the addressee Jeroboam and all Israel out of the direct quotation and makes it the indirect object of the verb. Whether this phrase is inside or outside the quotation marks, the vocative O reflects nothing in the Hebrew and translators do not need to reflect it in their own languages. In this context all Israel may be rendered “the Israelite army” (New Living Translation) or “all the soldiers of Israel” (similarly La Biblia: Traducción en Lenguaje Actual). In languages where direct discourse is inappropriate here, this last half of the verse may be rendered “and called out to Jeroboam and all the Israelite army to get their attention.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .