Translation commentary on Judges 4:17

Here several characters who have been previously introduced come together in this important turning point in the story. The appearance of several characters in full noun form and a change in word order in Hebrew indicate there is a new paragraph beginning here (see Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, New International Version). Now the “aside” at verse 4.11 becomes pertinent. Several words link back to the previous text: Sisera, fled away on foot, tent, and Heber the Kenite. The identity of the “woman” in verse 4.9 is also now revealed.

But Sisera fled away on foot …: But renders well the Hebrew waw conjunction here. In this clause the focus shifts away from the battle scene back to Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, who is attempting to escape (verse 4.15). In Hebrew the subject precedes the verb in order to bring Sisera to the forefront (compare also the beginning of verse 4.11). The repetitive language, fled away on foot, is obviously intended to make fun of Sisera (see verse 4.15). Fled here implies that Sisera is running or at least moving very quickly, as he looks for a place to hide.

To the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite: According to verse 4.11, the family of Heber the Kenite had moved to a place near Barak’s hometown. He “pitched his tent” there, meaning he established a home there. Even if an idiomatic expression was used there, here translators will need to render the word tent. Tents were temporary dwellings, consisting of poles stuck in the ground covered with animal skins. The skins of a tent were pulled and attached to tent pegs (iron or wooden stakes), which were driven into the ground to fix the tent in place. Though this description sounds rudimentary, some tents were quite extravagant and comfortable. It is important to express the idea of a tent, since very soon in the story, it will be necessary to refer to the parts of the tent, especially the tent peg (verse 4.21). In some languages tent may be rendered “house of cloth” or “house of skin.” Others have words for temporary structures that could be used here. Including an illustration within the text will help readers visualize what a tent in biblical times looked like.

Interestingly, Jael, the heroine of the story, is introduced through the mention of her tent, the location of the eventual death of Sisera. Jael is described as the wife of Heber, mentioned in verse 4.11. Like often in the Old Testament, females in this book are usually presented through their husbands (verse 4.4), while males are introduced through their fathers (verse 3.15; verse 4.6; verse 6.29; verse 9.1, 30). It may seem odd that Jael had a tent belonging to her. In polygamous cultures, usually each wife has a dwelling, but no details are given here concerning the number of wives in this family.

For there was peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite: For renders the Hebrew conjunction ki. Here it introduces the reason Sisera takes off in the direction of Jael’s tent. He goes there because there was some kind of alliance between Jabin and the family of Heber. Sisera hoped to receive help and protection from this family. It may even be possible that he knew Heber and Jael. This fact is somewhat surprising, since Jabin was known to cruelly oppress the Israelites (verse 4.3). It may be yet another case of “cooperating with the enemy,” which God disfavored but seemed at times to use to eventually defeat those enemies. Samson’s involvement with the Philistines (verse 14.1-3) is another example of this phenomenon.

Peace renders the Hebrew word shalom, which has many meanings, including “well-being,” “harmony,” and “contentment.” In this context it speaks of “good relations” between Jabin and the family of Heber. New International Version says there were “friendly relations” between them, while New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh speaks of “friendship.” Contemporary English Version says there was “a peace treaty,” which is possible, but may be saying slightly more than the text. If need be, we could say there was “an agreement” or “an alliance” between them.

For Jabin the king of Hazor, see verse 4.2. The house of Heber the Kenite refers to Heber’s extended family, who had moved into the area. Some think that the Kenites were blacksmiths, specializing in metalwork.

Another play on words occurs here. Sisera flees Barak’s “sword” (chereb in Hebrew) in verse 4.16 to go to the family of Heber (cheber) for protection. Sisera does not understand that death waits for him there. If the clan of Heber really were blacksmiths, then the irony would be even stronger since Sisera fled from the sword, only to go to Heber, a maker of swords, where he is killed by a tent peg, also possibly made out of metal.

Translation models for this verse are:

• But Sisera ran away to the tent of Jael, wife of Heber the Kenite, because Jabin the king of Hazor and Heber’s family had a treaty with one another.

• Sisera fled and came to the camp of Heber’s wife, Jael. He went there because the family of Heber the Kenite was on friendly terms with Jabin, king of Hazor.

Quoted with permission from Zogbo, Lynell and Ogden, Graham S. A Handbook on Judges. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2019. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Subscribe
Notify of
guest
0 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments