And they went out into the field …: This verse describes a celebration at the end of the grape harvest which included a religious ritual in the local temple. Because there seems to be a change in time and location, Contemporary English Version starts a new paragraph here and sets the scene by beginning with “The time came for the grape harvest.” The subject of this action-packed sentence (containing eight verbs) is the pronoun they, which may refer not only to the leaders of Shechem, but also to all the townspeople, including Gaal and his brothers. Good News Translation says “They all,” but some languages will prefer “the people of Shechem” or “all the people.” The Hebrew verb rendered went out probably means the people went outside their city walls, since this is where the fields normally were. In some languages it may be necessary to say “left the town and went.” The Hebrew word for field is a general term, but in this context it refers to a field that was planted with grapevines. Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version specify “vineyards” here, a word that comes later in the verse, but we might say “farms,” “plantations,” “gardens,” or “farms where they had planted their grapes.”

And gathered the grapes from their vineyards and trod them is literally “and they gathered their vineyards and they trod.” In Hebrew the word for grapes does not appear, but Revised Standard Version adds it for naturalness in English. Gathered may be rendered “picked,” “brought in,” “cut off,” or “harvested.” Grapes are small round fruits that grow in bunches on vines (see verse 8.2). Grapevines are often planted in rows close together, and these farms are called vineyards. Their vineyards refers to the same location as the field. Translators can use the same expression for both phrases if necessary. Grapes are very sweet and can be eaten fresh or dried into raisins for later consumption. They are also used to make vinegar and more importantly, wine, a standard drink in Israel that played an important role in their everyday life and culture (see verse 9.13). To make wine, first people gathered or picked the grapes. Then they placed the grapes in a large pit that was hollowed out of a rock (see verse 6.11). Then they trod or trampled the grapes with their feet to remove the juice. Sometimes there were presses that squeezed out the juice. Once the juice flowed out of the grapes, it was collected, strained, and put in containers. With time, this sweet juice fermented or changed into wine, which was often stored in goat skin containers.

In many cultures around the world, grapes cannot be grown due to the climate, so this fruit and the process involved in making wine is not known. Contemporary English Version explains the process well by rendering these two clauses and the previous one as “and the people of Shechem went into their vineyards and picked the grapes. They put the grapes in their wine-pits and walked on them to squeeze out the juice in order to make wine.” However, not every language will need as much detail. It might suffice to say “and the people of Shechem went to their fields, picked the grapes, squeezed them, and made wine.”

And held festival is literally “and they made praises.” In light of the following clause, they could have praised their god. However, this clause could just refer to a big celebration. Contemporary English Version says they “threw a big party,” which seems to explain what happened, but its level of language seems slightly inappropriate. It is better to say “they celebrated,” “they held a big celebration,” or “they held a feast.”

And went into the house of their god: Either as part of the initial celebration, or as the celebration continued, the people entered the house of their god, which refers to the temple of the god Baal-berith (see verse 9.4). God renders the general Hebrew term ʾelohim. It needs to be clear that this temple was not the Israelites’ normal place of worship. Today excavations at the site of Shechem reveal remains of such a temple, probably constructed at a later date. In some languages translators may say “and they went to the house of their fetish.”

And ate and drank: The eating and drinking were probably part of the religious celebration. The verb ate obviously refers to eating at a feast, so it may be rendered “ate well” or “had lots of food.” The object of drank is not water, but the wine they had prepared. This may be made explicit in the translation if necessary. Eating and drinking seem to be simultaneous actions, and translators can present them in any acceptable order in their language.

And reviled Abimelech: It is not very clear why the people of Shechem suddenly began to lose confidence in Abimelech, leading them to curse him. They seem to easily shift their allegiance from one person to another. Because of this sudden development in the story, the conjunction and may be rendered “At that point,” “Then,” or “All of a sudden.” The Hebrew verb translated reviled means “curse.” Good News Translation‘s “made fun of” seems too weak for their contempt described here. Contemporary English Version seems correct to see a link between the eating and drinking and the cursing of Abimelech: “There was a lot of eating and drinking, and before long they were cursing Abimelech.” There is probably an intentional wordplay here since the Hebrew words for festival (literally “praises”) and reviled (“cursed”) sound alike, even while expressing opposites.

Translation models for this verse are:

• All the people of Shechem went to their vineyards to pick grapes. Then they made wine and held a great celebration, eating and drinking in the temple of their god, and soon they were cursing Abimelech.

• At harvest time the people of Shechem went to their farms to pick their grapes. They trampled them, made wine, and began to celebrate. They went into the temple of their god, and ate and drank. At that point they began to say evil things about Abimelech.

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 .

And Jair died, and was buried in Kamon: This is the standard formula for describing the end of a judge’s life (see verse 9.2). The town of Kamon may be the site known as Qamm in the northern part of present-day Jordan. This town is just south of the area where the settlements of Jair are believed to have been.

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 .

Jephthah now questions the Ammonites, asking by what right they are currently claiming the former land of the Amorites as their own.

So then the LORD, the God of Israel, dispossessed the Amorites from before his people Israel: So then is literally “And now.” Jephthah makes a conclusion here, so translators should find an introductory expression appropriate to this context. New Living Translation has “So you see….” For the LORD, the God of Israel, see verse 11.21. Dispossessed renders the causative form of the Hebrew verb translated “took possession of” in verse 11.21-22. The verb dispossessed refers to taking possession of something from someone else. Here God took the possession of the land away from the Amorites. New Revised Standard Version says the LORD “conquered the Amorites,” but that is not exactly the idea here. Better models are “took away the land from the Amorites” (New Living Translation), “drove out the Amorites” (Good News Translation), and “chased the Amorites away.” There is a play on words throughout this section between the forms of the Hebrew verb rendered “took possession of” and dispossessed, and it would be good to maintain this stylistic feature if possible. From before his people Israel is literally “from the faces of his people Israel.” The Hebrew word for people (ʿam) is used both for the Israelites and their enemies (see verse 2.4). In the covenant agreement between Yahweh and Israel, Yahweh is specified as Israel’s God and Israel as his people. The prepositional phrase from before his people Israel does not mean Israel lost the land, but rather they gained it. In many languages it will be necessary to make this clear. We might say “So it was the LORD, the God of Israel, who took away the land from the Amorites and gave it to his people Israel.”

And are you to take possession of them?: This rhetorical question (literally “And you, will you possess us?”) seems to express a great deal of irony but its meaning is debated. You, which renders an independent singular pronoun in Hebrew, refers emphatically to the Ammonite king. But the Hebrew pronoun for “us” is rendered in several different ways. Revised Standard Version says them, which seems ambiguous, referring either to the Amorites or the Israelites. New International Version takes the land as the object of the verb: “what right have you to take it over?” Contemporary English Version is similar with “Now do you think you’re going to take over the same territory?” But keeping to the Hebrew we might say “And you, you want to drive us out?” Translators will have to decide first on the meaning to adopt here and then how to formulate this question in a natural way in their language.

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 .

There are two prominent words in the opening part of this verse, each of which occurs twice in Hebrew: riddle and tell. The sh sound in Hebrew occurs eight times!

And Samson said to them …: The Hebrew waw conjunction rendered And introduces the next event in the narrative. It can be translated “Then” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). Samson speaks to his thirty companions. It is hard to know if he is just having a good time or if he is trying to provoke the Philistines. The use of the name Samson may indicate a slight break here in Hebrew, so Contemporary English Version has a paragraph break. Translators can decide whether this is a good strategy in the target language.

Let me now put a riddle to you is literally “Let me riddle please to you a riddle.” Now renders the Hebrew politeness marker naʾ. Put a riddle translates an emphatic construction in Hebrew, since it is composed of a verb and a noun from the same root. The Hebrew verb here occurs only in this subsection (also verse 14.13, 16) and in Ezek 17.2. A riddle is a short saying whose meaning is hidden. It is a puzzle requiring a person to work out its meaning. In Hebrew the term seems to be related to the idea of being “sharp.” The purpose of a riddle is to show how clever a person is (see verse 1 Kgs 10.1, where the Hebrew noun for riddle is rendered “hard questions”). Most cultures and languages will have a word for this kind of word game. If not, translators may call it a “test” or a “puzzle,” or they may simply say “See if you can guess my meaning!”

If you can tell me what it is renders another emphatic construction in Hebrew, which is literally “If telling you can tell it to me.” This wordplay is probably meant to amuse the listeners. If possible, translators should keep it, but if this is not possible, they may say “If you can give me the right answer” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), “If you can solve it” (Revised English Bible), or “If you can solve it for me successfully” (similarly New American Bible). The pronoun it refers to the riddle, which New Living Translation makes explicit by saying “If you solve my riddle.”

Within the seven days of the feast: The normal period for a groom’s party was seven days. The word seven in Hebrew begins with the sh sound, and it adds to the wordplay. For feast see verse 14.10. This phrase may be rendered “before the seven-day celebration is over.”

And find it out means figure out the answer to the riddle. The pronoun it, which refers to the riddle or its meaning, does not occur in Hebrew, but Revised Standard Version adds it for clarity. Some languages speak of the meaning of a riddle in an idiomatic way, such as “the key of the riddle” or “the bottom of the riddle.” This clause and the previous one may be reordered by saying “If you can figure out the meaning of the riddle and tell me it before the seven days of the party are over.” Contemporary English Version says “This party will last for seven days … and if you can tell me the right answer before the party is over.”

Then I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty festal garments: If Samson’s companions can solve the riddle, he promises to give each one a set of expensive clothes. Then, which renders the Hebrew waw conjunction, introduces well the consequence of the condition. I will give you may be translated “I promise to give you.” The pronoun you is plural in Hebrew, referring to Samson’s thirty companions. The Hebrew number for thirty is sheloshim. Since this number occurs twice here, the sh sound is prominent. Some languages may prefer to use the number thirty only once by combining the phrases thirty linen garments and thirty festal garments (see models below).

The Hebrew word for linen garments refers to a rectangular piece of cloth that was wrapped around the body. It may have been an outer garment (New American Bible “linen tunics”), but often was the only piece of clothing worn. Though there is only one word in Hebrew for this garment, Revised Standard Version specifies it was made of linen, a very expensive material made from flax. Good News Translation says “a piece of fine linen.” Many languages have a special word for a piece of cloth that serves as clothing. In some West African countries it is called a “wrapper.” Linen is becoming known throughout the world, so a borrowed term may be appropriate here. Contemporary English Version says “shirt” but this word does not fit the cultural setting of that time.

Festal garments is literally “changes of clothing” (Revised English Bible). Good News Translation suggests “a change of fine clothes.” The Hebrew word for “clothing” may have been chosen because it sounds like the verb for tell.

Samson is promising one set of garments to each of his thirty companions. He is not promising to give thirty sets of garments to each person. Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version introduce the notion of betting here, which is actually what is happening. If this practice is common in the target culture, then it may be appropriate here.

Translation models for this verse are:

• Samson said to them, “Riddle! I’m going to tell you a riddle. If you can figure it out before our seven-day party is over, I promise to give each one of you a fine wrapper and a change of clothes.

• Then Samson challenged them, “I’ll tell you a riddle, and if you can solve it within our seven days of celebration, I’ll give all thirty of you a piece of fine cloth and a change of clothes.

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 .

And Samson said to her: And renders well the Hebrew waw conjunction here, but in some languages it can be omitted (Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version). If necessary, the general verb said may be rendered “answered” (Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version) or “responded.”

If they bind me with seven fresh bowstrings …: On each occasion Samson responds to Delilah’s request with a conditional statement beginning with the conjunction If (see also verse 16.11, 13). The pronoun they could refer to the Philistines, or it could be an impersonal they, as in “If anyone binds me….” For bind see verse 15.10. Here and throughout this episode, we see Samson suggesting means of capturing him which would involve him breaking his Nazirite vow. Seven fresh bowstrings refers to the cords attached to an arc, from which arrows were strung and flung. In all likelihood, these cords were made from some animal products with fresh blood on them. They were flexible and tough and not easily broken. The number seven represents completeness. Some scholars think these seven strings were woven together into one rope that would be used to tie Samson down, while others see the seven strings being used to tie up various places on his body. Most likely the first interpretation is correct, but this should have no bearing on the translation. Though the Hebrew word rendered fresh is often used to describe fruit and trees, here it probably refers to the intestines or sinews of an animal, which were not yet dried. Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version use the word “new,” but it might be better to speak of “wet” bowstrings.

Which have not been dried: This qualifying clause repeats the same idea that the bowstrings must be fresh. It is possible that such new strings would be stronger than older dried-out ones, but the main point here is that Samson is inadvertently talking once again about violating his Nazirite vow. If the sinews of an animal were fresh and not dried, they would have fresh blood on them. For Samson’s skin to contact them would be the same as touching a dead body. Samson is obviously lying here and probably making fun of the Philistines who would actually believe that undried bowstrings could really hold him down.

Then I shall become weak, and be like any other man: These two clauses give the consequence of the condition. They occur again in verse 16.11. Become weak renders a Hebrew verb meaning “be sick” or “be weak,” often used to describe animals that are lame or unacceptable for sacrifice. In this context it means Samson will lose his strength. I shall become weak may be rendered “my strength will leave me” or “I will no longer have any strength.”

And be like any other man is literally “and I will be like one man.” If Samson loses his special strength from God, then he will be as weak as any ordinary man. Man renders the generic Hebrew word for a human being, ʾadam. We might say “and I will have the same strength as any normal human being.”

Translation models for this verse are:

• Samson told her, “If someone takes seven new cords for a bow, ones that have not been dried, and ties me up with them, then I will become weak and be just like any other person.”

• Samson replied, “If anyone uses a rope made of seven freshly prepared bowstrings—not old dry ones—to bind me, I will lose my strength and only be as strong as other human beings.”

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 .

And the Levite was content to dwell with the man means the Levite agreed to stay with Micah. The Hebrew waw conjunction rendered And may be translated “So” (New International Version, New American Bible) in this context. The Hebrew verb for was content is literally “was willing,” so it might also be translated “agreed” (New Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation). Dwell renders the same Hebrew verb translated “Stay” in verse 17.10 (see comments there). In most translations it will be better to use the same verb in both places.

And the young man became to him like one of his sons: Translators should make sure that all the referents are clear here. The young man refers to the Levite, the pronoun him points to Micah, and his sons refers to Micah’s own sons. This sentence is ironic. The narrator seems to be making fun of Micah, since after saying he wants the Levite to be like a “father” to him, the narrator informs us of the opposite: the Levite has become like one of his sons. In most languages this comparison can be made without making the basis of the comparison explicit. If not, a possible model is “and the young man became as close to Micah as Micah’s own sons were.” Another possible model is “and Micah considered the young man to be just like his sons.”

Translation models for this verse are:

• So the young Levite decided to stay with Micah and became like one of his sons.

• The young Levite agreed to stay with Micah and was considered as one of his own sons.

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 .