And he said to her …: To the delight of the storyteller’s audience, Sisera’s fear is getting the best of him. Instead of keeping quiet, Sisera keeps making what seem to be childish requests. So now Sisera asks Jael to stand at the entrance of the tent and protect him. The Hebrew word for man (ʾish, referring to a male, not a person) appears twice in this verse, implying that this “great” general would be afraid of even a single man or even perhaps that he is not “man enough” to protect himself. The great detail of Sisera’s instructions to this woman brings more comedy to the scene.

Stand at the door of the tent: Obviously Sisera is asking Jael to “stand guard.” The door of the tent is literally “the opening of the tent.” The Hebrew root for door is the same one used for the verb rendered “opened” in verse 4.19, so this is another play on words. Certainly this door was not a hard surface, but probably a kind of curtain. We could also say “entrance” or “opening.” The storyteller is depicting Sisera as ridiculously afraid. This clause may be rendered “Stand [or, Stay] at the door and be on the lookout.”

And if any man comes and asks you is literally “and it will happen if a man comes and asks you and says.” These short clauses may show Sisera’s way of speaking. He may be breathless from fear. Also the details seem almost ridiculous. Jael and Sisera both know that the Israelites will come looking for him. Any man can be rendered more generally as “anyone” or “someone,” even though Sisera is probably thinking of an Israelite warrior.

Is any one here? is literally “Is there here a man?” Once again “man” can be rendered “anyone” or “someone.” This question is a quote within a quote, so translators have to decide if this is appropriate in their language. Many languages will switch to indirect speech at this point as Good News Translation and most versions do.

Say, No is literally “and you will say, ‘There [is] not.’ ” Sisera tells Jael to give a negative response. In many languages it will be sufficient to say “No,” as in Revised Standard Version, but if more explanation is needed, translators can supply a complete sentence by saying “No. There isn’t anyone here” or “No, there isn’t.” No is another quote within a quote, so if this style is acceptable, a possible model is “tell him, ‘No.’ ” If indirect speech is preferred, translators may say “tell him there is no one here.” Sisera seems to be underestimating Jael, which makes his death at her hand all the more ironic.

Translation examples for this verse are:

• And he said to her, “Stand guard at the entrance to the tent, and if someone comes and asks, ‘Is anyone here?’ say, ‘No, there’s nobody here.’ ”

• And he said to Jael, “Stay at the opening of the tent. If anyone comes in search of me, say, ‘There’s no one here.’ ”

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 .