When Abimelech is badly injured and knows that he will die soon, he calls for his servant who carried his weapons and asks him to kill him, because he does not want people to say that a woman killed him.

This verse is the climax of the story. There are several short clauses expressing a series of rapid actions. In the Hebrew text Abimelech is never mentioned by name. Many languages adopt a similar strategy at a climax. Another feature of this verse is that its vocabulary reminds us of Abimelech’s “victory” over the people of Shechem.

Then he called hastily to the young man his armor-bearer, and said to him: Abimelech calls for his weapons bearer. There is great irony with the Hebrew word rendered hastily, since it comes from the same root as the word used when Abimelech told his men to hurry up and get their wood for burning down the Tower of Shechem (verse 9.48). We can begin this clause with “Right away he called…” or “Immediately he summoned….” The young man his armor-bearer is literally “the young man [or, servant] carrying his things.” Leaders or important soldiers had armor-bearers, usually young soldiers who carried their armor and weapons (see comments on verse 7.10). Some languages have a special word for this person. If not, a descriptive phrase can be used. There is another irony here since the Hebrew verb for “carrying” is the same one used when Abimelech picked up the wood to burn down the Tower of Shechem (verse 9.48). Contemporary English Version shifts the viewpoint slightly: “The soldier who carried his weapons was nearby, and Abimelech told him,” which is a possible model.

Draw your sword: A sword was a long knife used in battle. Since it was very dangerous, it was often covered, most often in a sheath. The Hebrew verb for Draw is a technical term for taking the sword out of its sheath (see comments on verse 8.10). This action often directly precedes the use of the sword, so with this order the young man would be waiting for further instructions. Most languages will say “Take out your sword” (Contemporary English Version), “Remove your sword,” or “Get your sword ready.”

And kill me is the direct order of Abimelech. He is requesting that his own armorbearer kill him. Abimelech does not make this request to shorten his suffering. Rather, he is worried about his reputation. Like many cultures today, the Israelites were greatly influenced by the notions of honor and shame. If Abimelech dies from wounds inflicted by a woman, it would be an incredible dishonor. Surprisingly, Abimelech explains all this himself. If this is not obvious to readers, an explanation might be included in a footnote. When Abimelech says kill me (literally “put me to death” or “cause me to die”), he wants his armorbearer to take the sword and run it through his body.

Lest men say of me, ‘A woman killed him’: Lest renders a Hebrew particle that introduces an undesired result or a situation that a person does not want to happen. Lest is rather old English, and nowadays a better word is “otherwise.” In Hebrew men renders the impersonal pronoun “they.” We might say “Otherwise, people might say concerning me…” or “I do not want people to say of me….” A woman killed him is a quote within a quote, with Abimelech saying what people might say after he is dead. A woman refers to the woman who dropped the millstone. Killed renders a different Hebrew verb than the one translated kill, but they are very similar in meaning. Good News Translation uses indirect speech, saying “I don’t want it said that a woman killed me.”

And his young man thrust him through tells what Abimelech’s armorbearer did. And is better rendered “So” (New Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version). Despite the fact that Abimelech is not described in a positive light in this story, this clause evokes some sadness, since it is his young man who kills him. Thrust him through is graphic language. The Hebrew verb here means he pierced the sword through Abimelech’s body. We might say “So the young man plunged the sword into him” or “So the soldier ran his sword through Abimelech” (Contemporary English Version).

And he died. With this quick short clause, this episode has almost come to a close. The pronoun he refers to Abimelech. In many languages it will be better to use his name in such a concluding remark (so Contemporary English Version). Died renders the active form of the Hebrew verb translated kill.

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 .