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1The Ephraimites assembled and crossed over to Zaphon. They said to Jephthah, “Why did you go and fight with the Ammonites without asking us to go with you? We will burn your house down right over you!”[#tn Heb “the men of Ephraim were summoned [or “were mustered”].”; #tn Heb “cross over to fight.”; #tn Or “calling”; or “summoning.”; #tn Heb “Your house we will burn over you with fire.”]
2Jephthah said to them, “My people and I were entangled in controversy with the Ammonites. I asked for your help, but you did not deliver me from their power.[#tn Heb A man of great strife I was and my people and the Ammonites.”; #tn Heb “hand.”]
3When I saw that you were not going to help, I risked my life and advanced against the Ammonites, and the Lord handed them over to me. Why have you come up to fight with me today?”[#tn Heb “you were no deliverer.” Codex Alexandrinus (A) of the LXX has “no one was helping.”; #tn Heb “I put my life in my hand.”; #tn Heb “crossed over to.”; #tn The Hebrew adds “against me” here. This is redundant in English and has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.]
4Jephthah assembled all the men of Gilead and they fought with Ephraim. The men of Gilead defeated Ephraim, because the Ephraimites insulted them, saying, “You Gileadites are refugees in Ephraim, living within Ephraim’s and Manasseh’s territory.”[#tn Heb “because they said.”; #tc Heb “Refugees of Ephraim are you, O Gilead, in the midst of Ephraim and in the midst of Manasseh.” The LXX omits the entire second half of the verse (beginning with “because”). The words כִּי אָמְרוּ פְּלִיטֵי אֶפְרַיִם (ki ’amru pÿlitey ’efrayim, “because they said, ‘Refugees of Ephraim’”) may have been accidentally copied from the next verse (cf. כִּי יֹאמְרוּ פְּלִיטֵי אֶפְרַיִם, ki yo’mÿru pelitey ’efrayim) and the following words (“you, O Gilead…Manasseh”) then added in an attempt to make sense of the verse. See G. F. Moore, Judges (ICC), 307-8, and C. F. Burney, Judges, 327. If the Hebrew text is retained, then the Ephraimites appear to be insulting the Gileadites by describing them as refugees who are squatting on Ephraim’s and Manasseh’s land. The present translation assumes that “Ephraim” is a genitive of location after “refugees.”]
5The Gileadites captured the fords of the Jordan River opposite Ephraim. Whenever an Ephraimite fugitive said, “Let me cross over,” the men of Gilead asked him, “Are you an Ephraimite?” If he said, “No,”[#tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarification.; #tn Or “against Ephraim,” that is, so as to prevent Ephraim from crossing.; #tn The Hebrew text has a plural form here.; #tn Heb “say to.”]
6then they said to him, “Say ‘Shibboleth!’” If he said, “Sibboleth” (and could not pronounce the word correctly), they grabbed him and executed him right there at the fords of the Jordan. On that day forty-two thousand Ephraimites fell dead.[#sn The inability of the Ephraimites to pronounce the word shibboleth the way the Gileadites did served as an identifying test. It illustrates that during this period there were differences in pronunciation between the tribes. The Hebrew word shibboleth itself means “stream” or “flood,” and was apparently chosen simply as a test case without regard to its meaning.; #tn Heb “and could not prepare to speak.” The precise meaning of יָכִין (yakhin) is unclear. Some understand it to mean “was not careful [to say it correctly]”; others emend to יָכֹל (yakhol, “was not able [to say it correctly]”) or יָבִין (yavin, “did not understand [that he should say it correctly]”), which is read by a few Hebrew mss.]
7Jephthah led Israel for six years; then he died and was buried in his city in Gilead.[#tn Traditionally, “judged.”; #tn Heb “Jephthah the Gileadite.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.; #tc The Hebrew text has “in the cities of Gilead.” The present translation has support from some ancient Greek textual witnesses.]
8After him Ibzan of Bethlehem led Israel.[#map For location see Map5-B1; Map7-E2; Map8-E2; Map10-B4.; #tn Traditionally, “judged.”]
9He had thirty sons. He arranged for thirty of his daughters to be married outside his extended family, and he arranged for thirty young women to be brought from outside as wives for his sons. Ibzan led Israel for seven years;[#tn Heb “thirty daughters he sent off outside.” Another option is to translate, “He arranged for his thirty daughters…” It is not clear if he had more than the “thirty daughters” mentioned in the text.; #tn Heb “and thirty daughters he brought for his sons from the outside.”; #tn Heb “He”; the referent (Ibzan) has been specified in the translation for clarity and for English stylistic reasons.; #tn Traditionally, “judged.”]
10then he died and was buried in Bethlehem.[#tn Heb “Ibzan.” The pronoun “he” is used in the translation in keeping with English style, which tends to use a proper name first in a sentence followed by a pronoun rather than vice versa.]
11After him Elon the Zebulunite led Israel for ten years.[#tn Traditionally, “judged.”; #tn Heb “…led Israel. He led Israel for ten years.”]
12Then Elon the Zebulunite died and was buried in Aijalon in the land of Zebulun.
13After him Abdon son of Hillel the Pirathonite led Israel.[#tn Traditionally, “judged.”]
14He had forty sons and thirty grandsons who rode on seventy donkeys. He led Israel for eight years.
15Then Abdon son of Hillel the Pirathonite died and was buried in Pirathon in the land of Ephraim, in the hill country of the Amalekites.