Judges 12
1 The men of the tribe of Ephraim summoned their soldiers, and they crossed [the Jordan River] to [the town of] Zaphon [to talk with] Jephthah. They said to him, “(Why did you not ask us for help?/You should have requested us) to help your army fight the Ammon people-group. So we will burn down your house while you are in it.”
| וַיִּצָּעֵק אִישׁ אֶפְרַיִם וַֽיַּעֲבֹר צָפוֹנָה וַיֹּאמְרוּ לְיִפְתָּח מַדּוּעַ ׀ עָבַרְתָּ ׀ לְהִלָּחֵם בִּבְנֵי־עַמּוֹן וְלָנוּ לֹא קָרָאתָ לָלֶכֶת עִמָּךְ בֵּיתְךָ נִשְׂרֹף עָלֶיךָ בָּאֵֽשׁ׃ |
2 Jephthah replied, “The Ammon people-group were oppressing us greatly. When we were prepared to start to attack them, I requested you to come and help us, but you refused. My men and I defeated the Ammon people-group, but you did not help us.
| וַיֹּאמֶר יִפְתָּח אֲלֵיהֶם אִישׁ רִיב הָיִיתִי אֲנִי וְעַמִּי וּבְנֵֽי־עַמּוֹן מְאֹד וָאֶזְעַק אֶתְכֶם וְלֹא־הוֹשַׁעְתֶּם אוֹתִי מִיָּדָֽם׃ |
3 When I saw that you would not help us, I was willing to be killed in the battle against the Ammon people-group. But Yahweh helped us to defeat them. [You did not help us when we requested it before], so (why have you come here today to fight against me?/you should not have come here today to fight against me.)” [RHQ]
| וָאֶרְאֶה כִּֽי־אֵינְךָ מוֹשִׁיעַ וָאָשִׂימָה נַפְשִׁי בְכַפִּי וָֽאֶעְבְּרָה אֶל־בְּנֵי עַמּוֹן וַיִּתְּנֵם יְהֹוָה בְּיָדִי וְלָמָה עֲלִיתֶם אֵלַי הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה לְהִלָּחֶם בִּֽי׃ |
4 Then Jephthah summoned the men of [the] Gilead [region] to fight [against the men of the tribe of] Ephraim. The men of the tribe of Ephraim said, “You men from [the] Gilead [region] are men who deserted us. Long ago you left us and moved to the area between our tribe and the tribe of Manasseh.” [Because of their saying that], the men of [the] Gilead [region] attacked the men of the tribe of Ephraim.
| וַיִּקְבֹּץ יִפְתָּח אֶת־כׇּל־אַנְשֵׁי גִלְעָד וַיִּלָּחֶם אֶת־אֶפְרָיִם וַיַּכּוּ אַנְשֵׁי גִלְעָד אֶת־אֶפְרַיִם כִּי אָֽמְרוּ פְּלִיטֵי אֶפְרַיִם אַתֶּם גִּלְעָד בְּתוֹךְ אֶפְרַיִם בְּתוֹךְ מְנַשֶּֽׁה׃ |
5 The men of Gilead captured that (ford/place where people can walk across) at the Jordan [River] to go to the land where the tribe of Ephraim live. Whenever one of the soldiers from the tribe of Ephraim came to the ford to try to escape, he would say, “Let me cross the river.” Then the men of Gilead would ask him, “Are you from the tribe of Ephraim?” If he said “No,”
| וַיִּלְכֹּד גִּלְעָד אֶֽת־מַעְבְּרוֹת הַיַּרְדֵּן לְאֶפְרָיִם וְֽהָיָה כִּי יֹאמְרוּ פְּלִיטֵי אֶפְרַיִם אֶֽעֱבֹרָה וַיֹּאמְרוּ לוֹ אַנְשֵֽׁי־גִלְעָד הַאֶפְרָתִי אַתָּה וַיֹּאמֶֽר ׀ לֹֽא׃ |
6 they would say to him, “Say the word ‘Shibboleth’.” The men of Ephraim could not pronounce that word correctly. So if the person from the tribe of Ephraim said ‘Sibboleth’, [they would know that he was lying and that he was really from the tribe of Ephraim, and] they would kill him there at the ford. So the men of Gilead killed 42,000 people from the tribe of Ephraim at that time.
| וַיֹּאמְרוּ לוֹ אֱמׇר־נָא שִׁבֹּלֶת וַיֹּאמֶר סִבֹּלֶת וְלֹא יָכִין לְדַבֵּר כֵּן וַיֹּאחֲזוּ אוֹתוֹ וַיִּשְׁחָטוּהוּ אֶל־מַעְבְּרוֹת הַיַּרְדֵּן וַיִּפֹּל בָּעֵת הַהִיא מֵֽאֶפְרַיִם אַרְבָּעִים וּשְׁנַיִם אָֽלֶף׃ |
7 Jephthah, the man from [the] Gilead [region], was a leader of the Israeli people for six years. Then he died and was buried in a town in [the] Gilead [region].
| וַיִּשְׁפֹּט יִפְתָּח אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵל שֵׁשׁ שָׁנִים וַיָּמׇת יִפְתָּח הַגִּלְעָדִי וַיִּקָּבֵר בְּעָרֵי גִלְעָֽד׃ |
8 After Jephthah died, a man named Ibzan, from Bethlehem, became the leader of the Israeli people.
| וַיִּשְׁפֹּט אַֽחֲרָיו אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵל אִבְצָן מִבֵּית לָֽחֶם׃ |
9 He had 30 sons and 30 daughters. He forced all his daughters to marry men who were not in his clan, and brought women from outside his clan to marry his sons. He was the leader of the Israeli people for seven years.
| וַֽיְהִי־לוֹ שְׁלֹשִׁים בָּנִים וּשְׁלֹשִׁים בָּנוֹת שִׁלַּח הַחוּצָה וּשְׁלֹשִׁים בָּנוֹת הֵבִיא לְבָנָיו מִן־הַחוּץ וַיִּשְׁפֹּט אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵל שֶׁבַע שָׁנִֽים׃ |
10 When he died, he was buried in Bethlehem.
| וַיָּמׇת אִבְצָן וַיִּקָּבֵר בְּבֵית לָֽחֶם׃ |
11 After Ibzan died, a man named Elon, from the tribe of Zebulun, became the leader of the Israeli people. He was their leader for ten years.
| וַיִּשְׁפֹּט אַֽחֲרָיו אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵל אֵילוֹן הַזְּבוּלֹנִי וַיִּשְׁפֹּט אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵל עֶשֶׂר שָׁנִֽים׃ |
12 Then he died and was buried in Aijalon [city] in the area where the tribe of Zebulun lives.
| וַיָּמׇת אֵילוֹן הַזְּבוּלֹנִי וַיִּקָּבֵר בְּאַיָּלוֹן בְּאֶרֶץ זְבוּלֻֽן׃ |
13 After Elon died, a man named Abdon who was the son of Hillel, from Pirathon [city, in the area where the tribe of Ephraim live] became the leader of the Israeli people.
| וַיִּשְׁפֹּט אַחֲרָיו אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵל עַבְדּוֹן בֶּן־הִלֵּל הַפִּרְעָתוֹנִֽי׃ |
14 He had 40 sons and 30 grandsons. Each of them had his own donkey on which to ride. Abdon was the leader of the Israeli people for eight years.
| וַֽיְהִי־לוֹ אַרְבָּעִים בָּנִים וּשְׁלֹשִׁים בְּנֵי בָנִים רֹכְבִים עַל־שִׁבְעִים עֲיָרִם וַיִּשְׁפֹּט אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵל שְׁמֹנֶה שָׁנִֽים׃ |
15 When Abdon died, he was buried in Pirathon, in the hilly area where the descendants of Amalek lived previously, [but now it is the area where the tribe of Ephraim lives].
| וַיָּמׇת עַבְדּוֹן בֶּן־הִלֵּל הַפִּרְעָתוֹנִי וַיִּקָּבֵר בְּפִרְעָתוֹן בְּאֶרֶץ אֶפְרַיִם בְּהַר הָעֲמָלֵקִֽי׃ |
