The men of Israel in this context probably refers to the Israelite soldiers. Bible en français courant has “the army of Israel.” But some versions say simply “the Israelites” (New American Bible).

The archaic verb smote is rendered literally in modern English as “struck … down” (New Revised Standard Version), but the meaning is “killed.”

Beth-car: this is the only mention in the Old Testament of this village in the territory of Benjamin. Its exact location is unknown, but it seems to have been located somewhere between Mizpah and the territory ruled by the Philistines. This village was therefore probably located at a lower altitude than Mizpah. That the Israelite army pursued the Philistines as far as below Beth-car will therefore mean that they went as far as Beth-car and then continued downward some distance past the village. New American Bible says “down beyond Beth-car.” The difficulty is that we do not know where this city is located. If it was located at a higher altitude than Mizpah, then the Hebrew means “almost as far as Bethcar” (so Good News Translation and New Century Version). New Revised Standard Version probably presents the correct understanding: “and struck them down as far as beyond Beth-car,” implying that they reached Beth-car and continued on farther. Knox provides what may be a helpful model for some languages, “all the way to the slopes of Beth-car.” But others may say simply “until they arrived at a place near Beth-car.” Nueva Biblia Española translates the name “Casalcordero,” that is, “Lamb’s-House.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .