Then Jephthah fled from his brothers: Jephthah’s half-brothers drove him out of the community, so he was forced to flee. The Hebrew verb rendered fled is not the same one typically used of Israel’s enemies, but it has the same meaning. As elsewhere, the Hebrew word for brothers (ʾach) can refer to those who have the same father and mother or to fellow clansmen or villagers.

And dwelt in the land of Tob: Jephthah was forced to moved to another place. Dwelt in may be rendered “settled in” (New International Version, Revised English Bible), “lived in” (Good News Translation), or “inhabited.” The land of Tob sounds somewhat mythical in Hebrew, especially since the name Tob means “good.” However, there was a town named Tob to the north of Gilead in Syria. The appearance of this name is also ironic, since the people in this place were just the opposite of being good!

And worthless fellows collected around Jephthah: Worthless fellows is literally “empty men” (see comments on verse 9.4). The English expression “good-for-nothing” would catch the play on words here. Certainly there is irony since good-for-nothings come together in a place called “good.” New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh calls them “Men of low character,” which is a good rendering. Contemporary English Version‘s “men who would do anything for money” seems to go beyond the text. Collected around renders a Hebrew root that means “glean” or “pick up” what is left over (see verse 1.7), so Boling has pointed out that Jephthah was surrounded by the “dregs” of the society (page 197). Some versions say “gathered around” (New International Version) or “joined” (Contemporary English Version), but these verbs seem rather weak. Good News Translation‘s “There he attracted a group of worthless men” may serve as a model.

And went raiding with him is literally “and they went out with him.” The Hebrew verb here (yatsaʾ) is often used for negative or immoral activities, especially in later sections of this book (see, for example, verse 19.22, 24-25). Good News Translation is fairly literal with “and they went around with him,” while Revised English Bible says “and became his followers.” However, the notion of raiding is absent in these versions. New American Bible seems closer to the text by saying “and went out with him on raids.” In fact, Jephthah led a gang of worthless thieves who terrorized the area.

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 .