6.1-2 sets the scene for the introduction to the Gideon story. The phrases The people of Israel and the hand of Midian are repeated in these verses.
The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD repeats the key clause found in verse 2.11; verse 3.7, 12; verse 4.1. Throughout this book “doing what Yahweh considered evil” was the reason for all Israel’s troubles. As usual, this episode begins with the Hebrew waw conjunction, which Revised Standard Version does not render. Contemporary English Version begins with “Then once again” (similarly Good News Translation) to make a smooth transition between the end of the story of Deborah and this new literary unit. An appropriate transition word or time phrase can be added if necessary.
The people of Israel (literally “the sons/children of Israel”) once again refers to Israel as a unified nation (see comments on verse 1.1). However, as with the other judges’ stories, this one seems to concern one tribal group (in this case, Manasseh). Later in time, these stories became part of Israel’s national memory. Translators can continue to use general expressions such as “the Israelites” or “the Israelite people,” but they should avoid expressions such as “the country of Israel” or “the nation of Israel,” since at the time being depicted, Israel was not unified. Did what was evil in the sight of the LORD puts emphasis on Yahweh’s point of view (see comments on verse 2.11). This whole clause may be rendered “The Israelites did what Yahweh considered evil” or “… displeased Yahweh by doing evil.” Contemporary English Version has “Then once again the Israelites started disobeying the LORD.” Translators should try to be consistent in their rendering of this key clause, thus preserving the literary links in the book.
And the LORD gave them into the hand of Midian seven years: This sentence explains how God reacted to Israel’s sin. This time he allowed the Midianites to attack and oppress them. The Hebrew waw conjunction rendered and introduces a consequence or result here, and thus may be translated “so” (Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version). The LORD occurs twice in quick succession in this verse, emphasizing his determination to punish his people. If this repetition is not natural, a pronoun can be used to replace the LORD here. Gave them into the hand of is a recurring phrase in this book (see comments on verse 1.4 and verse 2.14).
This is the first time the people of Midian appear in this book. Midian was located east of the Jordan River and Dead Sea. Its territory extended far to the south into Arabia and the Sinai Peninsula. Though the Midianites are not mentioned in the introductory material of the book of Judges, there was a long history of interaction between the Israelites and these people. When Moses killed an Egyptian man during a dispute, he fled to Midian and ended up marrying the daughter of a priest living there (Exo 2.11–4.31; verse 18.1-27). But later, great conflicts arose between these two peoples (Num 25.1-18; verse 31.1-54). The Midianites used camels to travel far from their own desert territory to launch their attacks. In most languages it will be better to render the singular word Midian as “the people from Midian,” “the Midianite people,” or “the Midianites.”
The oppression of seven years here is shorter than the others mentioned so far. During the time of Othniel the oppression lasted eight years (verse 3.8), in the time of Ehud it was eighteen years (verse 3.14), and during the period of Deborah and Barak, twenty years (verse 4.3). The number seven often appears in the stories of Gideon: the bull to be offered in sacrifice is seven years old (verse 6.25), seventy-seven officials are punished at Succoth (verse 8.14), and Gideon has seventy sons (verse 8.30). Then, tragically, Gideon’s son, Abimelech, hires men for seventy pieces of silver to help him kill his seventy brothers (verse 9.4-5).
Translation models for this verse are:
• Yet again the Israelites started disobeying the LORD, so he allowed the Midianites to oppress them for seven years.
• Once again the Israelites did what Yahweh considered evil, so he handed them over to the Midianites for seven years.
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 .