Judges 10:8

Jdg 10:8 And that year they vexed and oppressed the children of Israel: eighteen years, all the children of Israel that [were] on the other side Jordan in the land of the Amorites, which [is] in Gilead.

Ver. 8. And that year they vexed and crushed the children, &c.] That year, quo scilicet desciverunt a cultu divino, {a} wherein they fell off from God’s true worship, {b} their bonds were increased: the Ammonites before, and the Philistines behind, devoured Israel with open mouth. "For all this his anger was not turned away, but his hand was stretched out still." {Isa 9:12} We read in the Turkish history, that when Solyman II saw a company of his Christian subjects, many thousands, fall down before him, and hold up the forefinger, as their manner of conversion to Mohammedanism is, he asked, What moved them to turn? They replied, It was to be eased of their heavy taxations. He, disdaining that baseness, or not willing to lose in tribute for an unsound accession in religion, rejected their conversion, and doubled their taxations.

{a} Vatab.

{b} Or, that year, that is, the last of the eighteen of their oppressing Israel

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

As the Reubenites, Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

(8) That year.—The narrative is evidently imperfect, as no year is specified.

Vexed and oppressed.—This again is a paronomasia, or assonance, like “broke to yoke” in English,

The land of the Amorites.—The kingdoms of Og and Sihon.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

8. they vexed] The subject is ‘the children of Ammon’ (see on Jdg_10:17).

that year: eighteen years] cannot be right; either that year (marking the beginning of the oppression, Jdg_11:4) has slipped in from some other place, or eighteen years belonged originally to the end of Jdg_10:7, cf. Jdg_3:14. The extension of the oppression to all the children of I. on both sides of the Jordan is probably due to the latest editor.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And that year they vexed and oppressed the children of Israel,.... The Philistines on one side, and the children of Ammon on the other; meaning either that year in which Jair died, as Jarchi; or the first year they began to bring them into bondage, as R. Isaiah: "and from that year", as Kimchi and Ben Melech, that they vexed and distressed them, they continued to vex and distress them

eighteen years; or, as Abarbinel interprets it, "with that year", they vexed and oppressed them eighteen years, that is, so many more, or reckoning that into the number of them; and these eighteen years of their oppression are not to be reckoned into the years of Jair's government, and as commencing from the fourth of it, as Bishop Usher, Lightfoot, and others; for it does not appear that there was any oppression in his days, but from the time of his death to the raising up of Jephthah a new judge: and the people oppressed by the children of Ammon during that time

were all the children of Israel that were on the other side Jordan, in the land of the Ammonites, which is in Gilead; even the tribes of Reuben and Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

That year - Perhaps the closing year of the oppression, when the Ammonites passed over the Jordan. For it was this crowning oppression which brought the Israelites to repentance Jdg 10:10, Jdg 10:15-16, and so prepared the way for the deliverance. Possibly in the original narrative from which this portion of the Book of Judges is compiled, “that year” was defined.

The land of the Amorites - Namely, of Sihon king of the Amorites, Num 21:21; Deu 1:4; Jos 13:10; Psa 135:11.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Years by the Ammonites, whose dominion was suppressed by the victory of Jephte. When the servitude commenced is uncertain, ver. 4. Hebrew, "and that year they vexed," &c. (Calmet) --- Roman Septuagint, "at that time." Grabe’s copy has "in that year;" and though the former expression appear to be more indefinite, yet it must refer to some period, (Haydock) either prior to the death of Jair, (Salien) or subsequent to that event. (Eusebius; Genebrard.) --- The text will not decide with certainty. How long the Philistines harassed Israel is specified, chap. xiii. 1.

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Or, that year they had vexed and oppressed the children of Israel eighteen years. Or, they vexed them in that year, that was the eighteenth year, to wit, of that vexation. This was the eighteenth year from the beginning of that oppression. And these eighteen years are not to be reckoned from Jair’s death, because that would enlarge the time of the judges beyond the just bounds, as may appear from 1Ki 6:1; nor from Jephthah’s beginning to reign, because he reigned but six years, and in the beginning thereof put an end to this persecution; but from the fourth year of Jair’s reign; so that the greatest part of Jair’s reign was contemporary with this affliction. And although this oppression of the Ammonites and Philistines, and the cause of it, the idolatry of the Israelites, be not mentioned till after Jair’s death, because the sacred penman would deliver the whole history of this calamity entirely and together; yet they both happened before it; and Jair’s death is mentioned before that only by a prolepsis or anticipation than which nothing is more frequent in Scripture. The case of Jair and Samson seem to be much alike. For as it is said of Samson, that he judged Israel in the days of the tyranny of the Philistines twenty years, Jdg 15:20, by which it is evident that his judicature and their dominion were contemporary; the like is to be conceived of Jair, that he began to judge Israel, and endeavoured to reform religion and purge out all abuses; but being unable to effect this, through the backwardness and baseness of the people, God would not enable him to deliver the people, but gave them up to this sad oppression; so that Jair could only perform one half of his office, which was to determine differences amongst the Israelites, but could not deliver them from their enemies.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

8. Vexed and oppressed — Literally, broken and crushed. Henry forcibly suggests that with the Philistines on one side and the Ammonites on the other, Israel was miserably crushed as between two millstones.

That year… eighteen years — The oppression commenced that very year in which they were sold into the hands of their enemies, and continued eighteen years; not, as some say, that year completed eighteen years of oppression. The bitterness of the oppression was enhanced by the fact that it came not on gradually, but a breaking and crushing tyranny over them began with the very first year of their subjection.

Israel… on the other side Jordan — So this oppression distressed especially the tribes east of the Jordan.

Land of the Amorites — Which Israel had formerly taken from their king, Sihon. See at Num_21:21-32. “Gilead, being a more precise epithet for the land of the Amorites, is here used in a wider sense to denote the whole of the country east of the Jordan, so far as it had been taken from the Amorites and occupied by the Israelites, as in Num_32:29; Jos_22:9.” — Keil.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

That year. It does not appear clearly what particular year is meant. Jarchi explains it as the year in which,air died. It may mean the very year in which the idolatries spoken of in ver. 6 were set up, so as to mark how closely God"s chastisement followed the apostasy from him. They, i.e. the children of Ammon. Eighteen years. The same length as that of the Moabite servitude. (Jud_1:3:18) The land of the Amorites , i.e. the territory of Sihon king of the Amorites, and Og the king of Bashan. (Num_32:33) In Gilead in its widest acceptation, including, as in Deu 34:1Jo Deu_22:9, Deu_22:13, 15 Jud_1:20:1, the whole country held by the Amorites on the east of Jordan, and given to Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. But in its narrower and stricter sense Gilead was bounded on the north by Bashan proper, and on the south by the Mishor, or plain of Medeba, which lay between the valley of Heshbon and the river Arnon, thus excluding that part of the territory of Reuben from Gilead. (see Jos_13:9-11) Originally, as we learn from Jud 11:13-22, the territory bounded by the Arnon on the south, by the Jabbok on the north, by the wilderness on the east, and by the Jordan on the west, had belonged to Moab, but the Amorites had taken it from them before the conquest of Sihon by the Israelites.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

That year - Or, that year they had vexed and oppressed the children of Israel eighteen years - This was the eighteenth year from the beginning of that oppression. And these eighteen years are not to be reckoned from Jair's death, because that would enlarge the time of the Judges beyond the just bounds; but from the fourth year of Jair's reign: so that the greatest part of Jair's reign was contemporary with this affliction. The case of Jair and Samson seem to be much alike. For as it is said of Samson, that he judged Israel in the days of the tyranny of the Philistines, twenty years, chap. xv, 20, by which it is evident, that his judicature, and their dominion, were contemporary; the like is to be conceived of Jair, that he began to judge Israel, and endeavoured to reform religion, and purge out all abuses; but being unable to effect this through the backwardness of the, people, God would not enable him to deliver the people, but gave them up to this sad oppression; so that Jair could only determine differences amongst the Israelites, but could not deliver them from their enemies.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

crushed and oppressed

These two words basically mean the same and emphasize how much the Israelites suffered. AT: "terribly oppressed" (See: Doublet)

eighteen years

"18 years" (See: Numbers)

who were beyond the Jordan

This means on the east side of the Jordan River.

which is in Gilead

"this region is also called Gilead"

Judah ... Benjamin

"Judah" and "Benjamin" refer to the people belonging to those tribes. AT: "the people of the tribe of Judah ... the people of the tribe of Benjamin" (See: Metonymy)

house of Ephraim

The "house" refers to the people of the tribe of Ephraim. AT: "the people of the tribe of Ephraim" (See: Metonymy)

so that Israel was greatly distressed

"Israel" refers to the people of Israel. AT: "so that the people of Israel suffered much" (See: Metonymy)

translationWords

oppress

Israel

year

Jordan River

Amorite

Gilead

Ammon

Judah

Benjamin

house

Ephraim

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

That year when Yair died.

Across the Yardein. The territory of Reuven, Gad, and half of Menasheh; they were neighbors.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.