Tola
1After the time of Abimelek, a man of Issachar named Tola son of Puah, the son of Dodo, rose to save Israel. He lived in Shamir, in the hill country of Ephraim. 2He led10:2 Traditionally judged; also in verse 3 Israel twenty-three years; then he died, and was buried in Shamir.
Jair
3He was followed by Jair of Gilead, who led Israel twenty-two years. 4He had thirty sons, who rode thirty donkeys. They controlled thirty towns in Gilead, which to this day are called Havvoth Jair.10:4 Or called the settlements of Jair 5When Jair died, he was buried in Kamon.
Jephthah
6Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord. They served the Baals and the Ashtoreths, and the gods of Aram, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites and the gods of the Philistines. And because the Israelites forsook the Lord and no longer served him, 7he became angry with them. He sold them into the hands of the Philistines and the Ammonites, 8who that year shattered and crushed them. For eighteen years they oppressed all the Israelites on the east side of the Jordan in Gilead, the land of the Amorites. 9The Ammonites also crossed the Jordan to fight against Judah, Benjamin and Ephraim; Israel was in great distress. 10Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord, “We have sinned against you, forsaking our God and serving the Baals.”
11The Lord replied, “When the Egyptians, the Amorites, the Ammonites, the Philistines, 12the Sidonians, the Amalekites and the Maonites10:12 Hebrew; some Septuagint manuscripts Midianites oppressed you and you cried to me for help, did I not save you from their hands? 13But you have forsaken me and served other gods, so I will no longer save you. 14Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen. Let them save you when you are in trouble!”
15But the Israelites said to the Lord, “We have sinned. Do with us whatever you think best, but please rescue us now.” 16Then they got rid of the foreign gods among them and served the Lord. And he could bear Israel’s misery no longer.
17When the Ammonites were called to arms and camped in Gilead, the Israelites assembled and camped at Mizpah. 18The leaders of the people of Gilead said to each other, “Whoever will take the lead in attacking the Ammonites will be head over all who live in Gilead.”
士師陀拉和雅珥
1亞比米勒死後，以薩迦人陀拉拯救了以色列人。他住在以法蓮山區的沙密，祖父是朵多，父親是普瓦。 2陀拉做以色列的士師二十三年，死後葬在沙密。
3之後，基列人雅珥做以色列的士師二十二年。 4他有三十個兒子，每人騎一頭驢。他們在基列擁有三十座城，那些城到現在還叫「雅珥之城」。 5雅珥死後，葬在加們。
以色列人因犯罪而受罰
6後來，以色列人又做耶和華視為惡的事，祭拜巴力和亞斯她錄，又拜亞蘭、西頓、摩押、亞捫和非利士的神明。他們背棄耶和華，不再事奉祂。 7耶和華向他們發怒，把他們交在非利士人和亞捫人手中。 8那年，非利士人和亞捫人擊垮了以色列人，壓迫基列地區、約旦河東亞摩利境內的以色列人達十八年。 9亞捫人還渡過約旦河攻擊猶大、便雅憫和以法蓮支派，使以色列人苦不堪言。 10於是，他們呼求耶和華說：「我們背棄我們的上帝去祭拜巴力，我們得罪了你。」 11耶和華對他們說：「你們受埃及人、亞摩利人、亞捫人、非利士人、 12西頓人、亞瑪力人和馬雲人的壓迫，就呼求我，我豈沒有拯救你們嗎？ 13但你們竟背棄我，去事奉其他神明，所以我不再救你們。 14你們去呼求自己選擇的神明吧！你們有難，讓他們救你們吧！」 15他們對耶和華說：「我們犯了罪，任你處置我們，只求你今天拯救我們。」 16以色列人除掉了他們的外邦神像，轉而事奉耶和華。耶和華不忍再看以色列人受苦。
17當時，亞捫人整裝備戰，在基列安營；以色列人也集合起來，在米斯巴安營。 18基列的首領們彼此商議說：「誰先攻打亞捫人，誰就做所有基列人的首領。」
