Judg 5:14

“In Ephraim. From Ephraim emerged the root of Yehoshua bin Nun's dominance over Amaleik when he debilitated them with the sword. This passage is related to the preceding one, as it explains "Adonoy empowered me over the mighty" by establishing Yehoshua's dominance over Amaleik. Your successor shall arise from the tribe of Binyomin. Shaul ben Kish, who will batter them and extinguish them like flickering embers. Another interpretation: "with your people, referring to the army of two hundred thousand infantrymen which Shaul mobilized against them. From Mochir descended warlords. Great lords who vanquished the Emorites. They captured sixty cities—the entire imperial zone conquered by Yair.”

“Out of Ephraim, &c. The enemies struggling in their flight, were destroyed, as they were running through the land of Ephraim, and of Benjamin, which lies after, that is, beyond Ephraim; and so on to the very confines of Amalec. Or, it alludes to former victories of the people of God, particularly that which was freshest in memory, when the men of Ephraim and Benjamin, with Aod at their head, overthrew their enemies, the Moabites, with the Amalecites their allies. See chap. iii. (Challoner) — Fight. Debbora insinuates that the late victory had rendered Nephthali and Issachar as famous as these tribes, which had formerly sent forth the greatest generals; Josue, who conquered Amalec, (Exodus xvii. 10,) and Aod, of the tribe of Benjamin, (Calmet) who had so greatly signalized himself, and sounded the alarm in Mount Ephraim with success, chap. iii. 13, 27. (Haydock) — Hebrew, “out of Ephraim he has torn them (Protestants, was there a root of them against, or) into Amalec, and after thee Benjamin among thy people.” There was a mountain called Amalec, in the tribe of Ephraim, (chap. xii. 15,) where some victory may have been obtained, though we know not the particulars of it. (Calmet) — They and the neighbouring tribes might have encountered Amalec, coming to assist Jabin. (Du Hamel) — It is hardly probable that the army of Sisara would flee in that direction, as they would have had to encounter all the multitudes of Israel, and could have no prospect of saving themselves. Benjamin, who was farther off Debbora than Ephraim, is praised for expelling the king of Moab out of their city of Engaddi; (Haydock) or else the victories which this tribe obtained over the joint forces of the people of Israel are meant, (Calmet) as they shewed the valour of this tribe, though in so bad a cause. (Haydock) — It is thought that the Moabites fell upon their territory only after most of the inhabitants were cut off, chap. xix., and xx. The Septuagint and Theodotion take no notice of Amalec, as they have read, Amok, a valley: “the people of Ephraim chastised them in the valley, and thy brother Benjamin, in his people.” The Chaldean understands the whole verse, of the wars against Amalec, who had been routed by Josue, and would fall a prey to the arms of Saul, who was of the tribe of Benjamin. Many commentators follow this explanation. It does not appear that Barac received any aid from these tribes, nor from Machir, or any of those who lived at a distance. (Calmet) — As for Zabulon, the Vulgate intimates that great generals were found among them but the Hebrew rather gives them the praise of learning: “They that handle the pen of the writer.” (Haydock) — Yet sopher is applied not only to writers, and to those who are learned in the law, as the scribes, Esdras, Baruch, &c., were, but also to commissaries, secretaries of state, and officers who were employed both in peace and war, 2 Paralipomenon xxvi. 11. Hence the Septuagint translate, “out of Zabulon, the powerful in the sceptre of learning;” (Calmet) (Grabe,) “of instruction.” (Haydock) — Some, without any proof, attribute the institution of these officers to Moses, others to David. We read of many who possessed this title under his reign; and ever after, the kings of Juda had scribes, as some great men had also. The kings of Persia kept secretaries to write their edicts, and some they sent, with greater authority, into the provinces. See 1 Esdras iv. 8. Ecclesiasticus (x. 5,) says, upon the person of the scribe God shall lay his honour. The scribes, or sopherim, seem therefore to have enjoyed an extensive authority, and the tribe of Zabulon used it on this occasion for the common good, (ver. 18.; Calmet) while many of the other tribes seem to be accused of backwardness in the cause of God.”

“"From (מנּי, poetical for מן) Ephraim," sc., there came fighting men; not the whole tribe, but only nobles or brave men, and indeed those whose roots were in Amalek, i.e., those who were rooted or had taken root, i.e., had settled and spread themselves out upon the tribe-territory of Ephraim, which had formerly been inhabited by Amalekites, the mount of the Amalekites, mentioned in Jdg 12:15 (for the figure itself, see Isa 27:6; Psa 80:10, and Job 5:3). "Behind thee," i.e., behind Ephraim, there followed Benjamin among thy (Ephraim's) people (עממים, a poetical form for עמּים, in the sense of hosts). Benjamin lived farther south than Ephraim, and therefore, when looked at from the stand-point of the plain of Jezreel, behind Ephraim; "but he came upon the scene of battle, either in subordination to the more powerful Ephraimites, or rushing on with the Ephraimitish hosts" (Bertheau). "From Machir," i.e., from western Manasseh, there came down leaders (see at Jdg 5:9), sc., with warriors in their train. Machir cannot refer to the Manassite family of Machir, to which Moses gave the northern part of Gilead, and Bashan, for an inheritance (comp. Jos 17:1 with Jos 13:29-31), but it stands poetically for Manasseh generally, as Machir was the only son of Manasseh, from whom all the Manassites were descended (Gen 50:23; Num 26:29., Num 27:1). The reference here, however, is simply to that portion of the tribe of Manasseh which had received its inheritance by the side of Ephraim, in the land to the west of the Jordan. This explanation of the word is required, not only by the fact that Machir is mentioned after Ephraim and Benjamin, and before Zebulun and Issachar, but still more decidedly by the introduction of Gilead beyond Jordan in connection with Reuben, in Jdg 5:17, which can only signify Gad and eastern Manasseh. Hence the two names Machir and Gilead, the names of Manasseh's son and grandson, are poetically employed to denote the two halves of the tribe of Manasseh; Machir signifying the western Manassites, and Gilead the eastern. "From Zebulun marchers (משׁך, to approach in long processions, as in Jdg 4:6) with the staff of the conductor." ספר, writer or numberer, was the technical name given to the musterer-general, whose duty it was to levy and muster the troops (Kg2 25:19; cf. Ch2 26:11); here it denotes the military leader generally.”