Rashi on Judges Chapter 10
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בֶּן דּוֹדוֹ. כָּךְ שְׁמוֹ:
Ben Dodo. This was his name.
עֲיָרִים. (תרגום:) עוּלִין, סוּסִים בְּחוּרִים:
**Thoroughbreds.**עוּלִין,¹ the choicest horses.
footnotes: ¹ This is Targum Yonasan’s translation.
וּשְׁלֹשִׁים עֲיָרִים לָהֶם. וּשְׁלֹשִׁים עָרִים בְּלֹא חוֹמָה לָהֶם, לְכָךְ נִקְרְאוּ עֲיָרִים, לְשׁוֹן עֲיָירוֹת:
They owned thirty towns. They owned thirty unwalled municipalities. This is why they are described as עַיָרִים, "towns", meaning the same as עַיָירָוֹת.²
footnotes: ² Rather than עָרִים meaning walled cities.
אֶת הַבְּעָלִים וְגוֹ׳. שֶׁבַע עֲבוֹדוֹת זָרוֹת נִמְנוּ כָּאן:
The Baals. Seven pagan gods are enumerated here.³
footnotes: ³ Beitzah, 25:b. “The deities of Aram, Tzidon, etc.” does not explain where the Baals and Ashteros were worshiped, but lists deities in addition to them. Hence, the total is seven.
וַיַּעַזְבוּ אֶת ה׳ וְלֹא עֲבָדוּהוּ. אֲפִילוּ בְּשׁוּתָּפוּת עִם אֵלּוּ:
They abandoned Adonoy, and did not worship Him. Not even concurrently with these.⁴
footnotes: ⁴ Otherwise, “and did not worship Him” is redundant. (Beitzah, ibid).
בַּשָּׁנָה הַהִיא. כְּשֶׁמֵּת יָאִיר:
That year when Yair died.
אֲשֶׁר בְּעֵבֶר הַיַּרְדֵּן. אֶרֶץ רְאוּבֵן וְגָד וַחֲצִי הַמְּנַשֶּׁה, שֶׁהָיוּ שְׁכֵנֵיהֶם:
Across the Yardein. The territory of Reuven, Gad, and half of Menasheh; they were neighbors.⁵
footnotes: ⁵ Of the Ammonites. See below, ch.11.
הֲלֹא מִמִּצְרַיִם. שֶׁבַע תְּשׁוּעוֹת יֵשׁ כָּאן, כְּנֶגֶד שֶׁבַע עֲבוֹדוֹת זָרוֹת שֶׁהָיוּ עוֹבְדִים:
Was it not from Mitzrayim. There are seven salvations here, corresponding with the seven pagan gods they worshiped.⁶
footnotes: ⁶ V. 6. See Rashi there.
וּמָעוֹן. שֵׁם אוּמָּה:
And Maon. The name of a nation.⁷
footnotes: ⁷ But not, as generally translated, “a dwelling place.”
וַתִּקְצַר נַפְשׁוֹ בַּעֲמַל. כִּבְיָכוֹל לֹא הָיָה רַחֲבַת מָקוֹם לִסְבּוֹל וְלִכָּנֵס שָׁם צָרָה שֶׁהָיָה לוֹ בַּעֲמַל יִשְׂרָאֵל:
Could not contain Himself at [Yisroel's] anguish. As if one could depict God as lacking the space to bear and encompass His pain at Yisroel's anguish.
וַיִּצָּעֲקוּ. נֶאֶסְפוּ עַל יְדֵי כָּרוּז:
Were called together. They were assembled by proclamation.