'Say now Shibboleth' — the quarrel of Ephraim costs forty-two thousand at the fords of the Jordan; after Jephthah, Ibzan of Beth-lehem, Elon the Zebulunite, and Abdon judge Israel.
Tap any Hebrew word to reveal its root, value, and meanings.
And the men of Ephraim were gathered together, and passed to Zaphon; and they said to Jephthah: ‘Wherefore did you pass over to fight against the children of Ammon, and did not call us to go with you? we will burn your house upon you with fire.’
verse value 6292
Insights
Verse structure: 20 words, 87 letters. Verse gematria: 6292 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֤א, 2 letters) and the longest is "in·sons·of·Ammon" (בִּבְנֵי־עַמּ֗וֹן, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 130: with, upon·you. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Judges. Unique to this verse in Judges (hapax): "north" (צָפ֑וֹנָה), "you·passed·over" (עָבַ֣רְתָּ), "in·sons·of·Ammon" (בִּבְנֵי־עַמּ֗וֹן). The root עבר appears 2 times in this verse. 19 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·they·said" (root אמר, 268x in Judges); "man" (root איש, 190x in Judges); "to·go" (root הלך, 109x in Judges). First appearance of the root לון ("and·to·us") in Judges. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'north', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 15 words.
Rashi
"And he passed over to the north. And he passed over the Jordan, and they went to the north beyond the Jordan, to the land of Gilead:"
Ralbag
And it is related after this that the evil of the sons of Ephraim reached such a degree that they said to burn Yiftach's house upon him with fire, because he did not call them in this battle, instead of the kindness that they ought to return to him for the good that he did for them, that he put his life in danger and fought with their enemies. And indeed Yiftach did not strive to appease them in the manner in which Yerubaal appeased them, or perhaps he was unable to do this. And this was a cause that forty-two thousand of Ephraim fell.
Metzudat David
"A man of Ephraim." He called the entire tribe in the singular form.
“Toward the north.” To the place of Yiftach.
"It shall be burned upon you." This means: when you are within it, you too shall be burned.
Metzudat Zion
And they mustered. The sense of a gathering:
Malbim
The questions (1–3): Why did the sons of Ephraim gather together, and what was their sin? And Jephthah's answer contains obscurity and repetition of words.
"The men of Ephraim mustered" — Ephraim was incensed because Gilead had chosen a leader and commander for the head of the House of Joseph, since they had won the battle. They argued, "Why did they not call us to fight?" and they sought to burn his house, because they did not agree with his leadership, as will be explained in verse 4. Their claim was that they were greater than Manasseh within the House of Joseph, as it is stated, "He set Ephraim before Manasseh," and therefore they brought false charges against him.
And Jephthah said to them: ‘I and my people were at great strife with the children of Ammon; and when I called you, you saved me not out of their hand.
verse value 4279
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 69 letters. Notable word values: "to·them" (אֲלֵיהֶ֔ם) = 86, equal to Elohim. The shortest word is "man" (אִ֣ישׁ, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·not·you·saved" (וְלֹא־הוֹשַׁעְתֶּ֥ם, 9 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Judges. Unique to this verse in Judges (hapax): "strife" (רִ֗יב), "I·was" (הָיִ֛יתִי), "and·my·people" (וְעַמִּ֥י). 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 268x in Judges); "man" (root איש, 190x in Judges); "I·was" (root היה, 120x in Judges). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'very', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 5 words.
Metzudat David
"A man of strife." Many times I and my people were in conflict with the children of Ammon, and from then on I cried out to you to save me, and you did not listen to me (and it is possible that this was while he was still dwelling in the land of Tob).
Malbim
"And Jephthah said." He raised three arguments:
a) "A man of strife was I, and my people, and the sons of Ammon." Only I was the party engaged in the dispute, for the sons of Ammon had been crushing the sons of Gilead for eighteen years, and the burden of the war fell solely upon us.
b) "And I cried out to you" — all along we cried out, yet you did not come to save us.
And when I saw that you saved me not, I put my life in my hand, and passed over against the children of Ammon, and Hashem delivered them into my hand; wherefore then are you come up to me this day, to fight against me?’
verse value 3640
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 84 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 3640 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "against·me" (בִּֽי, 2 letters) and the longest is "for·nothing" (כִּֽי־אֵינְךָ֣, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 26: Hashem, in·my·hand. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Judges. Unique to this verse in Judges (hapax): "and·I·saw" (וָאֶרְאֶ֞ה), "for·nothing" (כִּֽי־אֵינְךָ֣), "and·I·put" (וָאָשִׂ֨ימָה). 19 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 171x in Judges); "to·sons·of" (root איל, 114x in Judges); "to·me" (root אל, 89x in Judges). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·my·hand', dividing the verse into phrases of 12 and 7 words.
Metzudat David
"And I saw." And when I saw that You do not save me at any time, I said, "What is there for me to cry out any longer?"
"And I set my life in my hand." This means: Just as one who holds something in his palm—behold, it easily falls when he opens his hand—so too I risked my life, "and I passed through" the battle, even though it was likely that I would fall into their hands, for I went down into battle with very few men.
"And the LORD gave them into my hand." This implies: Since the LORD had given them into my hand, why then do you fight against me today? For if I had been defeated, you would have had some legal justification, for then you could have said, "Had you called upon us at this time, after they had made you head over Gilead, we too would have gone with a great multitude and we would have been victorious." But now, on what grounds do you complain?
Malbim
c) And I saw that You are not saving, for if You were saving, it would have been time for this long ago. And therefore, I placed my life in my own hands, and I was in great danger, and the Lord delivered them into my hand through providence. And why have you come up to me today to fight against me? That is to say: Did you not come to help in all the past time, but only today have you come to fight against me?!
Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim; and the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because they said: ‘You are fugitives of Ephraim, you Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim, and in the midst of Manasseh.’
verse value 6570
Insights
Verse structure: 20 words, 92 letters. Verse gematria: 6570 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֤י, 2 letters) and the longest is "all·men·of" (אֶת־כׇּל־אַנְשֵׁ֣י, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 732: with·Ephraim, Ephraim. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Judges. Unique to this verse in Judges (hapax): "and·he·gathered" (וַיִּקְבֹּ֤ץ), "all·men·of" (אֶת־כׇּל־אַנְשֵׁ֣י). The root גלעד appears 3 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "they·said" (root אמר, 268x in Judges); "all·men·of" (root איש, 190x in Judges); "for" (root כי, 70x in Judges). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'with·Ephraim', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 14 words.
Rashi
For the fugitives of Ephraim said, "You are Gilead." The lesser members of Ephraim were demeaning Gilead, and saying to them: "Why do you consider yourselves important within Ephraim and within Manasseh?" Thus Jonathan the Targumist translated:
Radak
“You are the fugitives of Ephraim.” That is to say, you are the fugitives of Ephraim, meaning that you are scattered within the tribe of Ephraim and within the tribe of Manasseh, and you are considered as nothing. And since the men of Ephraim were reviling them, therefore the men of Gilead would strike them whenever they found them passing through their land as individuals. According to the Targum, those [fugitives] were attached to Gilead, not to Ephraim. And Targum Yonatan [renders]: "for they said, [You are] the escaped ones of the house of Ephraim — what are you, O house of Gilead, [reckoned] within the house of Ephraim and within the house of Manasseh?" And what is meant by “fugitives of Ephraim” is that the lowly ones of Ephraim were reviling them. This interpretation is supported by the verse: “And it came to pass, when they said, ‘Fugitives of Ephraim, let me cross over’...” And this war was not for the sons of Gilead, but rather for the empty and lowly men of Ephraim, and they are called the fugitives of Ephraim. And they were those who needed to cross over because of the livestock that were grazing beyond the Jordan, for there was pasture for the sons of Ephraim there, as we shall explain in the Book of Samuel at the verse “in the forest of Ephraim.” And the lowly ones are mostly the shepherds. And this great slaughter was a punishment for the sins that were committed secretly by the tribe of Ephraim.
Metzudat David
"For they said, etc." This means that the reason the Gileadites struck the sons of Ephraim so severely in their fury was because the sons of Ephraim despised them and said to them, "Fugitives of Ephraim," etc. That is to say: just as the lowliest among the sons of Ephraim are reckoned, so are you, the sons of Gilead, counted within the sons of Ephraim and within the sons of Manasseh; and even the most honored among you are considered by all the sons of Joseph as equivalent to the lowliest among the sons of Ephraim.
Metzudat Zion
Survivors. The sense of a remainder, as in (Joshua 8:22) 'remnant and survivor,' meaning: lowly and despised, who are nothing but remnants:
Malbim
“And Jephthah gathered.” After he saw that their spirit had not softened at his gentle words, for they said: [The commentator] explains the cause of the war: the Ephraimites complained that the men of Gilead had presumptuously chosen a judge, as if they were the main house of Joseph. They argued against them, saying, “You are fugitives from Ephraim,” meaning that Ephraim is the principal tribe, and with him is the half-tribe of Manasseh, who took their inheritance alongside him as a single lot and portion, as stated in the Book of Joshua. But you, the Gileadites, who took your portion beyond the Jordan, are fugitives from the tribe, for your rightful place was within Ephraim and within Manasseh. Only did you go into exile beyond the Jordan. How then can you presume to choose an officer, a ruler, and a governor?
And the Gileadites took the fords of the Jordan against the Ephraimites; and it was so, that when any of the fugitives of Ephraim said: 'Let me go over,' the men of Gilead said to him: ‘Are you an Ephraimite?’ If he said: ‘Nay’;
verse value 5144
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 86 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְֽ֠הָיָ֠ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֣י, 2 letters) and the longest is "fords·of" (אֶֽת־מַעְבְּר֥וֹת, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: they·will·say, and·said. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Judges. Unique to this verse in Judges (hapax): "against·Ephraim" (לְאֶפְרָ֑יִם), "they·will·say" (יֹאמְר֞וּ), "let·me·pass" (אֶֽעֱבֹ֔רָה). The root אמר appears 3 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "they·will·say" (root אמר, 268x in Judges); "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 120x in Judges); "not" (root לא, 77x in Judges). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'against·Ephraim', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 13 words.
Rashi
"And Gilead captured the fords, etc." – They were stationed as guards at the places of the fords.
Radak
“You are Ephrathite.” The term Ephrathite is used for one from the tribe of Ephraim, and it is also used for one from Bethlehem, Ephrathah, as in “David, the son of an Ephrathite.”
Metzudat David
From the word "ma'avarot." This means that they stationed guards at the place of crossing the Jordan, through which the men of Ephraim would pass.
"Ki yomru." Just as they said, "I will cross the Jordan."
"Fleeing from Ephraim." The survivors of Ephraim who remained after the sword, or perhaps he means the lesser ones, for the prominent ones were well-known and recognizable, and there was no need to ask whether he was an Ephraimite.
“Are you from Ephraim?” If you are from the sons of Ephraim:
And he said, "No." And when he said, "No":
then said they to him: ‘Say now Shibboleth’; and he said ‘Sibboleth’; for he could not frame to pronounce it right; then they laid hold on him, and slew him at the fords of the Jordan; and there fell at that time of Ephraim forty and two thousand.
verse value 6154
Insights
Verse structure: 22 words, 101 letters. Notable word values: "to·him" (לוֹ֩) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "to·him" (לוֹ֩, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·they·slew·him" (וַיִּשְׁחָט֖וּהוּ, 8 letters). 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Judges. Unique to this verse in Judges (hapax): "say·now" (אֱמׇר־נָ֨א), "flowing stream" (שִׁבֹּ֜לֶת), "burden" (סִבֹּ֗לֶת). The root אמר appears 3 times in this verse. 19 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·they·said" (root אמר, 268x in Judges); "and·not" (root לא, 77x in Judges); "that" (root הוא, 71x in Judges). First appearance of the root כון ("he·could·frame") in Judges. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Jordan', dividing the verse into phrases of 15 and 7 words.
Rashi
He said, "Say now, 'shibboleth.'" [Meaning:] the stream of this river shall I cross.
"And he was not able to speak it correctly." For they would stammer in their speech.
Radak
"Shibboleth." Just as they tested them with this word, so too they tested them with every word containing a shin, and the Ephraimites would pronounce it as a sin. The verse selected one of these words. And some explain that it chose the word "shibboleth" because the shibbolet [stream] of the river was located in the place where the men of Ephraim passed through, who stammered in the letter shin. Perhaps the air of their land caused them this, like the people of France, who do not know how to pronounce the shin and pronounce it like a soft tav.
Metzudat David
"Say now." This means that at that time they would test him to determine whether he was an Ephraimite or not, and they would say to him, "Say, 'I will cross the flowing stream of water.'"
"And he said, 'Sibbolet.'" And when he said "sibbolet," it is like the way the Ephraimites speak, pronouncing a samekh in place of a shin.
"And he was not able." This means that he was unable to direct [his speech] properly and as it ought to be; therefore, they would seize him and slaughter him.
Metzudat Zion
The torrent. So is called the racing of waters, as in (Psalms 69:3) 'and the torrent overwhelmed me':
He would aim. Meaning: to aim, and it is from the word for preparation, so too (Deuteronomy 13:9) 'true and certain is the matter':
Correctly. Meaning: as it is fitting, and its parallel is (Numbers 27:7) 'the daughters of Zelophehad have spoken well':
And Jephthah judged Israel six years. Then died Jephthah the Gileadite, and was buried in one of the cities of Gilead.
verse value 4628
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 49 letters. Verse gematria: 4628 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "six" (שֵׁ֣שׁ, 2 letters) and the longest is "Israel" (אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 498: Jephthah, Jephthah. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Judges. Unique to this verse in Judges (hapax): "in·cities·of" (בְּעָרֵ֥י). The root יפתח appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·cities·of" (root עיר, 52x in Judges); "and·he·died" (root מות, 43x in Judges); "Gilead" (root גלעד, 31x in Judges). First appearance of the root שש ("six") in Judges. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'years', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 6 words. Full calculation: וַיִּשְׁפֹּ֥ט [and·acts·the·judge] (405) + יִפְתָּ֛ח [Jephthah] (498) + אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל [Israel] (942) + שֵׁ֣שׁ [six] (600) + שָׁנִ֑ים [years] (400) + וַיָּ֗מׇת [and·he·died] (456) + יִפְתָּח֙ [Jephthah] (498) + הַגִּלְעָדִ֔י [Gileadite] (122) + וַיִּקָּבֵ֖ר [and·he·was·buried] (318) + בְּעָרֵ֥י [in·cities·of] (282) + גִלְעָֽד [Gilead] (107) = 4628.
Radak
"Of the cities of Gilead." According to the homiletical interpretation (derash), this refers to the fact that he was struck with a severe plague of boils, and his limbs fell off from city to city; and in every city where a limb of his fell, it was buried there. This was his punishment for having killed his daughter and not having sought annulment of his vow. According to the plain meaning (peshat), "of the cities of Gilead" means in one of the cities of Gilead. A similar case is found in the phrase "through one of the two you shall become my son-in-law" (1 Samuel 18:21), which means through one of the two, and in "a colt, the foal of a donkey" (Zechariah 9:9), which means the foal of one of the she-donkeys.
Ralbag
And it is related after this that Yiftach already died and was buried in the cities of Gilad. And the meaning here is that he was buried in one of the cities of Gilad. And the correct in my opinion is that Yiftach, because he did not leave after him a son or a daughter by whom his name would be called, commanded that his bones be buried in all the cities of Gilad, a portion here and a portion there, so that there would be a memorial for him in those places that he saved from the hand of the king of the sons of Ammon.
Metzudat David
"In the cities of Gilead." In one of the cities of Gilead, or perhaps his bones were divided and buried in every city and city, as a memorial that he saved them all from the hand of the children of Ammon.
Verse structure: 6 words, 28 letters. The shortest word is "bread" (לָֽחֶם, 3 letters) and the longest is "Israel" (אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל, 7 letters). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "from·Beth-lehem" (root בית, 88x in Judges); "after·him" (root אחר, 49x in Judges); "bread" (root לחם, 45x in Judges). Full calculation: וַיִּשְׁפֹּ֤ט [and·acts·the·judge] (405) + אַֽחֲרָיו֙ [after·him] (225) + אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל [Israel] (942) + אִבְצָ֖ן [Ibzan] (143) + מִבֵּ֥ית [from·Beth-lehem] (452) + לָֽחֶם [bread] (78) = 2245.
Rashi
Abtzan. This is Boaz:
Radak
“Abtzin of Bethlehem.” Our Sages of blessed memory said, “Abtzin is Boaz.” And it appears to me that they said this because of the narrative in the verse regarding the marriages of his sons and daughters, which is immediately followed by the mention of Manoah, to teach you that a person should not be arrogant either in wealth or in children. For Abtzin held sixty banquets for his sons and daughters, and at none of them did he invite Manoah, because he was infertile, and he used to say, "[He is like] a sterile mule — what can it repay me?" Consequently, it happened to him on account of this that all of them died during his lifetime. And Manoah had a surviving son who judged Israel, for God saw his humiliation. And it is good if this was a received tradition among them. But according to the plain meaning, the Scripture recounts the marriages of his sons and daughters to relate the great success he had with his sons and daughters, for he married them all off during his lifetime. And truly, there were good qualities in him, for the merit of which he attained this success and the high status of being the judge of Israel.
Ralbag
And indeed it is mentioned that after him Ivtzan of Beit Lechem judged Israel. And because Boaz appears from his context to have been a judge of Israel, and he was from Beit Lechem, and no one is found among the judges except Ivtzan who is from Beit Lechem, our Rabbis of blessed memory said that this Ivtzan is Boaz, and it is correct. And after him Eilon the Zevulunite judged Israel, and after him Avdon son of Hillel judged Israel.
Metzudat David
Ibzan. Our Sages of blessed memory said (Bava Batra 91a) that this is Boaz.
And he had thirty sons, and thirty daughters he sent abroad, and thirty daughters he brought in from abroad for his sons. And he judged Israel seven years.
verse value 6023
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 77 letters. Notable word values: "he·brought" (הֵבִ֥יא) = 18, chai, 'life'. The shortest word is "let·go" (שִׁלַּ֣ח, 3 letters) and the longest is "Israel" (אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 686: and·thirty, and·thirty. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Judges. Unique to this verse in Judges (hapax): "outside" (הַח֔וּצָה), "he·brought" (הֵבִ֥יא), "to·his·sons" (לְבָנָ֖יו). The root בן appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·had" (root היה, 120x in Judges); "son" (root בן, 116x in Judges); "he·brought" (root בוא, 93x in Judges). First appearance of the root חוץ ("outside") in Judges. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·the·outside', dividing the verse into phrases of 12 and 4 words.
Metzudat David
"Send them out." This means that he married them off to men.
“He brought them to his sons.” This refers to marrying them off to his sons. (And he recounted the magnitude of his success, that he had married off all his sons in his lifetime, even though they were numerous.)
And after him Elon the Zebulunite judged Israel; and he judged Israel ten years.
verse value 4096
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 48 letters. Verse gematria: 4096 = 64². The shortest word is "ten" (עֶ֥שֶׂר, 3 letters) and the longest is "Israel" (אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 942: Israel, Israel. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Judges. Unique to this verse in Judges (hapax): "Elon" (אֵיל֖וֹן). The root שפט appears 2 times in this verse. 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "after·him" (root אחר, 49x in Judges); "years" (root שנה, 30x in Judges); "and·acts·the·judge" (root שפט, 20x in Judges). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·Zebulunite', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיִּשְׁפֹּ֤ט [and·acts·the·judge] (405) + אַֽחֲרָיו֙ [after·him] (225) + אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל [Israel] (942) + אֵיל֖וֹן [Elon] (97) + הַזְּבוּלֹנִ֑י [the·Zebulunite] (110) + וַיִּשְׁפֹּ֥ט [and·acts·the·judge] (405) + אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל [Israel] (942) + עֶ֥שֶׂר [ten] (570) + שָׁנִֽים [years] (400) = 4096.
And Elon the Zebulunite died, and was buried in Aijalon in the land of Zebulun.
verse value 1468
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 36 letters. The shortest word is "refuge" (וֹן, 2 letters) and the longest is "the·Zebulunite" (הַזְּבוּלֹנִ֑י, 7 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Judges. Unique to this verse in Judges (hapax): "God" (אֵיל֣). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "God" (root איל, 114x in Judges); "in·land·of" (root ארץ, 56x in Judges); "and·he·died" (root מות, 43x in Judges). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·Zebulunite', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיָּ֖מׇת [and·he·died] (456) + אֵיל֣ [God] (41) + וֹן [refuge] (56) + הַזְּבוּלֹנִ֑י [the·Zebulunite] (110) + וַיִּקָּבֵ֥ר [and·he·was·buried] (318) + בְּאַיָּל֖וֹן [in·Aijalon] (99) + בְּאֶ֥רֶץ [in·land·of] (293) + זְבוּלֻֽן [Zebulun] (95) = 1468.
And he had forty sons and thirty sons’sons, that rode on threescore and ten ass colts; and he judged Israel eight years.
verse value 4598
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 65 letters. The shortest word is "son" (בְּנֵ֣י, 3 letters) and the longest is "upon·seventy" (עַל־שִׁבְעִ֣ים, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 102: son, son. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Judges. Unique to this verse in Judges (hapax): "upon·seventy" (עַל־שִׁבְעִ֣ים), "ass colts" (עֲיָרִ֑ם). The root בן appears 3 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·had" (root היה, 120x in Judges); "son" (root בן, 116x in Judges); "upon·seventy" (root על, 87x in Judges). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'ass colts', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַֽיְהִי־ל֞וֹ [and·he·had] (67) + אַרְבָּעִ֣ים [forty] (323) + בָּנִ֗ים [son] (102) + וּשְׁלֹשִׁים֙ [and·thirty] (686) + בְּנֵ֣י [son] (62) + בָנִ֔ים [son] (102) + רֹכְבִ֖ים [mounting·and·ride] (272) + עַל־שִׁבְעִ֣ים [upon·seventy] (522) + עֲיָרִ֑ם [ass colts] (320) + וַיִּשְׁפֹּ֥ט [and·acts·the·judge] (405) + אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל [Israel] (942) + שְׁמֹנֶ֥ה [eight] (395) + שָׁנִֽים [years] (400) = 4598.
Radak
“Riding on seventy donkeys.” This narrative too serves to inform us of his success, in that he saw sons and daughters, and sons’ sons, great men riding on donkeys. That is to say, due to the abundance of their wealth and their greatness, they did not need to engage in other labor or in the work of the land, but rather rode on donkeys. And he was appointed as a judge of Israel.
Metzudat David
"Riding, etc." And this is a matter of importance:
Metzudat Zion
Young donkeys. So are called donkeys while they are still young:
Rashi
Ralbag
Metzudat David
Metzudat Zion
Malbim