1. Juges 10:4 (NEG79)
  2. Explication du texte

What does the wordplay in this verse point up?

Juges 10:4 (NEG79)

4 Il avait trente fils, qui montaient sur trente ânons, et qui possédaient trente villes, appelées encore aujourd'hui bourgs de Jaïr, et situées dans le pays de Galaad.

There is an alliterative play on words between Jair (ja’ir), donkey (‘ayir) and city/town (‘ir). This creates a humourous irony in the passage. Jair’s concerns are not with saving Israel from anyone; instead, they are in building a power base for himself and his sons. This self-interest motif will recur throughout the remaining judges.1