וְאִ֨ישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵ֤ל רָאוּ֙ כִּ֣י צַר־ל֔וֹ כִּ֥י נִגַּ֖שׂ הָעָ֑ם וַיִּֽתְחַבְּא֣וּ הָעָ֗ם בַּמְּעָר֤וֹת וּבַֽחֲוָחִים֙ וּבַסְּלָעִ֔ים וּבַצְּרִחִ֖ים וּבַבֹּרֽוֹת׃
When Israel’s side saw that they were in trouble—for the troops were hard pressed—the people hid in caves, among thorns, among rocks, in tunnels, and in cisterns.
(The above rendering comes from the RJPS translation, an adaptation of the NJPS translation. Before accounting for this rendering, I will analyze the plain sense of the Hebrew term containing אִישׁ.)
When a referring expression includes אִישׁ in construct with a group name, such as אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל֙, our noun marks its referent’s defining participation in the depicted situation. Here, in the context of intergroup hostilities, it labels the assembled militia in terms of their role as a party to the conflict with the Philistines. The militia’s members are construed as a unit—hence the singular noun. This usage regards them as one of the two opposing sides, as warring parties. This is one of the instances where a “collective” usage of אִישׁ is clearly evident, from the mismatch in grammatical number (plural verb) in this clause, and from the co-references with the collective term הָעָם. On the meaning of this conventional usage in the context of hostilities, see further my comment at Josh 10:24.
As for rendering into English, the NJPS ‘the men of Israel’ recognizes a collective usage, but without a situational orientation. See my comment at Josh 10:24. Meanwhile, the fact that women are not in view can go without saying, because it is self-evident from the military context.