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Judges
Chapter 6
1. And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the
LORD: and the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian
seven years.
2. And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel: and because
of the Midianites the children of Israel made them the dens
which are in the mountains, and caves, and strong holds.
3. And so it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites
came up, and the Amalekites, and the children of the east,
even they came up against them;
4. And they encamped against them, and destroyed the increase
of the earth, till thou come unto Gaza, and left no
sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass.
5. For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and they
came as grasshoppers for multitude; for both they and their
camels were without number: and they entered into the land
to destroy it.
6. And Israel was greatly impoverished because of the
Midianites; and the children of Israel cried unto the LORD.
7. And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto
the LORD because of the Midianites,
8. That the LORD sent a prophet unto the children of Israel,
which said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I
brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth out of the
house of bondage;
9. And I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and
out of the hand of all that oppressed you, and drave them
out from before you, and gave you their land;
10. And I said unto you, I am the LORD your God; fear not the
gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but ye have
not obeyed my voice.
11. And there came an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak
which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the
Abiezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the
winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.
12. And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto
him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.
13. And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the LORD be with
us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all his
miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the
LORD bring us up from Egypt? but now the LORD hath forsaken
us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.
14. And the LORD looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy
might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the
Midianites: have not I sent thee?
15. And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save
Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the
least in my father's house.
16. And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and
thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.
17. And he said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy
sight, then shew me a sign that thou talkest with me.
18. Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I come unto thee, and
bring forth my present, and set it before thee. And he said,
I will tarry until thou come again.
19. And Gideon went in, and made ready a kid, and unleavened
cakes of an ephah of flour: the flesh he put in a basket,
and he put the broth in a pot, and brought it out unto him
under the oak, and presented it.
20. And the angel of God said unto him, Take the flesh and the
unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and pour out
the broth. And he did so.
21. Then the angel of the LORD put forth the end of the staff
that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the
unleavened cakes; and there rose up fire out of the rock,
and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. Then the
angel of the LORD departed out of his sight.
22. And when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the LORD,
Gideon said, Alas, O LORD God! for because I have seen an
angel of the LORD face to face.
23. And the LORD said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not:
thou shalt not die.
24. Then Gideon built an altar there unto the LORD, and called
it Jehovahshalom: unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the
Abiezrites.
25. And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto
him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the second
bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal
that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it:
26. And build an altar unto the LORD thy God upon the top of
this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second
bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the
grove which thou shalt cut down.
27. Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the
LORD had said unto him: and so it was, because he feared his
father's household, and the men of the city, that he could
not do it by day, that he did it by night.
28. And when the men of the city arose early in the morning,
behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove was
cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered
upon the altar that was built.
29. And they said one to another, Who hath done this thing? And
when they enquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of
Joash hath done this thing.
30. Then the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out thy son,
that he may die: because he hath cast down the altar of
Baal, and because he hath cut down the grove that was by it.
31. And Joash said unto all that stood against him, Will ye
plead for Baal? will ye save him? he that will plead for
him, let him be put to death whilst it is yet morning: if he
be a god, let him plead for himself, because one hath cast
down his altar.
32. Therefore on that day he called him Jerubbaal, saying, Let
Baal plead against him, because he hath thrown down his
altar.
33. Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children
of the east were gathered together, and went over, and
pitched in the valley of Jezreel.
34. But the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a
trumpet; and Abiezer was gathered after him.
35. And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh; who also was
gathered after him: and he sent messengers unto Asher, and
unto Zebulun, and unto Naphtali; and they came up to meet
them.
36. And Gideon said unto God, If thou wilt save Israel by mine
hand, as thou hast said,
37. Behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the floor; and if the
dew be on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the earth
beside, then shall I know that thou wilt save Israel by mine
hand, as thou hast said.
38. And it was so: for he rose up early on the morrow, and
thrust the fleece together, and wringed the dew out of the
fleece, a bowl full of water.
39. And Gideon said unto God, Let not thine anger be hot against
me, and I will speak but this once: let me prove, I pray
thee, but this once with the fleece; let it now be dry only
upon the fleece, and upon all the ground let there be dew.
40. And God did so that night: for it was dry upon the fleece
only, and there was dew on all the ground.
Chapter 7
1. Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon, and all the people that were
with him, rose up early, and pitched beside the well of
Harod: so that the host of the Midianites were on the north
side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley.
2. And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee
are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands,
lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own
hand hath saved me.
3. Now therefore go to, proclaim in the ears of the people,
saying, Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and
depart early from mount Gilead. And there returned of the
people twenty and two thousand; and there remained ten
thousand.
4. And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people are yet too many;
bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee
there: and it shall be, that of whom I say unto thee, This
shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee; and of
whomsoever I say unto thee, This shall not go with thee, the
same shall not go.
5. So he brought down the people unto the water: and the LORD
said unto Gideon, Every one that lappeth of the water with
his tongue, as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself;
likewise every one that boweth down upon his knees to drink.
6. And the number of them that lapped, putting their hand to
their mouth, were three hundred men: but all the rest of the
people bowed down upon their knees to drink water.
7. And the LORD said unto Gideon, By the three hundred men that
lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into
thine hand: and let all the other people go every man unto
his place.
8. So the people took victuals in their hand, and their
trumpets: and he sent all the rest of Israel every man unto
his tent, and retained those three hundred men: and the host
of Midian was beneath him in the valley.
9. And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto
him, Arise, get thee down unto the host; for I have
delivered it into thine hand.
10. But if thou fear to go down, go thou with Phurah thy servant
down to the host:
11. And thou shalt hear what they say; and afterward shall thine
hands be strengthened to go down unto the host. Then went he
down with Phurah his servant unto the outside of the armed
men that were in the host.
12. And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children
of the east lay along in the valley like grasshoppers for
multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand
by the sea side for multitude.
13. And when Gideon was come, behold, there was a man that told
a dream unto his fellow, and said, Behold, I dreamed a
dream, and, lo, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the host
of Midian, and came unto a tent, and smote it that it fell,
and overturned it, that the tent lay along.
14. And his fellow answered and said, This is nothing else save
the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel: for
into his hand hath God delivered Midian, and all the host.
15. And it was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream,
and the interpretation thereof, that he worshipped, and
returned into the host of Israel, and said, Arise; for the
LORD hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian.
16. And he divided the three hundred men into three companies,
and he put a trumpet in every man's hand, with empty
pitchers, and lamps within the pitchers.
17. And he said unto them, Look on me, and do likewise: and,
behold, when I come to the outside of the camp, it shall be
that, as I do, so shall ye do.
18. When I blow with a trumpet, I and all that are with me, then
blow ye the trumpets also on every side of all the camp, and
say, The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon.
19. So Gideon, and the hundred men that were with him, came unto
the outside of the camp in the beginning of the middle
watch; and they had but newly set the watch: and they blew
the trumpets, and brake the pitchers that were in their
hands.
20. And the three companies blew the trumpets, and brake the
pitchers, and held the lamps in their left hands, and the
trumpets in their right hands to blow withal: and they
cried, The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon.
21. And they stood every man in his place round about the camp;
and all the host ran, and cried, and fled.
22. And the three hundred blew the trumpets, and the LORD set
every man's sword against his fellow, even throughout all
the host: and the host fled to Bethshittah in Zererath, and
to the border of Abelmeholah, unto Tabbath.
23. And the men of Israel gathered themselves together out of
Naphtali, and out of Asher, and out of all Manasseh, and
pursued after the Midianites.
24. And Gideon sent messengers throughout all mount Ephraim,
saying, come down against the Midianites, and take before
them the waters unto Bethbarah and Jordan. Then all the men
of Ephraim gathered themselves together, and took the waters
unto Bethbarah and Jordan.
25. And they took two princes of the Midianites, Oreb and Zeeb;
and they slew Oreb upon the rock Oreb, and Zeeb they slew at
the winepress of Zeeb, and pursued Midian, and brought the
heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon on the other side Jordan.