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Listen to today's reading by Tom Dooley © MasterMedia Ministries/Tyndale.
This content from World English Bible (public domain)
Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon, and all the people who were with him, rose up early and encamped beside the spring of Harod. Midian’s camp was on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley. Yahweh said to Gideon, “The people who are with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel brag against me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’ Now therefore proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return and depart from Mount Gilead.’” So twenty-two thousand of the people returned, and ten thousand remained.
Yahweh said to Gideon, “There are still too many people. Bring them down to the water, and I will test them for you there. It shall be, that those whom I tell you, ‘This shall go with you ,’ shall go with you; and whoever I tell you, ‘This shall not go with you ,’ shall not go.” So he brought down the people to the water; and Yahweh said to Gideon, “Everyone who laps of the water with his tongue, like a dog laps, you shall set him by himself; likewise everyone who bows down on his knees to drink.” The number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people bowed down on their knees to drink water. Yahweh said to Gideon, “I will save you by the three hundred men who lapped, and deliver the Midianites into your hand. Let all the other people go, each to his own place.”
So the people took food in their hand, and their trumpets; and he sent all the rest of the men of Israel to their own tents, but retained the three hundred men; and the camp of Midian was beneath him in the valley. That same night, Yahweh said to him, “Arise, go down into the camp, for I have delivered it into your hand. But if you are afraid to go down, go with Purah your servant down to the camp. You will hear what they say; and afterward your hands will be strengthened to go down into the camp.” Then went he down with Purah his servant to the outermost part of the armed men who were in the camp.
The Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like locusts for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand which is on the seashore for multitude.
When Gideon had come, behold, there was a man telling a dream to his fellow. He said, “Behold, I dreamed a dream; and behold, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian, came to the tent, and struck it so that it fell, and turned it upside down, so that the tent lay flat.”
His fellow answered, “This is nothing other than the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel. God has delivered Midian into his hand, with all the army.”
It was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, that he worshiped. Then he returned into the camp of Israel and said, “Arise, for Yahweh has delivered the army of Midian into your hand!”
He divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put into the hands of all of them trumpets and empty pitchers, with torches within the pitchers.
He said to them, “Watch me, and do likewise. Behold, when I come to the outermost part of the camp, it shall be that, as I do, so you shall do. When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me, then blow the trumpets also on every side of all the camp, and shout, ‘For Yahweh and for Gideon !’”
So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outermost part of the camp in the beginning of the middle watch, when they had but newly set the watch. Then they blew the trumpets and broke in pieces the pitchers that were in their hands. The three companies blew the trumpets, broke the pitchers, and held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands with which to blow; and they shouted, “The sword of Yahweh and of Gideon!” They each stood in his place around the camp, and all the army ran; and they shouted, and put them to flight. They blew the three hundred trumpets, and Yahweh set every man’s sword against his fellow and against all the army; and the army fled as far as Beth Shittah toward Zererah, as far as the border of Abel Meholah, by Tabbath. The men of Israel were gathered together out of Naphtali, out of Asher, and out of all Manasseh, and pursued Midian. Gideon sent messengers throughout all the hill country of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against Midian and take the waters before them as far as Beth Barah, even the Jordan!” So all the men of Ephraim were gathered together and took the waters as far as Beth Barah, even the Jordan. They took the two princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at Oreb’s rock, and Zeeb they killed at Zeeb’s wine press, as they pursued Midian. Then they brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon beyond the Jordan.
The men of Ephraim said to him, “Why have you treated us this way, that you didn’t call us when you went to fight with Midian?” They rebuked him sharply. He said to them, “What have I now done in comparison with you? Isn’t the gleaning of the grapes of Ephraim better than the vintage of Abiezer? God has delivered into your hand the princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb! What was I able to do in comparison with you?” Then their anger was abated toward him when he had said that.
Gideon came to the Jordan and passed over, he and the three hundred men who were with him, faint, yet pursuing. He said to the men of Succoth, “Please give loaves of bread to the people who follow me; for they are faint, and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian.”
The princes of Succoth said, “Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in your hand, that we should give bread to your army?”
Gideon said, “Therefore when Yahweh has delivered Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, then I will tear your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness and with briers.”
He went up there to Penuel, and spoke to them in the same way; and the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had answered. He spoke also to the men of Penuel, saying, “When I come again in peace, I will break down this tower.”
Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor, and their armies with them, about fifteen thousand men, all who were left of all the army of the children of the east; for there fell one hundred twenty thousand men who drew sword. Gideon went up by the way of those who lived in tents on the east of Nobah and Jogbehah, and struck the army; for the army felt secure. Zebah and Zalmunna fled and he pursued them. He took the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and confused all the army. Gideon the son of Joash returned from the battle from the ascent of Heres. He caught a young man of the men of Succoth, and inquired of him; and he described for him the princes of Succoth, and its elders, seventy-seven men. He came to the men of Succoth, and said, “See Zebah and Zalmunna, concerning whom you taunted me, saying, ‘Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in your hand, that we should give bread to your men who are weary?’” He took the elders of the city, and thorns of the wilderness and briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth. He broke down the tower of Penuel, and killed the men of the city.
(WEB)
This content from OpenEnglishBible (public domain)
So Pilate summoned the chief priests, and the leading men, and the people, and said to them, “You brought this man before me charged with misleading the people; and yet, for my part, though I examined him before you, I did not find this man to blame for any of the things of which you accuse him; nor did Herod either; for he has sent him back to us. And, as a fact, he has not done anything deserving death; so I will have him scourged, and then release him.” [Some later manuscripts add: He had to release someone to them at the feast. ] But they began to shout as one man, “Kill this fellow, but release Barabbas for us.” (Barabbas was a man who had been put in prison for a riot that had broken out in the city and for murder.) Pilate, however, wanting to release Jesus, called to them again; but they kept calling out, “Crucify, crucify him!”
“Why, what harm has this man done?” Pilate said to them for the third time. “I have found nothing in him for which he could be condemned to death. So I will have him scourged, and then release him.” But they persisted in loudly demanding his crucifixion; and their clamor gained the day. Pilate decided that their demand should be granted. He released the man who had been put in prison for riot and murder, as they demanded, and gave Jesus up to be dealt with as they pleased.
And, as they were leading Jesus away, they laid hold of Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and they put the cross on his shoulders, for him to carry it behind Jesus. There was a great crowd of people following him, many being women who were beating their breasts and wailing for him. So Jesus turned and said to them, “Women of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. A time, I tell you, is coming, when it will be said – ‘Happy are the women who are barren, and those who have never borne children or nursed them!’ At that time people will begin to say to the mountains ‘Fall on us,’ and to the hills ‘Cover us.’ If what you see is done while the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?” There were two others also, criminals, led out to be executed with Jesus. When they had reached the place called ‘The Skull,’ there they crucified Jesus and the criminals, one on the right, and one on the left. Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; they do not know what they are doing.” His clothes they divided among them by casting lots. Meanwhile the people stood looking on. Even the leading men said with a sneer, “He saved others, let him save himself, if he is God’s Christ, his chosen one.” The soldiers, too, came up in mockery, bringing him common wine, and saying as they did so, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.” Above him were the words –
‘THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.’
One of the criminals who were hanging beside Jesus railed at him. “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us,” he said. But the other rebuked him. “Haven’t you,” he said, “any fear of God, now that you are under the same sentence? And we justly so, for we are only reaping our deserts, but this man has not done anything wrong. Jesus,” he went on, “do not forget me when you have come to your kingdom.” And Jesus answered, “I tell you, this very day you will be with me in Paradise.”
(OEB)
This content from OpenEnglishBible (public domain)
The Lᴏʀᴅ is king, let the earth rejoice:
let her many isles be glad.
Clouds and darkness are round about him,
justice and right are the base of his throne.
Fire goes before him,
and blazes around his steps,
his lightnings illumine the world:
the earth quakes at the sight.
Mountains melt like wax
before the Lᴏʀᴅ of all the earth.
The heavens proclaim his justice,
all nations behold his glory.
Shamed are all image-worshippers,
who make a boast of their idols.
All the gods bow before him.
Zion is glad at the tidings,
the towns of Judah rejoice
because of your judgments, Lᴏʀᴅ.
For you are most high over all the earth,
greatly exalted above all gods.
The Lᴏʀᴅ loves those who hate evil,
he guards the lives of the faithful:
from the hand of the wicked he saves them.
Light arises for the righteous,
and joy for the upright in heart.
Rejoice in the Lᴏʀᴅ, you righteous:
give thanks to his holy name.
Sing a new song to the Lᴏʀᴅ,
for he has done wonders;
his right hand and holy arm
have won him the victory.
The Lᴏʀᴅ has made his victory known,
and revealed to the eyes of the nations his righteousness.
Mindful he was of his kindness to Jacob,
faithful he was to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the victory of our God.
Shout, all the earth, to the Lᴏʀᴅ:
break into cries and music.
Play on the lyre to the Lᴏʀᴅ,
on the lyre and with loud melody.
With trumpet and sound of horn,
shout before the king.
Let the sea and its fulness roar,
the world and the dwellers upon it.
Let the streams clap their hands,
let the hills shout for gladness together
before the Lᴏʀᴅ for he comes,
he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with justice
and the nations with equity.
(OEB)
This content pulled from bible.org.
Walk abreast with a foolish person, and you do not understand wise counsel. The wisdom of the shrewd person is to discern his way,but the folly of fools is deception.
(NET)