The Angel of the Lord at Bokim

2 The angel of the Lord^(A) went up from Gilgal^(B) to Bokim^(C) and said, “I brought you up out of Egypt^(D) and led you into the land I swore to give to your ancestors.^(E) I said, ‘I will never break my covenant with you,^{(F) 2} and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land,^(G) but you shall break down their altars.^(H)’ Yet you have disobeyed^(I) me. Why have you done this? ³ And I have also said, ‘I will not drive them out before you;^(J) they will become traps^(K) for you, and their gods will become snares^(L) to you.’”

⁴ When the angel of the Lord had spoken these things to all the Israelites, the people wept aloud,^{(M) 5} and they called that place Bokim.^[a](N) There they offered sacrifices to the Lord.

Disobedience and Defeat^(O)

⁶ After Joshua had dismissed the Israelites, they went to take possession of the land, each to their own inheritance. ⁷ The people served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had seen all the great things the Lord had done for Israel.^(P)

⁸ Joshua son of Nun,^(Q) the servant of the Lord, died at the age of a hundred and ten. ⁹ And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath Heres^[b](R) in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.

¹⁰ After that whole generation had been gathered to their ancestors, another generation grew up who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel.^{(S) 11} Then the Israelites did evil^(T) in the eyes of the Lord^(U) and served the Baals.^{(V) 12} They forsook the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They followed and worshiped various gods^(W) of the peoples around them.^(X) They aroused^(Y) the Lord’s anger^{(Z) 13} because they forsook^(AA) him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths.^{(AB) 14} In his anger^(AC) against Israel the Lord gave them into the hands^(AD) of raiders who plundered^(AE) them. He sold them^(AF) into the hands of their enemies all around, whom they were no longer able to resist.^{(AG) 15} Whenever Israel went out to fight, the hand of the Lord was against them^(AH) to defeat them, just as he had sworn to them. They were in great distress.^(AI)

¹⁶ Then the Lord raised up judges,^[c](AJ) who saved^(AK) them out of the hands of these raiders. ¹⁷ Yet they would not listen to their judges but prostituted^(AL) themselves to other gods^(AM) and worshiped them.^(AN) They quickly turned^(AO) from the ways of their ancestors, who had been obedient to the Lord’s commands.^{(AP) 18} Whenever the Lord raised up a judge for them, he was with the judge and saved^(AQ) them out of the hands of their enemies as long as the judge lived; for the Lord relented^(AR) because of their groaning^(AS) under those who oppressed and afflicted^(AT) them. ¹⁹ But when the judge died, the people returned to ways even more corrupt^(AU) than those of their ancestors,^(AV) following other gods and serving and worshiping them.^(AW) They refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn^(AX) ways.

²⁰ Therefore the Lord was very angry^(AY) with Israel and said, “Because this nation has violated the covenant^(AZ) I ordained for their ancestors and has not listened to me, ²¹ I will no longer drive out^(BA) before them any of the nations Joshua left when he died. ²² I will use them to test^(BB) Israel and see whether they will keep the way of the Lord and walk in it as their ancestors did.” ²³ The Lord had allowed those nations to remain; he did not drive them out at once by giving them into the hands of Joshua.^(BC)

3 These are the nations the Lord left to test^(BD) all those Israelites who had not experienced any of the wars in Canaan ² (he did this only to teach warfare to the descendants of the Israelites who had not had previous battle experience): ³ the five^(BE) rulers of the Philistines,^(BF) all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites^(BG) living in the Lebanon mountains from Mount Baal Hermon^(BH) to Lebo Hamath.^{(BI) 4} They were left to test^(BJ) the Israelites to see whether they would obey the Lord’s commands, which he had given their ancestors through Moses.

⁵ The Israelites lived^(BK) among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites,^(BL) Hivites and Jebusites.^{(BM) 6} They took their daughters^(BN) in marriage and gave their own daughters to their sons, and served their gods.^(BO)

Othniel

⁷ The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord; they forgot the Lord^(BP) their God and served the Baals and the Asherahs.^{(BQ) 8} The anger of the Lord burned against Israel so that he sold^(BR) them into the hands of Cushan-Rishathaim^(BS) king of Aram Naharaim,^[d](BT) to whom the Israelites were subject for eight years. ⁹ But when they cried out^(BU) to the Lord, he raised up for them a deliverer,^(BV) Othniel^(BW) son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, who saved them. ¹⁰ The Spirit of the Lord came on him,^(BX) so that he became Israel’s judge^[e] and went to war. The Lord gave Cushan-Rishathaim^(BY) king of Aram^(BZ) into the hands of Othniel, who overpowered him. ¹¹ So the land had peace^(CA) for forty years,^(CB) until Othniel son of Kenaz^(CC) died.

Ehud

¹² Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord,^(CD) and because they did this evil the Lord gave Eglon king of Moab^(CE) power over Israel. ¹³ Getting the Ammonites^(CF) and Amalekites^(CG) to join him, Eglon came and attacked Israel, and they took possession of the City of Palms.^{[f](CH) 14} The Israelites were subject to Eglon king of Moab^(CI) for eighteen years.

¹⁵ Again the Israelites cried out to the Lord, and he gave them a deliverer^(CJ)—Ehud^(CK), a left-handed^(CL) man, the son of Gera the Benjamite. The Israelites sent him with tribute^(CM) to Eglon king of Moab. ¹⁶ Now Ehud^(CN) had made a double-edged sword about a cubit^[g] long, which he strapped to his right thigh under his clothing. ¹⁷ He presented the tribute^(CO) to Eglon king of Moab, who was a very fat man.^{(CP) 18} After Ehud had presented the tribute, he sent on their way those who had carried it. ¹⁹ But on reaching the stone images near Gilgal he himself went back to Eglon and said, “Your Majesty, I have a secret message for you.”

The king said to his attendants, “Leave us!” And they all left.

²⁰ Ehud then approached him while he was sitting alone in the upper room of his palace^[h](CQ) and said, “I have a message from God for you.” As the king rose^(CR) from his seat, ²¹ Ehud reached with his left hand, drew the sword^(CS) from his right thigh and plunged it into the king’s belly. ²² Even the handle sank in after the blade, and his bowels discharged. Ehud did not pull the sword out, and the fat closed in over it. ²³ Then Ehud went out to the porch^[i]; he shut the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them.

²⁴ After he had gone, the servants came and found the doors of the upper room locked. They said, “He must be relieving himself^(CT) in the inner room of the palace.” ²⁵ They waited to the point of embarrassment,^(CU) but when he did not open the doors of the room, they took a key and unlocked them. There they saw their lord fallen to the floor, dead.

²⁶ While they waited, Ehud got away. He passed by the stone images and escaped to Seirah. ²⁷ When he arrived there, he blew a trumpet^(CV) in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites went down with him from the hills, with him leading them.

²⁸ “Follow me,” he ordered, “for the Lord has given Moab,^(CW) your enemy, into your hands.^(CX)” So they followed him down and took possession of the fords of the Jordan^(CY) that led to Moab; they allowed no one to cross over. ²⁹ At that time they struck down about ten thousand Moabites, all vigorous and strong; not one escaped. ³⁰ That day Moab^(CZ) was made subject to Israel, and the land had peace^(DA) for eighty years.

Shamgar

³¹ After Ehud came Shamgar son of Anath,^(DB) who struck down six hundred^(DC) Philistines^(DD) with an oxgoad. He too saved Israel.

Deborah

4 Again the Israelites did evil^(DE) in the eyes of the Lord,^(DF) now that Ehud^(DG) was dead. ² So the Lord sold them^(DH) into the hands of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor.^(DI) Sisera,^(DJ) the commander of his army, was based in Harosheth Haggoyim. ³ Because he had nine hundred chariots fitted with iron^(DK) and had cruelly oppressed^(DL) the Israelites for twenty years, they cried to the Lord for help.

⁴ Now Deborah,^(DM) a prophet,^(DN) the wife of Lappidoth, was leading^[j] Israel at that time. ⁵ She held court^(DO) under the Palm of Deborah between Ramah^(DP) and Bethel^(DQ) in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites went up to her to have their disputes decided. ⁶ She sent for Barak son of Abinoam^(DR) from Kedesh^(DS) in Naphtali and said to him, “The Lord, the God of Israel, commands you: ‘Go, take with you ten thousand men of Naphtali^(DT) and Zebulun^(DU) and lead them up to Mount Tabor.^{(DV) 7} I will lead Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s^(DW) army, with his chariots and his troops to the Kishon River^(DX) and give him into your hands.^(DY)’”

⁸ Barak said to her, “If you go with me, I will go; but if you don’t go with me, I won’t go.”

⁹ “Certainly I will go with you,” said Deborah. “But because of the course you are taking, the honor will not be yours, for the Lord will deliver Sisera into the hands of a woman.” So Deborah went with Barak to Kedesh.^{(DZ) 10} There Barak summoned^(EA) Zebulun and Naphtali, and ten thousand men went up under his command. Deborah also went up with him.

¹¹ Now Heber the Kenite had left the other Kenites,^(EB) the descendants of Hobab,^(EC) Moses’ brother-in-law,^[k] and pitched his tent by the great tree^(ED) in Zaanannim^(EE) near Kedesh.

¹² When they told Sisera that Barak son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor,^{(EF) 13} Sisera summoned from Harosheth Haggoyim to the Kishon River^(EG) all his men and his nine hundred chariots fitted with iron.^(EH)

¹⁴ Then Deborah said to Barak, “Go! This is the day the Lord has given Sisera into your hands.^(EI) Has not the Lord gone ahead^(EJ) of you?” So Barak went down Mount Tabor, with ten thousand men following him. ¹⁵ At Barak’s advance, the Lord routed^(EK) Sisera and all his chariots and army by the sword, and Sisera got down from his chariot and fled on foot.

¹⁶ Barak pursued the chariots and army as far as Harosheth Haggoyim, and all Sisera’s troops fell by the sword; not a man was left.^{(EL) 17} Sisera, meanwhile, fled on foot to the tent of Jael,^(EM) the wife of Heber the Kenite,^(EN) because there was an alliance between Jabin king of Hazor^(EO) and the family of Heber the Kenite.

¹⁸ Jael^(EP) went out to meet Sisera and said to him, “Come, my lord, come right in. Don’t be afraid.” So he entered her tent, and she covered him with a blanket.

¹⁹ “I’m thirsty,” he said. “Please give me some water.” She opened a skin of milk,^(EQ) gave him a drink, and covered him up.

²⁰ “Stand in the doorway of the tent,” he told her. “If someone comes by and asks you, ‘Is anyone in there?’ say ‘No.’”

²¹ But Jael,^(ER) Heber’s wife, picked up a tent peg and a hammer and went quietly to him while he lay fast asleep,^(ES) exhausted. She drove the peg through his temple into the ground, and he died.^(ET)

²² Just then Barak came by in pursuit of Sisera, and Jael^(EU) went out to meet him. “Come,” she said, “I will show you the man you’re looking for.” So he went in with her, and there lay Sisera with the tent peg through his temple—dead.^(EV)

²³ On that day God subdued^(EW) Jabin^(EX) king of Canaan before the Israelites. ²⁴ And the hand of the Israelites pressed harder and harder against Jabin king of Canaan until they destroyed him.^(EY)

Gideon

6 The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord,^(A) and for seven years he gave them into the hands of the Midianites.^{(B) 2} Because the power of Midian was so oppressive,^(C) the Israelites prepared shelters for themselves in mountain clefts, caves^(D) and strongholds.^{(E) 3} Whenever the Israelites planted their crops, the Midianites, Amalekites^(F) and other eastern peoples^(G) invaded the country. ⁴ They camped on the land and ruined the crops^(H) all the way to Gaza^(I) and did not spare a living thing for Israel, neither sheep nor cattle nor donkeys. ⁵ They came up with their livestock and their tents like swarms of locusts.^(J) It was impossible to count them or their camels;^(K) they invaded the land to ravage it. ⁶ Midian so impoverished the Israelites that they cried out^(L) to the Lord for help.

⁷ When the Israelites cried out^(M) to the Lord because of Midian, ⁸ he sent them a prophet,^(N) who said, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I brought you up out of Egypt,^(O) out of the land of slavery.^{(P) 9} I rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians. And I delivered you from the hand of all your oppressors;^(Q) I drove them out before you and gave you their land.^{(R) 10} I said to you, ‘I am the Lord your God; do not worship^(S) the gods of the Amorites,^(T) in whose land you live.’ But you have not listened to me.”

¹¹ The angel of the Lord^(U) came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah^(V) that belonged to Joash^(W) the Abiezrite,^(X) where his son Gideon^(Y) was threshing^(Z) wheat in a winepress^(AA) to keep it from the Midianites. ¹² When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you,^(AB) mighty warrior.^(AC)”

¹³ “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders^(AD) that our ancestors told^(AE) us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned^(AF) us and given us into the hand of Midian.”

¹⁴ The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have^(AG) and save^(AH) Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?”

¹⁵ “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan^(AI) is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.^(AJ)”

¹⁶ The Lord answered, “I will be with you^(AK), and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.”

¹⁷ Gideon replied, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, give me a sign^(AL) that it is really you talking to me. ¹⁸ Please do not go away until I come back and bring my offering and set it before you.”

And the Lord said, “I will wait until you return.”

¹⁹ Gideon went inside, prepared a young goat,^(AM) and from an ephah^[a](AN) of flour he made bread without yeast. Putting the meat in a basket and its broth in a pot, he brought them out and offered them to him under the oak.^(AO)

²⁰ The angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened bread, place them on this rock,^(AP) and pour out the broth.” And Gideon did so. ²¹ Then the angel of the Lord touched the meat and the unleavened bread^(AQ) with the tip of the staff^(AR) that was in his hand. Fire flared from the rock, consuming the meat and the bread. And the angel of the Lord disappeared. ²² When Gideon realized^(AS) that it was the angel of the Lord, he exclaimed, “Alas, Sovereign Lord! I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face!”^(AT)

²³ But the Lord said to him, “Peace! Do not be afraid.^(AU) You are not going to die.”^(AV)

²⁴ So Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and called^(AW) it The Lord Is Peace. To this day it stands in Ophrah^(AX) of the Abiezrites.

²⁵ That same night the Lord said to him, “Take the second bull from your father’s herd, the one seven years old.^[b] Tear down your father’s altar to Baal and cut down the Asherah pole^[c](AY) beside it. ²⁶ Then build a proper kind of^[d] altar to the Lord your God on the top of this height. Using the wood of the Asherah pole that you cut down, offer the second^[e] bull as a burnt offering.^(AZ)”

²⁷ So Gideon took ten of his servants and did as the Lord told him. But because he was afraid of his family and the townspeople, he did it at night rather than in the daytime.

²⁸ In the morning when the people of the town got up, there was Baal’s altar,^(BA) demolished, with the Asherah pole beside it cut down and the second bull sacrificed on the newly built altar!

²⁹ They asked each other, “Who did this?”

When they carefully investigated, they were told, “Gideon son of Joash^(BB) did it.”

³⁰ The people of the town demanded of Joash, “Bring out your son. He must die, because he has broken down Baal’s altar^(BC) and cut down the Asherah pole beside it.”

³¹ But Joash replied to the hostile crowd around him, “Are you going to plead Baal’s cause?^(BD) Are you trying to save him? Whoever fights for him shall be put to death by morning! If Baal really is a god, he can defend himself when someone breaks down his altar.” ³² So because Gideon broke down Baal’s altar, they gave him the name Jerub-Baal^[f](BE) that day, saying, “Let Baal contend with him.”

³³ Now all the Midianites, Amalekites^(BF) and other eastern peoples^(BG) joined forces and crossed over the Jordan and camped in the Valley of Jezreel.^{(BH) 34} Then the Spirit of the Lord came on^(BI) Gideon, and he blew a trumpet,^(BJ) summoning the Abiezrites^(BK) to follow him. ³⁵ He sent messengers throughout Manasseh, calling them to arms, and also into Asher,^(BL) Zebulun and Naphtali,^(BM) so that they too went up to meet them.^(BN)

³⁶ Gideon said to God, “If you will save^(BO) Israel by my hand as you have promised— ³⁷ look, I will place a wool fleece^(BP) on the threshing floor.^(BQ) If there is dew only on the fleece and all the ground is dry, then I will know^(BR) that you will save Israel by my hand, as you said.” ³⁸ And that is what happened. Gideon rose early the next day; he squeezed the fleece and wrung out the dew—a bowlful of water.

³⁹ Then Gideon said to God, “Do not be angry with me. Let me make just one more request.^(BS) Allow me one more test with the fleece, but this time make the fleece dry and let the ground be covered with dew.” ⁴⁰ That night God did so. Only the fleece was dry; all the ground was covered with dew.^(BT)

Gideon Defeats the Midianites

7 Early in the morning, Jerub-Baal^(BU) (that is, Gideon^(BV)) and all his men camped at the spring of Harod.^(BW) The camp of Midian^(BX) was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh.^{(BY) 2} The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many men. I cannot deliver Midian into their hands, or Israel would boast against me, ‘My own strength^(BZ) has saved me.’ ³ Now announce to the army, ‘Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.^(CA)’” So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained.

⁴ But the Lord said to Gideon, “There are still too many^(CB) men. Take them down to the water, and I will thin them out for you there. If I say, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go; but if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.”

⁵ So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the Lord told him, “Separate those who lap the water with their tongues as a dog laps from those who kneel down to drink.” ⁶ Three hundred of them^(CC) drank from cupped hands, lapping like dogs. All the rest got down on their knees to drink.

⁷ The Lord said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands.^(CD) Let all the others go home.”^{(CE) 8} So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites home but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others.

Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley. ⁹ During that night the Lord said to Gideon, “Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands.^{(CF) 10} If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah ¹¹ and listen to what they are saying. Afterward, you will be encouraged to attack the camp.” So he and Purah his servant went down to the outposts of the camp. ¹² The Midianites, the Amalekites^(CG) and all the other eastern peoples had settled in the valley, thick as locusts.^(CH) Their camels^(CI) could no more be counted than the sand on the seashore.^(CJ)

¹³ Gideon arrived just as a man was telling a friend his dream. “I had a dream,” he was saying. “A round loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp. It struck the tent with such force that the tent overturned and collapsed.”

¹⁴ His friend responded, “This can be nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Joash,^(CK) the Israelite. God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands.”

¹⁵ When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he bowed down and worshiped.^(CL) He returned to the camp of Israel and called out, “Get up! The Lord has given the Midianite camp into your hands.”^{(CM) 16} Dividing the three hundred men^(CN) into three companies,^(CO) he placed trumpets^(CP) and empty jars^(CQ) in the hands of all of them, with torches^(CR) inside.

¹⁷ “Watch me,” he told them. “Follow my lead. When I get to the edge of the camp, do exactly as I do. ¹⁸ When I and all who are with me blow our trumpets,^(CS) then from all around the camp blow yours and shout, ‘For the Lord and for Gideon.’”

¹⁹ Gideon and the hundred men with him reached the edge of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just after they had changed the guard. They blew their trumpets and broke the jars^(CT) that were in their hands. ²⁰ The three companies blew the trumpets and smashed the jars. Grasping the torches^(CU) in their left hands and holding in their right hands the trumpets they were to blow, they shouted, “A sword^(CV) for the Lord and for Gideon!” ²¹ While each man held his position around the camp, all the Midianites ran, crying out as they fled.^(CW)

²² When the three hundred trumpets sounded,^(CX) the Lord caused the men throughout the camp to turn on each other^(CY) with their swords.^(CZ) The army fled to Beth Shittah toward Zererah as far as the border of Abel Meholah^(DA) near Tabbath. ²³ Israelites from Naphtali, Asher^(DB) and all Manasseh were called out,^(DC) and they pursued the Midianites.^{(DD) 24} Gideon sent messengers throughout the hill country of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against the Midianites and seize the waters of the Jordan^(DE) ahead of them as far as Beth Barah.”

So all the men of Ephraim were called out and they seized the waters of the Jordan as far as Beth Barah. ²⁵ They also captured two of the Midianite leaders, Oreb and Zeeb^(DF). They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb,^(DG) and Zeeb at the winepress of Zeeb. They pursued the Midianites^(DH) and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon, who was by the Jordan.^(DI)

Zebah and Zalmunna

8 Now the Ephraimites asked Gideon,^(DJ) “Why have you treated us like this? Why didn’t you call us when you went to fight Midian?^(DK)”^(DL) And they challenged him vigorously.^(DM)

² But he answered them, “What have I accomplished compared to you? Aren’t the gleanings of Ephraim’s grapes better than the full grape harvest of Abiezer?^{(DN) 3} God gave Oreb and Zeeb,^(DO) the Midianite leaders, into your hands. What was I able to do compared to you?” At this, their resentment against him subsided.

⁴ Gideon and his three hundred men, exhausted yet keeping up the pursuit, came to the Jordan^(DP) and crossed it. ⁵ He said to the men of Sukkoth,^(DQ) “Give my troops some bread; they are worn out,^(DR) and I am still pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna,^(DS) the kings of Midian.”

⁶ But the officials of Sukkoth^(DT) said, “Do you already have the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna in your possession? Why should we give bread^(DU) to your troops?”^(DV)

⁷ Then Gideon replied, “Just for that, when the Lord has given Zebah and Zalmunna^(DW) into my hand, I will tear your flesh with desert thorns and briers.”

⁸ From there he went up to Peniel^[g](DX) and made the same request of them, but they answered as the men of Sukkoth had. ⁹ So he said to the men of Peniel, “When I return in triumph, I will tear down this tower.”^(DY)

¹⁰ Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor with a force of about fifteen thousand men, all that were left of the armies of the eastern peoples; a hundred and twenty thousand swordsmen had fallen.^{(DZ) 11} Gideon went up by the route of the nomads east of Nobah^(EA) and Jogbehah^(EB) and attacked the unsuspecting army. ¹² Zebah and Zalmunna, the two kings of Midian, fled, but he pursued them and captured them, routing their entire army.

¹³ Gideon son of Joash^(EC) then returned from the battle by the Pass of Heres.^{(ED) 14} He caught a young man of Sukkoth and questioned him, and the young man wrote down for him the names of the seventy-seven officials of Sukkoth,^(EE) the elders^(EF) of the town. ¹⁵ Then Gideon came and said to the men of Sukkoth, “Here are Zebah and Zalmunna, about whom you taunted me by saying, ‘Do you already have the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna in your possession? Why should we give bread to your exhausted men?^(EG)’” ¹⁶ He took the elders of the town and taught the men of Sukkoth a lesson^(EH) by punishing them with desert thorns and briers. ¹⁷ He also pulled down the tower of Peniel^(EI) and killed the men of the town.^(EJ)

¹⁸ Then he asked Zebah and Zalmunna, “What kind of men did you kill at Tabor?^(EK)”

“Men like you,” they answered, “each one with the bearing of a prince.”

¹⁹ Gideon replied, “Those were my brothers, the sons of my own mother. As surely as the Lord lives,^(EL) if you had spared their lives, I would not kill you.” ²⁰ Turning to Jether, his oldest son, he said, “Kill them!” But Jether did not draw his sword, because he was only a boy and was afraid.

²¹ Zebah and Zalmunna said, “Come, do it yourself. ‘As is the man, so is his strength.’” So Gideon stepped forward and killed them, and took the ornaments^(EM) off their camels’ necks.

Gideon’s Ephod

²² The Israelites said to Gideon, “Rule over us—you, your son and your grandson—because you have saved us from the hand of Midian.”

²³ But Gideon told them, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The Lord will rule^(EN) over you.” ²⁴ And he said, “I do have one request, that each of you give me an earring^(EO) from your share of the plunder.^(EP)” (It was the custom of the Ishmaelites^(EQ) to wear gold earrings.)

²⁵ They answered, “We’ll be glad to give them.” So they spread out a garment, and each of them threw a ring from his plunder onto it. ²⁶ The weight of the gold rings he asked for came to seventeen hundred shekels,^[h] not counting the ornaments, the pendants and the purple garments worn by the kings of Midian or the chains^(ER) that were on their camels’ necks. ²⁷ Gideon made the gold into an ephod,^(ES) which he placed in Ophrah,^(ET) his town. All Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it there, and it became a snare^(EU) to Gideon and his family.^(EV)

Gideon’s Death

²⁸ Thus Midian was subdued before the Israelites and did not raise its head^(EW) again. During Gideon’s lifetime, the land had peace^(EX) forty years.

²⁹ Jerub-Baal^(EY) son of Joash^(EZ) went back home to live. ³⁰ He had seventy sons^(FA) of his own, for he had many wives. ³¹ His concubine,^(FB) who lived in Shechem, also bore him a son, whom he named Abimelek.^{(FC) 32} Gideon son of Joash died at a good old age^(FD) and was buried in the tomb of his father Joash in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

³³ No sooner had Gideon died than the Israelites again prostituted themselves to the Baals.^(FE) They set up Baal-Berith^(FF) as their god^{(FG) 34} and did not remember^(FH) the Lord their God, who had rescued them from the hands of all their enemies on every side. ³⁵ They also failed to show any loyalty to the family of Jerub-Baal^(FI) (that is, Gideon) in spite of all the good things he had done for them.^(FJ)

The Birth of Samson

13 Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, so the Lord delivered them into the hands of the Philistines^(A) for forty years.^(B)

² A certain man of Zorah,^(C) named Manoah,^(D) from the clan of the Danites,^(E) had a wife who was childless,^(F) unable to give birth. ³ The angel of the Lord^(G) appeared to her^(H) and said, “You are barren and childless, but you are going to become pregnant and give birth to a son.^{(I) 4} Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink^(J) and that you do not eat anything unclean.^{(K) 5} You will become pregnant and have a son^(L) whose head is never to be touched by a razor^(M) because the boy is to be a Nazirite,^(N) dedicated to God from the womb. He will take the lead^(O) in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines.”

⁶ Then the woman went to her husband and told him, “A man of God^(P) came to me. He looked like an angel of God,^(Q) very awesome.^(R) I didn’t ask him where he came from, and he didn’t tell me his name. ⁷ But he said to me, ‘You will become pregnant and have a son. Now then, drink no wine^(S) or other fermented drink^(T) and do not eat anything unclean, because the boy will be a Nazirite of God from the womb until the day of his death.^(U)’”

⁸ Then Manoah^(V) prayed to the Lord: “Pardon your servant, Lord. I beg you to let the man of God^(W) you sent to us come again to teach us how to bring up the boy who is to be born.”

⁹ God heard Manoah, and the angel of God came again to the woman while she was out in the field; but her husband Manoah was not with her. ¹⁰ The woman hurried to tell her husband, “He’s here! The man who appeared to me^(X) the other day!”

¹¹ Manoah got up and followed his wife. When he came to the man, he said, “Are you the man who talked to my wife?”

“I am,” he said.

¹² So Manoah asked him, “When your words are fulfilled, what is to be the rule that governs the boy’s life and work?”

¹³ The angel of the Lord answered, “Your wife must do all that I have told her. ¹⁴ She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, nor drink any wine or other fermented drink^(Y) nor eat anything unclean.^(Z) She must do everything I have commanded her.”

¹⁵ Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, “We would like you to stay until we prepare a young goat^(AA) for you.”

¹⁶ The angel of the Lord replied, “Even though you detain me, I will not eat any of your food. But if you prepare a burnt offering,^(AB) offer it to the Lord.” (Manoah did not realize^(AC) that it was the angel of the Lord.)

¹⁷ Then Manoah inquired of the angel of the Lord, “What is your name,^(AD) so that we may honor you when your word comes true?”

¹⁸ He replied, “Why do you ask my name?^(AE) It is beyond understanding.^[a]” ¹⁹ Then Manoah took a young goat, together with the grain offering, and sacrificed it on a rock^(AF) to the Lord. And the Lord did an amazing thing while Manoah and his wife watched: ²⁰ As the flame^(AG) blazed up from the altar toward heaven, the angel of the Lord ascended in the flame. Seeing this, Manoah and his wife fell with their faces to the ground.^{(AH) 21} When the angel of the Lord did not show himself again to Manoah and his wife, Manoah realized^(AI) that it was the angel of the Lord.

²² “We are doomed^(AJ) to die!” he said to his wife. “We have seen^(AK) God!”

²³ But his wife answered, “If the Lord had meant to kill us, he would not have accepted a burnt offering and grain offering from our hands, nor shown us all these things or now told us this.”^(AL)

²⁴ The woman gave birth to a boy and named him Samson.^(AM) He grew^(AN) and the Lord blessed him,^{(AO) 25} and the Spirit of the Lord began to stir^(AP) him while he was in Mahaneh Dan,^(AQ) between Zorah and Eshtaol.

Samson’s Marriage

14 Samson^(AR) went down to Timnah^(AS) and saw there a young Philistine woman. ² When he returned, he said to his father and mother, “I have seen a Philistine woman in Timnah; now get her for me as my wife.”^(AT)

³ His father and mother replied, “Isn’t there an acceptable woman among your relatives or among all our people?^(AU) Must you go to the uncircumcised^(AV) Philistines to get a wife?^(AW)”

But Samson said to his father, “Get her for me. She’s the right one for me.” ⁴ (His parents did not know that this was from the Lord,^(AX) who was seeking an occasion to confront the Philistines;^(AY) for at that time they were ruling over Israel.)^(AZ)

⁵ Samson went down to Timnah together with his father and mother. As they approached the vineyards of Timnah, suddenly a young lion came roaring toward him. ⁶ The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him^(BA) so that he tore the lion apart^(BB) with his bare hands as he might have torn a young goat. But he told neither his father nor his mother what he had done. ⁷ Then he went down and talked with the woman, and he liked her.

⁸ Some time later, when he went back to marry her, he turned aside to look at the lion’s carcass, and in it he saw a swarm of bees and some honey. ⁹ He scooped out the honey with his hands and ate as he went along. When he rejoined his parents, he gave them some, and they too ate it. But he did not tell them that he had taken the honey from the lion’s carcass.

¹⁰ Now his father went down to see the woman. And there Samson held a feast,^(BC) as was customary for young men. ¹¹ When the people saw him, they chose thirty men to be his companions.

¹² “Let me tell you a riddle,^(BD)” Samson said to them. “If you can give me the answer within the seven days of the feast,^(BE) I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty sets of clothes.^{(BF) 13} If you can’t tell me the answer, you must give me thirty linen garments and thirty sets of clothes.”

“Tell us your riddle,” they said. “Let’s hear it.”

¹⁴ He replied,

For three days they could not give the answer.

¹⁵ On the fourth^[b] day, they said to Samson’s wife, “Coax^(BH) your husband into explaining the riddle for us, or we will burn you and your father’s household to death.^(BI) Did you invite us here to steal our property?”

¹⁶ Then Samson’s wife threw herself on him, sobbing, “You hate me! You don’t really love me.^(BJ) You’ve given my people a riddle, but you haven’t told me the answer.”

“I haven’t even explained it to my father or mother,” he replied, “so why should I explain it to you?” ¹⁷ She cried the whole seven days^(BK) of the feast. So on the seventh day he finally told her, because she continued to press him. She in turn explained the riddle to her people.

¹⁸ Before sunset on the seventh day the men of the town said to him,

Samson said to them,

¹⁹ Then the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him.^(BM) He went down to Ashkelon,^(BN) struck down thirty of their men, stripped them of everything and gave their clothes to those who had explained the riddle. Burning with anger,^(BO) he returned to his father’s home. ²⁰ And Samson’s wife was given to one of his companions^(BP) who had attended him at the feast.

Samson’s Vengeance on the Philistines

15 Later on, at the time of wheat harvest,^(BQ) Samson^(BR) took a young goat^(BS) and went to visit his wife. He said, “I’m going to my wife’s room.”^(BT) But her father would not let him go in.

² “I was so sure you hated her,” he said, “that I gave her to your companion.^(BU) Isn’t her younger sister more attractive? Take her instead.”

³ Samson said to them, “This time I have a right to get even with the Philistines; I will really harm them.” ⁴ So he went out and caught three hundred foxes^(BV) and tied them tail to tail in pairs. He then fastened a torch^(BW) to every pair of tails, ⁵ lit the torches^(BX) and let the foxes loose in the standing grain of the Philistines. He burned up the shocks^(BY) and standing grain, together with the vineyards and olive groves.

⁶ When the Philistines asked, “Who did this?” they were told, “Samson, the Timnite’s son-in-law, because his wife was given to his companion.^(BZ)”

So the Philistines went up and burned her^(CA) and her father to death.^{(CB) 7} Samson said to them, “Since you’ve acted like this, I swear that I won’t stop until I get my revenge on you.” ⁸ He attacked them viciously and slaughtered many of them. Then he went down and stayed in a cave in the rock^(CC) of Etam.^(CD)

⁹ The Philistines went up and camped in Judah, spreading out near Lehi.^{(CE) 10} The people of Judah asked, “Why have you come to fight us?”

“We have come to take Samson prisoner,” they answered, “to do to him as he did to us.”

¹¹ Then three thousand men from Judah went down to the cave in the rock of Etam and said to Samson, “Don’t you realize that the Philistines are rulers over us?^(CF) What have you done to us?”

He answered, “I merely did to them what they did to me.”

¹² They said to him, “We’ve come to tie you up and hand you over to the Philistines.”

Samson said, “Swear to me^(CG) that you won’t kill me yourselves.”

¹³ “Agreed,” they answered. “We will only tie you up and hand you over to them. We will not kill you.” So they bound him with two new ropes^(CH) and led him up from the rock. ¹⁴ As he approached Lehi,^(CI) the Philistines came toward him shouting. The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him.^(CJ) The ropes on his arms became like charred flax,^(CK) and the bindings dropped from his hands. ¹⁵ Finding a fresh jawbone of a donkey, he grabbed it and struck down a thousand men.^(CL)

¹⁶ Then Samson said,

¹⁷ When he finished speaking, he threw away the jawbone; and the place was called Ramath Lehi.^[d](CN)

¹⁸ Because he was very thirsty, he cried out to the Lord,^(CO) “You have given your servant this great victory.^(CP) Must I now die of thirst and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?” ¹⁹ Then God opened up the hollow place in Lehi, and water came out of it. When Samson drank, his strength returned and he revived.^(CQ) So the spring^(CR) was called En Hakkore,^[e] and it is still there in Lehi.

²⁰ Samson led^[f] Israel for twenty years^(CS) in the days of the Philistines.

Samson and Delilah

16 One day Samson^(CT) went to Gaza,^(CU) where he saw a prostitute.^(CV) He went in to spend the night with her. ² The people of Gaza were told, “Samson is here!” So they surrounded the place and lay in wait for him all night at the city gate.^(CW) They made no move during the night, saying, “At dawn^(CX) we’ll kill him.”

³ But Samson lay there only until the middle of the night. Then he got up and took hold of the doors of the city gate, together with the two posts, and tore them loose, bar and all. He lifted them to his shoulders and carried them to the top of the hill that faces Hebron.^(CY)

⁴ Some time later, he fell in love^(CZ) with a woman in the Valley of Sorek whose name was Delilah.^{(DA) 5} The rulers of the Philistines^(DB) went to her and said, “See if you can lure^(DC) him into showing you the secret of his great strength^(DD) and how we can overpower him so we may tie him up and subdue him. Each one of us will give you eleven hundred shekels^[g] of silver.”^(DE)

⁶ So Delilah^(DF) said to Samson, “Tell me the secret of your great strength and how you can be tied up and subdued.”

⁷ Samson answered her, “If anyone ties me with seven fresh bowstrings that have not been dried, I’ll become as weak as any other man.”