Judges 6
Lexham English Bible
The Midianites Oppresses Israel
6 The Israelites[a] did evil in the eyes of Yahweh, and Yahweh gave them into the hand of the Midianites[b] for seven years. 2 The hand of the Midianites[c] prevailed over Israel; because of the presence of the Midianites,[d] the Israelites[e] made for themselves hiding places that were in the mountains, caves, and strongholds. 3 And whenever Israel sowed seed, the Midianites,[f] Amalekites,[g] and the people of the east would come up against them. 4 They would camp against them and destroy the produce of the land as far as[h] Gaza; they left no produce in Israel, or sheep, ox, or donkey. 5 For they, their livestock, and their tents would come up like a great number of locusts; they and their camels could not be counted; they came into the land and devoured it. 6 Israel was very poor because of the presence of the Midianites,[i] and the Israelites[j] cried out to Yahweh.
7 When the Israelites[k] cried out to Yahweh on account of the Midianites,[l] 8 Yahweh sent a prophet to the Israelites,[m] and he said to them, “Thus says Yahweh the God of Israel: ‘I brought you up from Egypt; I brought you from the house of slavery.[n] 9 I delivered you from the hand of Egypt and from the hand of all your oppressors, and drove them out from before you;[o] and I gave you their land. 10 And I said to you, ‘I am Yahweh your God; do not fear[p] the gods of the Amorites,[q] in whose land you are living.’ But you have not listened to my voice.”
The Angel of Yahweh Calls Gideon
11 The angel of Yahweh came and sat under the oak[r] that was at Ophrah that belonged to Jehoash the Abiezrite; and Gideon his son was threshing wheat in the winepress to hide it[s] from the Midianites.[t] 12 The angel of Yahweh appeared to him and said to him, “Yahweh is with you, you mighty warrior.”[u] 13 Gideon said to him, “Excuse me, my lord. If Yahweh is with us, why then has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonderful deeds that our ancestors[v] recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not Yahweh bring us up from Egypt?’ But now Yahweh has forsaken us; he has given us into the palm of Midian.” 14 And Yahweh turned to him and said, “Go in this your strength, and you will deliver Israel from the palm of Midian. Did I not send you?” 15 He said to him, “Excuse me, my lord. How will I deliver Israel? Look, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father’s house.” 16 And Yahweh said to him, “But I will be with you, and you will defeat Midian as if they are one man.”[w] 17 And he[x] said to him, “Please, if I have found favor in your eyes, show me a sign[y] that you are speaking with me. 18 Please, do not depart from here until I come back to you and bring out my gift and set it out before you.”[z] And he said, “I will stay until you return.”
19 And Gideon went and prepared a young goat[aa] and unleavened cakes from an ephah of flour; he put meat in a basket, and the broth he put in a pot, and he brought them to him under the oak[ab] and presented them. 20 The angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened cakes and put them on this rock; pour the broth over it.” And he did so. 21 Then the angel of Yahweh reached out the tip of the staff that was in his hand, and he touched the meat and the unleavened cakes; and fire went up from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened cakes. And the angel of Yahweh went from his sight.[ac] 22 And Gideon realized that he was the angel of Yahweh; and Gideon said, “Oh, my lord Yahweh! For now I have seen the angel of Yahweh face to face.” 23 And Yahweh said to him, “Peace be with you. Do not fear; you will not die.” 24 And Gideon built there an altar to Yahweh, and he called it “Yahweh is peace.” To this day it is still in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.[ad]
25 Now on that same night Yahweh said to him, “Take the bull of the cattle that belongs to your father, and a second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal that belongs to your father, and cut down the Asherah[ae] that is beside it; 26 and build an altar to Yahweh your God on the top of this stronghold in the proper arrangement, and take a second bull and offer it as a burnt offering with the wood of the Asherah[af] that you will cut down. 27 Gideon took ten men from his servants, and he did just as Yahweh told him;[ag] and because he was too afraid of his father’s family[ah] and the men of the city to do it during the day, he did it during night.
Gideon Destroys the Altar of Baal
28 When the men of the city got up early in the morning, look, the altar of Baal and the Asherah[ai] that was beside it were cut down, and the second bull was offered on the altar that had been built. 29 And they said to one another,[aj] “Who did this thing?” So they searched and inquired, and they said, “Gideon son of Jehoash did this thing.” 30 And the men of the city said to Jehoash, “Bring out your son so that he may die, for he has pulled down the altar of Baal and cut down the Asherah that was beside it.” 31 But Jehoash said to all who stood against him,[ak] “Will you contend for Baal? Will you rescue him? Whoever contends for him will be put to death by the morning. If he is a god, let him contend for himself because his altar has been pulled down.”[al] 32 Thus, on that day he[am] was called Jerub-Baal, which means,[an] “Let Baal contend against him,” because he had pulled down his altar.
33 Then all the Midianites,[ao] Amalekites,[ap] and the people of the east gathered together and crossed the Jordan; and they camped in the valley of Jezreel. 34 So the Spirit of Yahweh took possession of[aq] Gideon, and he blew on the trumpet, and the Abiezrites[ar] were called to follow him. 35 He sent messengers throughout all Manasseh, and they were also called to follow him; and he sent messengers throughout Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, and they went up to meet them.
Gideon Tests Yahweh With the Fleece
36 Then Gideon said to God, “In order to see that you will deliver Israel by my hand, just as you have said, 37 I will place a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece only, and all of the ground is dry, I will know that you will deliver Israel by my hand, just as you have said.” 38 And it was so. He arose early the next day and squeezed the fleece, and he wrung out dew from the fleece, a full drinking bowl of water. 39 And Gideon said to God, “Do not let your anger burn[as] against me; let me speak once more. Please let me test once more with the fleece; let the fleece be dry, and let there be dew on the ground.” 40 And God did so that night; only the fleece was dry, and dew was on all the ground.
Footnotes
- Judges 6:1 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
- Judges 6:1 Hebrew “Midianite”
- Judges 6:2 Hebrew “Midianite”
- Judges 6:2 Hebrew “Midianite”
- Judges 6:2 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
- Judges 6:3 Hebrew “Midianite”
- Judges 6:3 Hebrew “Amalekite”
- Judges 6:4 Literally “until your coming to”
- Judges 6:6 Hebrew “Midianite”
- Judges 6:6 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
- Judges 6:7 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
- Judges 6:7 Hebrew “Midianite”
- Judges 6:8 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
- Judges 6:8 Hebrew “slaves”
- Judges 6:9 Literally “your face/presence”
- Judges 6:10 Or “revere”
- Judges 6:10 Hebrew “Amorite”
- Judges 6:11 Or “terebinth”
- Judges 6:11 Or “keep it away”
- Judges 6:11 Hebrew “Midianite”
- Judges 6:12 Literally “strong/mighty of power”
- Judges 6:13 Or “fathers”
- Judges 6:16 Literally “as one man”
- Judges 6:17 That is, Gideon
- Judges 6:17 Literally “make a sign for me”
- Judges 6:18 Or “in your presence”
- Judges 6:19 Literally “a kid of goat”
- Judges 6:19 Or “terebinth”
- Judges 6:21 Literally “from his eyes”
- Judges 6:24 Hebrew “Abiezrite”
- Judges 6:25 An Asherah is a cultic pole set up next to an altar symbolizing the goddess Asherah
- Judges 6:26 An Asherah is a cultic pole set up next to an altar symbolizing the goddess Asherah
- Judges 6:27 Or “spoke to him”
- Judges 6:27 Literally “father’s house”
- Judges 6:28 An Asherah is a cultic pole set up next to an altar symbolizing the goddess Asherah
- Judges 6:29 Literally “And each man to his neighbor said”
- Judges 6:31 Or “who arrayed against him”
- Judges 6:31 Literally “because he has pulled down his altar”; the subject in Hebrew has not been specified
- Judges 6:32 That is, Gideon
- Judges 6:32 Literally “saying”
- Judges 6:33 Hebrew “Midianite”
- Judges 6:33 Hebrew “Amalekite”
- Judges 6:34 Literally “clothed”
- Judges 6:34 Hebrew “Abiezerite”
- Judges 6:39 Literally “Do not let your nose become hot”
Judges 6
Christian Standard Bible
Midian Oppresses Israel
6 The Israelites did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.(A) So the Lord handed(B) them over to Midian seven years, 2 and they oppressed Israel.(C) Because of Midian, the Israelites made hiding places(D) for themselves in the mountains, caves, and strongholds. 3 Whenever the Israelites planted crops, the Midianites, Amalekites, and the people of the east(E) came and attacked them. 4 They encamped against them and destroyed the produce of the land, even as far as Gaza. They left nothing for Israel to eat, as well as no sheep, ox, or donkey. 5 For the Midianites came with their cattle and their tents like a great swarm of locusts.(F) They and their camels were without number, and they entered the land to lay waste to it. 6 So Israel became poverty-stricken because of Midian, and the Israelites cried out to the Lord.(G)
7 When the Israelites cried out to him because of Midian, 8 the Lord sent a prophet(H) to them. He said to them, “This is what the Lord(I) God of Israel says: ‘I brought you out of Egypt and out of the place of slavery.(J) 9 I rescued you from the power of Egypt and the power of all who oppressed(K) you. I drove them out before you and gave you their land. 10 I said to you: I am the Lord your God. Do not fear the gods of the Amorites whose land you live in.(L) But you did not obey me.’”
The Lord Calls Gideon
11 The angel of the Lord(M) came, and he sat under the oak that was in Ophrah,(N) which belonged to Joash, the Abiezrite. His son Gideon was threshing wheat in the winepress in order to hide it from the Midianites. 12 Then the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, “The Lord is with you, valiant warrior.”(O)
13 Gideon said to him, “Please, my lord, if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened? And where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about? They said, ‘Hasn’t the Lord brought us out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and handed us over to Midian.”
14 The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and deliver Israel from the grasp of Midian. I am sending you!” (P)
15 He said to him, “Please, Lord, how can I deliver Israel? Look, my family is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father’s family.”
16 “But I will be with you,”(Q) the Lord said to him. “You will strike Midian down as if it were one man.”
17 Then he said to him, “If I have found favor with you,(R) give me a sign(S) that you are speaking with me. 18 Please do not leave this place until I return to you. Let me bring my gift and set it before you.”
And he said, “I will stay until you return.”
19 So Gideon went and prepared a young goat and unleavened bread from a half bushel[a] of flour. He placed the meat in a basket and the broth in a pot. He brought them out and offered them to him under the oak.
20 The angel of God(T) said to him, “Take the meat with the unleavened bread, put it on this stone, and pour the broth on it.” So he did that.
21 The angel of the Lord extended the tip of the staff that was in his hand and touched the meat and the unleavened bread. Fire came up from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened bread. Then the angel of the Lord vanished from his sight.
22 When Gideon realized that he was the angel of the Lord, he said, “Oh no, Lord God!(U) I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face!” (V)
23 But the Lord said to him, “Peace to you. Don’t be afraid, for you will not die.” 24 So Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and called it The Lord Is Peace.[b] It is still in Ophrah of the Abiezrites today.
Gideon Tears Down a Baal Altar
25 On that very night the Lord said to him, “Take your father’s young bull and a second bull seven years old. Then tear down the altar of Baal(W) that belongs to your father and cut down the Asherah pole beside it. 26 Build a well-constructed altar to the Lord your God on the top of this mound.(X) Take the second bull and offer it as a burnt offering with the wood of the Asherah pole you cut down.” 27 So Gideon took ten of his male servants and did as the Lord had told him. But because he was too afraid of his father’s family and the men of the city to do it in the daytime, he did it at night.
28 When the men of the city got up in the morning, they found Baal’s altar torn down, the Asherah pole beside it cut down, and the second bull offered up on the altar that had been built. 29 They said to each other, “Who did this?” After they made a thorough investigation, they said, “Gideon son of Joash did it.”
30 Then the men of the city said to Joash, “Bring out your son. He must die, because he tore down Baal’s altar and cut down the Asherah pole beside it.”
31 But Joash said to all who stood against him, “Would you plead Baal’s case for him? Would you save him? Whoever pleads his case will be put to death by morning! If he is a god, let him plead his own case because someone tore down his altar.” 32 That day Gideon was called Jerubbaal, since Joash said, “Let Baal contend with him,” because he tore down his altar.
The Sign of the Fleece
33 All the Midianites, Amalekites, and people of the east gathered together, crossed over the Jordan, and camped in the Jezreel Valley.(Y)
34 The Spirit of the Lord enveloped[c] Gideon,(Z) and he blew the ram’s horn and the Abiezrites rallied behind him. 35 He sent messengers throughout all of Manasseh, who rallied behind him. He also sent messengers throughout Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, who also came to meet him.
36 Then Gideon said to God, “If you will deliver Israel by me, as you said, 37 I will put a wool fleece here on the threshing floor. If dew is only on the fleece, and all the ground is dry, I will know that you will deliver Israel by me, as you said.” 38 And that is what happened. When he got up early in the morning, he squeezed the fleece and wrung dew out of it, filling a bowl with water.
39 Gideon then said to God, “Don’t be angry with me; let me speak one more time. Please allow me to make one more test with the fleece. Let it remain dry, and the dew be all over the ground.” 40 That night God did as Gideon requested: only the fleece was dry, and dew was all over the ground.
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