⁴ And Gideon came to the Jordan and crossed over, he and ^(A)the 300 men who were with him, exhausted yet pursuing. ⁵ So he said to the men of ^(B)Succoth, “Please give loaves of bread to the people who follow me, for they are exhausted, and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian.” ⁶ And the officials of Succoth said, ^(C)“Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna already in your hand, ^(D)that we should give bread to your army?” ⁷ So Gideon said, “Well then, when the Lord has given Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, ^(E)I will flail your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness and with briers.” ⁸ And from there he went up to ^(F)Penuel, and spoke to them in the same way, and the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had answered. ⁹ And he said to the men of Penuel, ^(G)“When I come again in peace, ^(H)I will break down this tower.”

¹⁰ Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor with their army, about 15,000 men, all who were left of all the army of ^(I)the people of the East, for there had fallen 120,000 men ^(J)who drew the sword. ¹¹ And Gideon went up by the way of the tent dwellers east of ^(K)Nobah and Jogbehah and attacked the army, for the army felt ^(L)secure. ¹² And Zebah and Zalmunna fled, and he pursued them ^(M)and captured the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and he threw all the army into a panic.

¹³ Then Gideon the son of Joash returned from the battle by the ascent of Heres. ¹⁴ And he captured a young man of Succoth and questioned him. And he wrote down for him the officials and elders of Succoth, seventy-seven men. ¹⁵ And he came to the men of Succoth and said, “Behold Zebah and Zalmunna, about whom you taunted me, saying, ^(N)‘Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna already in your hand, that we should give bread to your men who are exhausted?’” ¹⁶ And he took the elders of the city, and he took thorns of the wilderness and briers and with them taught the men of Succoth a lesson.