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Judges 6
Complete Jewish Bible
Judges 6
Complete Jewish Bible
6 But the people of Isra’el did what was evil from Adonai’s perspective, so Adonai handed them over to Midyan for seven years. 2 Midyan exercised its power harshly against Isra’el, and because of Midyan the people of Isra’el hid themselves in mountains, in caves and in other safe places. 3 One time, after Isra’el’s sowing season, Midyan, with ‘Amalek and others from the east, attacked them. 4 They set up camp by them and destroyed the produce of the country all the way to ‘Azah; they left nothing for people to live on, no sheep, no oxen, no donkeys. 5 For they came up with their cattle and tents, and they came in as thick as locusts; both they and their camels were beyond numbering, and they came into the land to destroy it. 6 Isra’el became very discouraged because of Midyan, and the people of Isra’el cried out to Adonai.
7 When the people of Isra’el cried out to Adonai because of Midyan, 8 Adonai sent a prophet to the people of Isra’el, who said to them: “Adonai the God of Isra’el says, ‘I brought you up from Egypt, out of a life of slavery. 9 I delivered you from the power of the Egyptians and from the power of all your oppressors. I drove them out ahead of you and gave you their land. 10 And I said to you: “I am Adonai your God; you are not to be afraid of the gods of the Emori in whose land you are living.” But you paid no attention to what I said!’”
11 Then the angel of Adonai came and sat under the pistachio tree in ‘Ofrah that belonged to Yo’ash the Avi‘ezri. His son Gid‘on was threshing wheat in the winepress, in order to hide it from Midyan. 12 The angel of Adonai appeared to him and said to him: “You valiant hero! Adonai is with you!” 13 “Excuse me, sir,” answered Gid‘on, “but if Adonai is with us, then why is all this happening to us? And where are all his miracles our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Didn’t Adonai bring us up from Egypt?’ For now Adonai has abandoned us and handed us over to Midyan.” 14 Adonai turned to him and said, “Go in this strength of yours and save Isra’el from the hands of Midyan. Haven’t I sent you?” 15 But Gid‘on answered him, “Forgive me, my Lord, but with what am I to save Isra’el? Why, my family is the poorest in M’nasheh, and I’m the youngest person in my father’s house!” 16 Adonai said to him, “Because I will be with you, you will strike down Midyan as easily as if they were just one man.” 17 Gid‘on replied, “If indeed you favor me, would you mind giving me a sign that it is really you talking with me? 18 Please don’t leave until I go and return with a gift and present it to you.” He replied, “I’ll wait till you come back.”
19 Gid‘on went in, cooked a young goat and made matzot from a bushel of flour. He put the meat in a basket and the broth in a pot, brought them out to him under the pistachio tree and presented them. 20 The angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and matzot, lay them on this rock, and pour out the broth.” Gid‘on did so. 21 Then the angel of Adonai reached out with the stick he was holding, touched the meat and matzot, and fire shot up out of the rock and burned up the meat and matzot. Then the angel of Adonai disappeared before his eyes. 22 Gid‘on realized that he was the angel of Adonai and said, “Oh no! My Lord! Adonai! Because I’ve seen the angel of Adonai face-to-face!” 23 But Adonai reassured him, “Shalom to you, don’t be afraid, you won’t die!” 24 Then Gid‘on built an altar there to Adonai and called it “Adonai-Shalom”; to this day it remains in ‘Ofrah of the Avi‘ezri.
25 That very night Adonai said to him, “Take your father’s bull and the other bull, the seven-year-old. Destroy the altar to Ba‘al that belongs to your father, cut down the sacred pole next to it, 26 and build a proper altar to Adonai your God on top of this strong-point. Then take the second bull; and offer it as a burnt offering, using the wood of the sacred pole you cut down.” 27 Gid‘on took ten of his servants and did what Adonai had told him to do. He didn’t do it by day, because he was afraid of the men in his father’s household and those from the city, so he did it at night. 28 When the men of the city got up the next morning, there was the altar of Ba‘al destroyed, the sacred pole cut down, and the second bull a burnt offering on the newly built altar. 29 They asked each other, “Who could have done this?” But after investigating, they concluded that Gid‘on the son of Yo’ash had done it. 30 “Bring out your son,” the men of the city demanded of Yo’ash, “so that he may die, because he destroyed the altar of Ba‘al and cut down the sacred pole next to it!” 31 But Yo’ash said to all those crowding around him, “You’re defending Ba‘al, are you? It’s your job to save him? Anyone who defends Ba‘al will be put to death before morning! If he’s a god, let him defend himself! After all, somebody destroyed his altar!” 32 Therefore on that day Gid‘on was given the name Yeruba‘al [let Ba‘al defend], because they said, “Let Ba‘al defend himself against him, since he destroyed his altar.”
33 Now all Midyan, ‘Amalek and the others from the east joined forces, crossed the Yarden, and set up camp in the Yizre‘el Valley. 34 But the Spirit of Adonai covered Gid‘on. He sounded the call on the shofar, and Avi‘ezer rallied behind him. 35 He sent messengers throughout all M’nasheh, and they too rallied behind him. He also sent messengers to Asher, Z’vulun and Naftali; and they came up to join them.
36 Gid‘on said to God, “If you are going to save Isra’el through me, as you said you would, 37 then, here: I will lay a wool fleece on the threshing-floor; if there is dew on the fleece only, while all the ground stays dry, I will be convinced that you will save Isra’el through me, as you said you would.” 38 And it happened! He got up early in the morning, pressed the fleece together and wrung dew out of it, a bowlful of water. 39 But Gid‘on said to God, “Don’t be angry with me because I am asking one more thing, let me make one more test, please: this time let it be dry only on the fleece, with dew all over the ground.” 40 And that is what God did that night — it was dry only on the fleece, even though there was dew all over the ground.
Judges 6
Revised Geneva Translation
Judges 6
Revised Geneva Translation
6 Afterward, the children of Israel committed wickedness in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD gave them into the hands of Midian for seven years.
2 And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. Because of the Midianites, the children of Israel made themselves dens in the mountains and caves and strongholds.
3 Whenever Israel had sown, then the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and those from the East, and came upon them,
4 and camped by them and destroyed the fruit of the earth as far as Gaza, and left no food for Israel, neither sheep nor ox nor donkey.
5 For they and their cattle went up and came with their tents, as grasshoppers in multitude, so that they and their camels were without number. And they came into the land, to destroy it.
6 So was Israel exceedingly impoverished by the Midianites. Therefore, the children of Israel cried to the LORD.
7 And when the children of Israel cried to the LORD because of the Midianites,
8 the LORD sent a Prophet to the children of Israel, who said to them, “Thus says the LORD God of Israel: ‘I have brought you up from Egypt and have brought you out of the house of bondage.
9 ‘And I have delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of all who oppressed you and have cast them out before you and given you their land.
10 ‘And I said to you, “I am the LORD your God. Do not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell.” But you have not obeyed My Voice.’”
11 And the Angel of the LORD came and sat under the oak which was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash, the father of the Abiezrites. And his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.
12 Then the Angel of the LORD appeared to him and said to him, “The LORD is with you, you valiant man.”
13 To whom Gideon answered, “Ah, my Lord! If the LORD is with us, why then has all this come upon us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us of, and said, ‘Did not the LORD bring us out of Egypt?’ But now the LORD has forsaken us and delivered us into the hand of the Midianites.”
14 And the LORD looked upon him, and said, “Go in this, your might. And you shall save Israel out of the hands of the Midianites. Have not I sent you?”
15 And he answered him, “Ah, my Lord, how shall I save Israel? Behold, my father is poor in Manasseh. And I am the least in my father’s house.”
16 Then the LORD said to him, “I will, therefore, be with you; and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.”
17 And he answered him, “Please, if I have found favor in Your sight, then show me a sign, that You are talking with me.
18 “Please do not depart from here until I come to You and bring my offering and lay it before You.” And he said, “I will wait until You come back.”
19 Then Gideon went in and prepared a kid, and unleavened bread of an ephah of flour, and put the flesh in a basket, and put the broth in a pot, and brought it out to Him under the oak, and presented it.
20 And the Angel of God said to him, “Take the flesh and the unleavened bread and lay them upon this stone and pour out the broth.” And he did so.
21 Then the Angel of the LORD put forth the end of the staff that he held in his hand and touched the flesh and the unleavened bread. And fire rose up out of the stone and consumed the flesh and the unleavened bread. So the Angel of the LORD departed out of his sight.
22 And when Gideon perceived that it was an Angel of the LORD, Gideon then said, “Alas, my Lord GOD! I have seen an Angel of the LORD face to face!
23 And the LORD said to him, “Peace be to you. Do not fear; you shall not die.”
24 Then Gideon made an Altar there to the LORD and called it Jehovah Shalom. To this day it is in Ophrah, of the father of the Abiezrites.
25 And the same night, the LORD said to him, “Take your father’s young bullock, and another bullock of seven years old, and destroy the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the grove that is by it,
26 “and build an Altar to the LORD your God upon the top of this rock, in a plain place. And take the second bullock and offer a Burnt Offering with the wood of the grove which you shall cut down.”
27 Then Gideon took ten men from his servants and did as the LORD bade him. But because he feared to do it by day because of his father’s household and the men of the city, he did it by night.
28 And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was broken, and the grove that was next to it was cut down. And the second bullock was offered upon the Altar that was made.
29 Therefore, they said one to another, “Who has done this thing?” And when they inquired and asked, they said, “Gideon, the son of Joash, has done this thing.”
30 Then, the men of the city said to Joash, “Bring out your son, so that he may die! For he has destroyed the altar of Baal and has also cut down the grove that was by it!”
31 And Joash said to all who stood by him, “Will you plead Baal’s cause? Or will you save him? He who will contend for him, let him die by the morning. If he is a god, let him plead for himself against him who has cast down his altar.”
32 And on that day, Gideon was called “Jerubbaal”; that is, “Let Baal plead for himself because he has broken down his altar.”
33 Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and those from the East were gathered together and went and pitched in the valley of Jezreel.
34 But the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon; and he blew a trumpet, and Abiezer joined with him.
35 And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh, which had also joined with him. And he sent messengers to Asher and to Zebulun and to Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.
36 Then Gideon said to God, “If You will save Israel by my hand, as You have said,
37 “behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the threshing place. If the dew appears on the fleece only and it is dry upon the earth, then I shall be sure that You will save Israel by my hand, as You have said.”
38 And so it was. For he rose up early the next day and squeezed the fleece together and wrung the dew out of the fleece and filled a bowl of water.
39 Again, Gideon said to God, “Do not be angry with me, so that I may speak once more. Please let me test once again with the fleece. Let it now be dry only upon the fleece and let dew be upon all the ground.”
40 And God did so the same night. For it was dry upon the fleece only and there was dew on all the ground.
Judges 6
New International Version
Judges 6
New International Version
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)
Footnotes
- Judges 6:19 That is, probably about 36 pounds or about 16 kilograms
- Judges 6:25 Or Take a full-grown, mature bull from your father’s herd
- Judges 6:25 That is, a wooden symbol of the goddess Asherah; also in verses 26, 28 and 30
- Judges 6:26 Or build with layers of stone an
- Judges 6:26 Or full-grown; also in verse 28
- Judges 6:32 Jerub-Baal probably means let Baal contend.
Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.
Revised Geneva Translation (RGT)
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