The Song of Deborah

Then Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam (A)sang on that day, saying:

“When[a] leaders (B)lead in Israel,
(C)When the people [b]willingly offer themselves,
Bless the Lord!

“Hear,(D) O kings! Give ear, O princes!
I, even (E)I, will sing to the Lord;
I will sing praise to the Lord God of Israel.

Lord, (F)when You went out from Seir,
When You marched from (G)the field of Edom,
The earth trembled and the heavens poured,
The clouds also poured water;
(H)The mountains [c]gushed before the Lord,
(I)This Sinai, before the Lord God of Israel.

“In the days of (J)Shamgar, son of Anath,
In the days of (K)Jael,
(L)The highways were deserted,
And the travelers walked along the byways.
Village life ceased, it ceased in Israel,
Until I, Deborah, arose,
Arose a mother in Israel.
They chose (M)new gods;
Then there was war in the gates;
Not a shield or spear was seen among forty thousand in Israel.
My heart is with the rulers of Israel
Who offered themselves willingly with the people.
Bless the Lord!

10 “Speak, you who ride on white (N)donkeys,
Who sit in judges’ attire,
And who walk along the road.
11 Far from the noise of the archers, among the watering places,
There they shall recount the righteous acts of the Lord,
The righteous acts for His villagers in Israel;
Then the people of the Lord shall go down to the gates.

12 “Awake,(O) awake, Deborah!
Awake, awake, sing a song!
Arise, Barak, and lead your captives away,
O son of Abinoam!

13 “Then the survivors came down, the people against the nobles;
The Lord came down for me against the mighty.
14 From Ephraim were those whose roots were in (P)Amalek.
After you, Benjamin, with your peoples,
From Machir rulers came down,
And from Zebulun those who bear the recruiter’s staff.
15 And [d]the princes of Issachar were with Deborah;
As Issachar, so was Barak
Sent into the valley [e]under his command;
Among the divisions of Reuben
There were great resolves of heart.
16 Why did you sit among the sheepfolds,
To hear the pipings for the flocks?
The divisions of Reuben have great searchings of heart.
17 (Q)Gilead stayed beyond the Jordan,
And why did Dan remain [f]on ships?
(R)Asher continued at the seashore,
And stayed by his inlets.
18 (S)Zebulun is a people who jeopardized their lives to the point of death,
Naphtali also, on the heights of the battlefield.

19 “The kings came and fought,
Then the kings of Canaan fought
In (T)Taanach, by the waters of Megiddo;
They took no spoils of silver.
20 They fought from the heavens;
The stars from their courses fought against Sisera.
21 (U)The torrent of Kishon swept them away,
That ancient torrent, the torrent of Kishon.
O my soul, march on in strength!
22 Then the horses’ hooves pounded,
The galloping, galloping of his steeds.
23 ‘Curse Meroz,’ said the [g]angel of the Lord,
‘Curse its inhabitants bitterly,
Because they did not come to the help of the Lord,
To the help of the Lord against the mighty.’

24 “Most blessed among women is Jael,
The wife of Heber the Kenite;
(V)Blessed is she among women in tents.
25 He asked for water, she gave milk;
She brought out cream in a lordly bowl.
26 She stretched her hand to the tent peg,
Her right hand to the workmen’s hammer;
She pounded Sisera, she pierced his head,
She split and struck through his temple.
27 At her feet he sank, he fell, he lay still;
At her feet he sank, he fell;
Where he sank, there he fell (W)dead.

28 “The mother of Sisera looked through the window,
And cried out through the lattice,
‘Why is his chariot so long in coming?
Why tarries the clatter of his chariots?’
29 Her wisest [h]ladies answered her,
Yes, she [i]answered herself,
30 ‘Are they not finding and dividing the spoil:
To every man a girl or two;
For Sisera, plunder of dyed garments,
Plunder of garments embroidered and dyed,
Two pieces of dyed embroidery for the neck of the looter?’

31 “Thus let all Your enemies (X)perish, O Lord!
But let those who love Him be (Y)like the (Z)sun
When it comes out in full (AA)strength.”

So the land had rest for forty years.

Midianites Oppress Israel

Then the children of Israel did (AB)evil in the sight of the Lord. So the Lord delivered them into the hand of (AC)Midian for seven years, and the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. Because of the Midianites, the children of Israel made for themselves the dens, (AD)the caves, and the strongholds which are in the mountains. So it was, whenever Israel had sown, Midianites would come up; also Amalekites and the (AE)people of the East would come up against them. Then they would encamp against them and (AF)destroy the produce of the earth as far as Gaza, and leave no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep nor ox nor (AG)donkey. For they would come up with their livestock and their tents, coming in as numerous as locusts; both they and their camels were [j]without number; and they would enter the land to destroy it. So Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites, and the children of Israel (AH)cried out to the Lord.

And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried out to the Lord because of the Midianites, that the Lord sent a prophet to the children of Israel, who said to them, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘I brought you up from Egypt and brought you out of the (AI)house of [k]bondage; and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of all who oppressed you, and (AJ)drove them out before you and gave you their land. 10 Also I said to you, “I am the Lord your God; (AK)do not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell.” But you have not obeyed My (AL)voice.’ ”

Gideon

11 Now the Angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth tree which was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash (AM)the Abiezrite, while his son (AN)Gideon threshed wheat in the winepress, in order to hide it from the Midianites. 12 And the (AO)Angel of the Lord appeared to him, and said to him, “The Lord is (AP)with you, you mighty man of valor!”

13 Gideon said to Him, “O [l]my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And (AQ)where are all His miracles (AR)which our fathers told us about, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has (AS)forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.”

14 Then the Lord turned to him and said, (AT)“Go in this might of yours, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. (AU)Have I not sent you?”

15 So he said to Him, “O [m]my Lord, how can I save Israel? Indeed (AV)my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.”

16 And the Lord said to him, (AW)“Surely I will be with you, and you shall [n]defeat the Midianites as one man.”

17 Then he said to Him, “If now I have found favor in Your sight, then (AX)show me a sign that it is You who talk with me. 18 (AY)Do not depart from here, I pray, until I come to You and bring out my offering and set it before You.”

And He said, “I will wait until you come back.”

19 (AZ)So Gideon went in and prepared a young goat, and unleavened bread from an ephah of flour. The meat he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot; and he brought them out to Him under the terebinth tree and presented them. 20 The Angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened bread and (BA)lay them on this rock, and (BB)pour out the broth.” And he did so.

21 Then the Angel of the Lord put out the end of the staff that was in His hand, and touched the meat and the unleavened bread; and (BC)fire rose out of the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened bread. And the Angel of the Lord departed out of his sight.

22 Now Gideon (BD)perceived that He was the Angel of the Lord. So Gideon said, “Alas, O Lord God! (BE)For I have seen the Angel of the Lord face to face.”

23 Then the Lord said to him, (BF)“Peace be with you; do not fear, you shall not die.” 24 So Gideon built an altar there to the Lord, and called it [o]The-Lord-Is-Peace. To this day it is still (BG)in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

25 Now it came to pass the same night that the Lord said to him, “Take your father’s young bull, the second bull of seven years old, and (BH)tear down the altar of (BI)Baal that your father has, and (BJ)cut down the [p]wooden image that is beside it; 26 and build an altar to the Lord your God on top of this [q]rock in the proper arrangement, and take the second bull and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the image which you shall cut down.” 27 So Gideon took ten men from among his servants and did as the Lord had said to him. But because he feared his father’s household and the men of the city too much to do it by day, he did it by night.

Gideon Destroys the Altar of Baal

28 And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, there was the altar of Baal, torn down; and the wooden image that was beside it was cut down, and the second bull was being offered on the altar which had been built. 29 So they said to one another, “Who has done this thing?” And when they had 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, that he may die, because he has torn down the altar of Baal, and because he has cut down the wooden image that was beside it.”

31 But Joash said to all who stood against him, “Would you [r]plead for Baal? Would you save him? Let the one who would plead for him be put to death by morning! If he is a god, let him plead for himself, because his altar has been torn down!” 32 Therefore on that day he called him (BK)Jerubbaal,[s] saying, “Let Baal plead against him, because he has torn down his altar.”

33 Then all (BL)the Midianites and Amalekites, the people of the East, gathered together; and they crossed over and encamped in (BM)the Valley of Jezreel. 34 But (BN)the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon; then he (BO)blew the trumpet, and the Abiezrites gathered behind him. 35 And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh, who also gathered behind him. He also sent messengers to (BP)Asher, (BQ)Zebulun, and Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.

The Sign of the Fleece

36 So Gideon said to God, “If You will save Israel by my hand as You have said— 37 (BR)look, I shall put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor; if there is dew on the fleece only, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall know that You will save Israel by my hand, as You have said.” 38 And it was so. When he rose early the next morning and squeezed the fleece together, he wrung the dew out of the fleece, a bowlful of water. 39 Then Gideon said to God, (BS)“Do not be angry with me, but let me speak just once more: Let me test, I pray, just once more with the fleece; let it now be dry only on the fleece, but on all the ground let there be dew.” 40 And God did so that night. It was dry on the fleece only, but there was dew on all the ground.

Gideon’s Valiant Three Hundred

Then (BT)Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) and all the people who were with him rose early and encamped beside the well of Harod, so that the camp of the Midianites was on the north side of them by the hill of Moreh in the valley.

And the Lord said to Gideon, “The people who are with you are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel (BU)claim glory for itself against Me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’ Now therefore, proclaim in the hearing of the people, saying, (BV)‘Whoever is fearful and afraid, let him turn and depart at once from Mount Gilead.’ ” And twenty-two thousand of the people returned, and ten thousand remained.

But the Lord said to Gideon, “The people are still too many; bring them down to the water, and I will test them for you there. Then it will be, that of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you,’ the same shall go with you; and of whomever I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ the same shall not go.” So he brought the people down to the water. And the Lord said to Gideon, “Everyone who laps from the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set apart by himself; likewise everyone who gets down on his knees to drink.” And the number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people got down on their knees to drink water. Then the Lord said to Gideon, (BW)“By the three hundred men who lapped I will save you, and deliver the Midianites into your hand. Let all the other people go, every man to his [t]place.” So the people took provisions and their trumpets in their hands. And he sent away all the rest of Israel, every man to his tent, and retained those three hundred men. Now the camp of Midian was below him in the valley.

It happened on the same (BX)night that the Lord said to him, “Arise, go down against the camp, for I have delivered it into your hand. 10 But if you are afraid to go down, go down to the camp with Purah your servant, 11 and you shall (BY)hear what they say; and afterward [u]your hands shall be strengthened to go down against the camp.” Then he went down with Purah his servant to the outpost of the armed men who were in the camp. 12 Now the Midianites and Amalekites, (BZ)all the people of the East, were lying in the valley (CA)as numerous as locusts; and their camels were [v]without number, as the sand by the seashore in multitude.

13 And when Gideon had come, there was a man telling a dream to his companion. He said, “I have had a dream: To my surprise, a loaf of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian; it came to a tent and struck it so that it fell and overturned, and the tent collapsed.”

14 Then his companion answered and said, “This is nothing else but the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel! Into his hand (CB)God has delivered Midian and the whole camp.”

15 And so it was, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, that he worshiped. He returned to the camp of Israel, and said, “Arise, for the Lord has delivered the camp of Midian into your hand.” 16 Then he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put a trumpet into every man’s hand, with empty pitchers, and torches inside the pitchers. 17 And he said to them, “Look at me and do likewise; watch, and when I come to the edge of the camp you shall do as I do: 18 When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me, then you also blow the trumpets on every side of the whole camp, and say, ‘The sword of the Lord and of Gideon!’ ”

19 So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outpost of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just as they had posted the watch; and they blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers that were in their hands. 20 Then the three companies blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers—they held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands for blowing—and they cried, “The sword of the Lord and of Gideon!” 21 And (CC)every man stood in his place all around the camp; (CD)and the whole army ran and cried out and fled. 22 When the three hundred (CE)blew the trumpets, (CF)the Lord set (CG)every man’s sword against his companion throughout the whole camp; and the army fled to [w]Beth Acacia, toward Zererah, as far as the border of (CH)Abel Meholah, by Tabbath.

23 And the men of Israel gathered together from (CI)Naphtali, Asher, and all Manasseh, and pursued the Midianites.

24 Then Gideon sent messengers throughout all the (CJ)mountains of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against the Midianites, and seize from them the watering places as far as Beth Barah and the Jordan.” Then all the men of Ephraim gathered together and (CK)seized the watering places as far as (CL)Beth Barah and the Jordan. 25 And they captured (CM)two princes of the Midianites, (CN)Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb they killed at the winepress of Zeeb. They pursued Midian and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon on the (CO)other side of the Jordan.

Gideon Subdues the Midianites

Now (CP)the men of Ephraim said to him, “Why have you done this to us by not calling us when you went to fight with the Midianites?” And they reprimanded him sharply.

So he said to them, “What have I done now in comparison with you? Is not the [x]gleaning of the grapes of Ephraim better than [y]the vintage of (CQ)Abiezer? (CR)God has delivered into your hands the princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb. And what was I able to do in comparison with you?” Then their (CS)anger toward him subsided when he said that.

When Gideon came (CT)to the Jordan, he and (CU)the three hundred men who were with him crossed over, exhausted but still in pursuit. Then he said to the men of (CV)Succoth, “Please give loaves of bread to the people who follow me, for they are exhausted, and I am pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, kings of Midian.”

And the leaders of Succoth said, (CW)Are[z] the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in your hand, that (CX)we should give bread to your army?”

So Gideon said, “For this cause, when the Lord has delivered Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, (CY)then I will tear your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness and with briers!” Then he went up from there (CZ)to Penuel and spoke to them in the same way. And the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had answered. So he also spoke to the men of Penuel, saying, “When I (DA)come back in peace, (DB)I will tear down this tower!”

10 Now Zebah and Zalmunna were at Karkor, and their armies with them, about fifteen thousand, all who were left of (DC)all the army of the people of the East; for (DD)one hundred and twenty thousand men who drew the sword had fallen. 11 Then Gideon went up by the road of those who dwell in tents on the east of (DE)Nobah and Jogbehah; and he [aa]attacked the army while the camp felt (DF)secure. 12 When Zebah and Zalmunna fled, he pursued them; and he (DG)took the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and routed the whole army.

13 Then Gideon the son of Joash returned from battle, from the Ascent of Heres. 14 And he caught a young man of the men of Succoth and interrogated him; and he wrote down for him the leaders of Succoth and its elders, seventy-seven men. 15 Then he came to the men of Succoth and said, “Here are Zebah and Zalmunna, about whom you (DH)ridiculed me, saying, ‘Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in your hand, that we should give bread to your weary men?’ ” 16 (DI)And he took the elders of the city, and thorns of the wilderness and briers, and with them he [ab]taught the men of Succoth. 17 (DJ)Then he tore down the tower of (DK)Penuel and killed the men of the city.

18 And he said to Zebah and Zalmunna, “What kind of men were they whom you killed at (DL)Tabor?”

So they answered, “As you are, so were they; each one resembled the son of a king.”

19 Then he said, “They were my brothers, the sons of my mother. As the Lord lives, if you had let them live, I would not kill you.” 20 And he said to Jether his firstborn, “Rise, kill them!” But the youth would not draw his sword; for he was afraid, because he was still a youth.

21 So Zebah and Zalmunna said, “Rise yourself, and kill us; for as a man is, so is his strength.” So Gideon arose and (DM)killed Zebah and Zalmunna, and took the crescent ornaments that were on their camels’ necks.

Gideon’s Ephod

22 Then the men of Israel said to Gideon, (DN)“Rule over us, both you and your son, and your grandson also; for you have (DO)delivered us from the hand of Midian.”

23 But Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, nor shall my son rule over you; (DP)the Lord shall rule over you.” 24 Then Gideon said to them, “I would like to [ac]make a request of you, that each of you would give me the earrings from his plunder.” For they had golden earrings, (DQ)because they were Ishmaelites.

25 So they answered, “We will gladly give them.” And they spread out a garment, and each man threw into it the earrings from his plunder. 26 Now the weight of the gold earrings that he requested was one thousand seven hundred shekels of gold, besides the crescent ornaments, pendants, and purple robes which were on the kings of Midian, and besides the chains that were around their camels’ necks. 27 Then Gideon (DR)made it into an ephod and set it up in his city, (DS)Ophrah. And all Israel (DT)played the harlot with it there. It became (DU)a snare to Gideon and to his house.

28 Thus Midian was subdued before the children of Israel, so that they lifted their heads no more. (DV)And the country was quiet for forty years in the days of Gideon.

Death of Gideon

29 Then (DW)Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his own house. 30 Gideon had (DX)seventy sons who were his own offspring, for he had many wives. 31 (DY)And his concubine who was in Shechem also bore him a son, whose name he called Abimelech. 32 Now Gideon the son of Joash died (DZ)at a good old age, and was buried in the tomb of Joash his father, (EA)in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

33 So it was, (EB)as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel again (EC)played the harlot with the Baals, (ED)and made Baal-Berith their god. 34 Thus the children of Israel (EE)did not remember the Lord their God, who had delivered them from the hands of all their enemies on every side; 35 (EF)nor did they show kindness to the house of Jerubbaal (Gideon) in accordance with the good he had done for Israel.

Footnotes

  1. Judges 5:2 Or When locks are loosed
  2. Judges 5:2 volunteer
  3. Judges 5:5 flowed
  4. Judges 5:15 So with LXX, Syr., Tg., Vg.; MT And my princes in Issachar
  5. Judges 5:15 Lit. at his feet
  6. Judges 5:17 Or at ease
  7. Judges 5:23 Or Angel
  8. Judges 5:29 princesses
  9. Judges 5:29 Lit. repeats her words to herself
  10. Judges 6:5 innumerable
  11. Judges 6:8 slavery
  12. Judges 6:13 Heb. adoni, used of man
  13. Judges 6:15 Heb. Adonai, used of God
  14. Judges 6:16 Lit. strike
  15. Judges 6:24 Heb. YHWH Shalom
  16. Judges 6:25 Heb. Asherah, a Canaanite goddess
  17. Judges 6:26 stronghold
  18. Judges 6:31 contend
  19. Judges 6:32 Lit. Let Baal Plead
  20. Judges 7:7 home
  21. Judges 7:11 you shall be encouraged
  22. Judges 7:12 innumerable
  23. Judges 7:22 Heb. Beth Shittah
  24. Judges 8:2 Few grapes left after the harvest
  25. Judges 8:2 The whole harvest
  26. Judges 8:6 Lit. Is the palm
  27. Judges 8:11 Lit. struck
  28. Judges 8:16 disciplined
  29. Judges 8:24 Lit. request a request

The Song of Deborah

On that day Deborah(A) and Barak son of Abinoam(B) sang this song:(C)

“When the princes in Israel take the lead,
    when the people willingly offer(D) themselves—
    praise the Lord!(E)

“Hear this, you kings! Listen, you rulers!
    I, even I, will sing to[a] the Lord;(F)
    I will praise the Lord, the God of Israel, in song.(G)

“When you, Lord, went out(H) from Seir,(I)
    when you marched from the land of Edom,
the earth shook,(J) the heavens poured,
    the clouds poured down water.(K)
The mountains quaked(L) before the Lord, the One of Sinai,
    before the Lord, the God of Israel.

“In the days of Shamgar son of Anath,(M)
    in the days of Jael,(N) the highways(O) were abandoned;
    travelers took to winding paths.(P)
Villagers in Israel would not fight;
    they held back until I, Deborah,(Q) arose,
    until I arose, a mother in Israel.
God chose new leaders(R)
    when war came to the city gates,(S)
but not a shield or spear(T) was seen
    among forty thousand in Israel.
My heart is with Israel’s princes,
    with the willing volunteers(U) among the people.
    Praise the Lord!

10 “You who ride on white donkeys,(V)
    sitting on your saddle blankets,
    and you who walk along the road,
consider 11 the voice of the singers[b] at the watering places.
    They recite the victories(W) of the Lord,
    the victories of his villagers in Israel.

“Then the people of the Lord
    went down to the city gates.(X)
12 ‘Wake up,(Y) wake up, Deborah!(Z)
    Wake up, wake up, break out in song!
Arise, Barak!(AA)
    Take captive your captives,(AB) son of Abinoam.’

13 “The remnant of the nobles came down;
    the people of the Lord came down to me against the mighty.
14 Some came from Ephraim,(AC) whose roots were in Amalek;(AD)
    Benjamin(AE) was with the people who followed you.
From Makir(AF) captains came down,
    from Zebulun those who bear a commander’s[c] staff.
15 The princes of Issachar(AG) were with Deborah;(AH)
    yes, Issachar was with Barak,(AI)
    sent under his command into the valley.
In the districts of Reuben
    there was much searching of heart.
16 Why did you stay among the sheep pens[d](AJ)
    to hear the whistling for the flocks?(AK)
In the districts of Reuben
    there was much searching of heart.
17 Gilead(AL) stayed beyond the Jordan.
    And Dan, why did he linger by the ships?
Asher(AM) remained on the coast(AN)
    and stayed in his coves.
18 The people of Zebulun(AO) risked their very lives;
    so did Naphtali(AP) on the terraced fields.(AQ)

19 “Kings came(AR), they fought,
    the kings of Canaan fought.
At Taanach, by the waters of Megiddo,(AS)
    they took no plunder of silver.(AT)
20 From the heavens(AU) the stars fought,
    from their courses they fought against Sisera.
21 The river Kishon(AV) swept them away,
    the age-old river, the river Kishon.
    March on, my soul; be strong!(AW)
22 Then thundered the horses’ hooves—
    galloping, galloping go his mighty steeds.(AX)
23 ‘Curse Meroz,’ said the angel of the Lord.
    ‘Curse its people bitterly,
because they did not come to help the Lord,
    to help the Lord against the mighty.’

24 “Most blessed of women(AY) be Jael,(AZ)
    the wife of Heber the Kenite,(BA)
    most blessed of tent-dwelling women.
25 He asked for water, and she gave him milk;(BB)
    in a bowl fit for nobles she brought him curdled milk.
26 Her hand reached for the tent peg,
    her right hand for the workman’s hammer.
She struck Sisera, she crushed his head,
    she shattered and pierced his temple.(BC)
27 At her feet he sank,
    he fell; there he lay.
At her feet he sank, he fell;
    where he sank, there he fell—dead(BD).

28 “Through the window(BE) peered Sisera’s mother;
    behind the lattice she cried out,(BF)
‘Why is his chariot so long in coming?
    Why is the clatter of his chariots delayed?’
29 The wisest of her ladies answer her;
    indeed, she keeps saying to herself,
30 ‘Are they not finding and dividing the spoils:(BG)
    a woman or two for each man,
colorful garments as plunder for Sisera,
    colorful garments embroidered,
highly embroidered garments(BH) for my neck—
    all this as plunder?(BI)

31 “So may all your enemies perish,(BJ) Lord!
    But may all who love you be like the sun(BK)
    when it rises in its strength.”(BL)

Then the land had peace(BM) forty years.

Gideon

The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord,(BN) and for seven years he gave them into the hands of the Midianites.(BO) Because the power of Midian was so oppressive,(BP) the Israelites prepared shelters for themselves in mountain clefts, caves(BQ) and strongholds.(BR) Whenever the Israelites planted their crops, the Midianites, Amalekites(BS) and other eastern peoples(BT) invaded the country. They camped on the land and ruined the crops(BU) all the way to Gaza(BV) and did not spare a living thing for Israel, neither sheep nor cattle nor donkeys. They came up with their livestock and their tents like swarms of locusts.(BW) It was impossible to count them or their camels;(BX) they invaded the land to ravage it. Midian so impoverished the Israelites that they cried out(BY) to the Lord for help.

When the Israelites cried out(BZ) to the Lord because of Midian, he sent them a prophet,(CA) who said, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I brought you up out of Egypt,(CB) out of the land of slavery.(CC) I rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians. And I delivered you from the hand of all your oppressors;(CD) I drove them out before you and gave you their land.(CE) 10 I said to you, ‘I am the Lord your God; do not worship(CF) the gods of the Amorites,(CG) in whose land you live.’ But you have not listened to me.”

11 The angel of the Lord(CH) came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah(CI) that belonged to Joash(CJ) the Abiezrite,(CK) where his son Gideon(CL) was threshing(CM) wheat in a winepress(CN) to keep it from the Midianites. 12 When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you,(CO) mighty warrior.(CP)

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(CQ) that our ancestors told(CR) us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned(CS) us and given us into the hand of Midian.”

14 The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have(CT) and save(CU) 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(CV) is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.(CW)

16 The Lord answered, “I will be with you(CX), 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(CY) 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,(CZ) and from an ephah[e](DA) 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.(DB)

20 The angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened bread, place them on this rock,(DC) and pour out the broth.” And Gideon did so. 21 Then the angel of the Lord touched the meat and the unleavened bread(DD) with the tip of the staff(DE) 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(DF) that it was the angel of the Lord, he exclaimed, “Alas, Sovereign Lord! I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face!”(DG)

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

24 So Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and called(DJ) it The Lord Is Peace. To this day it stands in Ophrah(DK) 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.[f] Tear down your father’s altar to Baal and cut down the Asherah pole[g](DL) beside it. 26 Then build a proper kind of[h] 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[i] bull as a burnt offering.(DM)

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,(DN) 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(DO) 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(DP) 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?(DQ) 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[j](DR) that day, saying, “Let Baal contend with him.”

33 Now all the Midianites, Amalekites(DS) and other eastern peoples(DT) joined forces and crossed over the Jordan and camped in the Valley of Jezreel.(DU) 34 Then the Spirit of the Lord came on(DV) Gideon, and he blew a trumpet,(DW) summoning the Abiezrites(DX) to follow him. 35 He sent messengers throughout Manasseh, calling them to arms, and also into Asher,(DY) Zebulun and Naphtali,(DZ) so that they too went up to meet them.(EA)

36 Gideon said to God, “If you will save(EB) Israel by my hand as you have promised— 37 look, I will place a wool fleece(EC) on the threshing floor.(ED) If there is dew only on the fleece and all the ground is dry, then I will know(EE) 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.(EF) 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.(EG)

Gideon Defeats the Midianites

Early in the morning, Jerub-Baal(EH) (that is, Gideon(EI)) and all his men camped at the spring of Harod.(EJ) The camp of Midian(EK) was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh.(EL) 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(EM) has saved me.’ Now announce to the army, ‘Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.(EN)’” So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained.

But the Lord said to Gideon, “There are still too many(EO) 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.”

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.” Three hundred of them(EP) drank from cupped hands, lapping like dogs. All the rest got down on their knees to drink.

The Lord said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands.(EQ) Let all the others go home.”(ER) 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. 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.(ES) 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(ET) and all the other eastern peoples had settled in the valley, thick as locusts.(EU) Their camels(EV) could no more be counted than the sand on the seashore.(EW)

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,(EX) 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.(EY) He returned to the camp of Israel and called out, “Get up! The Lord has given the Midianite camp into your hands.”(EZ) 16 Dividing the three hundred men(FA) into three companies,(FB) he placed trumpets(FC) and empty jars(FD) in the hands of all of them, with torches(FE) 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,(FF) 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(FG) that were in their hands. 20 The three companies blew the trumpets and smashed the jars. Grasping the torches(FH) in their left hands and holding in their right hands the trumpets they were to blow, they shouted, “A sword(FI) 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.(FJ)

22 When the three hundred trumpets sounded,(FK) the Lord caused the men throughout the camp to turn on each other(FL) with their swords.(FM) The army fled to Beth Shittah toward Zererah as far as the border of Abel Meholah(FN) near Tabbath. 23 Israelites from Naphtali, Asher(FO) and all Manasseh were called out,(FP) and they pursued the Midianites.(FQ) 24 Gideon sent messengers throughout the hill country of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against the Midianites and seize the waters of the Jordan(FR) 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(FS). They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb,(FT) and Zeeb at the winepress of Zeeb. They pursued the Midianites(FU) and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon, who was by the Jordan.(FV)

Zebah and Zalmunna

Now the Ephraimites asked Gideon,(FW) “Why have you treated us like this? Why didn’t you call us when you went to fight Midian?(FX)(FY) And they challenged him vigorously.(FZ)

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?(GA) God gave Oreb and Zeeb,(GB) the Midianite leaders, into your hands. What was I able to do compared to you?” At this, their resentment against him subsided.

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

But the officials of Sukkoth(GG) said, “Do you already have the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna in your possession? Why should we give bread(GH) to your troops?”(GI)

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

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

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.(GM) 11 Gideon went up by the route of the nomads east of Nobah(GN) and Jogbehah(GO) 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(GP) then returned from the battle by the Pass of Heres.(GQ) 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,(GR) the elders(GS) 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?(GT)’” 16 He took the elders of the town and taught the men of Sukkoth a lesson(GU) by punishing them with desert thorns and briers. 17 He also pulled down the tower of Peniel(GV) and killed the men of the town.(GW)

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

“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,(GY) 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(GZ) 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(HA) over you.” 24 And he said, “I do have one request, that each of you give me an earring(HB) from your share of the plunder.(HC)” (It was the custom of the Ishmaelites(HD) 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,[l] not counting the ornaments, the pendants and the purple garments worn by the kings of Midian or the chains(HE) that were on their camels’ necks. 27 Gideon made the gold into an ephod,(HF) which he placed in Ophrah,(HG) his town. All Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it there, and it became a snare(HH) to Gideon and his family.(HI)

Gideon’s Death

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

29 Jerub-Baal(HL) son of Joash(HM) went back home to live. 30 He had seventy sons(HN) of his own, for he had many wives. 31 His concubine,(HO) who lived in Shechem, also bore him a son, whom he named Abimelek.(HP) 32 Gideon son of Joash died at a good old age(HQ) 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.(HR) They set up Baal-Berith(HS) as their god(HT) 34 and did not remember(HU) 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(HV) (that is, Gideon) in spite of all the good things he had done for them.(HW)

Footnotes

  1. Judges 5:3 Or of
  2. Judges 5:11 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  3. Judges 5:14 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  4. Judges 5:16 Or the campfires; or the saddlebags
  5. Judges 6:19 That is, probably about 36 pounds or about 16 kilograms
  6. Judges 6:25 Or Take a full-grown, mature bull from your father’s herd
  7. Judges 6:25 That is, a wooden symbol of the goddess Asherah; also in verses 26, 28 and 30
  8. Judges 6:26 Or build with layers of stone an
  9. Judges 6:26 Or full-grown; also in verse 28
  10. Judges 6:32 Jerub-Baal probably means let Baal contend.
  11. Judges 8:8 Hebrew Penuel, a variant of Peniel; also in verses 9 and 17
  12. Judges 8:26 That is, about 43 pounds or about 20 kilograms