Judges 8
8
1And the men of Ephraim said to him, What is this thing thou hast done to us, that thou calledst us not, when thou wentest to fight with Midian? And they disputed with him sharply. 2And he said to them, What have I done now in comparison with you? Are not the gleanings of Ephraim better than the vintage of Abi-ezer? 3Into your hands hath God#GodHebrew: Elohim delivered the princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb; and what was I able to do in comparison with you? Then their spirit was appeased toward him, when he said that word.
4And Gideon came to the Jordan, and passed over, he and the three hundred men that were with him, faint, yet pursuing. 5And he said to the men of Succoth, Give, I pray you, loaves of bread to the people that follow me, for they are faint; and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna, kings of Midian. 6And the chief men of Succoth said, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna already in thy hand, that we should give bread to thine army? 7And Gideon said, Therefore when Jehovah delivers Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, I will thresh your flesh with thorns of the wilderness and with briars. 8And he went up thence to Penuel, and spoke to them in like manner. And the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had answered. 9And he spoke also to the men of Penuel, saying, When I come again in peace, I will break down this tower. 10Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor, and their camp with them, about fifteen thousand men, all that were left of the whole camp of the children of the east; for there had fallen a hundred and twenty thousand men that drew sword. 11And Gideon went up by the way of them that dwell in tents on the east of Nobah and Jogbehah, and smote the camp; for the camp was at its ease. 12And Zebah and Zalmunna fled, and he pursued after them, and he took the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and discomfited all the camp. 13And Gideon the son of Joash returned from the battle, from the ascent of Heres. 14And he caught a youth of the men of Succoth, and inquired of him; and he wrote down for him the chief men of Succoth, and the elders thereof, seventy-seven men. 15And he came to the men of Succoth, and said, Behold Zebah and Zalmunna, with whom ye did upbraid me, saying, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna already in thy hand, that we should give bread to thy men that are weary? 16And he took the elders of the city, and thorns of the wilderness and briars, and with them he taught the men of Succoth. 17And he broke down the tower of Penuel, and slew the men of the city.
18Then said he to Zebah and Zalmunna, What sort of men were they that ye slew at Tabor? And they answered, As thou art, so were they; each one resembled the sons of a king. 19And he said, They were my brethren, the sons of my mother. As Jehovah liveth, if ye had saved them alive, I would not slay you. 20And he said to Jether his firstborn, Arise, slay them! But the youth drew not his sword; for he feared, because he was yet a youth. 21Then Zebah and Zalmunna said, Rise thou, and fall on us; for as is the man, so is his strength. And Gideon arose, and slew Zebah and Zalmunna; and he took the moons that were on their camels' necks.
22And the men of Israel said to Gideon, Rule over us, both thou, and thy son, and thy son's son also; for thou hast saved us from the hand of Midian. 23And Gideon said to them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you: Jehovah will rule over you. 24And Gideon said to them, I would desire a request of you: give me every man the earrings of his booty; for they had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites. 25And they said, We will willingly give them. And they spread a garment, and cast therein every man the earrings of his booty. 26And the weight of the golden earrings that he requested was a thousand seven hundred shekels of gold; besides the moons, and eardrops, and the purple garments that were on the kings of Midian, and besides the chains that were about their camels' necks. 27And Gideon made an ephod of them, and put it in his city, in Ophrah. And all Israel went thither a whoring after it; and it became a snare to Gideon, and to his house. 28And Midian was subdued before the children of Israel, and they lifted up their heads no more. And the land had rest forty years in the days of Gideon.
29And Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his house. 30Now Gideon had seventy sons who had come out of his loins, for he had many wives. 31And his concubine that was in Shechem, she also bore him a son, and he gave him the name of Abimelech. 32And Gideon the son of Joash died in a good old age, and was buried in the sepulchre of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abi-ezrites. 33And it came to pass when Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel turned again, and went a whoring after the Baals, and set up Baal-Berith as their god. 34And the children of Israel remembered not Jehovah their God#GodHebrew: Elohim who had delivered them out of the hand of all their enemies on every side. 35And they shewed no kindness to the house of Jerubbaal-Gideon, according to all the good that he had done to Israel.
Currently Selected:
Judges 8: DARBY
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
First published in 1890. This edition is maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.
Judges 8
8
1But the men were really upset with Gideon and complained, “When you went to war with Midian, you didn't ask us to help! Why did you treat us like that?”
2Gideon answered:
Don't be upset! Even though you came later, you were able to do much more than I did. It's just like the grape harvest: The grapes your tribe doesn't even bother to pick are better than the best grapes my family can grow. 3#Ps 83.11. Besides, God chose you to capture Raven and Wolf. I didn't do a thing compared to you.
By the time Gideon had finished talking, the men of Ephraim had calmed down and were no longer angry with him.
Gideon Finishes Destroying the Midianite Army
4After Gideon and his 300 troops had chased the Midianites across the Jordan River, they were exhausted. 5The town of Succoth was nearby, so he went there and asked, “Please give my troops some food. They are worn out, but we have to keep chasing Zebah and Zalmunna, the two Midianite kings.”
6The town leaders of Succoth answered, “Why should we feed your army? We don't know if you really will defeat Zebah and Zalmunna.”
7“Just wait!” Gideon said. “After the Lord helps me defeat them, I'm coming back here. I'll make a whip out of thorns and rip the flesh from your bones.”
8After leaving Succoth, Gideon went to Penuel and asked the leaders there for some food. But he got the same answer as he did at Succoth. 9“I'll come back safe and sound,” Gideon said, “but when I do, I'm going to tear down your tower!”#8.9 tower: Towers were often part of a town wall.
10Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor#8.10 Karkor: About 160 kilometers east of the Dead Sea. with an army of 15,000 troops. They were all that was left of the army of the eastern nations, because 120,000 of their warriors had been killed in the battle.
11Gideon reached the enemy camp by going east along Nomad#8.11 Nomad: A person who lives in a tent and moves from place to place. Road past Nobah and Jogbehah. He made a surprise attack, 12and the enemy panicked. Zebah and Zalmunna tried to escape, but Gideon chased and captured them.
13After the battle, Gideon set out for home. As he was going through Heres Pass, 14he caught a young man who lived in Succoth. Gideon asked him who the town officials of Succoth were, and the young man wrote down 77 names.
15Gideon went to the town officials and said, “Here are Zebah and Zalmunna. Remember how you made fun of me? You said, ‘We don't know if you really will defeat those two Midianite kings. So why should we feed your worn-out army?’ ”
16Gideon made a whip from thorn plants and used it to beat the town officials. 17Afterwards he went to Penuel, where he tore down the tower and killed all the town officials.#8.17 all … officials: Or “every man in town.”
18Then Gideon said, “Zebah and Zalmunna, tell me about the men you killed at Tabor.”
“They were a lot like you,” the two kings answered. “They were dignified, almost like royalty.”
19“They were my very own brothers!” Gideon said. “I swear by the living Lord that if you had let them live, I would let you live.”
20Gideon turned to Jether, his oldest son. “Kill them!” Gideon said.
But Jether was young,#8.20 young: Gideon wanted to insult the kings by having a young boy kill them. and he was too afraid to even pull out his sword.
21“What's the matter, Gideon?” Zebah and Zalmunna asked. “Do it yourself, if you're not too much of a coward!”
Gideon jumped up and killed them both. Then he took the gold ornaments from the necks of their camels.
The Israelites Ask Gideon To Be Their King
22After the battle with the Midianites, the Israelites said, “Gideon, you rescued us! Now we want you to be our king. Then after your death, your son and then your grandson will rule.”
23“No,” Gideon replied, “I won't be your king, and my son won't be king either. Only the Lord is your ruler. 24But I will ask you to do one thing: Give me all the earrings you took from the enemy.”
The enemy soldiers had been Ishmaelites,#8.24 Ishmaelites: According to Genesis 25.1,2, 12, both Ishmaelites and Midianites were descendants of Abraham. It is possible that in this passage “Ishmaelites” has the meaning “nomadic traders,” while “Midianites” (verses 22,26-29) refers to their ethnic origin. and they wore gold earrings.
25The Israelite soldiers replied, “Of course we will give you the earrings.” Then they spread out a robe on the ground and tossed the earrings on it. 26The total weight of this gold was nearly 20 kilograms. In addition, there was the gold from the camels' ornaments and from the beautiful jewelry worn by the Midianite kings. Gideon also took their purple robes.
27-29Gideon returned to his home in Ophrah and had the gold made into a statue, which the Israelites soon started worshiping. They were unfaithful to God, and even Gideon and his family were trapped into worshiping the statue.#8.27-29 statue … statue: Or “sacred priestly vest … vest.”
The Midianites had been defeated so badly that they were no longer strong enough to attack Israel. And so Israel was at peace for the remaining 40 years of Gideon's life.
Gideon Dies
30Gideon had many wives and 70 sons. 31He even had a wife#8.31 wife: This translates a Hebrew word for a woman who was legally bound to a man, but without the full privileges of a wife. who lived at Shechem.#8.31 who lived at Shechem: Sometimes marriages were arranged so that the wife lived with her parents, and the husband visited her from time to time. They had a son, and Gideon named him Abimelech.
32Gideon lived to be an old man. And when he died, he was buried in the family tomb in his hometown of Ophrah, which belonged to the Abiezer clan.
33Soon after Gideon's death, the Israelites turned their backs on God again. They set up idols of Baal and worshiped Baal Berith#8.33 Baal Berith: Or “Baal of the Agreement” or “the Lord of the Agreement.” as their god. 34The Israelites forgot that the Lord was their God, and that he had rescued them from the enemies who lived around them. 35Besides all that, the Israelites were unkind to Gideon's family, even though Gideon had done so much for Israel.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.