Dommer 6

1 Men da Israelitterne gjorde, hvad der var ondt i HERRENS Øjne, gav han dem syv År i Midjans Hånd.

And the children of Israel did the evil in the eyes of the Lord: and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years.

2 Og Midjan fik Overtaget over Israel. For at værge sig mod Midjan indrettede Israelitterne sig de Smuthuller, som findes i Bjergene, Hulerne og Klippeborgene.

And the hand of Midian prevailed over Israel; and because of the Midianites the children of Israel made for themselves the passes which are in the mountains, and the caves, and the strongholds.

3 Hver Gang Israelitterne havde sået, kom Midjaniterne, Amalekiterne og Østens Stammer og drog op imod dem

And it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the 'Amalekites, and the children of the east, and they went up against them;

4 og lejrede sig imod dem, ødelagde Jordens Afgrøde lige til Egnen om Gaza og levnede intet at leve af i Israel, ej heller Småkvæg, Hornkvæg eller Æsler;

And they encamped against them, and destroyed the products of the earth, as far as Gazzah, and they left no sustenance for Israel, neither lamb, nor ox, nor ass.

5 thi de drog op med deres Hjorde og Telte og kom talrige som Græshopper, så hverken de selv eller deres Kameler kunde tælles, og de trængte ind i Landet for at hærge det.

For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and came as locusts in multitude; and both they and their camels were without number; and they came into the land to destroy it.

6 Således blev Israel rent forarmet ved Midjaniternes indfald, og Israelitterne råbte til HERREN.

And Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel cried unto the Lord.

7 Men da Israelitterne råbte til HERREN over Midjaniterne,

And it came to pass, when the children of Israel had cried unto the Lord because of the Midianites,

8 sendte han en Profet til dem, og denne sagde til dem: "Så siger HERREN, Israels Gud: Jeg førte eder op fra Ægypten, jeg førte eder ud af Trællehuset,

That the Lord sent a prophet unto the children of Israel, and he said unto them, Thus hath said the Lord the God of Israel, I led you forth out of Egypt, and brought you out of the house of slavery;

9 jeg friede eder af Ægyptens Hånd og af deres Hånd, der trængte eder, og jeg drev dem bort foran eder og gav eder deres Land.

And I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all that oppressed you, and I drove them out from before you, and gave you their land;

10 Og jeg sagde til eder: Jeg er HERREN eders Gud; frygt ikke Amoriternes Guder, i hvis Land I bor! Men I adlød ikke min Røst!"

And I said unto you, I am the Lord your God: ye shall not fear the gods of the Emorites, in whose land ye dwell; but ye have not obeyed my voice.

11 Da kom HERRENs Engel og satte sig under Egen i Ofra, som tilhørte Abiezriten Joasj, medens hans Søn Gideon var ved at tærske Hvede i Vinpersen for at have den i Sikkerhed for Midjaniterne.

And there came an angel of the Lord, and sat down under the oak which was in 'Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abi'ezrite; and Gid'on his son was beating out wheat in the wine-press, to hide it from the Midianites.

12 HERRENs Engel viste sig for ham og sagde til ham: "HERREN er med dig, stærke Kriger!"

And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him, and said unto him, The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valor.

13 Men Gideon svarede ham: "Ak, Herre! Hvis HERREN er med os, hvorledes er da alt dette kommet over os? Og hvad er der blevet af alle hans Undergerninger, som vore Fædre fortalte os om, idet de sagde: Førte HERREN os ikke ud af Ægypten? Nu har HERREN forstødt os og givet os i Midjans Hånd!"

And Gid'on said unto him, Pardon, my lord, if the Lord be indeed with us, why then hath all this befallen us? and where are all his wonders of which our fathers have told us, saying, Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt! But now the Lord hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hand of Midian.

14 Da vendte HERREN sig til ham og sagde: "Drag hen i denne din Kraft, så skal du frelse Israel af Midjans Hånd; sandelig, jeg sender dig!"

And the Lord turned toward him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: behold, I have sent thee.

15 Men han svarede ham: "Ak, Herre! Hvorledes skal jeg kunne frelse Israel? Se, min Slægt er den ringeste i Manasse og jeg den yngste i mit Fædrenehus!"

And he said unto him, Pardon my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is the weakest in Menasseh, and I am the youngest of my father's house.

16 Han svarede ham: "HERREN vil være med dig, og du skal hugge Midjaniterne ned alle som een!"

And the Lord said unto him, Because I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.

17 Da sagde han til ham: "Hvis jeg har fundet Nåde for dine Øjne, så lad mig få et Tegn på, at det er dig, som taler med mig;

And he said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy eyes, then give me a sign that thou hast been speaking with me;

18 gå ikke herfra, før jeg kommer tilbage til dig og bringer dig min Gave og stiller den frem for dig!" Han svarede: "Jeg skal blive, til du kommer tilbage!"

Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I come unto thee, and bring forth my present, and set it before thee. And he said, I will tarry until thy return.

19 Gideon gik da ind og tillavede et Gedekid og usyrede Brød af en Efa Mel; Kødet lagde han i en Kurv, og Suppen hældte han i en Krukke og bar det ud til ham under Egen. Da han kom hen til ham med det,

And Gid'on went in, and made ready a kid, and unleavened cakes of an ephah of flour: the flesh he put in a basket, and the broth he put in a pot, and brought it out unto him under the oak, and presented it.

20 sagde Guds Engel til ham: "Tag Kødet og det usyrede Brød. Læg det på Klippen der og hæld Suppen ud derover!" Og han gjorde det.

And the angel of God said unto him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and the broth pour out. And he did so.

21 Da udrakte HERRENs Engel Spidsen af den Stav, han havde i Hånden, og rørte ved Kødet og Brødet. Og Ild slog op af Klippen og fortærede Kødet og Brødet; og HERRENs Engel forsvandt for hans Blik.

Then the angel of the Lord put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there rose up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. And the angel of the Lord departed out of his sight.

22 Gideon skønnede nu, at det havde været HERRENs Engel; og han sagde: "Ve, Herre, HERRE, jeg har jo set HERRENs Engel Ansigt til Ansigt!"

And when Gid'on perceived that it was an angel of the Lord, Gid'on said, Alas, O Lord Eternal! because I have surely seen an angel of the Lord face to face.

23 Men HERREN sagde til ham: "Fred være med dig! Frygt ikke, du skal ikke dø!"

And the Lord said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die.

24 Da byggede Gideon HERREN et Alter der og kaldte det "HERREN er Fred"; det står endnu den Dag i Dag i Abiezriternes Ofra.

And Gid'on built there an altar unto the Lord, and called it Adonay-shalom [[the Eternal of Peace: ]] unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abi'ezrites.

25 Samme Nat sagde HERREN til ham: "Tag ti af dine Trælle og en syvårs Tyr; nedbryd din Faders Ba'alsalter og hug Asjerastøtten om, som står derved;

And it came to pass in the same night, that the Lord said unto him, Take thy father's young bullock, and the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal which belongeth to thy father, and the grove that is around it shalt thou cut down.

26 byg så af Stensætningen HERREN din Gud et Alter på Toppen af Klippen her og tag Tyren og brænd den som Brændoffer med Træet af den omhuggede Asjerastøtte!"

And build an altar unto the Lord thy God upon the top of this rock, on the level place, and take the second bullock, and offer [it as] a burnt-sacrifice with the wood of the grove which thou shalt cut down.

27 Gideon tog da ti af sine Trælle og gjorde, som HERREN bød ham; men han gjorde det om Natten, thi af Frygt for sin Familie og sine Bysbørn turde han ikke gøre det om Dagen.

And Gid'on took ten men of his servants, and did as the Lord had spoken unto him; but it came to pass, because he feared his father's household, and the men of the city, to do it by day, that he did it by night.

28 Da Byens Folk næste Morgen tidlig så Ba'alsalteret nedbrudt, Asjerastøtten ved Siden af hugget om og Tyren ofret på det nybyggede Alter,

And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was overthrown, and the grove that was around it was cut down, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar which had been built.

29 sagde de til hverandre: "Hvem mon der har gjort det?" Og da de spurgte sig for og foretog en Undersøgelse, blev der sagt, at det var Gideon, Joasjs Søn.

And they said one to another, Who hath done this thing? And they inquired and searched, and then said, Gid'on the son of Joash hath done this thing.

30 Og Byens Folk sagde til Joasj: "Udlever din Søn, for at han kan lide Døden, thi han har nedbrudt Ba'alsalteret og omhugget Asjerastøtten ved Siden af!"

Thereupon said the men of the city unto Joash, Bring out thy son, that he may die; because he hath overthrown the altar of Baal, and because he hath cut down the grove that was around it.

31 Men Joasj svarede alle dem, der stod omkring ham: "Vil I virkelig stride for Ba'al eller hjælpe ham? Den, der strider for ham, skal dø inden i Morgen! Er han Gud, så lad ham stride for sig selv, siden hans Alter er nedbrudt!"

But Joash said unto all that stood around him, Will ye indeed contend for Baal? will ye assist him? he that will contend for him, shall be put to death; [wait] until morning: if he be a god, let him contend for himself, because one hath overthrown his altar.

32 Ved den Lejlighed fik Gideon Navnet Jerubba'al, idet man sagde: "Lad Ba'al stride med ham, siden han har nedbrudt hans Alter!"

And the people called him on that day Yerubba'al, saying, Let Baal contend against him, because he hath overthrown his altar.

33 Alle Midjaniterne, Amalekiterne og Østens Stammer sluttede sig sammen, satte over Jordan og slog Lejr på Jizre'elsletten.

And all the Midianites and 'Amalekites and the children of the east assembled together, and went over and encamped in the valley of Yizre'el.

34 Da iklædte HERRENs Ånd sig Gideon, og han stødte i Hornet; og Abiezriterne fylkede sig om ham.

But the Spirit of the Lord endued Gid'on, and he blew the cornet: and Abi'ezer assembled and followed him.

35 Og da han sendte Bud ud i hele Manasse, fylkede de sig også om ham; og han sendte Bud ud i Aser, Zebulon og Naftali, og de drog op før at møde Fjenderne.

And he sent messengers throughout all Menasseh, who also assembled and followed him; and he sent messengers through Asher, and through Zebulun, and through Naphtali, and they came up to meet them.

36 Da sagde Gideon til Gud: "Hvis du vil frelse Israel ved min Hånd, som du har lovet,

And Gid'on said unto God, If thou wilt save Israel by my hand, as thou hast spoken,

37 så lægger jeg nu dette Fåreskind på Tærskepladsen, og falder der så Dug alene på Skindet, medens Jorden ellers bliver ved at være tør, da ved jeg, at du vil frelse Israel ved min Hånd, som du har lovet."

Behold, I set up this fleece of wool in the threshing floor: if now there be dew on the fleece alone, and it be dry upon all the ground, then shall I know that thou wilt save Israel by my hand, as thou hast spoken.

38 Og det skete således. Da han næste Morgen vred Skindet, pressede han Dug af det, en hel Skålfuld Vand.

And it was so; and when he rose up early on the morrow, he squeezed the fleece together, and wrung dew out of the fleece, [making] a bowl full of water.

39 Men Gideon sagde til Gud: "Vredes ikke på mig, når jeg endnu denne ene Gang taler til dig, lad mig blot denne Gang endnu prøve med Skindet: Lad Skindet alene være tørt, medens der falder Dug på Jorden rundt om!"

And Gid'on said unto God, Let not thy anger be kindled against me, and I will speak but this once [more]; let me have a proof, I pray thee, but this once more with the fleece; let it, I pray, be dry upon the fleece alone, and upon all the ground let there be dew.

40 Da gjorde Gud således om Natten: Skindet alene var ført, men der faldt Dug på Jorden rundt om.

And God did so that night; and it was dry upon the fleece alone, and on all the ground there was dew.