Judges 6

1 Again the Israelites did evil in the sight of the LORD; so He delivered them into the hand of Midian for seven years,

Men da Israeliterne gjorde, hvad der var ondt i HERRENS Øjne, gav han dem syv Aar i Midjans Haand.

2 and the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. Because of the Midianites, the Israelites prepared shelters for themselves in the mountains, caves, and strongholds.

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

3 Whenever the Israelites would plant their crops, the Midianites, Amalekites, and other people of the east would come up and invade them,

Hver Gang Israeliterne havde saaet, kom Midjaniterne, Amalekiterne og Østens Stammer og drog op imod dem

4 encamping against them as far as Gaza and destroying the produce of the land. They left Israel with no sustenance, neither sheep nor oxen nor donkeys.

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

5 For the Midianites came with their livestock and their tents like a great swarm of locusts. They and their camels were innumerable, and they entered the land to ravage it.

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

6 Israel was greatly impoverished by Midian, and the Israelites cried out to the LORD.

Saaledes blev Israel rent forarmet ved Midjaniternes indfald, og Israeliterne raabte til HERREN.

7 Now when the Israelites cried out to the LORD because of Midian,

Men da Israeliterne raabte til HERREN over Midjaniterne,

8 He sent them a prophet, who told them, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: I brought you up out of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

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

9 I delivered you out of the hands of Egypt and all your oppressors. I drove them out before you and gave you their land.

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

10 And I said to you: ‘I am the LORD your God. You must not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell.’ But you did not obey Me.”

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!«

11 Then the angel of the LORD came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to hide it from the Midianites.

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.

12 And the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon and said, “The LORD is with you, O mighty man of valor.”

HERRENS Engel viste sig for ham og sagde til ham: »HERREN er med dig, stærke Kriger!«

13 “Please, my Lord,” Gideon replied, “if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? And where are all His wonders of which our fathers told us, saying, ‘Has not the LORD brought us up out of Egypt?’ But now the LORD has forsaken us and delivered us into the hand of Midian.”

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 Haand!«

14 The LORD turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel from the hand of Midian. Am I not sending you?”

Da vendte HERREN sig til ham og sagde: »Drag hen i denne din Kraft, saa skal du frelse Israel af Midjans Haand; sandelig, jeg sender dig!«

15 “Please, my Lord,” Gideon replied, “how can I save Israel? Indeed, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father’s house.”

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!«

16 “Surely I will be with you,” the LORD replied, “and you will strike down all the Midianites as one man.”

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

17 Gideon answered, “If I have found favor in Your sight, give me a sign that it is You speaking with me.

Da sagde han til ham: »Hvis jeg har fundet Naade for dine Øjne, saa lad mig faa et Tegn paa, at det er dig, som taler med mig;

18 Please do not depart from this place until I return to You. Let me bring my offering and set it before You.” And the LORD said, “I will stay until you return.”

gaa 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!«

19 So Gideon went in and prepared a young goat and unleavened bread and an ephah of flour. He placed the meat in a basket and the broth in a pot and brought them out to present to Him under the oak.

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,

20 And the angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened bread, lay them on this rock, and pour out the broth.” And Gideon did so.

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

21 Then the angel of the LORD extended the tip of the staff that was in his hand and touched the meat and the unleavened bread. And fire flared from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened bread. Then the angel of the LORD vanished from his sight.

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

22 When Gideon realized that it was the angel of the LORD, he said, “Oh no, Lord GOD! I have seen the angel of the LORD face to face!”

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

23 But the LORD said to him, “Peace be with you. Do not be afraid, for you will not die.”

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

24 So Gideon built an altar to the LORD there and called it The LORD Is Peace. To this day it stands in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

Da byggede Gideon HERREN et Alter der og kaldte det »HERREN er Fred«; det staar endnu den Dag i Dag i Abiezriternes Ofra.

25 On that very night the LORD said to Gideon, “Take your father’s young bull and a second bull seven years old, tear down your father’s altar to Baal, and cut down the Asherah pole beside it.

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

26 Then build a proper altar to the LORD your God on the top of this stronghold. And with the wood of the Asherah pole you cut down, take the second bull and offer it as a burnt offering.”

byg saa af Stensætningen HERREN din Gud et Alter paa Toppen af Klippen her og tag Tyren og brænd den som Brændoffer med Træet af den omhuggede Asjerastøtte!«

27 So Gideon took ten of his servants and did as the LORD had told him. But because he was too afraid of his father’s household and the men of the city, he did it by night rather than in the daytime.

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.

28 When the men of the city got up in the morning, there was Baal’s altar torn down, with the Asherah pole cut down beside it and the second bull offered up on the newly built altar.

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

29 “Who did this?” they said to one another. And after they had investigated thoroughly, they were told, “Gideon son of Joash did it.”

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, Joasj's Søn.

30 Then the men of the city said to Joash, “Bring out your son. He must die, because he has torn down Baal’s altar and cut down the Asherah pole beside it.”

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!«

31 But Joash said to all who stood against him, “Are you contending for Baal? Are you trying to save him? Whoever pleads his case will be put to death by morning! If Baal is a god, let him contend for himself with the one who has torn down his altar.”

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, saa lad ham stride for sig selv, siden hans Alter er nedbrudt!«

32 So on that day Gideon was called Jerubbaal, that is to say, “Let Baal contend with him,” because he had torn down Baal’s altar.

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

33 Then all the Midianites, Amalekites, and other people of the east gathered together, crossed over the Jordan, and camped in the Valley of Jezreel.

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

34 So the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, who blew the ram’s horn and rallied the Abiezrites behind him.

Da iklædte HERRENS Aand sig Gideon, og han stødte i Hornet; og Abiezriterne fylkede sig om ham.

35 Calling them to arms, Gideon sent messengers throughout Manasseh, as well as Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, so that they came up to meet him.

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

36 Then Gideon said to God, “If You are going to save Israel by my hand, as You have said,

Da sagde Gideon til Gud: »Hvis du vil frelse Israel ved min Haand, som du har lovet,

37 then behold, I will place a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew only on the fleece and all the ground is dry, then I will know that You are going to save Israel by my hand, as You have said.”

saa lægger jeg nu dette Faareskind paa Tærskepladsen, og falder der saa Dug alene paa Skindet, medens Jorden ellers bliver ved at være tør, da ved jeg, at du vil frelse Israel ved min Haand, som du har lovet.«

38 And that is what happened. When Gideon arose the next morning, he squeezed the fleece and wrung out the dew—a bowlful of water.

Og det skete saaledes. Da han næste Morgen vred Skindet, pressede han Dug af det, en hel Skaalfuld Vand.

39 Then Gideon said to God, “Do not be angry with me; let me speak one more time. Please allow me one more test with the fleece. This time let it be dry, and the ground covered with dew.”

Men Gideon sagde til Gud: »Vredes ikke paa mig, naar 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 paa Jorden rundt om!«

40 And that night God did so. Only the fleece was dry, and dew covered the ground.

Da gjorde Gud saaledes om Natten: Skindet alene var ført, men der faldt Dug paa Jorden rundt om.