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,

And the children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of YHWH, and YHWH delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years.

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.

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

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

And so it was, when Israel had sown, that Midian, Amalek, and the Kedemites would come up against them.

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.

And they camped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, as far as Gaza, and they left no sustenance in Israel, as well as sheep, or ox, or donkey.

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.

For they came up with their livestock and their tents and their camels. They would come in like locusts in number, and they were innumerable. And they came into the land to ravage it.

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

Israel was brought very low because of Midian; and the children of Israel cried to YHWH.

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

It happened, when the children of Israel cried to YHWH because of Midian,

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.

that YHWH sent a prophet to the children of Israel, and he said to them, "Thus says YHWH, the God of Israel, 'I brought you up from the land of Egypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage;

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.

and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out from before you, and gave you their 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.”

and I said to you, "I am YHWH your God; you shall not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell." But you have not listened to my voice.'"

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.

The angel of YHWH came, and sat under the oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained to Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.

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

The angel of YHWH appeared to him, and said to him, "YHWH is with you, mighty warrior."

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.”

Gideon said to him, "Oh, my lord, if YHWH is with us, why then has all this happened to us? Where are all his wondrous works which our fathers told us of, saying, 'Didn't YHWH bring us up from Egypt?' But now YHWH has cast us off, and delivered us into the hand of Midian."

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?”

And YHWH looked at him, and said, "Go in this strength of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian. Look, haven't I sent you?"

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.”

He said to him, "O Lord, how shall I save Israel? Look, my family is the poorest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house."

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

YHWH said to him, "Surely I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man."

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

He said to him, "If now I have found favor in your sight, then show me a sign that it is you who talk with me.

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.”

Please do not go away, until I come to you, and bring out my present, and lay it before you." He said, "I will wait until you come back."

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 went in, and made ready a kid, and unleavened cakes of an ephah of meal: the meat he put in a basket, and he 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 meat and the unleavened bread, lay them on this rock, and pour out the broth.” And Gideon did so.

The angel of God said to him, "Take the meat and the unleavened cakes, and lay them on this rock, and pour out the broth." And he did so.

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.

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

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 saw that he was the angel of YHWH; and Gideon said, "Alas, Lord YHWH. Because I have seen the angel of YHWH face to face."

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

YHWH said to him, "Peace be to you. Do not be afraid. You shall not die."

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.

Then Gideon built an altar there to YHWH, and called it "YHWH is Peace." To this day it is still in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

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.

It happened the same night, that YHWH said to him, "Take your father's bull, even the second bull seven years old, and tear down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the Asherah that is beside it;

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.”

and build an altar to YHWH your God on the top of this stronghold, in the orderly manner, and take the second bull, and offer a burnt offering with the wood of the Asherah which you shall cut down."

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.

Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as YHWH had spoken to him: and it came about, because he feared his father's household and the men of the city, so that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.

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.

When the men of the city arose early in the morning, look, the altar of Baal was broken down, and the Asherah was cut down that was by it, and the second bull was offered on the altar that was built.

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

And they said to one another, "Who has done this thing?" 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. He must die, because he has torn down Baal’s altar and cut down the Asherah pole beside it.”

Then the men of the city said to Joash, "Bring out your son, that he may die, because he has broken down the altar of Baal, and because he has cut down the Asherah that was by it."

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.”

Joash said to all who stood against him, "Will you contend for Baal? Or will you save him? He who will contend for him, let him be put to death while it is yet morning: if he is a god, let him contend for himself, because someone has broken down his altar."

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.

Therefore on that day he named him Jerubbaal, saying, "Let Baal contend against him, because he has broken down his altar."

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.

Then all Midian and Amalek and the Kedemites assembled themselves together; and they crossed over, and camped in the Valley of Jezreel.

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

But the Spirit of YHWH came on Gideon; and he blew a trumpet; and Abiezer was gathered together after him.

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.

He sent messengers throughout all Manasseh; and they also were gathered together after 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 are going to save Israel by my hand, as You have said,

Gideon said to God, "If you will save Israel by my hand, as you have spoken,

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.”

look, I will 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 shall I know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you have spoken."

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.

It was so; for he rose up early on the next day, and pressed the fleece together, and wrung the dew out of the fleece, a bowl full of water.

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.”

Gideon said to God, "Do not let your anger be kindled against me, and I will speak but this once. Please let me make one more test with the fleece; let it now be dry only on the fleece, and on all the ground let there be dew."

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

God did so that night, for it was dry on the fleece only, and there was dew all over the ground.