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,

The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, and he gave them into the hand of Midian for 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.

The power of Midian oppressed Israel. Because of Midian, the people of Israel made shelters for themselves from the dens in the hills, 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,

It happened that any time the Israelites planted their crops, the Midianites and the Amalekites and the people from the east would attack the Israelites.

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.

They would set up their army on the land and destroy the crops, all the way to Gaza. They would leave no food in Israel, and no sheep, nor cattle or donkeys.

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.

Whenever they and their livestock and tents came up, they would come as a swarm of locusts, and it was impossible to count either the people or their camels. They invaded the land in order to destroy it.

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

Midian weakened the Israelites so severely that the people of Israel called out to Yahweh.

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

When the people of Israel called out to Yahweh 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.

Yahweh sent a prophet to the people of Israel. The prophet said to them, “This is what Yahweh, the God of Israel, says: 'I brought you up from Egypt; I brought you out of the house of slavery.

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.

I rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians, and from the hand of all who were oppressing you. I drove them out before you, and I 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.”

I said to you, “I am Yahweh your God; I commanded you not to worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living.” But you have not obeyed 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.

Now the angel of Yahweh came and sat under the oak in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash (the Abiezrite), while Gideon, Joash's son, was separating out the wheat by beating it on the floor, 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 Yahweh appeared to him and said to him, “Yahweh is with you, you strong 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 master, if Yahweh is with us, why then has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers told us about, when they said, 'Did not Yahweh bring us up from Egypt?' But now Yahweh has abandoned us and gave 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?”

Yahweh looked at him and said, “Go in the strength you already have. Deliver Israel from the hand of Midian. Have I not 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.”

Gideon said to him, “Please, Lord, how can I deliver Israel? See, my family is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least important 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.”

Yahweh said to him, “I will be with you, and you will defeat the entire Midianite army 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.

Gideon said to him, “If you are pleased with me, then give me a sign that it is you who is speaking to 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 leave here, until I come to you and bring out my gift and set it before you.” Yahweh said, “I will wait until you return.”

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 and prepared a young goat and from an ephah of flour he made unleavened bread. He put the meat in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot and brought them to him under the oak tree, and presented them.

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 bread and put them on this rock, and pour out the broth over them.” That is what Gideon did.

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 Yahweh reached out with the end of the staff in his hand. With it he touched the flesh and the unleavened bread; a fire went up out of the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened bread. Then the angel of Yahweh went away and Gideon could no longer see him.

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 understood that this was the angel of Yahweh. Gideon said, “Ah, Lord Yahweh! For I have seen the angel of Yahweh face to face!”

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

Yahweh said to him, “Peace to you! Do not be afraid, you will 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.

So Gideon built an altar there to Yahweh. He called it, “Yahweh is Peace.” To this day it still stands at Ophrah of the clan of Abiezer.

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.

That night Yahweh said to him, “Take your father's bull, and a second bull that is seven years old, and pull apart the altar of Baal that belongs to your father, 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.”

Build an altar to Yahweh your God on the top of this place of refuge, and construct it the correct way. Offer the second bull as a burnt offering, using the wood from the Asherah that you 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.

So Gideon took ten of his servants and did as Yahweh had told him. But because he was too afraid of his father's household and the men of the town to do it during the day, he did it at 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.

In the morning when the men of the town got up, the altar of Baal was broken down, and the Asherah that was beside it was cut down, and the second bull had been offered on the altar that had been 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.”

The men of the city said to one another, “Who has done this?” When they talked with others and searched for answers, they said, “Gideon 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 town said to Joash, “Bring out your son so that he may be put to death, because he pulled apart the altar of Baal, and because he cut down the Asherah beside 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 opposed him, “Will you plead the case for Baal? Will you save him? Whoever pleads the case for him, let him be put to death while it is still morning. If Baal is a god, let him defend himself when someone pulls his altar apart.”

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 they called Gideon “Jerub Baal,” because he said, “Let Baal defend himself against him,” because Gideon broke down Baal's 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.

Now all the Midianites, the Amalekites, and the people of the east gathered together. They crossed over the Jordan 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 Yahweh came over Gideon. Gideon blew a trumpet, calling out the clan of Abiezer, so they might follow 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 all throughout Manasseh, and they too, were called out to follow him. He also sent messengers to Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, and they went up to meet him.

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 intend to use me to save Israel, as you have said—

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 am putting a woolen fleece on the threshing floor. If there is dew only on the fleece, and it is dry on all the ground, then I will know that you will use me to save Israel, as you said.”

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.

This is what happened—Gideon rose early the next morning, he pressed the fleece together, and wrung out the dew from the fleece, enough to fill a bowl with 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.”

Then Gideon said to God, “Do not be angry with me, I will speak one more time. Please allow me one more test using the fleece. This time make the fleece dry, and let there be dew on all the ground around it.”

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

God did what he asked for that night. The fleece was dry, and there was dew on all the ground around it.