Judges 8

1 And the men of Ephraim came and said to him, Why did you not send for us when you went to war against Midian? And they said sharp and angry words to him.

And the men of Effraym seiden to hym, What is this thing, which thou woldist do, that thou clepidist not vs, whanne thou yedist to batel ayens Madian? And thei chidden strongli, and almest diden violence.

2 And he said to them, What have I done in comparison with you? Is not that which Ephraim took up after the grape-cutting better than all the grapes which Abiezer got in from the grape-cutting?

To whiche he answeride, `What sotheli siche thing myyte Y do, what maner thing ye diden? Whethir a reisyn of Effraym is not betere than the vindagis of Abiezer?

3 God has given into your hands the chiefs of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb; what have I been able to do in comparison with you? And when he said this, their feeling about him became kinder.

And the Lord bitook in to youre hondis the princes of Madian, Oreb and Zeb. What sich thing myyte Y do, what maner thing ye diden? And whanne he hadde spoke this thing, the spirit of hem restide, bi which thei bolneden ayens hym.

4 Then Gideon came to Jordan and went over it with his three hundred, overcome with weariness and in need of food.

And whanne Gedeon hadde come to Jordan, he passide it with thre hundrid men, that weren with hym; and for weerynesse thei myyten not pursue hem that fledden.

5 And he said to the men of Succoth, Give bread cakes to my people, for they are overcome with weariness, and I am going on after Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian.

And he seide to the men of Socoth, Y biseche, yyue ye looues to the puple, which is with me; for thei failiden greetli, that we moun pursue Zebee and Salmana, kyngis of Madian.

6 But the chiefs of Succoth said, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna even now in your hand that we are to give bread to your army?

The princes of Socoth answeriden in scorne, In hap the pawmes of the hondis of Zebee and of Salmana ben in thin hond, and therfor thou axist, that we yyue looues to thin oost.

7 Then Gideon said, Because of this, when the Lord has given Zebah and Zalmunna into my hands, I will have you stretched on a bed of thorns of the waste land and on sharp stems, and have you crushed as grain is crushed on a grain-floor.

To whiche he seide, Therfor, whanne the Lord schal bitake Zebee and Salmana in to myn hondis, and whanne Y schal turne ayen ouercomere in pees, Y schal to-reende youre fleischis with the thornes and breris of deseert.

8 So he went up from there to Penuel and made the same request to the men of Penuel; but they gave him the same answer as the men of Succoth had given.

And he stiede fro thennus, and cam in to Phanuel; and he spak lijk thingis to men of that place, to whom also thei answeriden, as the men of Socoth hadden answerid.

9 So he said to the men of Penuel, When I come back in peace, I will have this tower broken down.

And so he seide to hem, Whanne Y schal turne ayen ouercomere in pees, Y schal distrie this tour.

10 Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor and their armies with them, about fifteen thousand men, those of all the army of the children of the east who were still living; for a hundred and twenty thousand of their swordsmen had been put to death.

Forsothe Zebee and Salmana restiden with al her oost; for fiftene thousynde men leften of alle the cumpenyes of the `puplis of the eest, whanne an hundrid and twenti thousynde of `fiyteris and of men drawynge out swerd weren slayn.

11 And Gideon went up by the way used by the people living in tents on the east of Nobah and Jogbehah, and made an attack on the army when they had no thought of danger.

And Gedeon stiede bi the weye of hem that dwelliden in tabernaclis at the eest coost of Nobe and of Lethoa, and smoot the `tentis of enemyes, that weren sikur, and supposiden not ony thing of aduersite.

12 And Zebah and Zalmunna went in flight; and he went after them, and took the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and put all the army to the curse.

And Zebee and Salmana fledden, whiche Gedeon pursuede and took, whanne al `the oost of hem was disturblid.

13 Then Gideon, the son of Joash, went back from the fight:

And he turnede ayen fro batel bifor the `risyng of the sunne,

14 And taking prisoner a young man of the people of Succoth, he got from him, in answer to his questions, a list of the chiefs of Succoth and the responsible men, seventy-seven men.

and took a child of the men of Socoth; and he axide hym the names of the princes and eldere men of Socoth; and he descryuede seuene and seuenti men in noumbre.

15 So he came to the men of Succoth and said, Here are Zebah and Zalmunna, on account of whom you made sport of me, saying, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna even now in your hand, that we are to give bread to your army who are overcome with weariness?

And he cam to Socoth, and seide to hem, Lo Zebee and Salmana! of whiche ye vpbreideden me, and seiden, In hap the hondis of Zebee and of Salmana ben in thin hondis, and therfor thou axist, that we yyue looues to men, that ben weeri and failiden.

16 Then he took the responsible men of the town and had them crushed on a bed of thorns and sharp stems.

Therfor Gedeon took the eldere men of the citee, and thornes and breris of deseert, and he to-rente with tho, and al to-brak the men of Socoth; also he destriede the tour of Phanuel,

17 And he had the tower of Penuel broken down and the men of the town put to death.

whanne the dwelleris of the citee weren slayn.

18 Then he said to Zebah and Zalmunna, Where are the men whom you put to death at Tabor? And they gave answer, As you are, so were they; every one of them was like a king's son.

And he seide to Zebee and Salmana, What maner men weren thei, whiche ye killiden in Thabor? Whiche answeriden, Thei weren lijk thee, and oon of hem was as the sone of a kyng.

19 And he said, They were my brothers, my mother's sons: by the life of the Lord, if you had kept them safe, I would not put you to death.

To whiche he seide, Thei weren my britheren, the sones of my modir; the Lord lyueth, if ye hadden saued hem, Y `nolde sle you.

20 Then he said to Jether, his oldest son, Up! Put them to death. But the boy did not take out his sword, fearing because he was still a boy.

And he seide to Jepther, his firste gendrid sone, Rise thou, and sle hem. Which drow not swerd; for he dredde, for he was yit a child.

21 Then Zebah and Zalmunna said, Up! Put an end to us yourself: for you have a man's strength. Then Gideon got up and put Zebah and Zalmunna to death and took the ornaments which were on their camels' necks.

And Zebee and Salmana seiden, Ryse thou, and falle on vs; for thou art bi the age and strengthe of man. Gedeon roos, and killide Zebee and Salmana, and took the ournementis, and bellis, with whiche the neckis of kyngis camels ben wont to be maad fair.

22 Then the men of Israel said to Gideon, Be our ruler, you and your son and your son's son after him; for you have been our saviour from the hands of Midian.

And alle the men of Israel seiden to Gedeon, Be thou lord of vs, thou, and thi sone, and the sone of thi sone; for thou deliueridist vs fro the hond of Madian.

23 But Gideon said to them, I will not be a ruler over you, and my son will not be a ruler over you: it is the Lord who will be ruler over you.

To whiche he seide, Y schal not be lord of you, nethir my sone schal be lord on you, but the Lord schal be lord.

24 Then Gideon said to them, I have a request to make to you; let every man give me the ear-rings he has taken. (For they had gold ear-rings, because they were Ishmaelites.)

And he seide to hem, Y axe oon axyng of you, yyue ye to me the eere ryngis of youre prey; for Ismaelitis weren wont to haue goldun eere ryngis.

25 And they gave answer, We will gladly give them. So they put down a robe, every man dropping into it the ear-rings he had taken.

Whiche answeriden, We schulen yyue moost gladli. And thei spredden forth a mentil on the erthe, and castiden forth therynne `eere ryngis of the prey;

26 The weight of the gold ear-rings which he got from them was one thousand, seven hundred shekels of gold; in addition to the moon-ornaments and jewels and the purple robes which were on the kings of Midian, and the chains on their camels' necks.

and the weiyte of `eere ryngis axid was a thousynde and seuene hundrid siclis of gold, with out ournementis and brochis and cloth of purpur, whiche the kyngis of Madian weren wont to vse, and outakun goldun bies of camels.

27 And Gideon made an ephod from them and put it up in his town Ophrah; and all Israel went after it there and were false to the Lord; and it became a cause of sin to Gideon and his house.

And Gedeon made therof ephot, that is, a preestis cloth, `and propir cloth of the hiyeste preest, and he puttide it in his citee Ephra; and al Israel diden fornycacioun, `that is ydolatrye, ther ynne; and it was maad to Gedeon and to al his hows in to fallyng.

28 So Midian was broken before the children of Israel and the Midianites never got back their strength. And the land had peace for forty years, in the days of Gideon.

Forsothe Madian was maad low bifor the sones of Israel, and thei myyten no more reise nollis; but the lond restide fourti yeer, in whiche Gedeon was souereyn.

29 And Jerubbaal, the son of Joash, went back to his house and was living there.

And so Jerobaal, sone of Joas, yede, and dwellide in his hows;

30 Gideon had seventy sons, the offspring of his body; for he had a number of wives.

and he hadde seuenti sones, that yeden out of his thiy, for he hadde many wyues.

31 And the servant-wife he had in Shechem had a son by him, to whom he gave the name Abimelech.

Forsothe a concubyn, `that is, secoundarie wijf, of hym, whom he hadde in Sichem, gendride to hym a sone, Abymelech bi name.

32 And Gideon, the son of Joash, came to his end when he was very old, and his body was put in the resting-place of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

And Gedeon, sone of Joas, diede in good elde, and was biried in the sepulcre of Joas, his fadir, in Ephra, of the meynee of Ezri.

33 And after the death of Gideon, the children of Israel again went after the gods of Canaan and were false to the Lord, and made Baal-berith their god.

Forsothe aftir that Gedeon was deed, the sones of Israel turneden awey `fro Goddis religioun, and diden fornycacioun, `that is, idolatrie, with Baalym; and thei smytiden boond of pees with Baal, that he schulde be to hem in to God,

34 And the children of Israel did not keep in their minds the Lord their God, who had been their saviour from all their haters on every side;

nether thei hadden mynde of her Lord God, that delyuerede hem fro the hond of alle her enemyes `bi cumpas;

35 And they were not kind to the house of Jerubbaal, that is, Gideon, in reward for all the good he had done to Israel.

nether thei diden merci with the hous of Gerobaal Gedeon, bi alle the goodis whiche he `hadde do to Israel.