< Judges 6 >

1 The Israelites did what was evil in the Lord's sight. So the Lord handed them over to the Midianites for seven years.
Men da Israeliterne gjorde, hvad der var ondt i HERRENS Øjne, gav han dem syv Aar i Midjans Haand.
2 The Midianite oppression was so great that because of them the Israelites made themselves hiding places in mountains, caves, and fortifications.
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 planted their crops, the Midianites, Amalekites, and other peoples from the east would come and attack them.
Hver Gang Israeliterne havde saaet, kom Midjaniterne, Amalekiterne og Østens Stammer og drog op imod dem
4 They would set up their camps and destroy the country's crops as far away as Gaza. They didn't leave anything to eat in the whole of Israel, and they took for themselves all the sheep, cattle, and 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 They arrived in huge numbers with their livestock and tents like swarms of locusts, with so many camels they couldn't be counted. They invaded the land to completely devastate 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 The Israelites were made desperately poor by the Midianites and they called out to the Lord for help.
Saaledes blev Israel rent forarmet ved Midjaniternes indfald, og Israeliterne raabte til HERREN.
7 When the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help because of the Midianites,
Men da Israeliterne raabte til HERREN over Midjaniterne,
8 the Lord sent the Israelites a prophet. He told them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I brought you out of Egypt; I led you out from the place where you were slaves.
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 saved you from the power of the Egyptians and from everyone who oppressed you. I expelled them before you and gave their land to you.
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 I warned you: I am the Lord your God. You must not worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you're now living.’ But you didn't listen to 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 The angel of the Lord came and sat under the oak tree in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite. His son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress there 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 The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, “The Lord is with you, great man of courage!”
HERRENS Engel viste sig for ham og sagde til ham: »HERREN er med dig, stærke Kriger!«
13 “Excuse me, my lord, but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us?” Gideon replied. “Where are all his wonderful miracles that our forefathers reminded us about when they said, ‘Wasn't it the Lord who led us out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has given up on us and has handed us over to the Midianites.”
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 that you have and save Israel from the Midianites. Aren't I the one 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 “Excuse me, my lord, but how can I save Israel?” Gideon replied. “My family is the least important of the tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least important person of that family!”
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 “I will be with you,” the Lord told him. “You will defeat the Midianites as if they were just one man.”
Han svarede ham: »HERREN vil være med dig, og du skal hugge Midjaniterne ned alle som een!«
17 “Please, Lord, if you think well of me, give me a sign that it's really you telling me this,” Gideon asked.
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 “Don't leave until I come back and present my offering to you.” “I will remain here until you return,” he replied.
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 Gideon went and cooked a young goat, and baked some unleavened bread from an ephah of flour. He put the meat in a basket and the broth in a pot. He carried them out and presented them to the angel under the oak tree.
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 The angel of God told him, “Place the meat and the unleavened bread on this rock and pour the broth over them.” So Gideon did.
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 The angel of the Lord held out the staff he was holding and touched the meat and unleavened bread with the tip. Fire flamed from the rock and burned up the meat and unleavened bread. Then the angel vanished.
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 cried out, “Oh no, Lord God! I've 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 told him, “Peace! Don't worry, you're not going to 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.” It's still there today, 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 That night the Lord told Gideon, “Take your father's bull and a second bull seven years old, and tear down your father's altar of 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 an altar to the Lord your God in the proper way on hilltop. Using the wood of the Asherah pole you cut down as firewood, take the second bull and present 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 Gideon accompanied by ten of his servants did what the Lord had told him. However, because he was afraid of his family and the people of the town, he did it during the night rather than in the day.
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 Early in the morning when the people of the town got up, they saw that the altar of Baal had been torn down and the Asherah pole beside it had been cut down, with the second bull sacrificed on the altar that had just been built.
Da Byens Folk næste Morgen tidlig saa Ba'alsalteret nedbrudt, Asjerastøtten ved Siden af hugget om og Tyren ofret paa det nybyggede Alter,
29 They asked one another, “Who did this?” They made inquiries and 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 “Hand over your son,” the people of the town ordered Joash. “He must die, because he has torn down the altar of Baal 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 Joash replied to all those confronting him, “Are you arguing on Baal's behalf? Do you have to save him? Anyone who argues for him will be put to death by morning! If he is a god let him fight for himself against those who tore 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 That day Gideon was called Jerub-baal, which means “Let Baal fight with him,” because he had torn down his 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 All the Midianites, Amalekites, and other peoples of the East gathered together and crossed over the Jordan. They 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 The Spirit of the Lord came on Gideon, and he blew the trumpet, calling Abiezrites to join him.
Da iklædte HERRENS Aand sig Gideon, og han stødte i Hornet; og Abiezriterne fylkede sig om ham.
35 He sent messengers through the whole territory of Manasseh, calling them to join him, and also to Asher, Zebulun and Naphtali, so they also came and joined the others.
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 Gideon said to God, “If you will save Israel through me as you promised,
Da sagde Gideon til Gud: »Hvis du vil frelse Israel ved min Haand, som du har lovet,
37 then look—I will put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If the fleece is wet with dew but the ground is dry, then I will know that you are going to save Israel through me as you promised.”
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 That's what happened. When Gideon got up early the next morning, he pressed on the fleece and squeezed out the dew, enough water to fill a bowl.
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, “Please don't get cross with me. Just let me make one more request. Let me do one more test with the fleece. This time let the fleece be dry and the whole 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 That night God did exactly that. The fleece alone was dry and the whole ground was covered with dew.
Da gjorde Gud saaledes om Natten: Skindet alene var ført, men der faldt Dug paa Jorden rundt om.

< Judges 6 >