Judges 6

1 And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years.

Men da Israelitterne gjorde, hvad der var ondt i HERRENS Øjne, gav han dem syv År i Midjans Hånd.

2 And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel: and because of the Midianites the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and caves, and strong holds.

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

3 And so it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children of the east, even they came up against them;

Hver Gang Israelitterne havde sået, kom Midjaniterne, Amalekiterne og Østens Stammer og drog op imod dem

4 And they encamped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, till you come unto Gaza, and left no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass.

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

5 For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and they came as grasshoppers for multitude; for both they and their camels were without number: and they entered into the land to destroy it.

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

6 And Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel cried unto the LORD.

Således blev Israel rent forarmet ved Midjaniternes indfald, og Israelitterne råbte til HERREN.

7 And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD because of the Midianites,

Men da Israelitterne råbte til HERREN over Midjaniterne,

8 That the LORD sent a prophet unto the children of Israel, which said unto them, Thus says the LORD God of Israel, I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage;

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

9 And I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all that oppressed you, and drove them out from before you, and gave you their land;

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

10 And I said unto you, I am the LORD your God; fear not the gods of the Amorites, in whose land all of you dwell: but all of you have not obeyed my voice.

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 And there came an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the 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 unto him, and said unto him, The LORD is with you, you mighty man of valour.

HERRENs Engel viste sig for ham og sagde til ham: "HERREN er med dig, stærke Kriger!"

13 And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt? but now the LORD has forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of 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 Hånd!"

14 And the LORD looked upon him, and said, Go in this your might, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent you?

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

15 And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least 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 And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.

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

17 And he said unto him, If now I have found grace in your sight, then show me a sign that you talk with me.

Da sagde han til ham: "Hvis jeg har fundet Nåde for dine Øjne, så lad mig få et Tegn på, at det er dig, som taler med mig;

18 Depart not behind, I pray you, until I come unto you, and bring forth my present, and set it before you. And he said, I will tarry until you come again.

gå 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 And Gideon went in, and made ready a kid, and unleavened cakes of an ephah of flour: the flesh he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot, and brought it out unto him under the oak, and presented it.

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 unto him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and pour out the broth. And he did so.

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

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

Da udrakte HERRENs Engel Spidsen af den Stav, han havde i Hånden, 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 And when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the LORD, Gideon said, Alas, O LORD God! for because I have seen an 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 And the LORD said unto him, Peace be unto you; fear not: you shall not die.

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

24 Then Gideon built an altar there unto the LORD, and called it Jehovahshalom: unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

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

25 And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto him, Take your father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the grove that is by it:

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

26 And build an altar unto the LORD your God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which you shall cut down.

byg så af Stensætningen HERREN din Gud et Alter på Toppen af Klippen her og tag Tyren og brænd den som Brændoffer med Træet af den omhuggede Asjerastøtte!"

27 Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had said unto him: and so it was, because he feared his father's household, and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.

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 And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar that was built.

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

29 And they said one to another, Who has done this thing? And when they enquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash has done this thing.

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, Joasjs Søn.

30 Then the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out your son, that he may die: because he has cast down the altar of Baal, and because he has cut down the grove that was by 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 And Joash said unto all that stood against him, Will all of you plead for Baal? will all of you save him? he that will plead for him, let him be put to death whilst it is yet morning: if he be a god, let him plead for himself, because one has cast 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, så lad ham stride for sig selv, siden hans Alter er nedbrudt!"

32 Therefore on that day he called him Jerubbaal, saying, Let Baal plead against him, because he has thrown 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 Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children of the east were gathered together, and went over, and pitched in the valley of Jezreel.

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

34 But the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet; and Abiezer was gathered after him.

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

35 And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh; who also was gathered after him: and he sent messengers unto Asher, and unto Zebulun, and unto Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.

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

36 And Gideon said unto God, If you will save Israel by mine hand, as you have said,

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

37 Behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the floor; and if the dew be on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the earth beside, then shall I know that you will save Israel by mine hand, as you have said.

så lægger jeg nu dette Fåreskind på Tærskepladsen, og falder der så Dug alene på Skindet, medens Jorden ellers bliver ved at være tør, da ved jeg, at du vil frelse Israel ved min Hånd, som du har lovet."

38 And it was so: for he rose up early on the next day, and thrust the fleece together, and wrung the dew out of the fleece, a bowl full of water.

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

39 And Gideon said unto God, Let not your anger be hot against me, and I will speak but this once: let me prove, I pray you, but this once with the fleece; let it now be dry only upon the fleece, and upon all the ground let there be dew.

Men Gideon sagde til Gud: "Vredes ikke på mig, når 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 på Jorden rundt om!"

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

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