Judges 8

1 And the men of Ephraim said unto him, Why hast thou served us thus, that thou calledst us not, when thou wentest to fight with Midian? And they did chide with him sharply.

Men Efraimiterne sagde til ham: »Hvorfor handler du saaledes over for os, at du ikke kaldte os til, da du drog i Kamp mod Midjaniterne?« Og de gik stærkt i Rette med ham.

2 And he said unto them, What have I now done in comparison of you? Is not the gleaning of the grapes of Ephraim better than the vintage of Abiezer?

Men han svarede dem: »Hvad er min Daad i Sammenligning med eders? Er ikke Efraims Efterhøst bedre end Abiezers Vinhøst?

3 God hath delivered into your hand the princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb: and what was I able to do in comparison of you? Then their anger was abated toward him, when he had said that.

I eders Haand gav Gud Midjaniternes Høvdinger Oreb og Ze'eb, hvad har jeg formaaet i Sammenligning med eder?« Og da han talte saaledes, lagde deres Vrede sig mod ham.

4 And Gideon came to Jordan, [and] passed over, he, and the three hundred men that were with him, faint, yet pursuing.

Da Gideon naaede Jordan, gik han og de 300 Mand, der var med ham, over, udmattede og sultne.

5 And he said unto the men of Succoth, Give, I pray you, loaves of bread unto the people that follow me; for they be faint, and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian.

Han sagde da til Folkene i Sukkot: »Giv Folkene, der følger mig, nogle Brød, thi de er udmattede, og jeg er i Færd med at forfølge Midjaniterkongerne Zeba og Zalmunna!«

6 And the princes of Succoth said, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in thine hand, that we should give bread unto thine army?

Men Høvedsmændene i Sukkot svarede: »Har du allerede faaet fat i Zeba og Zalmunna, siden vi skal give dine Folk Brød?«

7 And Gideon said: Therefore when the LORD hath delivered Zebah and Zalmunna into mine hand, then I will tear your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness and with briers.

Da sagde Gideon: »Til Gengæld skal jeg tærske eders Kroppe med Ørkentorne og Tidsler, naar HERREN har givet Zeba og Zalmunna i min Haand!«

8 And he went up thence to Penuel, and spake unto them in like manner: and the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had answered.

Saa drog han derfra til Penuel og sagde det samme til dem; og da Folkene i Penuel gav ham samme Svar som Folkene i Sukkot,

9 And he spake also unto the men of Penuel, saying, When I come again in peace, I will break down this tower.

tiltalte han dem paa lignende Maade og sagde: »Naar jeg kommer uskadt tilbage, vil jeg nedbryde Borgen her!«

10 Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor, and their hosts with them, about fifteen thousand men, all that were left of all the host of the children of the east: for there fell an hundred and twenty thousand men that drew sword.

Zeba og Zalmunna befandt sig imidlertid med deres Hær i Karkor, henved 15 000 Mand; det var alle dem, der var tilbage af Østens Stammers, Hær; de faldne udgjorde 120 000 vaabenføre Mænd.

11 And Gideon went up by the way of them that dwelt in tents on the east of Nobah and Jogbehah, and smote the host; for the host was secure.

Og Gideon drog op ad Teltboernes Vej østen for Noba og Jogbeha og slog Hæren, der ikke anede Uraad.

12 And Zebah and Zalmunna fled; and he pursued after them; and he took the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and discomfited all the host.

Zeba og Zalmunna flygtede, men han satte efter dem og fangede de to Midjaniterkonger Zeba og Zalmunna og slog hele Hæren med Rædsel.

13 And Gideon the son of Joash returned from the battle from the ascent of Heres.

Da Gideon, Joasj's Søn, vendte tilbage fra Kampen, fra Herespasset,

14 And he caught a young man of the men of Succoth, and inquired of him: and he described for him the princes of Succoth, and the elders thereof, seventy and seven men.

fik han fat i en ung Mand fra Sukkot og spurgte ham ud, og den unge Mand skrev Navnene paa Høvedsmændene og de Ældste i Sukkot op til ham, syv og halvfjerdsindstyve Mænd.

15 And he came unto the men of Succoth, and said, Behold Zebah and Zalmunna, concerning whom ye did taunt me, saying, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in thine hand, that we should give bread unto thy men that are weary?

Saa drog han til Folkene i Sukkot og sagde: »Se, her er Zeba og Zalmunna, som I haanede mig med, da I sagde: Har du allerede faaet fat i Zeba og Zalmunna, siden vi skal give dine udmattede Mænd Brød?«

16 And he took the elders of the city, and thorns of the wilderness and briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth.

Derpaa greb han Byens Ældste, tog Ørkentorne og Tidsler og tærskede Folkene i Sukkot med dem;

17 And he brake down the tower of Penuel, and slew the men of the city.

og Borgen i Penuel brød han ned og dræbte Folkene i Byen.

18 Then said he unto Zebah and Zalmunna, What manner of men were they whom ye slew at Tabor? And they answered, As thou art, so were they; each one resembled the children of a king.

Men til Zeba og Zalmunna sagde han: »Hvorledes var de Mænd, I ihjelslog ved Tabor?« De svarede: »De lignede dig, de saa begge ud som Kongesønner!«

19 And he said, They were my brethren, the sons of my mother: as the LORD liveth, if ye had saved them alive, I would not slay you.

Da sagde han: »Mine Brødre, min Moders Sønner var det! Saa sandt HERREN lever; havde I skaanet deres Liv, havde jeg ikke slaaet eder ihjel!«

20 And he said unto Jether his firstborn, Up, and slay them. But the youth drew not his sword: for he feared, because he was yet a youth.

Derpaa sagde han til sin førstefødte Søn Jeter: »Staa op og dræb dem!« Men den unge Mand drog ikke sit Sværd; han havde ikke Mod dertil, fordi han endnu var ung.

21 Then Zebah and Zalmunna said, Rise thou, and fall upon us: for as the man is, so is his strength. And Gideon arose, and slew Zebah and Zalmunna, and took the crescents that were on their camels’ necks.

Da sagde Zeba og Zalmunna: »Staa selv op og giv os Dødsstødet, thi som Manden saaledes hans Styrke!« Saa stod Gideon op og dræbte Zeba og Zalmunna. Og han tog de Halvmaaner, deres Kameler havde om Halsen.

22 Then the men of Israel said unto Gideon, Rule thou over us, both thou, and thy son, and thy son’s son also: for thou hast saved us out of the hand of Midian.

Derefter sagde Israeliterne til Gideon: »Vær vor Hersker, du selv og siden din Søn og din Sønnesøn, da du nu har frelst os af Midjaniternes Haand!«

23 And Gideon said unto them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you: the LORD shall rule over you.

Men Gideon svarede dem: »Hverken jeg eller min Søn vil herske over eder; HERREN skal herske over eder!«

24 And Gideon said unto them, I would desire a request of you, that ye would give me every man the earrings of his spoil. (For they had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.)

Derpaa sagde Gideon til dem: »Jeg har noget at bede eder om: Enhver af eder skal give mig de Ringe, der findes mellem hans Bytte!« Hine havde nemlig Guldringe, thi de var Ismaeliter.

25 And they answered, We will willingly give them. And they spread a garment, and did cast therein every man the earrings of his spoil.

De svarede: »Ja, vi vil gerne give dig dem!« Saa bredte han sin Kappe ud, og enhver af dem lagde de Ringe, der fandtes mellem hans Bytte, derpaa.

26 And the weight of the golden earrings that he requested was a thousand and seven hundred [shekels] of gold; beside the crescents, and the pendants, and the purple raiment that was on the kings of Midian, and beside the chains that were about their camels’ necks.

Vægten af Guldringene, som han havde bedt om, udgjorde 1700 Sekel Guld bortset fra Halvmaanerne, Ørenringene og Purpurklæderne, som Midjaniterkongerne bar, og Kæderne paa Kamelernes Halse.

27 And Gideon made an ephod thereof, and put it in his city, even in Ophrah: and all Israel went a whoring after it there: and it became a snare unto Gideon, and to his house.

Gideon lavede deraf en Efod, som han gav Plads i sin Fødeby Ofra; og alle Israeliterne bolede med den, og den blev Gideon og hans Hus en Snare.

28 So Midian was subdued before the children of Israel, and they lifted up their heads no more. And the land had rest forty years in the days of Gideon.

Saaledes bukkede Midjaniterne under for Israeliterne, og de rejste sig ikke mere; og Landet havde Ro i fyrretyve Aar, saa længe Gideon levede.

29 And Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his own house.

Og Jerubba'al, Joasj's Søn, begav sig til sit Hjem og opholdt sig der.

30 And Gideon had threescore and ten sons of his body begotten: for he had many wives.

Gideon havde halvfjerdsindstyve Sønner, der var avlede af ham, thi han havde mange Hustruer.

31 And his concubine that was in Shechem, she also bare him a son, and he called his name Abimelech.

Han havde en Medhustru i Sikem; hun fødte ham en Søn, som han gav Navnet Abimelek.

32 And Gideon the son of Joash died in a good old age, and was buried in the sepulchre of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

Gideon, Joasj's Søn, døde i en høj Alder og blev jordet i sin Fader Abiezriten Joasj's Grav i Ofra.

33 And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel turned again, and went a whoring after the Baalim, and made Baal-berith their god.

Men da Gideon var død, gav Israeliterne sig atter til at bole med Ba'alerne og gjorde Ba'al-Berit til deres Gud;

34 And the children of Israel remembered not the LORD their God, who had delivered them out of the hand of all their enemies on every side:

og Israeliterne kom ikke HERREN deres Gud i Hu, ham, som frelste dem fra alle deres Fjender, der omgav dem paa alle Kanter.

35 neither shewed they kindness to the house of Jerubbaal, [who is] Gideon, according to all the goodness which he had shewed unto Israel.

Og de handlede ikke vel mod Jerubba'als, Gideons, Hus, trods alt det gode, han havde gjort Israel.